Community Alert System in Action
August 31, 2009
During the early morning hours of August 30, 2009 a young adult female was arrested after she was found to have entered numerous vehicles to steal items. All of the vehicles she entered were unsecured. REMINDER: Please lock your vehicles to help deter crime.
Pet Time with Dr. “JB” Bramson
August 29, 2009
Why You Should Spay and Neuter Your Pet by Dr “JB” Bramson
An ounce of prevention (spay/neuter) is worth a pound of cure (protection from reproductive cancer).
Male dogs like men are susceptible to prostate and testicular cancer. These types of cancer are preventable by neutering. Female dogs and cats, like women are susceptible to mammary cancer. This is preventable by spaying at a young age (less than 1 year old)
Myths of Spay and Neuter
1) “Neutered pets get fat” - No. They require less food and more exercise to maintain a healthy weight.
2) “Neutered pets’ personalities change and they become wimps” - No. Neutering stops unwanted behavior such as marking, spraying, roaming and fighting. However, dogs still remain protector of the family and loyal.
3) “You should let a female have a litter before spaying” - No. More puppies and kittens can wind up abandoned or turned over to shelters. There is no health benefit to the mother.
4)”Children should see the miracle of birth” - No. Often females want to be secluded to deliver in private. They can require and emergency cesarean section in some cases. More puppies and kittens leads to more pet overpopulation with a lack of adequate homes available. Instead rent or google a movie on the subject if you wish.
Facts
1) The main reason for cat overpopulation is feral, free- roaming, un-owned cats. Source: Save Our Strays
2) Every day 10,000 babies are born and 70,000 puppies and kittens are born in the USA. There will never be enough homes for all of these animals. Source: Spay USA
3) Un-neutered males have a greater likelihood of getting prostate cancer and testicular cancer.
4) Neutering inhibits undesirable behavior such as urine marking, aggression (fighting), and roaming.
5) 55% of dogs and puppies in shelters are euthanized.
6) 71% of cats and kittens in shelters are euthanized.
7) 30% of shelter animals are pure breeds.
Only 14% of the public gets their pets from shelters.
9) In 6 years, and un-spayed female dog and her offspring can produce 67,000 dogs! Source: Spay USA
10) In 9 years, an un-spayed female cat and her offspring averaging two litters per year and three surviving kittens per year can produce over 11 million cats! Source: Spay USA
Don’t be part of the problem, be part of the solution. Please, please spay and neuter all pets. Your dog or cat will thank you, and they’ll live longer, healthier, happier lives.
Game Time with Dave
August 29, 2009
Hello again, its “back to school” time which means fall sports will be starting soon! Let’s get caught up on what’s been happening in the last month.
LOCAL SPORTS
In local sports, Little Leagues summer season is over and congratulations again to the Thurmont Jr. League 2009 Maryland State Champions! It was a great ride and it was fun to be a part of it! (Thanks Brad!). Fall baseball as well as CYA Football will be starting soon so I hope to see you at Little League or Eyler Park.
In Minor League baseball the Frederick Keys are currently stuck in 3rd place in the Carolina League standings. The Keys have played hard despite losing several good players who have been moved up to the next level. Let’s hope they restock with fresh young talent and get rolling to head into next season on a high note.
NATIONAL SPORTS
Major League Baseball is getting ready to head into its final month and we have some great pennant races going on. In the National League East the Phillies enjoy a 6 ½ game lead while in the Central division the Cardinals have a 7 game lead. In the West, the Dodgers, who early on looked like they were going to run away and hide have seen their lead shrink to only 3 ½ games over the Rockies. (Looks like Manny needs a prescription filled!). The Rockies currently lead the wildcard over the Giants, Marlins and Braves. All are within 4 games of the Rockies making sure its going to come down to the wire. In the American League the Yankees lead the East by 6 ½ games over the Red Sox. As well as adding to their steroid lead over every other team with the announcement this week that 2 of their minor league pitchers have been suspended 50 games for testing positive. Nester de Leon and Ramon Rodriguez (maybe Ramon is A-Rods cousin!). In the West, the Angels have a 5 ½ game lead over the Rangers while in the Central, the Tigers have a 2 ½ game lead over the White Sox. In the wildcard, the Red Sox Rangers and Rays are battling it out.
