Opening Day - An American Tradition

Most of Wicomico County's elected leadership was in attendance at the annual Optimist Softball Opening Day in Salisbury. The league, run by the Wicomico County Parks and Recreation Department with sponsorship by the Optimist Club for the teams, held its Opening Day parade of teams at the Optimist Fields behind Prince Street School.



Wicomico County Executive Rick Pollitt, Wicomico County Council President John Cannon, Wicomico County Council Vice President William McCain and Maryland Delagate Norm Conway were in attendance and spoke, but it was left to Salisbury Mayor Jim Ireton to throw the first pitch.



For the record, it did cross the plate, and on only 1 bounce. Not bad for a tennis player. Good form, though.

The Salisbury Optimist Club pays the fee for each team, and for its city teams, pays for uniforms as well. They supply announcers and scorekeepers for all games held at Optimist Field, which covers about half the league's games. The Optimist League will be holding a golf fundraiser on August 1st. Write the Optimist Club at PO Box 744,
Salisbury, MD 21803 for more information, or contact them on their website at http://www.salisburyoptimist.org/.

Thanks to Don Fitzgerald and all the people from the Optimist for their work in keeping this league alive. Now if we can just get the county to do something to improve the fields not in Salisbury....

Could we have a tie?

The latest on the Salisbury District 1 Council race, courtesy of delmarvanow.com:

SALISBURY — A count of absentee ballots this morning shows that Cynthia Polk and Shanie Shields are tied up in votes heading into the final count Friday.

The candidates for the District 1 Salisbury Council seat each have 130 votes. Heading into this mornings canvassing by the Wicomico County Board of Elections Office Polk led by 127 votes to Shields’ 126 votes. On election night, Shields had more votes.

Five votes are expected to be counted Friday afternoon, according to election officials. That number could increase if more ballots postmarked by the election date arrive before then.

One week.

In one week, Salisbury gets a new mayor. Just seven more days.

In one week, Mayor Barrie Parsons Tilghman will see her last term as mayor expire. Just seven more days.

In one week, Jim Ireton will become mayor, and deliver an inaugural address to the "five co-equal partners" he will have in running the city, namely, the City Council. 

In one week, the clock starts ticking on "Swimmable and Fishable in 10 Years." The plans for making Salisbury "The Safest City in Maryland" begin. And the actions needed to put "Neighborhoods First" begin in earnest.

In one week.

In one week, I hope you'll join me to attend the City Council meeting and see Jim Ireton sworn in as the city's next mayor. See you there.

Happy Brithday, Andrew

Happy 9th birthday to my youngest tax deduction, Andrew William Duck. 

Photo of the Day

Jason and Rob, kickin' it together at Metallica's induction ceremony for the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame Saturday night in Cleveland. All my Met fans know why this is important. As for the rest of you, well, trust me - it is.

With "friends" like these...

The Daily Times did decide to endorse a candidate. And, shockingly, it WASN’T Gary Comegys. They endorsed Jim Ireton for mayor of Salisbury.

I think.

Using some of the most twisted logic yet displayed in this campaign while simultaneously smearing Jim and praising Gary, they came to this conclusion:

          

    It's understandable how all of us might long for the days when inclusive-minded, big-thinking people who really understood what made a community special were in charge of our local government. Names like Frank Morris, W. Paul Martin, Sam Siedel and Elmer Ruark fit that mold. Can Jim Ireton demonstrate the type of leadership required to place his name onto such a list?

    A tall order, yes -- but he merits an opportunity to try.

So after spending, conservatively, 12 column inches accusing Jim of being “an impassioned but undisciplined neighborhood advocate”, of “employing the divide-and-conquer playbook”, and this gem, in the paragraphafter the Times says Ireton offers the best hope for the city...

There are questions about his temperament, as well as his ability to rise above the racket that will inevitably surround him. And, while some have been put off by his demeanor, there is ample hope that he can sufficiently stem any defensive tendencies and prove wrong those who doubt he has the people skills to lead.

...The Times editors decided to endorse Jim.

With friends like these, who needs enemies? I could spend lots of space and words proving the DT wrong on every charge, allegation and smear, in this endorsement, but we'd be beating our heads against the wall doing so. The Times isn't going to change, and there's no competition to force them to change.

So, gee, thanks, Daily Times, for endorsing Jim Ireton for mayor. I think.

In case anyone cares...

I'm not TwoSentz. Never said I was. Some people can't be bothered to read the author of a post on a blog with multiple contributors. Sad, really.