From the Editor ~ Joe Zelnik 2/1/2006

To that I say, plenty of people in Villas have never heard of Notturno.
All this seems to have something to do with whether or not there is a Gowanda, N.Y., in which I previously claimed I was born and raised.
If there was a Gowanda, N.Y., it would be 25-30 miles southwest of Buffalo, N.Y.  and a couple hours from Rochester. Why would anyone in Rochester know me?
It’s your hometown that counts, and if Gowanda were my hometown, that would explain the current fund drive to make the house where I would have spent my childhood a historic attraction.
The drive is stalled at $7.02.  I gave the $7 and an anonymous benefactor who said I wasn’t worth two cents gave the two cents.
I don’t care. My time will come. I can afford to wait. Things change. Actually, they change too fast.
I have just gotten comfortable with my MP2 and it is has been all but replaced by the MP3.
I overheard my colleagues talking about podcasting the other day. Piqued that they hadn’t asked me to come along, I went out and bought my own fishing pole and made plans to cast for pod without them.  I don’t care for pod (too fishy) but my wife loves them, battered and quick fried in butter.
Sometimes things don’t change fast enough.
The Press of Atlantic City went front page last weekend with the story that Marwan Al-Shehhi, one of the 9-11hijackers, tried to get flight training at the Cape May County Airport.
That story was reported four years ago. I could never figure out why anyone would come to this county’s airport for flying lessons.  This is the forgotten airport.
The December minutes of the DRBA’s Economic Development Committee have a section called “Airport Updates.”
There was an update on the New Castle Airport and an update on the Millville Airport. There was no mention of the Cape May County Airport. No update.  No downdate. Why would there be?
Why are we hearing again about Al-Shehhi? Because there is a real nasty fight going on between Democratic Prosecutor Robert Taylor and the Republican Board of Freeholders.
Taylor asked the freeholders for 16 additional employes, 10 new vehicles for some of those employes, a new building, and a wet bar. (The wet bar is a joke; I just wanted to see if  you were awake.)
The freeholders gave him three new employes.
Taylor cites Al-Shehhi as proof of the need for him to have a larger staff so he can prepare this county to fight terrorists, drug trafficking, sex crimes, etc.
If George Bush can use that line to justify doing whatever he wants to do, who can blame Taylor? So the freeholders have a choice: Be seen as soft on terror or reach into their vault and give Taylor more money.
I’d give Taylor more money since Democrats generally need money more than Republicans anyway.  But the terrorism angle doesn’t do too much to me. What are they going to do here, spray poison gas on Ralph Sheets’ lima bean fields?
The Department of Homeland Security recently announced it would use “assessments on where terrorists are likely to strike and potentially cause the greatest damage” as their criteria for distributing the latest $765 million.
Now there’s an idea. How many years did it take to come up with that? Does that mean we will be spared photo ops of Congressman Frank LoBiondo giving checks to fire departments?
Since two of the five freeholders – Dan Beyel and Leonard Desiderio – don’t want to give Taylor anything, it doesn’t seem likely he will get blood out of those stones.
In fact, after the meeting in which they stiffed Taylor, Beyel and Desiderio were seen bumping chests the way pro athletes do after they score or sack the quarterback. At least they tried to bump chests.  Beyel is about 6-2 and Desiderio is about 5-1, so when they both leaped in joy, Beyel’s belt buckle cut Desiderio’s lip.
I tried one of those chest-bumping celebrations with a reporter here who had written an especially sharp story. She told me if I did it again she’d have me up for sexual harassment.
As for Taylor, he presumably will file what is called a  “Bigley action,” in which both sides argue their cases before the Superior Court assignment judge.
Since this county starts 2006 with a $20-million surplus, what do you think the judge will say? “Pay up.”  And what do you think Taylor will say?  “Can I have it in 20s?”
Then the freeholders will decide whether to raise taxes and blame Taylor (and the Democrats), or take the money out of their surplus.
Why such hard feelings? Why can’t these guys just get along? Why can’t everybody just lighten up?  The freeholders should apply to themselves those proposed state slogans that got so much attention last month.
Dan Beyel: Expect the Unexpected.
Ralph Sheets: The Real Deal.
Gerald Thornton: Love at First Sight.
Ralph Bakley: Come See for Yourself.
Len Desiderio: The Best Kept Secret.
Unfortunately, there are five freeholders and only five slogans.  That doesn’t leave any for Bob Taylor. So what else is new?