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 Holabird AdvocateProviding all the news we see fit to print since 2002!Friday, February 28, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2P FRED MCFEELY ROGERS (1928-2003) The entire nation has paid tribute to the man known simply as "Mister Rogers" since his death yesterday. ABC's "Nightline" aired an "Up Close" that was made earlier this year. PBS's "Frontline" was replaced at the last minute to air a 1990 documentary about him as well. Perhaps the most touching was on "Jimmy Kimmel Live". Mr Kimmel, a man who has never been confused with Mister Rogers, was visibly saddened and called him "A nice man". He also asked his audience "Do you think our kids will be this upset when Barney dies?" We have this to say in reply to that question. "NO WAY!!" Parents all over the country have noticed that their kids are taking the news better than they themselves did. We're not sure if that's a good or bad thing. Brittany Hinkle saw Mister Rogers on the news and said, "OH I LOVE HIM!!!". When told he died, she acted rather silly. Long story short, She doesn't exactly appear traumatized. ANOTHER SEARCH ENGINE FINDS THE HOLABIRD ADVOCATE The Marketing Research Department has discovered another search engine referal to the Holabird Advocate. This search engine is called HotBot. The query was "montana medical advocate". It was because of an article on Febuary 10 about the PITA name change where Ms. Dawn Blain of Joliet, Montana was mentioned that we were in the search results. None of us have ever heard about hotbot.com before today, just as we had never heard of dogpile.com earlier this month. Thursday, February 27, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2O MR. ROGERS DEAD AT 74 It's not such "A beautiful day in the Neighborhood" as Fred McFeely Rogers, who became a nurturing television friend to millions of children as host of the public television program "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood," died of stomach cancer at his home in Pittsburgh on Thursday morning. An ordained Presbyterian minister who believed television should be used to enhance the human spirit, began his career in children's television doing puppet voices for a local show on PBS affiliate WQED in Pittsburgh, became a national personality in 1968 when "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" became available to PBS stations across the country. Each episode opened with the gentle Mr. Rogers entering a comfortable living room, singing "It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood" and donning a cardigan sweater and pair of comfortable shoes. One of the red sweaters is now at the Smithsonian Institution. The show was quickly embraced by both children and parents for an imaginative but simple approach that came with his own songs and puppet voices, and the ongoing message: "There's only one person in the whole world like you." It became the longest running children's program on public television. He taped his last program in December 2000. The final episode aired in August 2001, but earlier program continues to run on PBS. Rogers also tackled important subjects for children, including death, when he noticed that one of his fish on the set had died in the aquarium. During the Gulf crisis a decade ago, he made a public service announcement that told parents: "Children aren't responsible for wars. The least, and the best, we adults can do is to let our children know that we'll take good care of them, no matter what." He also came out of retirement to help people of all ages deal with the reality of the terrist attacks on September 11. Born in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, he studied early child development at the University of Pittsburgh and received a charge to continue his work with families and children through television when he was ordained a minister. Rogers is survived by his wife, Joanne, their two sons and their two grandsons. HAROLD AND MARY HINKLE PLAN ANOTHER TRIP SOUTH After waiting patiently for Kelvin and Donna Kennedy to get there stuff together and go to Las Vegas and Arizona with them, Harold and Mary Hinkle have given up and decided to strike out on their own for Arizona on the morning of March 7th. Some here at the Holabird Advocate have started a betting pool as to whether or not they will in fact go. On the bright side, they won't have to listen to Celine Dion. Wednesday, February 26, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2N CROP SHOW TO BE HELD ON MARCH 1 The Hyde County Farm and Home