Letters to the Editor -- February 17, 2012

ALA reminds readers to respect the flu

Don’t let the mild winter fool you. Flu season isn’t over!

Many people equate winter weather with influenza, commonly known as the flu. It’s important to know that the flu isn’t caused by cold wintry weather, but is in fact caused by a virus.

Cold winter temperatures and low humidity serve to keep the flu virus stable and in the air longer. Even though this winter has been fairly mild in the mid-Atlantic region, the dangerous threat of the flu still exists.

If you haven’t done so already, go out today and get a flu shot, particularly if you are among the people at high risk for developing flu-related complications: children younger than 5, adults 65 and older, pregnant women and people with asthma, chronic lung disease, weakened immune systems and other conditions.

The flu vaccine is still your best bet for avoiding the misery that accompanies the flu. Unfortunately for many people, getting the flu is more than just feeling miserable for a week or two. It can be a life-threatening illness.

Seek emergency medical attention, if in addition to typical cold symptoms, you experience difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, purple or blue discoloration of the lips, pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen, or sudden dizziness.

For a complete list of flu symptoms and more, visit flu.gov, a Web site managed by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Deb Brown, President and CEO
American Lung Association of the Mid-Atlantic

Sorority grateful for support with dance
Editor:

Members of the Alpha Alpha Chapter of Beta Sigma Phi Sorority are grateful to everyone who attended our annual fundraising dance, featuring The Funsters, held on Feb. 3, 2012. We raised over $6,700, which will go back to our community to help families and individuals in crisis or in need, local nonprofit organizations and our local schools for the coming year.

We would especially like to thank Alex Heidenberger at Mango’s in Bethany Beach for opening his restaurant to us for this event. We also thank his staff and bartenders for all their hard work to make this event a success.

We give a special thanks to Miken Builders for donating to our Silent Auction and also give thanks to the following individuals and businesses for their donations to the Chinese Auction: All About U! Salon and Spa, Anne Powell (Realtor) at ResortQuest, Andrea Hauck, Barbara Devine, Bear Trap Golf Club, Big Fish Grill, Cactus Café, Dave’s Automotive Detailing, Deer Run Golf Club, Delmarva Law Enforcement Supply Inc., Denise Beam State Farm Insurance, Freeman Fitness Center at Sea Colony, Japanesque, Kathy Goodman (Realtor) at RE/MAX By the Sea, Law Sheats, Lighthouse Liquors, Lord’s Landscaping, Miller’s Creek, Nancy Butters, Nancy Warren, Oasis Bath and Body Boutique, Oceanova Spa, Phillips Crab House, Rob Ward’s Gale Force Cleaning and Restoration, Seaquels Furniture Consignments, Sharon and Eric Ralph, Silhouettes, Walter Haas and Warren’s Station restaurant.

Anne Marie Rogerson, President
Alpha Alpha Chapter, Beta Sigma Phi Sorority

Obligated to vote in all elections?
Editor:

Taxes are a legal obligation, as I was once told by the director of revenue in the State of Delaware. When we speed down the highway and we are stopped by the police, we will most likely receive a ticket and it will cost us a financial penalty.

When we do not pay our bills, we lose those services or pay a fine. When a business breaks the law, we can bring legal action against them. When we do not pay our property taxes, our house may be auctioned off. Our lives are filled with legal obligations and consequences. We are a nation of law.

We, as U.S. citizens, are provided numerous rights. Voting is a right, but it is exercised by fewer and fewer of our citizens. The present Republican primaries, for a presidential candidate, are clearly demonstrating lower voter turnout.

Our local voter turnout in the Town of Ocean View elections is still very low. Why is/has this been happening? Is it due to voter registrations and elections being varied from school districts, to towns, to counties and to states? Are our elected officials less and less representing all the citizens from where they are elected, let alone to those that voted for them?

I suspect the last question to be very true, as my experience with attending the free coffee monthly meetings with Rep. Hocker are very one-sided. I did not vote for Gerald and, therefore, my thoughts and concerns about voting issues are trivialized.

Why does Rep. Hocker want to keep voting numbers to a minimal? Is this a self-serving need? I like to think that Gerald believes in our representative government and he would support 100 percent voter inclusion. I will continue to encourage him to a 100 percent representative of our district.

Proposals like no-excuse absentee ballot and the national popular vote in Delaware have gained attention nationwide, and state after state are making them laws in their states. These simple legal changes open greater opportunities and reasons for all registered voters to have a real impact for each and every one of us.

