MontNews.com

NORRISTOWN – County employees looking to recycle the soda can they just emptied or the cardboard box that a delivery just came in will no longer have to go looking for a way to do it starting next week.

Employees who work in the Court House, One Montgomery Plaza and the Human Services center will begin using a single desk-side container for all recycling beginning December 1, 2009.

Through a contract with Waste Management, Montgomery County buildings will now be offered a ‘Single Stream’ recycling collection method.

This method will allow the employee to throw aluminum and tin cans, plastic narrow necked bottles #1-7, glass food and beverage containers, newsprint, paperboard, office paper, junk mail and cardboard all in the same bin.

Single Stream recycling will help the County workforce recycle more which in turn will have a positive effect on the environment and lower greenhouse gas emissions.

“We want to have 100 percent participation,” Montgomery County Commissioners Chairman Jim Matthews said.

“In these economic times, we’re struggling to keep our costs flat and recycling is one of the easiest things employees can do,” Matthews said. “Recycling means less waste, lower tipping fees and, hopefully, a small return on the materials.”

Society as a whole benefits as well, said Chris Kaasmann, Montgomery County’s Recycling Coordinator.

“The energy it takes for 1 aluminum soda can to be recycled is approximately 95% less than what it would take to make a can from virgin materials,” Kaasmann said.

Employees are being asked to sign a pledge to reuse and recycle as much as they can at all times in the work place.

“By signing the pledge each employee becomes accountable for the waste they produce. Hopefully, this will make them think twice about where that water bottle or piece of paper goes after it leaves their hand,” Kaasmann said.

A new educational recycling campaign is underway. It includes new stickers on all bins, educational posters and a team of County employees dubbed ‘Recycling Liaisons.’

These liaisons will work with all County employees and encourage them to do the right thing by recycling correctly.

Those visiting County buildings such as the Courthouse will also be able to take advantage of the ‘Single Stream’ recycling method. Bins located in break rooms, common areas and kitchens will contain recycling bins for the public. Bins in these areas were provided by a grant through the Professional Recyclers of Pennsylvania (PROP) and ALCOA Aluminum. For more information on this program and other recycling inquiries, please contact the Montgomery County Recycling Hotline at (610) 278-3618.

Auditor General Jack Wagner Faults Board of Probation and Parole for Lapses in Oversight of Parolees
Cites Failure to Monitor Missing Parolees and Parolee Treatment Plans

HARRISBURG, June 11, 2009 – Auditor General Jack Wagner faulted the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole for lapses in oversight of parole agents and parolees, which could result in parolees not being adequately supervised by the state, according to a special performance audit released today of the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole.

Auditors found that, from a sample of 24 parolees declared absconded, or missing, 9 had failed to meet with their parole officer for 3 years and 4 had failed for 5 years.

“This inadequate oversight by the Board of Probation and Parole is a serious potential threat to the safety of the public, especially at a time when crime is rising due to current economic conditions. Now more than ever, government must step up and be even more vigilant and do all that it can to protect the public from paroled criminals,” Wagner said. Wagner added, “While we recognize that the challenges faced by criminal justice agencies are numerous, it is our hope that our audit recommendations will heighten the safety of both the residents of Pennsylvania and the various law enforcement officials entrusted with protecting our communities.”

The audit also found that the Board of Probation and Parole failed to adequately monitor rehabilitation treatment that parolees were required to attend. Wagner said the board failed to ensure that parolee treatment information was timely entered into its computer database, failed to establish and implement adequate policies and procedures for documenting treatment received by parolees, and failed to exercise senior-level accountability over monitoring rehabilitation treatment for offenders. Instead, the board designated individual supervisors solely with this responsibility.

“Failing to have an effective system to monitor parolee treatment activity limits the Board of Probation and Parole’s ability to assess the adequacy of parolee treatment programs, and to determine whether adjustments are necessary to improve treatment outcomes,” Wagner said. “Assuring the proper treatment and completion of parolee rehabilitation plans must be a priority of the board, and it should also be monitored at the senior level.”

In addition, Wagner’s auditors found that the Board of Probation and Parole failed to provide evidence that parole supervisors reviewed parolee case file records for nearly 50 percent of the supervision checklists requested.