Show, formerly known as the "Crop Show", will be held on March 1st at the Hyde County Memorial Auditorium. Among those looking forward to this event is Holabird Advocate Publisher, Jerry Hinkle, who is in desparate need of a pizza cutter from Sully Buttes since losing the previous one sometime last summer. Since they are free, perhaps he should pick up two of them. TOP TEN PEOPLE THAT SHOULD BECOME HUMAN SHIELDS by Jerry Hinkle, Special to the Holabird Advocate It has come to my attention that some Americans, for whatever reason, are signing up to go to Iraq as "human shields". I don't know what this will do for the war on terrorism, but it will sure help the war on ignorance. GOODBYE TURKEYS. Ahem, now then, with the spirit of "Do it for America" I have figured out some more folks who I feel should also sign up to do this as well. So with that in mind, FROM THE HOME OFFICE IN HOLABIRD, SOUTH DAKOTA,HERE ARE THE TOP TEN PEOPLE THAT SHOULD BECOME HUMAN SHIELDS 1. Oprah Winfrey 2. Bill Janklow 3. Barbara Striesand (on the condition that she sings and is in earshot of Saddam) 4. Alleged comic Carrot Top 5. Gilbert Godfried ( on the condition that he is also in earshot of Saddam and says "AFLAC" at least once every 30 seconds) 6. Celine Dion (same as conditions on # 3) 7. Any of "The Ladies" from "The View" (including Baba Wawa) 8. Any of Harry Smith's cohosts from "The Early Show" 9. Eminem 10.Justin Timberlake Tuesday, February 25, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2M MARY HINKLE GETS CLEAN BILL OF HEALTH She had a lot of people worried, but it appears that nothing is wrong with Mary Hinkle. After completing a stress test and having an EKG done, the doctors could find nothing wrong with her. Be that as it may, she will be going back on March 6th so they can look again. One good thing has come out of this. Harold has stopped all that fool talk of replacing Mary. E.E. Hinkle has said that Mary needs to learn how to loaf. He further suggests that Jerry should be the one to teach her how to do just that. CAM COWAN LOOKS FOR SECOND OPINION After carefully considering her options, Cam Cowan of Holabird has decided to go to Rochester, Minnesota for a second opinion. Nobody seems to know the exact content of the first opinion, however, it has been reported that she may be having a relapse of Hodgekin's Disease. All of us at the Holabird Advocate hope that the doctors there find nothing, like the doctors that looked at Mary Hinkle in the previous story. Monday, February 24, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2L BUSY SUNDAY ON THE PONDEROSA Sunday was sure no day of rest for Mary Hinkle. After coming home on Saturday night, she stayed with he father-in -law, E.E. Hinkle and made him breakfast the next morning. Then, it was off to Sunday School and church. She made pork chops for dinner, then started on income tax. The Hinkles were pleasently surprised by a visit from Maurice and Marilyn Ham from Shadehill, South Dakota. That meant preparing an evening meal visiting until they left at around 8pm. Mary was just getting started. at around 10:30 that night her heart was beating fast, slowing down and beating fast again. She was feeling, in her own words, "Not a bit good.". Harold took her to the Pierre Hospital where it was discovered that her pulse was 170, more than twice the normal rate for a person her age. She was held for observation, while Harold returned home, arriving there at 3:30am Monday. Mary has been placed in a "Special Care Unit". She is allowed only one visitor at a time, and then only family. Mary's usual doctor Cindy Pochop is on vactation in Mexico. She will be in the hospital another night and have a stress test and an EKG Tuesday morning In a statement made this morning, E.E. Hinkle had this to say, "Mary's the oldest one in her family. They have always depended on her. So have we. That's gonna have to change. We are all gonna have to do things for ourselves. She's gonna have to depend on us for a while" Saturday, February 22, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2K AGNES HAHN DISCHARGED At about 1 o'clock Saturday afternoon, Agnes Hahn was discharged from the hospital. Her daughter, Mary Hinkle, is taking her on the way home. Mary may have to live with her mother if Harold finds a replacement for her. As things are now, she's pretty safe. GOOGLE BUYS PYRA LABS As of February 17th,Pyra Labs, the company that owns and operates Blogger.com has been purchased by Google. The terms and conditions of the sale are not being made public at the present time. There are no plans to change Blogger's service to any of it's 1,000,000+ users, one of which is the Holabird Advocate. It is reported that once the transition takes place, service will only get better. Let's hope so. