Carolina bikers don't miss your chance to have fun and earn a special patch on the opening day of the SC legislature. This year's patch will be reserved solely for those who participate in the scavenger hunt on opening day. See item one below for more details and share with your friends both on and off line. ~FF
1) Third Annual Legislative Scavenger Hunt
2) Help Protect the Dragon at Deals Gap US129 & NC28
3) Jan 5th - Myrtle Beach Polar Bear Dice Run
4) Lovelorn deer pose danger on roads
5) Bill targets mortgage lenders & More New SC Bills
6) Whatever Happened to Awful Knofel?Are we free to be foolish?
7) Friday will mark last call at Bert's
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1) Third Annual Legislative Scavenger Hunt
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http://www.abatesc.com/events/2008-01-08legislativescavengerhunt.php
Third Annual Legislative Scavenger Hunt
Biker Scavenger Hunt Opening Lobby Day 2008 Legislative Session
Arrive early and come prepared to take part in our third annual biker scavenger hunt at the State House on Tuesday January 8, 2008. Scavenger hunt lists will be handed out from 9:00 AM until 11:30 AM in the lobby of the State House under the dome. Participants will earn patches and prizes. Donations to the prize stash are welcomed; we are accepting items and gift certificates of interest to bikers. If you would like to donate a prize please contact Bad Bob at 803-331-1346.
This year’s scavenger hunt will have a few new twists and special guests. Suggested items to bring for a fun and productive day at the capitol include: your motorcycle, warm cloths, notepad, pen or pencil, digital camera, voter registration card, letters legislators, and a positive attitude. Be prepared to have fun while you learn and lobby effectively with fellow bikers.
Don’t worry if you are new to lobbying or may not know where to go or what to do. The scavenger hunt is designed to help those new to lobbying become acquainted with the statehouse complex and legislative process. The scavenger hunt also helps makes appropriate elected officials and the press aware of the grassroots efforts of bikers and biker issues. New and old members can help make a valuable contribution to biker rights in just one day by participating in this scavenger hunt. This year’s scavenger hunt has been redesigned to make the maximum impact on legislators and the press.
Help your chapter and area win bragging rights for the most participants and points earned. Photos of winners will be featured in the ABATE of SC newsletter and BikerEzine.com.
The founder and creator of the Legislative Scavenger Hunt, FastFred Ruddock, will be present to answer your questions about scavenger hunt and other relavent issues. Questions from the press and legislators are also welcomed.
Directions to the South Carolina State House and more at ...
http://www.abatesc.com/events/2008-01-08legislativescavengerhunt.php
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2) Help Protect the Dragon at Deals Gap US129 & NC28
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FF Note: Those of you like me that enjoy riding the Dragon (US129) and Hellbender(NC28) in WNC may wish to support this effort to "Stop I-3" with a donation.
http://www.stopi-3.org/
Stop I-3 Talks Turkey
Dear Friends,
Interstate 3 has NOT gone away. The study of the unnecessary and wasteful road is on track, unless funding is taken away by Congress in this year’s transportation appropriations bill. Our fight has only begun, and in a few short months we may be in the thick of it!
Check out our new mission and goals delineated on our website that were announced at our fall picnic on October 27th. The Stop I-3 Coalition has increased its capacity to deal with transportation issues across the region and has secured several small grants that guarantee we will be in business well into 2008. But we need your help to make sure we make it to 2009.
Go to http://www.stopi-3.org/donate.html now to tap your credit or debit allowances for an online donation.
We believe the transportation needs of our communities can be met without destroying the environment and the unique qualities of our region. But to do so, citizens must get involved. If you have time to help, reply to this email or call our executive director, Holly Demuth at 706-508-3711.
Join us in advocating for sustainable transportation solutions by making a tax-deductible financial contribution today. Donate now or send your check to
Stop I-3 Coalition
1074 Arbor Drive
Lakemont, GA 30552
Please give today and give generously. We count on you. Sincerely,
Holly Demuth, Executive Director
Lucy Bartlett, Board of Directors Chair
PS: We are reminded during this season of thanks giving how fortunate we are to have thoughtful, passionate, and committed supporters like you. The Stop I-3 Coalition is made stronger by your presence and all of our supporters who make it possible to continue advocating for sustainable roads. Thank you for your donation today. We will email you with no more than one more reminder before Christmas.
