Ringing Freedom's Bell In Sunnyside, Washington & Beyond Since 2008
April 15, 2011
The new “Atlas Shrugged Part 1″ movie opens today. It is surely a beautiful movie, but we won’t see it open in Sunnyside. At least we can watch the trailer online:
April 5, 2011 2 Comments
Recently, a company called Epsilon, which sends billions of emails a year for its clients, had a breach of security which has allowed hackers access to names and email addresses of customers. Epsilon has not disclosed the entire list of companies that are affected, however I did get an email from 1-800-FLOWERS.com advising me that my email is among those affected. They also “regret” any inconvenience this may cause. Yes, I am sure they do.
Epsilon, in a public statement, which can be read here, says that only 2% of its total clients are affected. Well ain’t that nice.
While Epsilon is not saying which companies are affected, news media and blogs are starting to compile lists. This list comes from COMPUTERWORLD, which states that about 50 companies are known to be affected so far. Here are some…
AbeBooks
Barclays Bank
Best Buy
Citibank
Disney Destinations
JP Morgan Chase
Kroger
Lacoste
McKinsey Quarterly
Robert Half
Target
Tivo
US Bank
Walgreens
We can add 1-800 FLOWERS to the list. Here is the text of the email they sent me:
Dear 1800Flowers.com Customer:
One of our email service providers, Epsilon, has informed us that we
are among a group of companies affected by a data breach that may
have exposed your email address to unauthorized third parties.
It’s important to know that this incident did not
involve other account or personally identifiable information.
We use permission-based email service providers such as Epsilon
to help us manage email communications to our customers.
We take your privacy very seriously and we work diligently to ensure
your private information is always protected. Epsilon has assured
us that no private information, other than your email address,
was involved in the incident. We regret any inconvenience
that this may cause you.
Because of this incident, we advise you to be extremely cautious
before opening emails from senders you do not recognize.
We thank you for your understanding in this matter.
Sincerely,
Bibi Brown
Director, Customer Service
Wouldn’t be nice if Epsilon would just come clean and tell us who else is affected?
April 5, 2011
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As a citizen who values the right to request public documents in Washington, this is a case that will be interesting to watch:
Additional Information:
http://myfreedomfoundation.com/index.php/causes/case/category/freedom_foundation_v_gregoire
March 29, 2011 5 Comments
City Manager Mark Gervasi Addresses Sunnyside Council Members At Monday's Meeting.
Before the start of the City Council meeting last night, I had a chance to speak with Sunnyside City Manager Mark Gervasi. He informed me that the city does not have a formal policy regarding pesos, but that it may be a good idea for the city to adopt a payment policy. Mr. Gervasi told me a story about an incident that occurred at a place where he used to work. A person came to pay a fee, and produced an unusually large amount of coin, which was awkward for a single person to handle. He said it might serve the city to adopt a policy that also includes a two dollar limit on the amount of coin a person can use in making payment, for example.
What he had to say seems like common sense. In the absence of a formal policy, organizations rely on people to make decisions and judgments on a daily basis. However, there are some in government (and even in private industry too) that either do not have common sense, or choose to ignore it altogether. These people try to say that if there is no policy in place, then they can run amok and do whatever they please. When these people are put in charge, having titles such as Interim City Manager, their ill informed decision making, lack of problem solving skills, and questionable judgement can wreak damage on an entire community.
March 28, 2011
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When I was still in grade school during the 1980′s, a memorable event in U.S. History occurred. President Ronald Reagan, ordered a military strike against targets inside of Libya. This bombing followed attacks and provocations by the Libyans against Americans.
U.S. Forces were targeted in Lebanon in a terrorist attack on a civilian discotheque. In addition, Libyan fighter jets were challenging our own fighters in a laughable claim that Libyan territorial waters extended some 200 miles into the Mediterranean Sea. One major network news program, in a rush to air recorded radio transmissions from fighter pilots, inadvertently aired an “F-Bomb” when it played unedited video and audio coming into its newsroom from U.S. Navy aviators.
March 23, 2011 9 Comments
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Recently, a resident of the City of Sunnyside received a utility bill from the city, and being a responsible person, promptly paid it. The city was kind enough to put a notice in Spanish on the bill, notifying the resident of the due date for payment. This was encouraging to the resident, who happened to have some extra Mexican Pesos laying about, and enjoys living in a city that is sensitive to people of diverse backgrounds. The resident made their payment at City Hall, and went about their business unaware of the pending police visit they were about to receive.
