the alberton papers

Name:
Location: alberton, mt., United States

I am a retired steamfitter and vocational instructor, Current member, alberton town council, having served two terms previously, several years ago. Resident of alberton almost 28 years. I am fiscally conservative and socially progressive, a free thinker and an advocate of good, responsive, honest government.

Monday, October 29, 2007

the education of me and cousin freddie

The Alberton Papers, Vol. V, #V
By Dick Darne 10-29-07
The education of me and cousin Freddie
It has been said by wiser ones than me that wisdom is linked to knowing when to shut up. The recent cider making brings back old memories of cider making, well over fifty years ago, back in good ole Virginny, not at this time of year, but early in the summer when all the fruit of the trees was "little green apples". We dusted off the old cider press, secured a supply of empty whiskey bottles, ground up the first batch and pressed it, funneling our prized elixir into the empty bottles and hiding it. Under the chicken coop, under the porch, in the barn, burying a few, all the while sniggering at our cleverness. We were on the second batch when we were brought back to reality by the real voice of reality, our Aunt Eunice.
"Just what do you boys think you’re doing?" she asked holding a switch from the nearby hedge in a manner that exuded authority.
"Nothing" we both said at the same time.
"Are you making cider from green apples?" she said, brandishing the switch menacingly, "cause if you drink it you’ll die from the worst bellyache you ever had and don’t come crawling to me for help, I tried to tell you and you just wouldn’t listen. Cough it up. How much have you made? Where’s it hidden?
We could read each other’s minds. We’d give up part of the stash. We did.
"Where’s the rest?"
"That’s all of it."
Whack! These were much different than the whacks from our dads. Those you could, for the most part, duck with a lot of screaming and wailing, convincing everyone you were being murdered. These were deadly accurate, right on the calf of the leg, each whack sending the message "the truth will be told!" between Aunt Eunice’s deadly aim and her built in lie detector, we soon broke. We gave it all up.
I’d like to tell that after that we were good boys from then on, but even though "Cool Hand Luke" had not been invented yet, we knew many years before the last scene, we were not beaten yet. We were already plotting our next adventure.
"Say, Freddie, lets check out that construction site in town, I hear those workers know some real cool words."
"Yeah, and next time let’s remember not to say ‘nothing’"
Stay tuned for the next episode of our education, and don’t try this at home. dd

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

The Alberton Papers, Vol V, # IV
By Dick Darne 10-23-07
Today I will weigh in with both feet. No characters, no fiction, just my own observations (opinion if you will) about the Alberton elections. Simply put, they are:
1)Beware of those who come in and immediately, with no information about the issues, volunteer their services, as though they have brought with them some special wisdom that the rest of us who have lived here for quite a while and have paid our dues lack.
2) Look for and recognize things like actual service to the community. Ones who are willing to "down and dirty" work without recognition, because it "just needs doing"
3)Beware those who would use their office for personal gain. The reality of the council position is that:
a) Lawful actions of a town council are limited to acting on matters duly brought before it at a properly scheduled meeting.
b)At all other times, a council member is an ordinary citizen, with no authority whatsoever.
4) I personally believe, after 27 years here that in order to move forward and put Alberton back to political wellness we need two new council members. They are Josh Acker and Reece Roat.
I have known Josh since he moved here and he impresses me with his work ethic and community mindedness . He also knows how to plow a garden.
I have known Reece (Tuffy to the old timers) since I moved here. He has also paid his dues. He is also good to have around in an emergency, medical or otherwise.
Your vote for these two fine young men is also a vote for Alberton’s future.
Thank you, dd