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3) Jan 5th - Myrtle Beach Polar Bear Dice Run
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Jan 5th - Polar Bear Dice Run
You're invited…
Saturday, January 5th, 2008
1st Annual RideMyrtleBeach.com Polar Bear Dice Run
"The fun doesn't stop because the temperatures drop"
Registration with free donuts and hot coffee at B&M Cycles from 10-11AM
508 North Kings Highway - Ride leaves at 11AM
$20 per rider. $10 per passenger. 25% of the take awarded to highest and lowest rolls.
50% will be donated to Citizens Against Spouse Abuse*.
Roll stops to include:
The Beaver Bar, The Island Bar South, Wimmer Custom Cycle, The Island Bar & Grill.
Join us on the first run of 2008. Enjoy free HOT coffee, HOT dogs, HOT wings, HOT deals, and HOT cocoa, and HOT soup along the way. All particiants will receive a 10% discount storewide at both B&M Cycles and Wimmer Cycle during the ride.
All bikes and vehicles welcome. For more info call Big E at 843-251-1010.
(This ride is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Polar Bear Club USA, Inc.)
Eric Rutherford
www.RideMyrtleBeach.com
*Citizens Against Spouse Abuse provides services to families affected by domestic violence in Horry and Georgetown counties.
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4) Lovelorn deer pose danger on roads
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http://www.thestate.com/154/story/256371.html
Lovelorn deer pose danger on roads
Their mating season is a perilous time for them and humans, experts say
By ISHMAEL TATE
itate@thestate.com
Why did the deer cross the road? He was late for a date.
South Carolina is nearing the end of deer mating season — known as “rut.” Things were hot and heavy in October and November and are fizzling out now.
But that doesn’t mean you won’t see the doe-eyed animals bounding across a roadway near you.
Just Wednesday morning, Columbia radio traffic maven “Captain Telegram” reported three or four deer strikes on local highways.
Unfortunately — both for deer and drivers — the frisky ruminants are most active at sunrise and sunset, which is when most humans are driving to and from work.
About 45 percent of deer-vehicle collisions occur in the roughly 60-day mating season, said Charles Ruth, deer project supervisor for the S.C. Department of Natural Resources.
Hitting a deer is dangerous — and can be deadly.
Statewide, six people have died and 689 people have been injured this year in mash-ups with deer or other animals, according to the S.C. Department of Public Safety. Most of those incidents involved deer.
Last year, 17 people died and 769 were injured in similar wrecks.
“Folks need to understand, deer aren’t thinkers,” Ruth said. “I’ve had a number of calls over the years and people say, ‘I saw the deer, it saw me, and it didn’t get out of my way.’”
And as more homes are built in once-rural areas and more people move to those areas, Ruth said, the increased traffic that comes with that development likely will result in more human-deer encounters.
Despite being 40th in population, South Carolina ranks 11th among the 50 states for incidents of deer-auto collisions, according to statistics kept by State Farm Insurance.
Georgia and North Carolina ranked fifth and 15th, respectively.
Almost 7,000 claims filed with State Farm in South Carolina between July 1, 2006, and June 30, 2007, resulted in more than $17 million in paid claims averaging $2,500 each, State Farm spokesman Bruce White said.
In 2006, 3,150 wrecks involving deer or other animals were reported to public safety. In 2007, 2,928 have been reported.
But the actual number of deer-involved wrecks might be closer to 10,000, Ruth said, since many motorists don’t report incidents that result in minor damage.
Deer crossing signs — diamond shaped with a leaping deer silhouette — do not mark specific deer trails, Ruth stressed — only where they have been previously spotted or hit by vehicles.
Creek bottoms and places where agricultural fields meet woodlands are prime areas for deer to cross roads.
Some motorists attach “deer whistles,” which emit a sound meant to keep deer away, to their cars, but Ruth said there is no scientific evidence such devices work.