In NASCAR action there are only 3 races left before the Chase to the Cup starts! Recent winners have been Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart, and Brian Vickers.
Here are the top 12 as on now:
- Tony Stewart
- Jeff Gordon
- Jimmie Johnson
- Carl Edwards
- Denny Hamlin
- Kurt Busch
- Juan Pablo Montoya
- Kasey Kahne
- Ryan Newman
- Greg Biffle
- Matt Kenseth
- Mark Martin
In PGA action, the final Majors Championship of 2009, The PGA Championship was held recently in Chaska Minnesota. Tiger Woods held a 2 stroke lead going into the final round but lost to Y.E. Yang by 3 shots. Tiger failed to hold a lead when entering the final round for the first time in 15 Majors. Even though Tiger didn’t win a Major in 2009 he did have 5 tour wins, the most of anyone and he is a sure bet to be named player of the year. Woods has set the bar for himself so high that if he comes in second people think he either choked or stun. This is so far from the truth. Without Tiger the PGA would be in trouble. How many of you watch if Tigers not playing?
The NFL is gearing up to start their regular season and the big news so far this preseason is that Michael Vick is now an Eagle, Plaxico Burress is going to jail and Brett Favre is now a Viking.
SPORTS IDIOT
This month’s sports idiot is the Minnesota Vikings. It would be easy to say Brett Favre again, but that’s even getting old to me. The Vikings flirted with Favre, had him work out, and even tried to sign him. Favre changed his mind when the Vikings told him he would need to come to camp or they weren’t interested. He missed camp and as soon as camp broke he signed with them. I guess if your 40 and don’t want to practice in the heat its okay. The Vikings will find out as the season grinds on just what the Jets did last year. When your hearts not in it and things start to go wrong, there goes your 25 million dollar quarterback back to his ranch to ride his tractors and play with his horsey’s! I predict his next retirement press conference in January.
IN MY OPINION
IN MY OPINION the judicial system being used on professional athletes is a joke! The last couple of years we’ve seen several high profile athletes arrested: Donte’ Stallworth, Michael Vick, and Plaxico Burress. Out of the 3, 1 killed a human, 1 killed some dogs, and 1 shot himself in the leg injuring no one but himself. Of the three, the one who received the most jail time, 20 months was Plaxico Burress who shot himself, next comes Michael Vick who got 19 months for killing dogs. The shortest jail sentence belongs to Donte’ Stallworth who got 24 days for running over and killing a pedestrian while driving drunk. This is incredible; I would believe this if I lived in another country perhaps, but this is America! Anyone who could justify these facts please let me know because IN MY OPINION this is a joke!
TRIVIA
Last month’s answer was Julious Boros who won the 1968 PGA Championship at age 48, making him the oldest golfer to win a Major.
This month’s question: What athlete has appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated the most times?
- Jack Nicklaus
- Magic Johnson
- Michael Jordan
- Muhammad Ali
Ponders
August 29, 2009
Wow! Let me catch my breath. Last month I most certainly placed my head on the chopping block with the Health Care Reform Bill and several of the H.R. 3200’s controversies. As it turns out seems many Americans have reservations about the contents of this “Health Care Reform,” in reference to the nationwide town hall meetings. There were several who defended the bill and I respect their opinions as well. That most certainly is one of the reasons that make this country so great-the freedom of choice and speech. There is an enormous problem in this country with health care availability and needs addressed. I do believe the elected officials who are public servants should accept the same health coverage for which they have engineered for we the people who are expected to accept it. They want health care to be equal for all, than make it fair and equal for all. That’s more story and I am sticking to it. I am however confused in one area which as a society we seem except; while some must go without medication and doctor visits, can somebody explain why prisons are allotted all the medicine and medical treatment needed? Moving on, I am going to beat Dave Little to this one. I am pondering the return of Michael Vic to the NFL. Michael Vic for years was my football idol. A huge Falcon Fan I become a Vic groupie. I have all of the Michael Vic paraphernalia which used to adorn my everyday life. While I was idolizing Vic my friends would make fun of me calling