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, YANKEE DOODLE Today, February 22 marks the 271st birthday of George Washington. Monday was the observance of his birthday by the government, but we at the Holabird Advocate don't work like the government. The Hessian soldiers of fortune that fought against George Washington called him a "Yanker Dudel". It meant, loosely translated "shrewd woman harvester". The term, of course was meant as an insult. The redcoated Brittish made up a song ridiculing him further, and the rest of the patriots along with him. They changed Yanker to Yankee and misspelled Dudel. Most of the verses of this song are too ribald to print here. the cleanest one is as follows: "Yankee Doodle went to town for to buy a firelock We will tar and feather him Just like we will John Hancock" The patriots responded by making up their own verses. That is the Yankee Doodle that we sing today. Isn't it great that the President we honor with a holiday is the only one who could honestly say "I can not tell a lie"? Friday, February 21, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2J MARY HINKLE LEAVES HER HUSBAND After getting home Wednesday evening and getting a good nights sleep, Mary Hinkle struck out on her own in Harold's big Buick for Sioux Falls to be with her mother. Nothing much has changed with Agnes's situation, and no news is good news. That is, of course, unless you happen to publish a newsblog. Actually there is a chance that Agnes may get to come home sometime tomorrow if she's lucky. Harold was considering finding a replacement for Mary. All of us here at the Holabird Advocate wish Harold lots of luck on that. CELEBRITIES, THEY ARE EVERYWHERE by Buster Brock, of the Holabird Advocate Is it easy to be a celebrity or what. Television is just full of celebrities. That is, depending on your definition of the word. ABC gave us "Celebrity Mole", a show where I knew only one person, the host and former Minnesota Viking, Ahmed Rashad. Tell me, ABC, in what world is Kathy Griffin a celebrity. I dare say she could walk the streets of Holabird without being mobbed by fans and papparazzi. Jerry Hinkle, our courageous, dynamic Publisher once referred to himself as a celebrity. Of course he also called Alec Baldwin a celebrity as well. Actually, he may have something there as I've heard of both of them. But just who is Kim Coles? A singer? An actress? Who is she? Now ABC has a show called "I'm a Celebrity get me outta here!". Get a load of the cast of characters in this slippery little show. Has beens like Robin Leach, Downtown Julie Brown, Bruce Jenner, and Alana Steward mixed in with no-names like J. Lo's ex-husband, Joan Rivers' daughter, and a former "Barker's Beauty" from "The Price is Right". That's all you need to be a qualified celebrity Of course ABC doesn't have a corner on this. CBS has Arsenio Hall (boy, would I like to "hit him with the digits" of my right fist) on "Star Search". Well America, I don't know about you, but I'm looking for the guy who played Radar on "Mash" to make a comeback. If not him how about "The hardest working white man in show business, Barry Sobel". What? Never heard of Barry Sobel? Oh come now! HE's a celebrity!!! Wednesday, February 19, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2I NO PACEMAKER FOR AGNES HAHN In a last minute change of heart last night, doctors decided not to have a pacemaker installed in Agnes Hahn. The problem with Agnes's heart, they feel, can be medicated. Her situation is being monitored. She is still stable, and medically she is in the very best of hands. It got kind of crowded in Agnes's hospital room so Harold and Mary motored home Wednesday night. PUBLISHER HAS A "COME TO JESUS" MEETING by Jerry Hinkle, Special to the Holabird Advocate The last couple of days have been quite difficult for me. Not just because of my Grandma's situation, but other things too. After consulting with my spiritual advisor, Pastor Potluck, I was advised to confess and repent, and so I shall, right here and right now. Ladies and gentlemen of the Holabird Advocate Readership, I have sinned!!! America! I have sinned against you !!! Yes! America! Land that I love!! I have been unfaithful to you!!! I have publicly condemned the country of Canada, our neighbor to the north. I have Publicly condemned all things Canadian. Privately, however, I have been enjoying certain