The best advice is to use common sense, be aware and drive defensively.
But if a wreck is unavoidable, Ruth said, “Hit the deer; don’t try to do anything fancy.”
Swerving to avoid the deer might lead to losing control of the car and hitting a tree, he said.
Reach Tate at (803) 771-8549.
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5) Bill targets mortgage lenders & More New SC Bills
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http://www.thestate.com/local/story/256372.html
Bill targets mortgage lenders
Other legislative proposals would address water use, roads, immigrants
By JOHN O’CONNOR
joconnor@thestate.com
South Carolina mortgage lenders could face stricter licensing rules and more oversight — an effort to cut fraud and foreclosure — under a bill proposed by state lawmakers Wednesday.
The proposal is one of 97 in a second batch of bills ready for January’s legislative session.
In addition to the mortgage bill, other proposals include:
• Creating a statewide water-use panel to head off drought-related disputes with North Carolina or Georgia.
• Requiring law enforcement agencies to keep permanent records of all child abuse allegations — even claims dismissed because of a lack of evidence.
• Two plans to dedicate more money to highway maintenance.
• Bills requiring sponsors to attach their names to budget items. (Another bill would disband the state competitive grants program.)
• A number of bills dealing with illegal immigration issues.
Sen. Robert Ford, D-Charleston, said a report earlier this year showing that black residents paid more in interest and fees for home loans prompted him to seek more oversight on mortgage lenders. In addition, he said, more training and education of mortgage brokers could alleviate the nationwide mortgage-foreclosure crisis,
In many parts of the country, including South Carolina, homeowners face foreclosure because of rising payments tied to exotic and adjustable-rate mortgages.
The bill would require all employees of mortgage brokerage firms — specifically those who are not brokers — to receive training on fair lending practices and other issues.
“It looks like bad used-car salesmen have taken over the mortgage industry,” Ford said. “We just want to make sure everyone has the proper training.”
JoLee Gudmundson, executive director of the South Carolina Mortgage Broker Association, said her organization supports the changes.
She said the bill would bring all brokers under the same state scrutiny. In addition, brokers could require a nationwide background check and competency exams.
“Consumers, they need to know who they’re doing business with,” Gudmundson said. “They need to know they are licensed.”
Lawmakers also are looking to head off disputes over South Carolina water because of drought.
Anderson County lawmakers Sen. Kevin Bryant and Rep. Don Bowen sponsored the bill. Much of Lake Hartwell lies in their district, and Georgia’s plan to draw water from the Savannah River basin could affect lake levels and residents’ ability to use the lake.
“That’s an extremely valuable asset we have, and we’re trying to protect it, so we don’t end up in court with South Carolina suing Georgia over this,” Bowen said.
Also, as expected, House leaders submitted a bill to give the public more information about who sponsors spending measures in the state budget.
House Speaker Bobby Harrell and Rep. Nathan Ballentine, R-Richland, introduced House bills, while freshman Sen. Shane Massey, R-Aiken, introduced a similar bill in the Senate.
The House also is expected to change its rules to require similar disclosure.
Reach O’Connor at (803) 771-8358.
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6) Whatever Happened to Awful Knofel?
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http://www.the-signal.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=52176&format=html
Whatever Happened to Awful Knofel?
By John Boston
Sunday December 9, 2007
"A rat crept softly through the vegetation/ Dragging its slimy belly on the bank/ While I was fishing in the dull canal/ On a winter evening round behind the gashouse/ Musing upon the king my brother's wreck/ And on the king my father's death before him."
- T.S. Eliot
I can't say it was an argument. No one in their right mind would argue with Ruth Newhall. But, in my youth, I had a rather forceful disagreement with the former omnipotent Thor's hammer-carrying editor of The Mighty Signal that surprised the both of us.
It was about motorcycle helmets.
About 30 years ago, an assemblyman from somewhere down Orange County way introduced legislation making it mandatory that all motorcycle riders in California wear helmets. At the time, I didn't even own a car. For about two years, I managed to survive rather nicely, thank you, by tooling around California on a big touring bike.
