This was written by my friend, Monica Boyer to the Times Union. No need for commentary, since it pretty much sums up the democrat’s thought process with the RTW issue and how to handle it.

This is in reference to Mr. Bartley’s latest rant on his closed door “town hall” for the Right to Work bill. Since Mr. Bartley loves labels, let me give you a few of mine.

My name is Monica Boyer. I am a Christian, social and fiscal conservative, Tea Party leader, Republican, a mom and a wife of a union member.

I attended Sunday’s meeting because my family will be affected by Right to Work. I have been in politics for the last seven years, and I know how lobbying works. I know how fear tactics can be used (can’t say I’ve never used them myself), I know how talking points are used on both sides.

My family went to this meeting Sunday with no agenda but to find the truth. I’m a pretty opinionated person, but this day, I was truly on the fence, even leaning toward being frustrated with the Republican Party. I have been vocal about this, which hasn’t made any brownie points with my party.

What happened Sunday was nothing more than a hateful Republican bash session. There were no facts offered, just the pre-scripted talking points. No education, no counter points. We were told Republicans are evil. I learned right away that this was not a family friendly meeting, as “F” bombs were flying left and right.

When I removed my children, and came back in, some pastor was quoting Proverbs about how evil men must be destroyed, and those were the Republicans that must be destroyed. They speared our representatives, and talked about them being absent from this meeting. Not one time did Mr. Bartley mention he knew Dave Wolkins was in the hospital having medical tests. Tell me, how is that fair?

The kicker for me was as I introduced myself to the Democratic chairman, Mr. Bartley, and pleasantly told him that I enjoy hearing about the things their party is doing via email. He informed me he did not know how I got on their email database and that he wanted me removed immediately.

Is this how you attract new members to your party, sir, because if so, I now understand why our county has only seven Democrats!

I am not taking a public stand on RTW, and I support my husband in whatever decision he makes on this. I have no problem with a referendum. The union has treated us well, and we thank the Lord every day for our job. But shame on you, Mr. Bartley, for turning this into a party issue, and presuming to know how we feel about this topic.

Thanks to you, my husband, the conservative Republican dad and union worker, is now tagged and marked.

You know what I want? I want a conversation. Guns down, name calling put away, political party put away and all preconceived ideas put away; a conversation between both sides so I, as a Christian, a conservative, a Tea Party leader, a Republican, a mom and a wife of a union member can make up my mind with what is best for my family. It’s time to grow up and have this conversation.

If a TEA party leader can handle it … what is your problem?

Monica Boyer
Warsaw

This post teases to a  recent upload at the redesigned News-Sentinel website.  Find below just the opening paragraph and a few lines that AWB readers should find of interest.  Hit this hot link for the whole enchillada. 

Indiana’s most powerful unelected governmental strongman recently put a plan into action that will reverberate in the halls of Hoosier governance for decades to come. It is a plan that could greatly affect every reader of The News-Sentinel, yet none – or at least next to none – will have any say over how it all “goes down.”

I speak of Chief Justice Randall Shepard’s surprising December announcement that he will resign his dual posts (justice and chief justice) on the Indiana Supreme Court on March 4. This decision puts into play the following palace intrigues: 1. Who will become the next justice of the Indiana Supreme Court? 2. Of the five justices, one brand new and another a mere half year on that bench, who will become the next Indiana Supreme Court chief justice? 3. What is to become of the former Supreme Court Justice Randall Shepard, who appears to have a few more good years left in him?

*****

[A] woman is the odds-on favorite to become the next justice of the Indiana Supreme Court, with Moberly being the most likely belle of that ball.

*****

Thus the Judicial Nomination Committee will immediately place a new chief justice over the court, and the odds-on favorite is — (the envelope please) — Justice Steven David! (Pictured) Yes, that Steven David – the one who caused an uproar across the state with the Barnes decision and the Supreme Court’s dogged refusal to rehear that split decision, even though 71 legislators, Attorney General Greg Zoeller, and tens of thousands of Hoosiers strenuously requested a rewording of that broadside against the ages-old castle doctrine.

