AP Photo

A Guest Post — May 20, 2013

Note from Dan: The Irishman who wears a Panama hat writes for his blog, Wednesdays Wars. Below is his latest entry.

By Tom Callaghan

Our Republican friends think they have President Obama between a rock and a hard place on the issues of Benghazi, the IRS, and the Justice Department review of some phone records of a number of Associated Press reporters. In my opinion, there is less there than meets the eye.

Let’s look at these issues one at a time.

Benghazi. On September 11, 2012, the US Consulate in Benghazi, Libya was attacked. The US ambassador and three other Americans were killed. The next day, President Obama referred to what had happened as “acts of terror.”

UN Ambassador Susan Rice described the situation on the Sunday talk shows four days after the event. She referred to a 14 minute video ridiculing Islam that had just recently been translated into Arabic. The video caused an outbreak of violence in Cairo, and her preliminary assessment was it had contributed to a volatile situation in Benghazi that “heavily armed extremist elements” exploited.

Anyone who was in Washington DC when Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968 could relate to how an event could cause a spontaneous reaction, which is then exacerbated and prolonged by heavily armed extremists with an agenda. I was there, and saw it happen. Ambassador Rice’s description of events in Benghazi, which she clearly described as “preliminary” made sense to me.

The Right goes nuts if something happens and is not called “Islamic terrorism” immediately. Obama likes to gather facts, and proceed based on what is known. The country prefers that approach. If they wanted impulsive bluster, they would have taken McCain-Palin. If they wanted someone who would do what Sheldon Adelson wanted, they would have taken Romney and the Marathon Man.

Read the rest here.

Guest Post — May 15, 2013

Note from Dan: This came in Sunday night. The story is long, but very well told. If you care about veterans, you’ll care about this.

By John Moyer, VFW Life Member
Past Post Commander (Post 6949)
Past Post Quartermaster (6949, 7854)
Past Post Adjutant (6949, 7854)

The slogan, “NO ONE DOES MORE FOR VETERANS” appears on correspondence sent from the National Headquarters of The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States located in Kansas City, Mo. As a member, I never had reason to question the saying until recently, when a fellow veteran was cut loose.

On January 29, 2013, after nearly 40 years of service to the VFW, Connie Wood’s Life Membership was terminated.  Despite a lengthy appeal process, which included a petition of support bearing hundreds of signatures, it was over.  With the passage of time, I can almost understand why the higher ups went by the book and not the heart, but it hasn’t eased the bitterness I currently have for the organization, or the pain of seeing a really decent man put down.  I keep thinking that perhaps if Connie had really been known, had been more than a name or number to the higher ups, things would have ended differently.

Connie, a self-proclaimed “country boy,” was born May 8, 1935 in his parents’ home located near Spencer in southwest Virginia. Being raised during the depths of the Great Depression, in rural America, meant hard work and tough times would be inescapable. Connie, who would become the standard bearer for his six brothers and three sisters that followed, would learn well how to face the cards dealt to him along the way, at least most of them. Read more »

River Laker with an interesting street-cycling rig. Photo by Susan Jamison

Note from Dan: The following guest post is by the notorious ex-librarian River Laker, a bicyclist known for using his helmet in unusual ways.

By River Laker

Regarding congestion and ill-mannered behaviors on Roanoke greenways I propose a simple solution: The immediate banning of lycra on all Roanoke greenways.

It is primarily the lycra-clad bicyclists that are causing the troubles. They come in from the county, fill up the parking spaces with their monstrous sized vehicles, and proceed to treat our Roanoke greenways like race tracks.

To a lesser degree the lycra-clad runners and walkers, also primarily from the county, treat Roanoke greenways in the same way.

And to an even lesser degree, but still in significant numbers, the county lycra clad pet owners do the same thing. Read more »

Users of the Roanoke River Greenway Tuesday evening in Smith Park. | By ERIC BRADY | The Roanoke Times

Note: Chris Berry is a regular greenway rider and he’s also been the victim of an accident caused by an inconsiderate dog-walker on the Tinker Creek Greenway. He sent this to me after I interviewed him for Tuesday’s column. Below are his somewhat tongue-in-cheek rules for greenway etiquette.

By Chris Berry

I am a frequent user of the greenways in and around Roanoke, and by frequent, I mean that I walk or ride my bike along the Roanoke River at least 300 days per year. On days when the weather is less than ideal, I can go for miles and not encounter another person along the way. Sunny weekends are a completely different story, and Roanokers of all shapes and sizes come out to enjoy the trails. This is when things get interesting.

Perfectly rational people who would never consider driving their cars on the wrong side of the road are somehow oblivious to the fact that the same basic rules of traffic apply on the greenways. Folks who would never allow their dogs to poop on the neighbors grass have no problem letting them take a giant dump right in the middle of the trail. Parents who watch their kids like hawks at home allow them to pedal out of sight on tricycles on the greenways. What is it about nice weather and pleasant trails that causes people to lose their minds? Read more »

AP Photo | Text added by Dan

Note from Dan: The message below is from Eddie Seay and Mary Croft.

“Saturday at noon, Oranizing for Action of Roanoke and of Franklin County, along with Citizens Against Gun Violence and Moms Demand Action will have a short, impromptu rally. I know this is Earth Day and many of us have plans for a day of fun in the Grandin area, but this is important too!

Please take just a few minutes out of your day to stand with us in solidarity, and pass this on to your friends and colleagues. If we are going to get this done, we MUST BE LOUDER THAN THE OPPOSITION!

“On Saturday at Noon people will be gathering nationwide to say thanks to their Senators who voted yes for background checks.

