BREAKING NEWS: 6/10/’07 8:37 a.m.

The most popular eating spot in Williamsville, The Original Pancake House on Main Street, was closed today, Sunday, June 10th because of an overnight grease fire. The fire also destroyed several electrical circuits. The amount of time the restaurant will remain closesd is uncertain.

This evening, Tuesday, June 5, 2007, the Amherst Conservative Party chose the candidates they will endorse to run for office in November.

Jeff Marion was endorsed to run for Town Clerk, Judge Klein was chosen to run for Amherst Town Justice, and Bob Anderson was chosen to run for re-election for Highway Supertendent.
The 3 choices to run for the Amherst Town Board were Democrat Mark Manna and Republicans Guy Marlette and Bill Kindel.

A reception will be held for Amherst Town Board member William O’Loughlin on Tuesday, June 26th. The gathering will be held at Harry’s Harbour Place Grille, 2193 Niagara Street in Buffalo.
Tickets are available for: $99 Bronze, $250 Silver, $500 Gold, or $1000 Platinum and can be purchased by send a check made payable and sent to Friends of Bill O’Loughlin PO Box 347, Buffalo NY 14231. RSVP by June 19, 2007.

Corporate contributions are welcome.

It’s happened. We are finally entering President Bush’s ‘lame duck’ period. He has reached the point when he is unable to push an agenda forward. As recently as last week the President was holding on to a glimmer of hope that he still weided power.

The breakthrough on the “grand bargain” on immigration a few weeks ago had brought new life to a White House under siege, putting a long-sought goal suddenly within reach. After many grim months, there was almost giddiness at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

But that early euphoria only made the grand bargain’s grand collapse on Thursday night all the more of a blow, pointing up a stubbornly unshakable dynamic for President Bush in the final 19 months of his term: With low approval ratings and the race to succeed him well under way, his ability to push his agenda has faded to the point where he can fairly be judged to have entered his lame duck period.
[read whole story]

The war in Iraq has been downgraded and is now being refered to as an “issue” according to a recent article in the NY Times. They say, “The Bush administration’s decision makes Gen. Peter Pace the highest-ranking officer to be a political casualty of the issue of Iraq.”

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said the decision was reached in order to avoid bitter hearings in a Democratic-controlled Senate that is already confronting the White House over the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
[read whole story]

There are those who say the justice system in America is more likely to be harsh on minority criminals and gentler on caucasian criminals. No, I’m not speaking of Paris Hilton, I’m refering to individuals who are on trial for murder. Now, a recent Supreme Court decision will make it easier for prosecutors to exclude people who express reservations about the death penalty from capital juries will make the panels ‘whiter’ and more conviction-prone, experts in law and psychology said this week.

The jurors who remain after people with moral objections to imposing the death penalty are weeded out, studies uniformly show, are significantly more likely to vote to find defendants guilty than jurors as a whole.

It has long been the law in every state with capital punishment that only people who are prepared to apply the death penalty may serve on capital juries. Monday’s decision, which involved a juror’s equivocation about the death penalty on learning that life without parole was an option, has the potential to make capital juries even less representative.
(read whole story)

Stem cell research has been a bone of contention between President Bush and Democrats for years. Thursday the House gave final Congressional approval to legislation expected to ease restrictions on federal financing of embryonic stem cell research.

Democratic leaders in both chambers conceded they were short of the votes needed to override a veto threatened by President Bush.

On a vote of 247 to 176, the House overwhelmingly passed the bill, with more than three dozen Republicans joining a Democratic-led effort to authorize federal support for research using stem cells from spare embryos that fertility clinics would otherwise discard. The Senate approved the legislation in April.

(Read whole story)

There are two Amherst Town Board meetings held every month. They are usually held on the 1^st and 3^rd Monday. The public are allowed only three minutes each, to speak during these meetings concerning town issues. This must change.

During the meetings, following the time when council members give their reports, there should be public response time. At this point residents ought to be allowed to ask questions about the reports that were just delivered.
Presently the only time the public can voice their thoughts on Town concerns is during the period called Suspension of Rules. It is at this time when a person may speak on any topic related to the Town. They often ask questions of Town officials on the stage. Town Board members do not respond for several reasons: they don’t know the answer(s); they don’t want to give the wrong answer(s); they don’t have any idea what the speaker is talking about; or most importantly they want the meeting to end quicker. If they were to respond, meetings might run long.
*Answering the questions the public ask would help clear the muddy waters this Town Board has created about many town projects.

Taxpayers must never forget that the Town Board is responsible to them and their questions must be answered, not pushed aside.

BREAKING NEWS: 6/5/07

Amherst Chief of Police John Moslow, will officially resign July, 2007. Best of luck to a superior Chief of Police. Moslow has been an exemplary officer and leader. He will be difficult to replace.