(As an aside, locals wanting to communicate their concerns about Justice David’s “nowadays” jurisprudence will have that opportunity Friday, Feb. 3 at 1 p.m. when Justice David addresses attorneys and judges gathered at the Grand Wayne Center.)

******

Could it be that Randall Terry Shepard, as a newly reacquired war horse in the mainline GOP’s stable, is being saddled up to give tea party darling Mike Pence a heart-thumping run for his money in the 2012 gubernatorial race?

Or perhaps (if Sen. Richard Lugar has been hoisted on his own petard via filings from his previous presidential run) it is Richard Mourdock who will find himself running against Shepard in the GOP primary?

The whole story links here

By Micah Clark

Rep. Bauer and The Mother of All Hypocrisies

It is not my intent to weigh in on the “right to work” issue, but the high drama is hard to leave out of any discussion of what is happening at your state capitol.

Last night, House Democrats walked out for the third time this session. This action holds up the process and reminds everyone of their five-week trip to a Comfort Inn in Illinois last year. That departure killed numerous bills including a 2011 right to work proposal.

Late last week, House Democrats threw out a new notion that could stall right to work for a while.Rep. Pat Bauer wants right to work to be a referendum issue rather than a legislative one. However,the irony of this proposal is remarkable. Former Speaker of the House, Pat Bauer, single-handedly blocked Marriage Protection referendums for more than six years. If he were Speaker today, he’d still be blocking a people’s vote on marriage protection.  Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sack

The new council asserted their power early in last night’s meeting with a quick three to six denial of a contract between the administration and a project management company. City Utilities had proposed a two-year contract and a representative gave a long-winded explanation of the project, of the need for a consultant, of the qualifications of that consultant who had worked or the city at one time, and as to why a two-year contract was preferable to a shorter iteration. Both Dr. John Crawford and Tom Didier took mild umbrage at the proposal citing their participation on the Professional Services Committee which is soon to issue new guidelines on how consultants should be hired by the city and by city utilities. The two men led the party-line vote to send the bill back for a rewrite. Simply, they proposed the bill be written for a one year period. Mr. Crawford and Didier, with the support of all the Republicans on council, believed a two-year contract might somehow fail compliance with the new, yet-to-be-minted, guidelines. Read the rest of this entry »

Maybe when they quit using inexperienced interns this kind of stuff won’t happen.

Click to enlarge

As a former card carrying member of the Christian Right (who was once in good standing) I have an educated opinion on a clandestine open meeting of the leadership of that subculture.  That meeting took place over the weekend in Texas. 

This gathering of mostly Evangelical, political activist firepower sent a few strong messages across the fruited plain.

First and foremost, they sent a message to Rick Perry to immediately suspend his campaign for president.  Secondarily they sent a message to their compatriots to all back Rick Santorum for president, at least in the upcoming South Carolina race.  Thirdly, they sent a message to those advancing federalism ala Ron Paul’s principled libertarianism as a cure to America’s ills.  That former message is “fahgettaboutit.”

The call to rethink the embrace of big government solutions to every social ill — a GOP political pattern that began with the Rockefeller Republicans in 1964 — has been answered.   Read the rest of this entry »

Originally printed in the News-Sentinel, here. 

Conservative presidential campaigns issue promises to end the reign of big government.

As a general rule, the more conservative the candidate, the less enamored with governmental oversight. Conversely, the more liberal the candidate, the more enamored with governmental oversight.

With one glaring exception, that is. That sole exception is the grisly and carnivorous abortion industry.

By way of example, consider a Jan. 4, 2012, article from the Chicago Tribune, dateline Rockford, Ill. An abortuary closed down last September due to health and safety violations has been ordered to pay out $9,750 in fines to the state of Illinois. This sounds like great news, but it is far too little and comes far too late. (Doesn’t it seem a trifling “tribute” to pay for enjoying the state-countenanced privilege of butchering the next generation of American citizens?)