Take time to read these proposals and contact Rep. Hocker and state Sen. Bunting to act affirmative on them. I will continue to encourage Sen. Bunting to be a 100 percent representative of our district. When is the next monthly voter meeting with Sen. Bunting?

Why do we, in Ocean View, deny “part-time resident” property owners the right to vote in our town elections? I was told by one town council member, “I do not want any outsiders deciding ‘my taxes’ and design of ‘my town.’” I am sure that this town council member would like to eliminate me from voting in our town, as I was not “born” here... Not going to happen.

Voting restrictions are for self-serving political control. All of our citizens are to be represented fairly and equally. The “part-time property owners” (they are significant in number) are entitled to have a say in who will represent each of them in Ocean View. An election is coming for a town council member this year. Will you vote for taxation with representation?

How do we absolutely increase voter registration and voting? Allow me to propose an idea or five:

(1) Let’s start with voter registration. All U.S. citizens, at the age of 18, shall be registered to vote by law or be fined $2 per day until such registration is fulfilled.

(2) Let’s close the deal with: all registered voters are required by law to vote or pay a $50 fine.

(3) Let’s consolidate election dates. All federal, state and local elections shall occur in the first seven days of November.

(4) Here is a frequently-touted idea: Let’s establish term limits on every elected official.

(5) Let’s take over the funding of all elections with public tax dollars only. This will certainly teach our candidates how to live within a budget. They will clearly know who is paying for their election.

Yes, we have a major election in November. Are you a U.S. citizen? Are you 18 years of age or older? Are you registered to vote? Will you be casting your vote? Will you be voting by absentee ballot? Contact: Jean M. Turner (jean.m.turner@state.de.us), Deputy Director, Sussex County Department of Elections, 119 North Race Street, P.O. Box 457, Georgetown, DE 19947, (302)856-5367, fax (302)856-5082.

Lloyd E. Elling
Ocean View

Family thankful for support
Editor:

The family of William F. Gibbs would like to express their most sincere thanks to the relatives, extended families and friends for the many cards, flowers, food and other acts of kindness shown to us during this difficult time.

Lillian Gibbs and children

Reader considers paving project a sham

Editor’s note: The following letter was addressed to the Sussex County Council and was forwarded to Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden and to the Coastal Point for publication.

Thank you for your letter of Jan. 27, 2012, advising me about the meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 21, to discuss the paving of Blue Heron Drive.

I will be out of town on that day and therefore unable to attend this meeting. But I wanted you to know in no uncertain terms that this project is a sham. It is nothing more than a scam by some Blue Heron Drive property owners (but not homeowners) who want Blue Heron Drive paved and want others in the community to help pay for it.

Blue Heron Drive is just a short gravel road located squarely within Rogers Haven, which is an unincorporated community of 50 to 100 homes and has no community association. There are only three homes on Blue Heron Drive. Mr. Olsen and I have been here over 18 years and 20 years, respectively, and have no interest in seeing this road paved. We like it the way it is and believe it is grossly unfair that our taxes should be increased to pay for it.

Mr. Garufi moved a house onto one of the back lots about five years ago. It is my understanding that, as a condition for permitting him to do so, the County required him to pave the road. For some unexplained reason, the County never made him do so. So we are now dealing with the issue.

There are also six nonresident property owners on this street, really investment-only owners. They are conspiring through the bogus Birdhaven Property Owners Association, which they recently formed, to scam the County into paving the road and then having the residents of Blue Haven Drive (who don’t want it paved) to help repay the County through a 10-year special assessment.

This association is blatantly phony. It has no purpose other than getting residents of Rogers Haven who actually live there to pay for paving the road, even if they do not want it. As mentioned above, there are 50 to 100 homeowners in Rogers Haven who actually live there. Now six nonresident Rogers Haven property owners have formed an association that will cover only three of those homes in the community. How ludicrous can you get?

This whole process is out of whack. If it is true that these six nonresident property owners are unable to sell their property or nonresident property owners are unable to sell their property or build on it until Blue Heron Drive is paved, there is a fairer solution other than requiring residents like me and Mr. Olsen to pay for it.

If they purchased their property before this restriction went into effect, they should be grandfathered in and allowed to do what was allowable when their property was purchased. On the other hand, if they purchased their property after this restriction became effective, they should be held accountable for knowing about any restrictive conditions covering their purchase, and other taxpayers should not be made to bear the burden of their unwise investment.

Of course, if my understanding of Mr. Garufi’s agreement with the county is correct, this issue would be moot if the County would simply enforce it. Shame on Sussex County if it does not!

Pearl Shapiro
Ocean View