Canadian things. I have watched the "Red Green Show" on a regular basis. I have been using a Canadian made after shave called "Amigo" for the past two years now. Last, but certainly not least, I have also eaten a Canadian Bacon pizza. Pastor Potluck has also advised me that I must not be so hostile to all things Canadian. He says that this hatred is going to get me in the end. I shall endevor to beat this with your help and God's. Dear Readers, I ask you to pray for me that I may indeed do this. Pastor Potluck has also suggested I give up my hostility toward Oprah, but that ain't gonna happen. Tuesday, February 18, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2H AGNES HAHN FLOWN TO SIOUX VALLEY HOSPITAL Early this morning Mary Hinkle was alerted that her mother Agnes Hahn was not feeling good. Indeed, she was taken by ambulance to Hand County Hospital, where it was decided to have her flown by helicopter to Sioux Valley Hospital in Sioux Falls. She was in stable condition at last report waiting to have a pacemaker placed in her heart. The nature of her condition as best as a laymen can put it (we don't have a doctor on staff here at the Holabird Advocate) is that the heartbeat under normal conditions is a sort of "lub-dub". In Agnes's case the "lub" seems to work better than the "dub". A situation that needs a pacemaker to work out the difference between the two. Both the Methodist and Luthern Churches in Highmore have put Agnes on their prayer chain. Monday, February 17, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2G HOLABIRD HAS VALENTINE'S DAY POWER FAILURE the evening of February 14th was not too romantic for some folks in Holabird. Electricity was off and on between 6:30-8:00 that evening. Beth Aasby was having a difficult time preparing batter-dip fried shrimp for the evening meal. Harold Hinkle, however, was in is element. Previous military training and preparations for the Y2K mess three years ago reaped their reward. The series of power failures were reportedly ended when Brittany Hinkle wrote a letter to God. It may have been coincedence, but it worked anyway. DOGPILE SEARCH TURNS UP HOLABIRD ADVOCATE The Holabird Advocate's Circulation and Market Research Department has discovered that a query in the Dogpile.com search engine turned up the Holabird Advocate's web site. We have tried looking for the site on Yahoo! several times to no avail. On Dogpile we tryed using "jerry hinkle" (our courageous, dynamic Publisher) and "susan geitzenauer" (our "Person of the Year" for 2002) also to no avail. The query that did work was the original one that we first noticed. the query was "troy baloun". Mr. Baloun has only been mentioned once in our newsblog. Yet he is the only subject that has brought Dogpile or any other search engine any notice of us at all. We, of course, don't know who was looking for Troy Baloun, but we are sure glad they found the Holabird Advocate. "STONER STEVE" IS BUSTED! DUDE, YOUR GETTING A CELL! The actor known as "Stoner Steve" in commercials for Dell computers was arrested buying a small bag of marijuana, police said. Benjamin Curtis, a 22-year-old New York University drama student, was arraigned last Monday on a misdemeanor drug possession charge. Curtis is better known as, "Stoner Steve", a surfer type who proclaims, "Dude, yer gettin' a Dell!" The ad campaign drove up computer sales and spawned T-shirts, caps, and backpacks, along with Web sites and online fan clubs. Tuesday, February 11, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2F BLIZZARD HITS HOLABIRD Visibility was limited this morning at various locations around Holabird. A ground blizzard, whle not producing any new snow, produced winds that made travelling a little chancy. E.E. Hinkle sent his grandson, Jerry, on a trip to get the mail. The round trip of 5 miles took 38 minutes. As it happened, E.E. didn't get one piece of mail, but Mary's credit card bill arrived on time. AGNES HAHN VISITS DOCTOR Harold and Mary Hinkle took Agnes Hahn to Huron to keep a doctor appointment. They left before the blizzard started and returned after it was over. She has to go back to the doctor again on Monday to check things over. Holabird Advocate Publisher Jerry Hinkle reports that her foot is doing much better. LEGISLATORS TAKE UP UNSEALED PARDON BILL by Jerry Hinkle, Special to the Holabird Advocate Once again South Dakota finds out too late just how twisted Bill Janklow was as Governor. Twenty-one years ago, during his second term, he signed into law a bill that sealed the pardons that the Governor gives out. as much as I'd