Billing From the City Includes Both English and Spanish Information
What the resident did not know, however, is that the Chief of Police would be dispatched to hunt them down for the heinous act of paying the bill in such currency. The City Manager penned a letter to the resident, declining acceptance of the payment, and threatening to tack on additional fees if they did not render unto Caesar in U.S. dollars. Here is a copy of the letter:
Mark Gervasi's Letter Delivered Under Armed Messenger
Attempts to reach City Manager Mark Gervasi with questions regarding payment policies for utility bills, taxes, and fees were unsuccessful this week. It is not clear if the city has any formal policy regarding payments made by residents, or when such a policy may have gone into effect. It is also not known if the police will be dispatched for anyone else seen flashing pesos within city limits.
December 29, 2010 4 Comments
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In 2005 former U.S. Senator and ordained Episcopal priest John Danforth wrote an op-ed in the New York Times about the interaction of religion and politics. The editors put a headline of “Onward, Moderate Christian Soldiers” to the piece.
When published, Republicans controlled both houses of Congress. Social issues were dominating the headlines at the time, and centered on such things as marriage of homosexuals, embryonic stem cell research, and the Terry Shiavo case. Danforth was upset by those who made calls to “Vote Christian”, implying that those who disagreed on an issue were not Christian.
The following year he released a book entitled “Faith and Politics”. The subtitle is “How the ‘Moral Values’ Debate Divides America and How to Move Forward Together”. I am reading this book now.
In it, Danforth argues that the “Christian Right” that dominates discussion of social issues in the Republican Party is pushing “wedge” issues that divide, while a genuine Christian agenda would be bringing people together through “reconciliation”. He does have to mention how his own Episcopal Church has seen people leave to form “minuscule denominations” over some of these very same social issues. Danforth holds the belief that his Church is broad enough to be able to accommodate those of differing opinions without the need for people to separate themselves from it.
November 11, 2010 2 Comments
Today’s school children are familiar with 9-11, but long ago a significant date for Americans was 11-11. It began as Armistice Day; the observance of the end of World War I. The holiday was first proclaimed by President Woodrow Wilson in 1919. In 1954, it morphed into Veterans Day, which Congress created to honor all veterans.
While many schools and government offices will be closed today, many businesses and a growing number of schools will be open. (A sad trend, in my humble opinion.) However, in honor of our nation’s veterans, I am linking to a powerful video featuring our military’s rotary wing aviators. It is powerful because of the service members, machines, and music. Yes, I said music. It is set to AC/DC playing “Thunderstruck”.
Enjoy:
October 17, 2010
Yakima County District Judge, Position 4
Doug Federspiel
Late last week, I interviewed Mr. Federspiel by telephone about his campaign for Yakima County District Judge, Position 4. He has been campaigning for many months, and said that he feels secure in that he has done the best job he can in getting his message out to voters before the election.
Mr. Federspiel was locked in a three-way primary contest for this position earlier this year. Of the three candidates, he got the most votes (almost 45%), and is hoping to carry that momentum forward in the general election. State Senator Jim Honeyford (R-Sunnyside), Sunnyside Mayor James A. Restucci, and Sunnyside Council Member Don Vlieger have endorsed Mr. Federspiel in the general election.
During the interview, I asked Mr. Federspiel if he agreed with people who describe District Court as hearing misdemeanor cases. He said that that is only one function of District Court, and then went on to describe in greater detail what the court does.
October 13, 2010
There are multiple State Supreme Court Justice positions on the ballot, with most of them being settled during the primary election. However, there is one race of concern I will weigh in on here:
Judicial Position 6 (Non-partisan office)
I have had the pleasure of seeing Justice Sanders speak on two occasions. The first time was in Yakima, and then more recently at the Washington State Republican Party Convention in Vancouver. Despite his position being non-partisan he enjoys bi-partisan support from many Democrats and Republicans. In addition, both the Washington State Republican and Libertarian Parties support his candidacy. There is no one on the Supreme Court that has demonstrated a stronger concern for protecting and maintaining individual rights. Sanders has written more opinions (and more dissenting opinions) than any other justice on the court. He has a strong record of defending property taxes, and promotes the reading of the Washington State Constitution everywhere he goes.
Charlie Wiggins is challenging Sanders. He expresses concern for judicial ethics, but wishes to have the taxpayers fund campaigns for justices. He has attempted to smear the character of Sanders for a “scandal” promoted by political opponents. Wiggins does not make any promises about protecting or maintaining individual freedoms. Wiggins has the support of unions, women’s groups, and what he calls LGBT leaders.
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