Back when I had a mop of curly hair, I liked the feel of it blowing in the wind. I liked the sun on my face. I liked the surprising microclimates you'd ride through where the temperature would rise or dip by 20 or more degrees.
When the news story came up, I vociferously admitted my displeasure over the new helmet law. Three desks away, Ruth countered by attacking my three or four IQ points and asking how I'd feel with my brains splattered all over the asphalt.
I countered with: "I hope I'd have the time to yell 'Valhalla' and, for a second thing, I'm sorry. But when exactly did we change the Constitution to create government as Mom?"
There was more than a sarcastic edge to my voice. The words out, I winced. The newsroom in that old redwood building was quiet as scribes stopped typing, waiting for the delicious beheading of a 25-year-old cocky award-winning sports editor that was surely to come.
But Ruth said nothing. In fact, I could see she had actually seen my point. America was rapidly speeding toward some Orwellian socialistic nightmare, with a rule for every regulation, two regulations for every rule and countless levels of useless bureaucrats to carry out the whim of the Great god of Red Tape.
Evel Knievel died this week. I can't say that he was ever any big hero of mine. But I would have preferred it if the man but 11 years my senior would have gone out in a more gladiator-like fashion. Withering away in your bed from diabetes and lungs as strong as wet Kleenex is not a very samurai-like ending.
Evel was born Robert Craig Knievel Jr. in Butte, Montana. I was in third grade when he got arrested and thrown in the slammer next to the local goofball, a fellow with the town nickname of Awful Knofel. Someone made the obvious connection that the two ought to start some loser nightclub act and Bobby should call himself Evil. "Awful" Knofel and "Evil" Knievel. One of those jailbirds became mighty famous and took that jailer's nickname. Later, he changed a letter because he didn't want to be confused with the Hell's Angels.
Under the big Montana skies, Bobby Craig became famous for doing stupid things. He started the life daredevil by earning a few bucks jumping a motorcycle at a used car lot over two open boxes. One contained a pair of mountain lions, the other housed 20 rattlesnakes. Evel started showing up at regional redneck events, barreling through flaming hoops or jumping a dozen or so school buses while leaving the confining irritant of gravity - if only for a moment.
He quit school in 10th grade, got a job at the big Anaconda Mine and got fired for something that still makes my pirate's heart smile. He popped a wheelie in a giant earthmover. Losing control of the mega-scooper, Knievel ran it into the main power line for Butte, knocking out all regional electricity for several hours.
Any certified public accountants have stories like that about their lives?
He used to ride out here, at the old Indian Dunes motorcycle park, through the tules and jumps of the mostly dry Santa Clara River. I saw him once. He didn't look like Superman or even Elvis. The guy had a Guinness Book of World Records 40 broken bones and a story to go with each.
He was a pole vaulter. In the Army.
How do you do that?
He was a skiing champion, rode in rodeos, and although not quite good enough to make the NHL, played professional hockey in the boonies, starting his own semi-pro squad, the Butte Bombers.
The BB's played the 1960 Olympic Czech team in an exhibition game. Evel was tossed in the third period and ejected from the stadium. Before he left, he stole the gate receipts. The U.S. Olympic Committee ended up paying off the Czechs so there wouldn't be the proverbial embarrassing international incident.
Evel Knievel was a professional guide, tracker and huntsman. He made a decent living from a company he started with a Yosemite Sam-like handle: Sur-Kill Guide Service. Game wardens arrested him when they found he was leading his customers into Yellowstone National Park to hunt for elk. Later, he would go before Congress to get them to stop elk slaughter by hunters.
He sold insurance for W. Clement Stone, who, with Napoleon Hill, wrote "Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude." Evel was a successful salesman, discounting, of course, the life insurance contracts he sold to several mental patients.
Knievel was in a coma for 29 days after trying to jump the fountain at Caesar's Palace in Vegas.
And he was nothing less than a complete jerk.
Using an aluminum baseball bat, he tried to kill his biographer, Shelly Saltman.
I don't know.