like to, I can't hang this all on Janklow, however. There is plenty of blame to go around on this. It seems the South Dakota Legislators who passed this law back in 1982 should step up to the plate as well. Trouble is, nobody can remember that far back, and we don't know who they were. Obviously, the Holabird Advocate wasn't there to keep the politicians honest back then either. I've been trying to look at this issue from the other side and can kind of see the point. After all, if a convict does his (or her) time, they deserve to keep the past in the past. What about the convict who recieves no pardon? That criminal record follows them wherever they go. An executive pardon from the Govenor that is sealed gives those convicts a leg up. Doesn't it? If I'm wrong, dear Readers, please inform me how this works. I can't lead the fight against ignorance if I'm wrong about this. Can't I? Of course, I need to be proven wrong first. Monday, February 10, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2E ORANGE ALERT HAS SMALL EFFECT ON HOLABIRD Because of an Islamic custom called "The Hadj", a time to make a Pilgrimage to Mecca, birthplace of the prophet Mohammed, the country has been moved up to Orange alert once again. Life in Holabird has not changed much because of this action. The most noticable change is that Harold Hinkle is acting more paraniod than usual. He keeps insisting that Jerry go on top of the windmill and look for terrorists. He is also worried about planes flying overhead, asking Jerry to shoot them down or at least throw a rock at them. Jerry has been calm and replies that he doesn't believe that terrorist will venture too far into Hyde County in the -5 degree cold weather that Holabird has been experiencing of late. DARREL HINKLE STILL HAS WINGS CLIPPED After jumping through all kinds of hoops Darrel Hinkle has yet to have his flight certificate restored. He was informed that he could keep his old one, however he returned it before because he was ordered to do so. His next course of action has yet to be decided. One thing we do know is that it's all Janklow's fault. Saturday, February 08, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2D PETA TO BECOME PITA Because of the nefarious activities of the other PETA group, PETA(People Eating Tasty Animals) will henceforth be known as PITA(People Ingesting Tasty Animals). The reasons for this were revealed at PITA's International Headquarters in Holabird this morning by PITA founder, and Holabird Advocate Publisher, Jerry Hinkle. The statement is as follows: We the People Eating Tasty Amimals are changing our name to PITA, or Peple Ingesting Tasty Animals, because the Group known as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals was the focus on a John Stossel "Give me a Break" piece on last night's 20/20 report. Activities they have engaged in have usually been shameful and disgraceful, but it seems they have stooped to terrorism to spread their message. We are not about that. We believe in getting together in groups, having fun, and eating a meal that we prepared ourselves with God's help. Sometimes we raise the animals we eat, other times we kill them and have the meat processed into a delicious form suitable for grilling. No law are broken at any PITA gathering I've ever attended. We don't feel the need to bomb a reserch lab where life saving work is taking place. We don't paint ourselves red, nor do we spill red paint on other people. We don't make fools of ourselves when we see someone wear fur or leather. Best of all we don't have stupid so-called celebrities like Alec Balbwin speak for us. We speak for ourselves, and then only when we have something to say. We welcome any celebrity endorsements, but so far I am the most famous PITA member. One member we are very proud of is Ms. Dawn Blain of Joliet, Montana. She successfully hunted and killed her first elk this past week. Not only is she having it processed, but she has offered to share the meat with other PITA members. I, for one, look forward to grilling some ground elk in the near future. LOVE IS IN THE AIR Valentine's day was celebrated early by Darrel and Kristi Hinkle. They went to dinner and a movie in Pierre. The movie was "Just Married" starring Aston Kutcher and Brittany Murphy. The resturaunt they went to was not reported, but all of us at the Holabird Advocate hope it wasn't McDonald's as we are boycotting them because of Austrailian meat. Yes, even PITA members have standards. Babysiting services were provided by Harold and Mary Hinkle who had no trouble with the three Hinkle