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Alvinville chapter 3

The Alberton Papers Vol. V, #3
By Dick Darne 10-16-07
Alvinville, Chapter 3
"So, what’s all the ‘dirty tricks’, Bill?" asked Todd.
"Well, besides the visit from the Census Bureau, there has been numerous visits by the state dept. of the environment and adjacent surroundings about Mayor Olaf’s attempts to provide a less expensive way for the citizens to dispose of old cars, tree trimmings, appliances and more often than one would realize, to get a car part to keep the old clunker running." answered Bill.
"How does that become a dirty trick?" asked Johnny.
"These guys at DEAS are complaint driven, so someone complained, but the letters to Mayor Olaf and the visits always coincided with phone calls from the town to DEAS shortly beforehand." said Bill
"That’s hard to believe, that someone could be that stupid and leave a trail so easy to follow" replied Johnny.
"When the sweet aroma of anticipated victory masks one’s unscented disconnect from reality, it can happen very easily" said Elder. " Unlike yesteryear, when destroying one document and bribing, blackmailing or killing a few people sufficed to ‘cover-up’, today with modern communications technology, quite a trail is left behind. It can be as simple as poring over old phone records in the basement, matching to time and places, or as hi-tech as examining the computer hard drive for deleted messages. Usually a lo-tech search will find enough to prove probable cause of a crime, which will trigger a hi-tech search to get the real goods."
"And that’s when the real fun starts." said Todd. "The canaries start to sing. It all gets outed completely and quickly at this level. Takes a little longer at the top, but the truth wins out in the end."
"Dirty tricks aside, the sad thing is that all the stuff at Mayor Olaf’s recycling yard would be scattered all over the countryside, dumped all over, any lightly traveled road that leads out of sight is a potential dump site. Anyone who has been on the back roads knows this first hand. Of course, they are not the complainers either." said Bill.
"Maybe a little self examination is in order for all of us." exclaimed Gno, who had been leaning back with his eyes closed, but was not asleep. "Trash, garbage, obsolete cars and appliances, toxic waste, recyclables, it is our problem, that’s OUR, plural, all of us. Some do good, some do bad, some enable the bad guys, but we’ll drown in our own waste if we don’t do what we must."
"Sounds like a good topic for the near future." said Bill. "Let’s ruminate on this and be vigilant until next week."
Heed Bill’s words and stay tuned for the next thrilling episode. dd

Monday, October 08, 2007

authoritarian conservatives

THE ALBERTON PAPERS, VOL.5, #2

By dick darne oct. 8 2007



“So we’re in a heck of a pickle now. What motivates these guys anyways? Just how could 59 million people be so stupid?” asked Johnny.
“Most of the 59 million were not stupid but manipulated by trickery and outright lies.” explained Todd. “The bad guys will do anything to have their way and outright lying is OK to them. About 30% of the republican base agree with the means also. They can best be described as ‘authoritarian conservatives’, which means someone very strong has to be in charge. Most are content to follow, some have to be ‘da man’.”
“Sounds like they’re breeding liberty right out of our species.” added Bill.
“That’s where we’re headed for sure if we don’t wake up.” replied Todd. “They have almost ruined the Supreme court by placing four members who don’t give a rat’s butt about our liberties. They have expanded the Executive branch to claim powers not granted in our Constitution, they call it the ‘unitary executive’, it is nothing more than a continuation of Nixon’s attempted power grab.”
“This isn’t the Grand Old Party of yesteryear, that I knew and respected and even voted for them a few times. Where’s Ike or Fighting Bob when we need them?” wondered Bill.
“They’ve changed, for the worst, I’m afraid.” said Elder.
“Where have you been?” someone asked.
“This is not the only think tank, you know.” Elder replied. “I have to keep in touch with them all. Remember, I told you all that I’ve been around a very long time. My job is to make sure the past is not forgotten. A lot of people don’t realize it, but this unitary executive vs. checks and balances goes back a long ways. Think of it as Jefferson vs. Hamilton, in the early days of the republic. Research, read and study accordingly. Also, keep in mind that if the history of the world was a line from Alberton to Superior, then the history of our republic would be no more than a dot, right at the terminus. For a more up to date analysis, read ‘Broken Government’ by John Dean. In any case, study, learn, discuss, think and act.”
Do as Elder says. Stay tuned. dd