Manslaughter on an editor I can understand. You'd think the bond with your biographer would be stronger.
Evel made millions, yet ended up declaring bankruptcy. He was arrested for soliciting sex from an undercover cop posing as a prostitute. His wife, Linda, left him for that final straw in a series of final straws.
Evel Knievel wore a cape and had a liver transplant.
In a month, the biggest thrill we might feel is speeding up a pinch to keep someone from changing lanes in front of us. Evel Knievel battled a smothering mediocrity most men spend a lifetime quietly wallowing through.
I remember it was so important that I make my point to Ruth Newhall some 30 years ago in that cramped newspaper office. I still recall clenching a patented thick yellow paper torn from the UPI machine with an update on the helmet issue.
Yes. I was outraged that the state had effectively stopped me from feeling the wind on my face.
But what angered me more was the wire story I waved in my hand. It was about the assemblyman who introduced the bill in Sacramento.
Forget saving lives. Forget cutting back on medical expenses for the state or increased premiums for California's insurance holders. That slimy politician had received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from motorcycle helmet manufacturers.
There are some things about Evel Knievel I approve of and many things I don't.
But I certainly understand him.
Winner of the 2006 Will Rogers Humanitarian Achievement Award, and, winner of both Best Humor Column and Best Serious Column from the National Newspaper Association last year, John Boston has earned 114 national, regional and state awards for journalism. His column represents his own views, and not necessarily those of The Signal.
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7) Are we free to be foolish?
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http://www.livemint.com/2007/12/10002955/Are-we-free-to-be-foolish.html
Are we free to be foolish?
The state thinks citizens are incapable of making right decisions; the laws it makes betray that mindset
By Shruti Rajagopalan
The original purpose of laws was to prevent humans from infringing on another individual’s rights and liberty while exercising their own. So, any infringement on another person’s life, liberty and property in the broad sense became punishable by law so that men can coexist. The examples are obvious; theft, assault, murder, rape, fraud etc. These laws are absolutely essential for a free society.
The second set of laws, far more controversial, is those criminalizing acts which have no victims. Human acts which offend society in general or tarnish the moral fabric that a community seeks to preserve are also punishable. These laws detail what are also known as victimless crimes as there is no specific infringement on another individual’s life, liberty or property. These laws outlaw prostitution, suicide, drugs etc. In an ideal world, these laws shouldn’t exist and an individual’s rights must be supreme, but then that is in an ideal world.
While there is clear reason and purpose for the first set of laws to preserve order and uphold individual rights, and one could find religious or moral justification for the second set, there is a third set of laws which exist just to satisfy the whim of a nanny state, or in our case a mai-baap state, to protect an individual from himself.
The paternalistic state believes that people are fundamentally stupid and must be protected from behaving rashly, even if such behaviour affects no one else. The most obvious example of this is the helmet law, or the requirement to wear seat belts, which seems innocuous. But what happens when the paternalism is taken to a new level? By outlawing street food because it is presumed to be unhygienic? Or, in an outrageous example, the nanny state excluding the individual from litigation to protect one from one’s lawyers?
So, the real question is: Do we really need the state to protect us from ourselves or our foolishness? Or are we capable of evaluating the little risks we take to make our lives more pleasurable?
The helmet law or the requirement to wear a seat belt is an excellent example. But it doesn’t stop there. The Indian government likes to believes in the English notion of parens patriae , where the Crown is the protector of his subjects as a parent.
For instance, the West Bengal government attempted to outlaw hand-pulled rickshaws, to preserve the dignity of the rickshawpuller and to give the presumption of a less disparate society. The rickshawpullers obviously oppose the law as they are happy pulling rickshaws and value their source of livelihood. But do they know better? Can they be trusted with preserving their own dignity? Was it not the actual father of the nation who said that all work is worship?
It’s not just rickshawpullers. Virtually all labour laws in India attempting to protect labour from the exploitative capitalist actually assume that every individual labourer is incapable of entering into a contract, being aware of the risks and rewards, and making a living. It takes away the right of two adults to enter into a mutually agreeable contract.