children. Harold even watched a western movie on Darrel and Kristi's DSS system. Tuesday, February 04, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2C BUS DRIVER MISSES HIS STOP This afternoon was quite an adventure for Brittany Hinkle. She was on the school bus and she fell asleep. The man who drove the bus was not the usual driver and so he went past her stop. This made her parents panic, as well it should. Calls to other parents let them know that she was indeed on the bus, while the phone on the bus was left unanswered. The school informed them that not only was the driver a substitute, but the bus was as well and was headed to Miller. A call to the Sheriff stopped the bus so Brit's father could pick her up. Someday her family will look back on that and laugh, but not today. E.E. HINKLE RECIEVES WORD OF DEATH Vera (Hosbrook) Breider, of Pascoe, Washington, wrote to her cousin E.E. Hinkle to inform him of the death of her husband Joe Brieder. The cause of death was not revealed however he had been suffering from heptitis for several years. THE PEOPLES REPUBLIC OF CALIFORNIA STIKE AGAIN by Jerry Hinkle, Special to the Holabird Advocate The California Assembly has yet again tried to inflict their left leaning agenda on the hard working taxpayers of their state. This time it's a law concerning the sale of a certain class of vehicle. The Assembly claim that they are not forcing anthing on the people, they are just making it illegal to sell a motorized vehicle that gets "low miles per gallon". The sponsor of the bill was a California public school teacher who believes this law will force the "Big 3" automakers to produce autos with better mileage. Apparently Ford And GM need this gal on their payroll as a designer or something now, doesn't it. My beef with this is as follows: Our economic system is based on the old "Supply and Demand" principle. The California Assembly need to be reminded that the people that buy SUVs do so willingly. Nobody has been forced to by and SUV that I know of (If I'm wrong please tell me so). People in every state, not just California, demand SUVs it is up to the automakers to supply the people. That's free enterprise and it is the best system ever created. I have a feeling that the 2004 elections may find a certain Assemblywoman struggling to make it on her teachers salary alone after this ill concieved plan blows up in her face, and on the rest of the Assembly that voted this law into being. I just hope this kind of backwords thinking doesn't catch on in South Dakota. We have enough trouble. Of course, what can we expect from a state where it is still illegal to recite the Pledge of Allegience in school. Sometimes I think California gets what it deserves, but the people of California deserve better. Monday, February 03, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2B SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA:1981-2003 It's more or less official now. The seven members of Space Shuttle Columbia's crew are dead. Much speculation has been indulged in since the mishap occured Saturday morning. We may never know the exact cause. Columbia was built at a cost of $14 billion. It was actually the second shuttle built, the first being the Enterprise. It was, However the first space shuttle to actually leave the confines of Earth and return safely. It was also the first shuttle sent into space after the ill fated Challenger disaster. a lot of folks are saying that America should scrap it's space exploration plans. We at the Holabird Advocate disagree. What would have happened if we had that attitude when Apollo I exploded and burned on the launchpad on January 27, 1967. No trip to the moon, no space shuttle, more importantly no scientific or medical breakthroughs. We've only just begun. We'll have other shuttle launches someday. Right now we have to make sure this won't happen again next time. WATERTOWN, S.D. GROUP WINS POWERBALL JACKPOT For the first time since joining the multi-state Powerball lotto game, South Dakota has a winning ticket. The ticket was one of two that was drawn for the $101 million jackpot Saturday night. Sharing the jackpot with another winner from Indiana is a group of 34 employees at a Watertown rubber manufaturing plant. They are looking at a $500,000+ windfall. HOLABIRD GETS FREEZING RAIN AND SNOW Sunday may have been Ground Hog Day, but it's a cinch the ground hogs in Holabird didn't venture outside freezing rain gave way to a total of 6 inches of snow. Those who did venture outside did more than likely not see a shadow. OHIO AMISH IN QUANDRY ON ROAD