dlyon  Dec 16 2004 - 9:39am  Opinion/Editorial   

Right after President Bush nominated former New York Police Department Commissioner Bernard Kerik to be the next director of Homeland Security, Rudy Giuliani told a wire service reporter that Kerik would really surprise people. Didn’t he, though.
The surprises were quick to come, if not quite what Giuliani pictured. The former New York mayor, who was Kerik’s onetime boss and is his current business associate, had said his protege would show people “how smart he is ... how effective and sophisticated a manager he is.” Not on Giuliani’s list was the ease with which Kerik apparently forgot so much about himself before Bush announced his nomination Dec. 3. Even Giuliani was apologizing by last weekend.

dlyon  Dec 15 2004 - 10:44am  Opinion/Editorial   

There are a great many things wrong with the death penalty.
First and foremost, an official execution by the state is not a deterrent, nor does it set an example that might dissuade future murderers. Killing someone for the commission of a brutal crime does not place the state on higher moral ground.
As careful and humane as the state makes an execution, only the victim knows how much pain and suffering is involved. It certainly causes pain for the innocent family members of the condemned.
Finally, the court system is not perfect, nor are prosecutors and investigators who sometimes show too much zeal in pursuit of their duties, often failing to look any farther once they have identified a prime suspect in a case.

dlyon  Dec 14 2004 - 9:08am  Opinion/Editorial   

Two years ago, in the wake of the Enron scandal and its successors, Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the biggest overhaul of corporate governance since the 1930s. Several parts of that reform have worked as envisioned. Chief executives and chief financial officers are more serious about their responsibility to provide shareholders with truthful financial statements. Conflicts of interest have declined at auditing firms, which used to certify the accuracy of management accounts while also depending on those same managers for consulting contracts. A new oversight board for auditors has been created, and company boards are more vigorous in ensuring that auditors report to them rather than to the chief financial officers whose accounts they are supposed to be checking. All these changes should help to rebuild investors’ confidence in corporate statements, ensuring that capital flows to firms that will use it most efficiently. But one part of this overhaul is proving unjustifiably costly.

dlyon  Dec 13 2004 - 8:50am  Opinion/Editorial   

Threads to two alert Eastern Connecticut State University students who helped foil a recent internet scam. The students, whose names were not released, alerted campus cops after they received e-mails offering grant and scholarship money and asking for their Social Security numbers and banking information. In the age of easy electronic identity theft, it pays to be a little suspicious, especially when an unsolicited message asks for important personal information. If someone asks for the kind of details not available in public records or even the phone book, be suspicious — disclosing social security numbers or bank account numbers could lead to an empty bank account or worse. If you suspect something similar is happening to you, contact your local police and file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at (877) IDTHEFT.

dlyon  Dec 11 2004 - 9:34am  Opinion/Editorial   

The town of Windham took a unique legal gamble when it seized the Windham Mills property by eminent domain in 1994. On Friday, it rolled snake eyes.
The town justified paying the property owner, the ATC Partnership, $1 for a 40-acre property and 20 industrial buildings by contending the property was essentially worthless because of environmental contamination. Not surprisingly, ATC appealed.
After a decade of litigation, the state Supreme Court on Friday said it had seen enough of the town’s effort to break new legal ground. The issue “of what is just compensation is an equitable one rather than a strictly legal or technical one,” the Friday decision said.

dlyon  Dec 10 2004 - 8:54am  Opinion/Editorial   

It still boggles the mind to think how far University of Connecticut women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma has taken this program.
In 1985, when Geno first took over, coaches’ cries and foot squeaks dominated the acoustics of the old UConn Field House, which was usually empty.
Over time, the program — buoyed by a new arena in 1990 — evolved into a model of success, evidenced by full houses, stand-out players and five national championships in a decade.
Although the arenas are now full of fans who shell out big bucks, the coaches and foot squeaks still dominate over the quiet fan response at women’s basketball games.

dlyon  Dec 9 2004 - 8:38am  Opinion/Editorial   

A federal appeals court decision to strike down the so-called Solomon Amendment highlights the layers of bad policy that have led to an unfortunate standoff between the military and a group of law schools. The amendment, named for the late Rep. Gerald B.H. Solomon, R-N.Y., cuts off federal money to universities that don’t treat military recruiters as favorably as those recruiting for other potential employers. Numerous law schools, because of the military’s ``don’t ask, don’t tell’’ policy toward gays and lesbians, balked at assisting military recruiters, on the grounds that school policies forbid helping organizations that discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation. When the military, after the Sept. 11 attacks, started enforcing the law more aggressively, the law schools went to court, arguing that it violated their First Amendment rights.

dlyon  Dec 8 2004 - 11:21am  Opinion/Editorial   

The holiday season is upon us again, and so is all the stress that comes with it. Stringing up the lights, making sure the holiday cookies don’t burn in the oven and, of course, fighting the traffic on the way to the mall to find just the right gift. But as we try to make the holidays special for our loved ones, we cannot forget those who need our help this season. Whether you pick up a couple of extra cans of food at the grocery store or a couple of extra toys, it’s important to remember those in need.
The Windham Area Interfaith Ministry is a local mission effort representing more than 30 area faith communities. The group is in desperate need of donors for the Adopt-a-Family program, in which donors sign up and help out a family in need with the holiday feast, presents for both the children and adults and also Christmas trees and decorations. Monetary donations are also needed to purchase gift certificates for the Gifts for Teens program. All donations can be dropped off at WAIM’s side door at 866 Main St., Willimantic, or mailed to WAIM at P.O. Box 221, Willimantic 06226. For more information or to volunteer, call 456-7270, ext. 12.

dlyon  Dec 8 2004 - 8:35am  Opinion/Editorial   

There is an old cliché that a bird in the hand is better than two in the bush.
Like most old sayings, it contains a hard element of truth and that truth might apply to plans and hopes for the development of Willimantic’s downtown.
Two developers reportedly have expressed interest in developing the former Hotel Hooker (now called the Seth Chauncey Hotel) which is owned by the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, and the old Nathan Hale building, which is owned by the state as surplus property.
That is the good news.
Both buildings require considerable renovations to meet current building codes, including the removal of asbestos, new wiring and plumbing and complying with safety codes in order for them to be recycled as a hotel or for combined residential and office/commercial use.

dlyon  Dec 8 2004 - 8:33am  Opinion/Editorial   

William Rood
The Supreme Court of the state of Connecticut has forced the people of the town of Windham to finally confront the truth and reality about the $9 million financial catastrophe that our local politicians have foisted on us and on the backs of our children and grandchildren.
The fiasco began 10 years ago when then First Selectman Walter Pawelkiewicz announced to the dozen people attending a town meeting that he had a sure fire plan for bringing new prosperity to the town. He advocated that Windham use the power of eminent domain and seize the Windham Mills for a dollar from their private owners, the American Thread Co. partnership. He failed to tell his audience that he would be violating the good faith negotiations still gong on with the ATC group for the purchase of the property at true, current value. The public record repots that when James DeVivo and Frank Ereshena questioned the wisdom and legality of such radical action, Pawelkiewicz quieted their uneasiness with the unequivocal assurance that the project would regenerate prosperity in the town with 1,200 to 2,000 new jobs, that it would have the support of state and federal agencies anxious to assist an economically distressed town such as Windham/Willimantic and, as a final reassurance, that this would never cost the people in town a single dollar. No one suggested that for such a precedent-setting action it would be prudent to secure broader taxpayer approval through a town-wide referendum.