him a convict (prior to the dog incident) and other names I cannot repeat. Imagine how I felt when Vic was busted for dog killing. I am a huge dog lover and advocate for animal rights. I was crushed. But what was worse? My friends calling, hounding and rubbing salt in the wound at every opportunity given. To my friends, okay here it is, you were right. Needless to say I no longer have my number 7 belongings and cannot cheer for the old Falcon any longer. Mr. Vic contracted by the Eagles has served his debt to society and should be offered a clean slate. I watched the return of Vic on television and his proclamation of apology. I don’t think Vic is sorry for what he did to those helpless animals but in fact sorry that he got caught. Had Vic not been busted would he still be involved in the Bad News Kennels? Of course he would. As for those friends who warned me-perhaps I will listen next time. Not! Anywho, he is back and what a country we live. On that note I adopted a boxer last month which needed a home, and am pretty sure I have lost my mind. Baby makes 3! I would like to take this opportunity to welcome our latest columnist George Puvel. Mr. Puvel is proprietor of Anytime Fitness and will feature health tips each month on diet and wellness topics. Be sure to visit thurmonttimes.com for up-to-date information and events as they happen. Have an organization but no website? Just send it in and your event will be posted immediately on the website. Once again please remember to read all of the ads listed and thanks to all of the advertisers in the Times. They allow us the opportunity to bring you up to date local and national happenings. Remember Buy Local!
Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Thurmont Candidates Announced
August 25, 2009
On Tuesday August 25th nominations were entertained for two commissioner seats and mayor for the upcoming October election in Thurmont. The two commissioner seats which will be available are currently held by Commissioner Ron Terpko and Commissioner Wayne Hooper. The nomination process was called to order by Carol Robertson of Thurmont. Ms. Robertson called the meeting to order at 7pm. The first round of nominations was for the upcoming commissioner seats. Thurmont resident Brian Lynch nominated Commissioner Hooper, Mrs. Joy Lookingill were second. The nomination for mayor would bring Mr. Richard Lee of JerMae Estates to the microphone for his candidate and incumbent Martin A. Burns. There were no other nominations so Mayor Burns will run unopposed. Ms. Robertson called the nominations closed in accordance to Robert Rules at 7:08 pm. Be sure to join us in September when we interview each candidate up close and personal. Thurmont Election will be October 5, 2009 at the Fireman’s Activity Building. Polls Will Be Open From 7:00 am- Until 8:00 pm. Much success to all candidates.
Left to right: Commissioner Wayne Hooper, Mr. John Bean, Commissioner Ron Terpko and Mayor Martin A. Burns
“September” Questions of the Month
August 24, 2009
Thurmont Food Bank in Demand of Food
August 8, 2009
The Thurmont Food Bank is in demand of food. There are families who are depending on us to be able to eat. During the months of June and July we provided food for almost 700 people and that means we no sooner get food on the shelves before it is given out. Please pass the word to anyone who can contribute food that we could really use some help because donations are way down this summer. Non-perishable items can be dropped off at the Town Hall or at Harriet Chapel Episcopal Church which is 2 miles south of Thurmont on Catoctin Furnace Road. Perishable and non-perishable items can be dropped off at the Food Bank at St. John’s Lutheran Church on 15 N. Church Street on Tuesday from 5:30-7:30p.m. or Friday from 3:00-5:00p.m. These are the items we need at this time: spaghetti, spaghetti sauce, soup, fresh produce, frozen or canned meat, eggs, cheese, 1/2 gallons of milk, canned vegetables and fruit, peanut butter, jelly, baked beans, Hamburger Helper, tea, coffee, sugar, laundry detergent, dish soap, shampoo and snacks for kids.
This summer The Thurmont Ministerium which oversees the Food Bank and an Emergency Needs Assistance Program has been overwhelmed with requests for aid. If anyone can make a financial contribution to help families in crisis, please send a check to P.O. Box 74, Thurmont, MD. 21788
Thank you so very much for any help you can give.
Sincerely,
Pastor Sally
Food Bank Coordinator
The Rev. Sally Joyner-Giffin
Harriet Chapel, Catoctin Episcopal Parish
12625 Catoctin Furnace Rd.
Thurmont, MD 21788
301-271-4554
home: 301-271-1090
Advertisement