Furthermore, Wagner said his auditors identified case file deficiencies consisting of incomplete and inadequate supervision plans, incomplete records of interview, and failure to make the required number of face-to-face-contacts with parolees and collateral contacts. Wagner’s auditors also found that the supervisor case review checklist did not address the requirement to ensure that parole agents complete quarterly searches for absconders, nor did the checklist require supervisors to verify agents reacted timely when declaring a parolee an absconder. Parole agents have up to 30 days to conduct a diligent search for an offender before declaring him/her an absconder. Parole agents have 48 hours to file a delinquency request form once the parolee is determined to be unavailable for supervision to request the board declare the parolee an absconder. This request results in an arrest warrant being issued for the absconder.

Based on a sample of 24 absconder case files, auditors determined that parole agents failed to timely react in 13 percent of the cases, or three parolees, who missed appointments or were unaccounted for; one parole agent waited 53 days to file the delinquency request form after the parolee failed to show up for a scheduled appointment.

Wagner also said that his auditors were unable to validate the Board of Probation and Parole’s assertions about the ratio of cases per parole agent due to the board’s failure to provide his auditors with agent and caseload information that was requested during the audit.

“Residents of the commonwealth have a legitimate expectation that their government will make every effort to ensure the safety and well being of the general public,” Wagner said. “Failing to provide agent and caseload related information purports a sense of secrecy as opposed to a sense of openness with regard to citizens’ confidence in government, and that must be changed.”

The audit, which covered the period July 1, 2001 through June 30, 2006, included follow-up procedures performed and concluded as of May 15, 2009, to determine if a study commissioned by Governor Edward G. Rendell impacted any of the audit report’s findings. Wagner’s auditors found that the study did not pertain to the stated audit objectives contained in the audit report, which is available at www.auditorgen.state.pa.us. Wagner’s audit included a total of four findings, and 11 recommendations.

Wagner’s recommendations for improving the Board of Probation and Parole’s oversight included that the board:
Cease destroying documents that evidence proper internal controls, and develop a retention policy for checklist and other monitoring documents
Monitor rehabilitation treatment plans at the senior level, and ensure timely entry of treatment information into the Parole Follow-up System
Improve monitoring procedures for verifying that parole agents attempt to locate absconders and ensure compliance with the 30-day and 48-hour requirements
Take the necessary action to achieve and maintain a sufficient level of case-to-staff ratios.

Wagner’s audit report also contained an observation, encouraging the Board of Probation and Parole to implement the use of global positioning system (GPS) technology to monitor sexually violent offenders. Wagner recommended that the Board of Probation and Parole request that the General Assembly amend current law to require five years of GPS monitoring for all sex offenders released on parole who are caught after failing to register with state or local police as required, and for sexually violent predators whose victims are children.

“GPS Technology has been used effectively in many counties in Pennsylvania. It is time for the Board of Probation and Parole to adopt this technology as a tool in the process of monitoring parolees,” Wagner said.

Auditor General Jack Wagner is responsible for ensuring that all state money is spent legally and properly. He is the commonwealth’s elected independent fiscal watchdog, conducting financial audits, performance audits, and special investigations. The Department of the Auditor General conducts approximately 5,000 audits per year. To learn more about the Department of the Auditor General, taxpayers are encouraged to visit the department’s Web site at www.auditorgen.state.pa.us.

Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Tuesday, June 2, 2009

ARLINGTON, Va. — Due to a “human error,” 134 petty officers second class were incorrectly notified that they had been promoted to E-6 before the Memorial Day weekend, said Rear Adm. Dan Holloway.

The Chief of Naval Personnel has ordered an investigation into how the mistake happened, said Holloway, director of the Navy’s military personnel, plans and policy division.

About 60 sailors had already been “frocked,” meaning they were allowed to wear the higher rank insignia.

“We deeply regret, as you can imagine, the human error causing the hardship over the Memorial Day weekend, and of course, a lot of those folks thought they had succeeded and [were] celebrating, and then to receive the news that it was an error,” Holloway, said.

While the Navy correctly calculated these sailors’ advancement scores and the quota for how many sailors should advance to E-6, it accidentally put more names on the advancement list than the quota allowed, Navy officials said. The mistake affects “Full Time Support” sailors, most of whom are based in the United States, Holloway said.