Similarly, the government outlawed bar girls from dancing in bars to preserve the dignity of these women. What they did has put many thousands of women out of work and taken away their only source of livelihood. Did the bar girls weigh their loss of dignity against their livelihood? Or perhaps they felt no indignity in dancing to entertain at bars in the first place!
The Supreme Court, as always, has taken paternalism to a new level when it banned cooking on the streets by street vendors because street food, by default, is always unhygienic and citizens are too stupid to choose what to eat. We are all aware of the potential risk of falling sick eating pani puris on the street and yet we value the pleasure of a good, and slightly unhygienic, pani puri over the expected risks. But can we really be trusted with such an important decision?
Most of these instances may seem trivial to those who are not part of informal labour force, or who don’t enjoy that occasional pani puri. But sometimes paternalism in India takes on Orwellian forms.
The Indian government took it to a whole new level during the Bhopal gas tragedy case more than 20 years ago. It passed the Bhopal Gas Tragedy Act, 1985, which allowed only the state to sue Union Carbide.
The victims and citizens of Bhopal were not allowed to sue the company who took away the lives and health of their families and the prosperity of their city because the state felt that “ambulance chasers” would take away most of their compensation in legal fees. While the ambulance chasers might have taken away most of it, the government did an even more efficient job by taking away the entire compensation of most victims.
While each instance seems trivial, especially since it affects particular classes of people, there is a larger question at hand. Do we have the right to take risks that only affect us? Do we have the freedom to live our lives as we choose after weighing the risks, even if we are being foolish according to the government? And if part of freedom is the freedom to be a fool, are we free?
Shruti Rajagopalan is a lawyer and a writer. Comments are welcome at theirview@livemint.com
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8) Friday will mark last call at Bert's
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FF Note: Bert's was a cool mom and pop bar; you may wish to drop by for one last beer.
http://charleston.net/news/2007/dec/13/friday_will_mark_last_call_at_berts24878/
Friday will mark last call at Bert's
By Abi Nicholas (Contact)
The Post and Courier
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Popular hangout on Sullivan's Island set to close its doors
SULLIVAN's ISLAND — When Tim Holbrook first set foot inside Bert's Bar in 1982, it looked exactly the same as it does now.
Well, almost.
"The pool table was on the other side of the room," the island resident said, "but that's the only difference."
After serving what Holbrook deems "the best food on the island" for more than two decades, the landmark restaurant, bar and music venue will plate its last Bert's burger Friday.
"It's heartbreaking, but we're trying to plan a New Orleans-style funeral down Middle Street on Friday night to celebrate what this place has meant to us," he said.
The beloved bar took a hit when the town approved a smoking ban in July 2006, the effect of the ordinance shifting the majority of its business outside to the parking lot, owner Tim Runyon said.
But it's an increase in rent that is sending Bert's Bar to its grave.
"The smoking ban was contributory," Runyon said, "but even without it, I would not have been able to afford the building anymore."
Runyon's lease expires Jan. 15, and according to him, rent for the 2209 Middle St. building has increased fourfold.
"Up until recently, there was an effort to negotiate an extension to the lease," said Robert Dodds, a lawyer repre- senting the building's owner, although ultimately an agreement could not be reached.
Dodds said there are no immediate plans for the building once the bar closes.
Before it was Bert's Bar, the building between Station 22 and Off the Hook was a pharmacy run by the Wurth- man family, who still own the property. The family then turned it into a bar before Runyon took over the lease 22 years ago.
"We're closing Friday, so I have time to take everything down and pack it up," Runyon said. "It's like moving from a house — there's a lot of stuff."
But it's the end of the Friday night fish fries, great music on the weekends and Judy Runyon's soup, not the Pittsburgh Steelers posters and retro memorabilia above the bar, that Bert's regulars are lamenting.
"People have an emotional connection to this place," Holbrook said. "Where else can you look down the bar and see a doctor, a scientist and a carpenter — all regulars — having a conversation? Bert's is part of what makes Sullivan's Island, Sullivan's Island."
Reach Abi Nicholas at 937-5524 or anicholas@postandcourier.com.
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