There will be a short impromptu event at Elmwood Park at 12 Noon on Saturday focusing on praising the efforts of Senator Kaine and Senator Warner for their Gun Violence Prevention Efforts, yet letting Congress know that we are not going away! Read more »

(Left to right) Gordon Soderberg, Bill Hudson of Moneta, and Jacob Kimmel outside the disabled Veterans Green Bus on a tow lot in northeast Roanoke. The bus caught fire and almost burned March 20. | Photo by STEPHANIE KLEIN-DAVIS | The Roanoke Times.

By Gordon Soderberg

I want to tell everyone who has contributed to the Veterans Green Bus Project how grateful I am to all of you.

–To Veterans Green Jobs for believing in my concept of biodiesel and used cooking oil to fuel disaster relief efforts. They invested in my first bio diesel plant in 2009. And they purchased the Veterans Green Bus “Large Marge” for me to take veterans from across the country to attend the Veterans Green Jobs training programs in Colorado.

While I was with them they learned about energy conservation and sustainability and how to rebuild historic log cabins for the National Parks and Forest Service. They secured contracts and began weatherizing 1.200 homes a year in 9 counties of the Alamosa Valley and the City of Denver, Colo.

By April of last year that ended for me because of funding dried up from the government with one month’s notice — proving to me that my concept of the Veterans Green Bus Project would not be sustainable under federal funding contracts.

So, I purchased the bus from Veterans Green Bus and folded the program under United Peace Relief, Inc., who thankfully has been helping me since 2006 when after hurricane Katrina I started to design my first biodiesel plant with Steve Richter. We fueled a tractor and cleared lots in the Lower Ninth Ward for people who wanted to rebuild. Eventually Brad Pitt and his Make It Right NOLA program began building sustainable energy homes on the very lots we saved from being seized by the city.

–To Team Rubicon USA for believing in my concepts of using my military RADMF Team development and Veterans Green Job experience to establish an energy sustainable disaster response efforts after hurricane Sandy at forward operating base Hope in Rockaway, N.Y. Read more »

Abu-Dun | Wikimedia Commons

Note: The following guest post is from E. Duane Howard, who lives in Southeast Roanoke.

By E. Duane Howard

I know I had asked [landlord next door] “Please do not rent to someone with a dog.”  His last renters moved out on him and had a small dog which she walked and let poop anywhere without cleaning up.

Now the new people who moved in yesterday have a large dog tied up on the front porch and of course, as to be expected,  is barking constantly.

During the past nice days, I went across the street and cleaned, swept and shovel up the gutter all the way around the corner, trying to be a good neighbor to Dan as if he would care.  I sprayed weed killer along gutter and curb to keep it neat looking.

From my front porch, doing a 180-degree span there are now 18 dogs within sight and now have a new barking problem to add to the mix too contend with.  18 dogs in 11 houses. Out of those 18 dogs, other than mine, only FIVE ever get walked. Read more »

The charter members of Roanoke’s Cultural Social Service Organization, which launched in 1958 and turns 55 next month, with world-renown gospel singer Mahalia Jackson (seated in the front, 4th from the left). She was the first registered African-American guest at the once whites-only Hotel Roanoke. | This photo is from the family archives of Ms. Gayle Graves.

A Guest Post

By Wanda Spraggins

April, 2013 marks the 55th anniversary of an organization whose inception started with a conversation in the hallway of Harrison Elementary School.

Three African-American educators discussed the limited cultural experiences in the community due to racial segregation. Their own college educations opened their eyes to the world, a world that needed sharing.

Mrs. Marionette Shaw-Sprauve, Miss Lillie Patterson, and Mr. William J. Manning transformed the discussions into the Cultural-Social Service Organization, CSSO.

Mr. Julian Moore, a Roanoke educator, developed the name at his church, St. Paul United Methodist Church, in Northwest Roanoke. The church is located on the corner of Fifth Street and Gilmer Avenue.

The photo above features the charter members with the world-famous gospel singer, Miss Mahalia Jackson. Her standing-room-only concerts represented one of the first desegregated audiences in the Roanoke Valley. Miss Jackson was the first African-American guest registered to stay in the Hotel Roanoke. Read more »

The Roanoke Times | File

Note from Dan: Tyler Moore lives in Roanoke County. He sent me this as a reaction to Tuesday’s column.

By Tyler Moore

I have biked the Roanoke section of the Blue Ridge Parkway literally thousands of times for decades and decades (started 1983 or so, so it has been three decades. OMG).  I live just 300 feet from the Parkway.

The issue is that the Parkway is our lovely community’s major natural asset  (Just spoke to an Outer Banks resident who said we have an asset comparable to the coast. And our fantastic asset must be treated and protected as such).

One of the biggest threats to our wonderful landmark is commuters who go to work every morning and come home every evening, not using the parkway for that which it was designed (I, too, when commuting, am not looking at the scenery, but thinking of the work in front of or behind me for the day).

The Roanoke section is special AND WE (ROANOKE) MUST PROTECT IT: Read more »

Anyone have any answers for this guy?

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GUEST POST

By Melanie Willard
Las Vegas, NV

I have a friend who is a former resident of Virginia. He tried to renew his current driver’s license in Texas and found out that the state of Viriginia has a “hold” on his license from November of 2000 for proof of insurance. He lived in Virginia less than a year; by November of 2000 he was living in Texas. The State of Texas won’t renew his license because of this hold.

By November of 2000 he’d already obtained his Texas license and you couldn’t do that without proof of insurance in Texas. Can you direct me to somebody that can help get this resolved without having to pay Virginia over $500?

He’s lived at the same address in Texas since 2000 and in order to renew his plates every year he has to submit proof on insurance. He doesn’t even have the vehicle in question anymore; that was sold in 2005.  It appears that the state of Virginia is trying to rip-off former residents. Read more »