REPAIRS By Joe Milicia of the Associated Press Amish resident Merlin Keim is well aware his horse's studded shoes are gouging paved roads. Keim, 53, and other Amish residents in northeast Ohio think it's only fair they chip in to fix roads torn up by their horse-drawn carriages. Since buggy owners are not required to buy licenses — which automatically defers $20 for road maintenance — Amish residents think they should be allowed to donate their fair share. I think it's better left up to the individual," Keim said. But Ohio law prevents local governments from accepting donations. "In Ohio, county governments and township governments can't do anything unless the state law specifically tells them to," said Republican state Sen. Ron Amstutz, who is preparing legislation to allow the contributions. "If somebody writes them a check, they probably can't do anything with it." The idea for the bill came from the Amish, Amstutz said. "I was contacted by several elders in the Amish community to discuss this issue, and essentially they asked for help in finding a way to collect and pay for road maintenance," he said. "In 22 years, that's the first time I can remember being called into a meeting when somebody was volunteering to pay." He said his proposed legislation "is sort of a compromise" to mandatory buggy licensing. Many Amish communities in the Midwest have objected to getting licenses because they do not want to display the metal tags — or simply do not want to register with the government. The road repair issue is unique in Amish communities. Those shoes erode the road surface. "It's like putting chains on your car. If you run that over the road a lot of times, you start doing serious damage," Amstutz said. Illinois passed legislation last year allowing townships to charge a fee for repairing roads damaged by horse-drawn carriages. Townships can charge up to $50 a year for each horse and buggy. The damage can add up. For example, Wayne County, a northeast Ohio county with a large Amish population, spends $30,000 to $50,000 of its annual $6 million budget to repair the roads, said county engineer Roger Terrill. He said a lot of the road damage is cause by Amish buggies. Amstutz said the Amish communities in Holmes, Wayne, Geauga and Ashtabula counties have offered to donate repair money through collections at their churches. Holmes County is a rural area about 65 miles south of Cleveland and has what's believed to be the world's largest Amish population. The Amish do not believe in modern conveniences such as electricity and automobiles. Amstutz, chairman of the powerful Way & Means and Economic Development Committee in the Senate, plans a meeting Monday to discuss possible legislation. Saturday, February 01, 2003 VOL. II Issue 2A COLUMBIA SHUTTLE LOST: 7 PRESUMED DEAD At approximately 8am Holabird time NASA lost communication with the space shuttle Columbia. It was homeward bound at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, when for reasons yet unknown, it turned into debris over north central Texas. All seven crew members are presumed to have perished. The flag at the Kennedy Space Center and other places in the nation, were lowered to half staff. Seven families are mourning, and all America and Isreal with them. The real sad part is that Lance Bass guy wasn't one of them. The computer at the Holabird Advocate office was unable to get online until 2pm today. It is not known if there was a connection between the two events. OH DEAR, IS MY FACE EVER RED! by Jerry Hinkle, Publisher Well! What can can I say? It appears that Bravenet does not have web links. We can do without them, of course. I did manage to change the poll question so today was not a total loss. When I turned on the Saturday Morning show on CBS, I honestly did not to come into the office todat, but W said in his address to the nation this afternoon that we have to get on with our lives. And do that we shall To be honest, I'm quite embarrassed that my plans for the February 2003 issue could be tossed aside like this. I had planned on blasting the peaceniks and the California Assembly's decision to ban the sale of SUVs in that state . My heart just isn't in it today. Perhaps one bit of good to come of this disaster in Texas was to show us what's really important. The wars on terrorism and ignorance can wait while we take in what happened this morning. I'm sorry if you, the Readers, logged on to find something courageous, dynamic, and wonderful, and instead found this. It's only temporary I assure you. 
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