We’re glad to have had the opportunity to entertain the Monitor editorial board with last week’s launch of the Foundation for New Hampshire Independence (“The circus is leaving town, and yet . . .,” editorial, Nov. 14). Mohandas Gandhi, a successful secessionist in his own right, is widely thought to have summed up his strategy for independence by saying, “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.” We’re grateful to the board for helping us skip right to the second step.
What’s not so funny, though, is the way that New Hampshire citizens suffer every day at the hands of a federal government that has long since ceased to resemble anything our founders could have envisioned when the independent republic of New Hampshire agreed to join the United States. (more…)
On November 21, 2012 I delivered the following letter to Keene Attorney Tom Millins regarding RSA339:22 relating to the appointment of an Inspector of Petroleum, Naptha & Illuminating Oil.
City Attorney Thomas P. Mullins
City of Keene, NH
Legal Department
3 Washington Street
Keene, NH 03431
RE: Demand Letter
Tom Mullins,
We have spoken twice regarding my concerns about the City of Keene being out of compliance with RSA 339:22. When we last spoke you said that I should go to the New Hampshire General Court about this statute, as in your opinion the law was out-dated.
The New Hampshire General Court has had ample opportunity to amend RSA 339:22 since its original enactment in 1873. The General Court being unwilling to repeal the law in question for the last 139-years indicates a stern commitment to safe oil-lamp usage.
I request that you instruct the Keene City Council to comply with RSA 339:22. Failure of the City to swiftly move into compliance with RSA 339:22 will result in my requesting a Writ of Mandamus in the Cheshire County Superior Court.
Please do the right thing and comply with the law.
Sentencing for three of the five men arrested in connection with an FBI plot to destroy a bridge outside of Cleveland on May 1 occurred yesterday. Douglas Wright, Brandon Baxter, and Connor Stevens were handed 138, 117, and 97 month sentences respectively, including a lifetime on supervised release. While the five had initially pleaded not guilty, in July, the oldest individual charged, Anthony Hayne, pleaded guilty to the three charges against him in “hopes to get leniency in return for his testimony”, according to his attorney. On September 5, it was reported that another three had pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, and attempted use of an explosive device to destroy property used in interstate commerce. Hayne is scheduled to be sentenced within the next week. The one remaining defendant to have not pled guilty, 23 year old Joshua Stafford, is currently being evaluated for whether or not he is competent to stand trial. Judge David Dowd initially supported a ‘terrorism’ classification for the charges against the youth as recommended by the prosecution, but ultimately opted against it at the sentencing hearing. Such designation would have effectively doubled the sentences. (more…)
