Goose Stepping Down West Main Street

December 27, 2009 by Cato  
Filed under Maryland, Salisbury Politics

If anyone in the environs of Salisbury, MD thought that the days of the fascist state of Barrieland were over … THINK AGAIN.

Imagine an employee of your local government coming into your home or office – WITHOUT A WARRANT.  Imagine that same person taking photographs of your home or office, WITHOUT YOUR PERMISSION.  Now imagine those photographs showing up on a local blog as part of some bizarre attempt to demean you.

If your name is Joe Albero, you don’t have to imagine it.  It’s already happened.  Before Christmas, an employee of the Salisbury department of Neighborhood Services and Code Compliance (NSCC) made a stop at Mr. Albero’s property at 300 West Main Street.  Supposedly, this individual was there to inspect Albero’s property because of reported code violations due to the recent rain storms we have suffered in the area.

During the reign of Queen Barrie Tilghman Salisbury’s NSCC department was infamous for handing out citations and harassing businesses and residents alike who weren’t part of the political “in crowd”.  Albero certainly qualifies.  However, Mayor Jim Ireton promised that those days were over when he was sworn into office.

Why then, did a picture apparently taken by someone from NSCC appear on a local blog whose primary purpose is to attack and demean Albero?  Unless the publisher of this local cesspool trespassed onto Albero’s property and took the picture, I don’t have a problem with them publishing it.  The first amendment applies to the nasty and dimwitted as much as it applies to you and I.  However, it appears that this photo came from a CITY EMPLOYEE!

In a sense, this was amusing.  It showed that Salisbury city employees don’t have enough to do so they harass local businesses and use city resources to attack political opponents by conspiring with people like Jonathan Taylor.  Jonathan Taylor showed that he lacked the basic intelligence to discern the difference between electrical wiring and a telephone hook-up.

Unfortunately, this issue is a tad more serious.  Any credibility that the city possessed concerning code compliance is now out the window.  At least former mayor Barrie Tilghman was a little more discreet in the way she used NSCC to intimidate city residents and businesses.  It always boiled down to “he said, she said” and Tilghman (often successfully) dismissed victims who came forward as mere conspiracy theorists.  In addition, I never heard of the NSCC under Tilghman actually entering a premise without permission or warrant.

Under the current mayor – Jim “Hope & Change” Ireton – we are learning that good intentions won’t even get you a cup of coffee at Starbucks.  An ineffectual and insubordinate police chief is allowed to pick the taxpayers’ pockets to the tune of $50,000 because Ireton lacked the backbone to dismiss him.  Now, city employees are being used to harass a local businessman. If Ireton ever hopes to wrest control of the city government from Tilghman’s minor league fascists he would give NSCC director Tom Stevenson 30 days to find and dismiss the culprit responsible for this attack on basic liberties … or dismiss Stevenson.

Sadly, we shouldn’t hold our breath.  It’s only one more reason why businesses should be reluctant to move into Salisbury.