The 134 sailors will not be able to keep their E-6 rank, but the Navy’s mistake will not hurt their chances for future advancement, he said.

“They will be able to — for those who are still competing — to compete with a clean slate, and like everyone else, to build their portfolio and their record so that they can go after their goal in advance and stay Navy,” Holloway said.

None of the sailors had begun to receive E-6 pay, but those sailors who had assumed E-6 responsibilites will have to be de-frocked. A statement will be entered into their personnel records making clear that the action was “due to an administrative error which resulted in erroneous frocking and not because of any adverse action,” a Navywide message said.

“We did that for a purpose to make sure that every one of these 134 were protected, and [to] ensure that it was a permanent record that it was our error,” Holloway said.

In a related error, 31 sailors were not told that they had been promoted to E-6, he said.

The Navy has since added an extra check to make sure the human error in question does not happen again, Holloway said.

“We do not want to put our sailors through this,” Holloway said.

A Look Back … The Office of Strategic Services: Training in the Forest

Imagine:

As a recruit for a new intelligence organization, you train by creeping along trails laced with booby traps. You learn how to use weapons, radios and codes. Where might such secretive training take place? In the midst of our national forests and parks, of course!

Such tales of intrigue and heroism attracted the interest of Rutgers University history professor John W. Chambers. He was especially interested in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS)—the forerunner of the CIA. When the National Park Service asked him to write a report about the OSS training in their parks during World War II, he was only too happy to oblige.

Chambers believes that teaching the public about the OSS is important.

“Until the declassification of the OSS records during the past three decades, the public did not really know very much about this secret organization,” he said. “Some said the initials OSS really stood for ‘Oh, So, Secret.’ The public should know about what was historically America’s first centralized intelligence and special operations agency.”

The Birth of the OSS

With the United States mobilizing for war, President Franklin Roosevelt recognized the need for an organization to collect and analyze strategic information. On July 11, 1941, he created the Office of the Coordinator of Information (COI) and named war hero William Donovan to head it.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt ended the COI and established the OSS with Donovan as its leader. The men and women of the OSS engaged in intelligence and special operations throughout the war.

With the pressing need for intelligence during World War II, the OSS grew very quickly. In part, because of its rapid growth, the OSS had little time to find a place to train its new recruits.

Training in the Forest

The ideal setting for OSS training was a place with a lot of land, isolated from roads and the general public.1 Donovan had a few places in mind—Catoctin Mountain Park in Maryland and Prince William Forest Park in Virginia.

These two parks had everything needed to train OSS recruits:

* Heavily wooded terrain,
* Camp houses where the recruits could sleep and
* Buildings for dining and training.

And the parks were already government property.2

Training typically lasted between two and four weeks, depending on the course.

Although the Special Operations, Operational Groups, and Communications branches did much of their training at these two national parks, the OSS also leased other sites in Maryland for use by other OSS branches. They included:

* Frontage on the Potomac,
* Country estates for use by the intelligence branches, and
* The Congressional Country Club for preliminary training particularly for the Operational Groups.

Catoctin Mountain Park

Catoctin Mountain Park was the first operative training camp for the OSS in the United States. It was the site for basic paramilitary training for the OSS’ Special Operations recruits and some Secret Intelligence personnel.3 Later, it would also serve for advanced training for OSS Operational Groups. Catoctin Mountain Park was also known as Training Area B.

While training at Area B, recruits learned knife-fighting and close-combat techniques. They also were introduced to the “house of horrors,” which imitated the stress of an actual urban combat situation.4 Recruits were awakened in the middle of the night and given a gun with ammunition and sent into the house, where they were told they would find Nazi guards.5

Prince William Forest Park

From 1942 to 1945, at least two branches of the OSS trained on the grounds of Prince William Forest Park—Special Operations (Training Area A) and Communications (Training Area C).

In the security that the forest offered, the Special Operations Branch trained its advanced recruits how to operate behind enemy lines in sabotage, guerilla leadership and other forms of subversion.6 New recruits were tasked with concealing their own identity while trying to learn as much information as possible from fellow trainees. Recruits also were:

* Taught how to use weapons, radios and codes;
* Make and disarm booby traps; and
* Make low-level parachute jumps from aircraft.7

The OSS Communications Branch also trained its recruits in Prince William Forest Park. Recruits in this division learned Morse code and ciphers, covert radio practices and maintenance, as well as the use of weapons and martial arts.8

Famous Trainees

A few famous faces are among the graduates of these training courses:

* Actor Sterling Hayden (also known as Capt. John Hamilton) trained at Area B.
* Major league baseball catcher Moe Berg also trained in one of the camps held in the national parks.
* Directors of Central Intelligence (DCI) William Colby and William Casey, who trained at Area B.

