Terror In Resort?
Editor:
Terror in Ocean City. This will be the future of Ocean
City if the SexStyle store is allowed to keep open in this beautiful ocean
resort. This store will attract every sex predator and our children and adults
will be subject to rape and sodomizing.
In June, thousands of high school seniors, most of who are
over 18 will be legally allowed to enter this store and purchase their
products. These kids are only human and curious and it will be possible that
many young girls may go home pregnant or raped. If this would happen, Ocean
City would lose its status as a family resort to a sex resort.
If Ofir Bouzaglo and Moshe Bitton are allowed to keep this
store open, it will put terror in every parent’s heart to let their child visit
Ocean City.
Robert A. Berkheimer
Selbyville
Obscene Materia Is Not Protected
Editor:
Regarding the front-page article “Adult Video Shop Plans
To Open In North Ocean City” on March 16, someone needs to point out a glaring
fact: obscene material is not constitutionally protected speech. All it takes
is a prosecutor who enforces the law.
While the ACLU and liberal judges have managed to create a
body of distorted case law in which “soft-core” porn has legal protection, the
hardcore stuff found in “adult” stores does not. Hard-core porn has nothing to
do with free speech and is an extension of prostitution. It’s also a favorite
tool of child molesters. Ask any cop.
The presence of a smut shop threatens the safety of every
woman and child within miles of it. There is no excuse for putting the whims of
sexually dysfunctional men above the well being of the community. “Each to his
own” does not cut it when the effects are so obvious and devastating.
Sexually-oriented businesses (SOBs) destroy neighborhoods,
put families at risk, and bring in crime, prostitution and other undesirable
outcomes. Ocean City can worry about appearing “prudish” or it can protect its
reputation as the finest family resort on the East Coast. It just takes some
public officials with backbone.
City officials should use zoning and licensing laws to
confine the creeps who want to corrupt this city with porn. They can keep them
as far away as possible from schools, residential areas, churches and prime
commercial zones. And if they do open, the OCPD should pick up a DVD the first
day, get a ruling from the local D.A. that it meets the Miller test for obscenity and prosecute.
Citizens can exercise their rights under the law to picket
SOBs. Public shame is a powerful force.
C.S. Lewis once wrote that the agenda of society wreckers
is to make pornography public and religion private. Each time the ACLU wins one
of these battles by intimidating public officials into surrendering, we sink a
bit closer to the Sodom and Gomorrah that they’ve designed for us.
Real men (and real women) need to stand up and send these
scoundrels a message: Not in our city.
Robert Knight
(The writer is a
former editor of the Maryland Coast Press, a forerunner to The Dispatch. He now serves as director of the Culture and Media Institute, a
division of the Media Research Center in Alexandria, Va.)
OPA’s Version Of Pines Center Saga
Editor:
There are certain indisputable facts that guide the Ocean
Pines Association in planning for today’s needs and tomorrow’s demands. First
and foremost is the recognition that more than 8,400 families call Ocean Pines
“home” year round, seasonally, or occasionally. The Association offers a wide
variety of social and recreational activities that require safe, comfortable
space to accommodate members and their guests. These facilities are the
cornerstone of a quality of life unparalleled in any other Eastern Shore
community.
Another indisputable fact is that many of our facilities
are each approaching 40 years of age. They were designed for seasonal use on a
much smaller scale than community growth has mandated. That’s why the Ocean
Pines Association has found itself in the dilemma of meeting today’s needs and
tomorrow’s demands by rehabilitating and replacing our facilities. The existing
Community Hall is heavily used today and in many ways is inadequate both
aesthetically and functionally. After much study and review, the Association
has determined this facility should be replaced.
History tells us that the Association has attempted, on at
least four different occasions to secure membership approval to construct a new
Ocean Pines Community Center. It was the referendum in 2005 that did gain the
approval of the membership.
Since August of 2005, the Board of Directors has proceeded
to move the desire of the membership from concept to completion. Unfortunately,
a great deal of controversy surrounds the project and calls the effort into
question. The referendum proposal presented in 2005 estimated the cost to be
$3.94 million. The estimate was prepared by using architect and engineering
“estimates.” Upon membership approval in August 2005, the Association evaluated
project costs using bid specifications prepared by experts and estimated by one
of the best construction management firms in the area. This analysis came in
substantially higher than the original construction estimates. The issue has
been mired in debate as to why the original estimate fell so far short of the
reality of the project. We can spend an enormous amount of time debating why
this occurred but it will not change the reality that to construct the new
community center, as re-engineered and redesigned, will cost $5.4 million in
2007.