The realpolitik of the situation is this: Political pressure and troubling revelations regarding the status quo ante inside the outpatient facilities advancing the culture of death finally moved Illinois bureaucrats to action. According to The Associated Press, once Illinois officials finally caved to the political realities and inspected the Rockford mill they discovered Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sack

Early in last night’s council meeting, after a bit of early formalities and the shifting in chairs, Council President Tom Smith announced to the assembled dozens of citizens and the multitudes at home via streaming video the presence in the room of the Mayor of the City of Fort Wayne, the Honorable Thomas Henry. The mayor, with his bright smile and friendly manner, strode forward and took a seat at the table. Judging by the surrounding smiles he was most welcome and genuinely well received. His comments were about cooperation, the friendlier tone on council during deliberations, his open door to all council members and a enthusiasm to work with council to confront the challenges our government faces in maintaining Fort Wayne’s position as the envy of every other city and town in the state. Council members all nodded and smiled. They noted steps the administration had already taken to work in harmony.

And that spirit of cooperation was most evident as deliberations ensured on a stack of ordinances, hearings and resolutions tackled by council in their committee session and the following regular session. Of the forty-one votes taken last night all but two, passed 9 to 0. Consensus, unanimity, cooperation. Just what the mayor was hoping for, the goal of council after four tedious and testy years of rancor. Of the two bills that failed to pass unanimously one measure was kicked back to the administration, “held” unanimously, 9-0, while the other suffered only an abstention due to a potential conflict of interest: Russ Jehl abstained on a development matter. Wise. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m not sure what process took place to select these lawyers. Today, Anthony S. Churchward and Mark A. Thoma were appointed by the Allen County Defender’s Office to represent Michael Plumadore, who has confessed to killing and dismembering Aliahna Lemmon. Here’s a promotional video from the firm.

From the firm’s website:

As should be clear, sex crime convictions are taken very seriously in Indiana. Therefore, anyone facing sex crime charges should not hesitate to contact a qualified sex crime defense attorney to have an experienced advocate on their side.

And this:

At Leonard, Hammond, Thoma & Terrill, P.C., we understand what you are up against. The law takes sex crimes extremely seriously. Public opinion is rarely on the side of the accused. That is why it is so important to have an experienced criminal defense attorney on your side.

When the deck seems to be stacked against you, an experienced criminal defense lawyer can help even the odds. Our lawyers have established a record of success in representing clients accused of sex crimes in both state and federal court.

We defend clients charged with all types of sex crimes, including those involving:

• Sexual assault, including rape and date rape
• Sexual battery
• Child seduction
• Child pornography, including possession, distribution or creation of child porn
• Sexual misconduct with a minor, including molestation and child abuse
• Statutory rape
• Lewd conduct, such as exposing oneself
• Sexually violent predator (SVP)

This is developing, and more facts are forthcoming.

Frederick E. Maroney, is the father of convicted sex offender Mitchell Todd Maroney. Mitchell is Aliahna’s uncle and brother to Aliahna’s biological father Dawayne Maroney. Mitchell is currently in prison.

Frederick Maroney was convicted of child molesting in 1989 in Ohio. Normally I would wait for the court docs to be in my hands, but I have confirmed this, and once they arrive, I will post the case number and any details that are relevant.

I spoke with Frederick today. He acknowledged he is the father of the children listed below. When I inquired about the child molestation charges, there were a few moments of dead silence, and then he stated, “I’m not allowed to talk to the media, Goodbye,” and he hung up. He currently resides in New Haven, Indiana, just outside of Fort Wayne.

You won’t find him listed on any sex offender registries and I’m looking into that. I believe he simply fell through the cracks in Ohio’s system, given that Ohio was one of the last states to fully implement and adopt the  Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (link: PDF file) (“SORNA” or “the Act”), which is title I of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (P.L. 109-248),

Frederick and his eventual wife, Joy, had other children as well. Here’s the four I have been able to find.

1. Everett John Maroney  1/26/77
2. Dawayne’s Allen Maroney 7/27/78
3. Kenrick Leroy Maroney 2/13/80
4. Mitchell Todd Maroney 6/23/81

All 4 children were born before he married their mother; he did’t marry their mother, Joy, until 1982.

In 1983 temporary custody of all 4 was granted to Kenneth J & Roberta Shellenbarger of Paulding, OH. The Shellenbarger’s are now both deceased.