In particular, Casey is remembered for an incident during his time at Area B. He was training on a “demolition trail”— an obstacle course along a path in the woods that was laced with booby traps. Trainees were ordered to make their way along the trail as quickly and quietly as possible, while looking out for booby traps.9 Casey stumbled off the trail and caught a trip wire, which set off a charge of TNT. The blast sent a tree limb flying through the air. It hit Casey in the face and broke his jaw.

Sharing the Stories

The national parks were instrumental in the success of World War II because they provided the perfect place for OSS recruits to train.

“The OSS was a very important organization in American history,” said Chambers. “It played an important part in the American victory in World War II, and its institutional legacies include the Central Intelligence Agency and the Army’s Special Forces.”

CIA Museum Director Toni Hiley also thinks it is important to share the OSS’ robust history with Agency employees and the public.

“The OSS was the grandfather of today’s unconventional warfare,” she said. “The more things change, the more they stay the same. Lessons from 60 years ago are still valid today.”

Two orginizations are seeking the disbarment of Bush-era lawyers. Voters For Peace asks you to sign their petition:

I am writing you to urge you to hold torturers, their enablers and those who formulated the policy accountable to the rule of law. Three steps are needed:

1. Lawyers who used their license to practice law to facilitate torture should be disbarred. This includes 12 Bush-Cheney lawyers: John Yoo, Judge Jay Bybee, and Stephen Bradbury who authored the torture memoranda. As well as attorneys who advised, counseled, consulted and supported those memoranda including Alberto Gonzales, John Ashcroft, Michael Chertoff, Alice Fisher, William Haynes II, Douglas Feith, Michael Mukasey, Timothy Flanigan, and David Addington.

2. The Congress should hold hearings that publicly investigate torture. This should include much more detail about what the torture was used for. Recent reports indicate that torture was used to gather information, false information, to justify the invasion and occupation of Iraq. Hearings should also discover who formulated the torture policy and how lawyers manipulated the law to provide false legal cover for torture.

3. Appoint a special prosecutor. The issue of torture needs to be removed from partisan politics and the rule of law needs to be applied. The only way to do this is with an independent prosecutor who will gather the facts and apply the law to torture.

Application of the rule of law, beginning with disbarment and followed by appointment of a special prosecutor, along with public airing of all aspects of the torture policy are all necessary parts of the process of healing the nation and putting these war crimes behind us.

Hold Lawyers Accountable

President Obama Signs Mississippi Disaster Declaration

The President today declared a major disaster exists in the State of Mississippi and ordered Federal aid to supplement State and local recovery efforts in the area struck by severe storms, flooding, and tornadoes during the period of March 25-28, 2009.

Federal funding is available to State and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe storms, flooding, and tornadoes in the counties of Amite, Greene, Jackson, Lawrence, Lincoln, Simpson, Stone, Walthall, Wilkinson, and Wayne.

Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.

Donald L. Keldsen has been named as the Federal Coordinating Officer for Federal recovery operations in the affected area.

FEMA said additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the State and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: FEMA (202) 646-4600.

Send Babe Bombs Instead of Dropping Bombs

By Army Spc. Opal Hood
Special to American Forces Press Service

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, April 1, 2009 – Troops from different service branches and different countries eagerly got into a line that wrapped around the inside of a tent here March 24 to meet four former World Wrestling Entertainment “divas.”

For more than two hours, Terry Runnels, Nora “Molly Holly” Greenwald, Christy Hemme and Shelly Martinez signed autographs and posed for photos with servicemembers and civilians at the Morale, Welfare and Recreation gym.

“Events like having the divas here give the troops a break,” Air Force Capt. Carey Caudell of Task Force Warrior said. “When you work seven days a week, you need something to take your mind off the day-to-day and just relax.”