Should the Board of Directors have stopped the project and
returned to the membership for re-approval after the estimate was received?
Obviously, there is a judge in Worcester County, who upon first review of the
question believes so. When a Temporary Restraining Order was granted stopping
the project for a 10-day period, the Board had an option to continue arguing
the rationale behind their efforts in subsequent court hearings or to seek a
new referendum. A great deal of time, effort, and money has been invested in
this project and more of each will be required to complete the project. Rather
than allow the project to wallow in controversy for several more months, the
Board agreed to seek a definitive answer from the membership to a very simple
question. Do you approve the Ocean Pines Association continuing construction of
the new Ocean Pines Community Center at a cost estimate of $5.4 million?
Will the Association look at alternatives in site, design
or construction methods? The answer is no. To do so would waste funds already
expended for design and planning for the project. Our current fixed price
contracts would also be voided. The structure as proposed is 29,000 square feet
and incorporates the recommendations of the Comprehensive Planning Committee in
assessing current and future community needs.
During the next 30 days, I will outline the issues and
provide information to help the Ocean Pines community make an informed decision
on this project. Future editorials will include; exploring the cancellation
costs, methods of funding and the Board’s recommendation supporting the
referendum. This issue is important to each and every member of the Ocean Pines
Association and I want to make sure that you have as much information as
possible to make your decision. See you next issue.
Tom Olson
Ocean Pines
(The writer is the general manager of the Ocean Pines
Association.)
Thanks For Help
Editor:
On behalf of the family of April Derrickson Goodwine, we
would like to send a special thank you to all the residents of Berlin and
surrounding areas for all their help and support contributed for the loss of
our beloved sister.
Starr, Gerald and Marvelene Derrickson
Support Appreciated
Editor:
I would like to thank everyone who made the first-ever
spring fundraiser to fight ALS such a phenomenal success. This sold out event,
held at Merry Sherwood in Berlin on March 24, raised more than $6,000 for the
ALS Association DC/MD/VA Chapter.
Particular thanks go to Kirk Burbage, owner of Merry
Sherwood, who donated the space for the fundraiser. Additional thanks go to
nearly 100 Worcester County businesses and individuals who donated services and
items for auction. Special appreciation goes to Ken and Anita McLaughlin who
worked tirelessly to make this even the success that it was.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as
"Lou Gehrig’s disease", is a progressive, fatal neuromuscular
disease. The financial cost to families of persons with ALS can be up to
$200,000 per year, depleting entire savings of relatives and patients. Money
raised from this spring fundraiser and the Walk to D’Feet ALS held in the fall
will go toward helping ALS patients and their families receive the critical
services they so desperately need.
As co-chairs of this event, my husband Joel and I are very
proud and pleased with the outcome of support from the community for this very
worthy cause.
Anita F. Todd
Berlin
Cats Need A Home
Editor:
The Delmarva Cat Connection has a new address: P.O. Box
1323, Ocean Pines, Md. 21811. In existence for almost six years, this
non-profit organization has taken as its motto: “No more homeless cats”. It has
completed more than 1,400 successful adoptions of healthy and loving cats and
kittens by cat-deprived families. DCC also fosters homeless cats and kittens,
currently numbering approximately 100 and is active in spaying/neutering
programs, feline adoptions and education of the public.
DCC would like to get the word out to its many friends,
past and future adopters and benefactors. The time is particularly appropriate
because we have just been made aware of a situation that will tear at the
hearts of all cat lovers. A very sweet lady recently died, leaving 19 pet cats.
These cats, which had until then known only love and care,
are now living in a garage, unable to understand why their lives have changed
so drastically. The cats are not only sweet-natured and affectionate, they are
also very beautiful.
At present DCC has no capacity available to foster these
cats and one of our members has taken on the job of caring for them, as best
she can, in honor of her deceased friend. However, the best care and feeding
cannot compensate for the lack of a home of their own.
If any of your readers has been looking for a cat or
kitten to fill the empty spot in front of the fireplace or on a lap, we ask
that they call DCC’s hotline at 410-723-5585.
R. Ann Fairfield
(The writer is the corresponding secretary for Delmarva
Cat Connection.)