This was the first trip to visit deployed troops for three of the divas; only Runnels had made a trip to Kuwait to visit troops before. They were invited as part of MWR’s effort to keep the morale of deployed troops high.

“The morale of troops is important, because we are away from family and friends,” said Army Pvt. Nathan Brown, 101st Airborne Division Special Troops Battalion Headquarters and Headquarters Company. “Things like this helps remind us that we are still supported.”

Hemme said she wanted to do the tour because she didn’t want the “filtered version of the war” and wanted to see things for herself.

“People back home will never really understand how things are here without actually having ever been here,” Martinez agreed.

In addition to Bagram, the divas also visited a couple of forward operating bases, but weather forced cancellation of planned visits to some smaller bases. “It felt as if my heart was ripped out when we realized we were going to miss a few stops,” Hemme said.

The women made every moment count by visiting with the troops as often as possible. Aside from meals, sleeping and an hour of shopping, the majority of their time was spent with troops. But even during meals, they were happy to take a break for photos and autographs. Their goal was to show their appreciation to the troops and remind them that people back home support them.

“It makes us happy to see [troops] happy,” said Runnels, who added she felt honored and humbled by her experience here.

The divas never said “You’re welcome” when troops thanked them for being here, Kevin Dessart, the diva’s tour manager, observed. Their response always was “No! Thank you,” he said.

From the looks on the troops’ faces, the divas succeeded in their mission to boost morale.

“The divas are the best tour we have had so far because of their genuine concern, curiosity and overall love for the troops,” Air Force Master Sgt. Mark Gore, an MWR planner, said.

The world has been waking up and raising a voice against President Oboma’s budget and stimulus plans. How can you spend, spend, spend money you don’t have? Who will pay back the debt?

The European Union has taken a stance against the massive amount of spending. The head of the EU, Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek, said it was “the road to hell.”

Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who several weeks ago had almost joined Obama’s cabinet, came out strongly opposed to the budget. Judd said, “We believe you create prosperity by having an affordable government that pursues its responsibilities without excessive costs, taxes or debt.”

“In the next five years, President Obama’s budget will double the national debt. In the next 10 years, it will triple the national debt.”

“His budget assumes the deficit will average $1 trillion every year for the next 10 years and will add well over $9 trillion in new debts to our children’s backs. He also is proposing the largest tax increase in history, much of it aimed at taxing small business people who have been, over the years, the best job creators in our economy.”

The proposals “represent an extraordinary move of our government to the left.”

“He is very forthright in stating that he believes that by greatly expanding the spending, the taxing and the borrowing of our government, this will lead us to prosperity.”

“It is the individual American who creates prosperity and good jobs, not the government.”

“We believe that you create energy independence not by sticking Americans with a brand new national sales tax on everyone’s electric bill, but by expanding the production of American energy … while also conserving more.”

“We also believe you improve everyone’s health care not by nationalizing the health care system and putting the government between you and your doctor, but by assuring that every American has access to quality health insurance and choices in health care.”

“The U.S. has an exceptional history of one generation passing on to the next generation a more prosperous and stronger country, but that tradition is being put at risk.”

The Federal Reserve Board announced:

“Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in January indicates that the economy continues to contract. Job losses, declining equity and housing wealth, and tight credit conditions have weighed on consumer sentiment and spending. Weaker sales prospects and difficulties in obtaining credit have led businesses to cut back on inventories and fixed investment. U.S. exports have slumped as a number of major trading partners have also fallen into recession. Although the near-term economic outlook is weak, the Committee anticipates that policy actions to stabilize financial markets and institutions, together with fiscal and monetary stimulus, will contribute to a gradual resumption of sustainable economic growth.

In light of increasing economic slack here and abroad, the Committee expects that inflation will remain subdued. Moreover, the Committee sees some risk that inflation could persist for a time below rates that best foster economic growth and price stability in the longer term.”

However, there is a growing debate as to the impact of the federal trade deficit. According to the Congressional Budget Office, President Obama underestimated the growth of deficit over the next decade by over $2,000,000,000,000. The Budget Office predicts the deficit to grow to $9,300,000,000,000.

What if that is still an underestimate? Sen. Richard Shelby believes the deficit will reach $20,000,000,000,000. At such a staggering number, it is hard to believe that inflation won’t rear it’s ugly head and run rampant.