Day of Caring Announces 23rd Annual Pancake Brunch

DAYTON, OH – Day of Caring announces its upcoming 23^rd Annual Pancake Brunch will be held on Sunday, February 24th in 46 locations in Montgomery and surrounding counties.  To find a list of sites in your local area, visit our website.  The intention of this annual event is charitable and 100% of the ticket sale revenue is invested directly towards helping the needy in the community where events are hosted.

Serving as Honorary Co-Chairpersons of our 2013 Pancake Brunch are Montgomery County Commissioner Debbie Lieberman and Balinda Ferrara, Client Relationship manager for the Dayton office of Merrill Lynch.

“Day of Caring continually strives to increase awareness with regard to the needs of the homeless and hungry, boost volunteerism in support of these causes and assist the various non-profit food pantries and shelters within our communities,”  commented Jan Venkayya, Executive Director of  Day of Caring.  Hans Marlette, Central Committee Chairperson, added that “the growth of the number of participating sites, sponsorships and attendees is responsible for the increased funds raised to help the ever growing needs in our area.”

Cost of the brunch is $6 for an adult, $4 for seniors (over 60) and children under (12). Tickets for the Pancake Brunch are available through the individual brunch locations, at the Day of Caring Website:  www.dayofcaring.us, or at the door. For more information, call (937) 320-1687.

Day of Caring, a 501 (c) (3)  recognized charity, was established in 1991 by a single individual in quest of empowering local communities to facilitate solutions to the ever increasing needy through volunteerism.  Day of Caring has contributed over $600,000 in the years since its inception as a result of establishing a network of over 10,000 volunteers in Montgomery and surrounding counties along with Columbus, Cincinnati and Indiana. Through a variety of fundraisers and activities, Day of Caring now serves the needy 365 days a year.

 

 This is a public service message from The Jamestown Comet.

Has Kasich set his sights on the Oval Office?

Deer In Headlines

By Gery L. Deer

(AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

I am by no means one of the top political minds in the State of Ohio – far from it, in fact – nor do I hold any connections that would give me insight into what might be going on in the governor’s office right now. But, it seems to me (nod to fellow columnist Bill Taylor) that John Kasich has his eye on another chief executive office – the one with the oval-shaped room.

While most commentators are crediting the activity to Kasich’s bid for re-election, given the level of his high-handed agenda over the last two months, it is my belief that the governor is planning a run for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, or at least the vice-president’s spot on the ticket. A quick review of the governor’s public agenda clearly shows a noted increase in the number of high-profile policy and legislative initiatives, particularly in recent months.

It certainly seems as if he is doing just what a politician should do when he wants to win over both sides for a broader appeal. He’s riding the fence, trying to appease liberals as well as conservatives with nationally controversial legislative changes such as an increase in the minimum wage passed in December, but largely unpopular with republicans. Dangerous, since he is still vulnerable even in a re-bid for his job, but it’s a give and take.

According to political columnist, Chris Cillizz, a September Washington Post poll showed that the republican governor held a 50-percent approval rating. In December, a Quinnipiac University poll gave him a 42 percent overall job approval, with 35 percent disapproving, his highest marks in that poll since inauguration.

He is more popular than ever, possibly more so than his democratic predecessor, Ted Strickland. But, in the last half of his term, he is upping the ante to prove he can lead in tough times and get things done to improve Ohio’s economy even as Washington remains stymied.

Kasich still has a long way to go with a great many negatives on his desk, among them lackluster job numbers, which are currently below the national average. He also has some outspoken opposition to his “rough” demeanor.

In a recent Dayton Daily News report, Montgomery County Republican Party Chairman Rob Scott, a Kasich supporter, admitted that the governor sometimes has a harsh approach.

“I think what Gov. Kasich has brought to Ohio is that he’s up front and honest: this is what we need to do and this is how we get there,” Scott said. “And he may run over a couple people, but sometimes to get things done, and to do what’s right, you’ve got to do that.”

If there is a possibility that Kasich is looking towards 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, then the question is, does he have what it takes first to get the attention of a splintered GOP and second, to win over the disheartened voters from both sides of the aisle? At the moment the only conservative frontrunner for the presidential nomination is former vice-presidential candidate Paul Ryan. Once an unknown, Ryan had the national stage, often upstaging his running mate with his more down-to-earth demeanor and likeability among the younger voters.

Kasich is getting national attention for his aggressive policies and growing poll numbers, but he’s still not well known outside Ohio and far too conservative even for moderate democrats. But, he might at least get credit for adding some new Ohio jobs in the near future, beginning with Ford’s pending announcement about a new engine plant to be located near Cleveland. The $200 million upgrade will add about 450 jobs to a plant which currently employs approximately 1,300 hourly and salaried workers.

This announcement comes on the heels of Kasich’s State of the State address in which he outlined even bolder plans to achieve his vision for the state. It remains to be seen if he can get legislators to go along with radical changes in taxes and school funding. If he manages to do half of what he’s set out to, he might just have a shot at the big chair in the Oval Office sooner than later.

Local Columnist To Guest Judge TV Cook-Off

Deer In Headlines author and Living Dayton business contributor, Gery L. Deer in the “Stafford Jewelers Diamond Room” at WDTN.

DAYTON – From Monday, February 11 through Friday, February 15, local columnist and business writer Gery L. Deer, will appear as a guest judge for a television cook-off on the WDTN-TV2 daytime show, Living Dayton, co-hosted by Sallie Taylor.

Deer, author of the weekly editorial series, Deer In Headlines,will join BellyFire Cafe chef Jeff Blumer to judge specialty meals prepared by area firefighters with the winners being announced on the show Friday. The show airs live, Monday through Friday at noon on WDTN, Channel 2 in Dayton. Check your provider listings for specific times and channel. The show also streams live from WDTN.com, click on the Living Dayton link.

Deer is the author of several business-related e-books and the resident small business expert contributor to Living Dayton. He appears regularly on the daytime talk show offering tips and advice to local business owners for operating and marketing their companies. Deer is the owner and creative director of GLD Enterprises Commercial Writing, a commercial copywriting, public relations and media consulting firm. For more information visit www.gerydeer.com.

Hitler didn’t disarm the German people, the Allies did

Deer In Headlines

By Gery L. Deer

This picture couldn’t be more inaccurate. Hitler was a strong advocate of gun deregulation.

It’s an unfortunate fact that many high-profile politicians only speak out about issues like gun control when devastating events like mass shootings hit the headlines. Suddenly, people shift to one side of the debate or the other; with conservative Republicans typically taking the defensive, pro-gun position.

Unfortunately, most of this issue is argued, not from factual evidence or statistics, but from the standpoint of emotion, religious dogma and political position. If that isn’t enough, conservative extremists hoping to insight fear seem to always cite Hitler’s Nazi Germany as an example of what could happen to America if guns are taken away. Sadly, people rarely do any research before they start spewing nonsense like this; again, why let facts get in the way of a good scare tactic?

In fact, Adolf  Hitler did have a gun control policy, one that many on both sides of the debate say looked a lot like that proposed by California Senator Dianne Feinstein. But Hitler’s policy was an addition to gun control acts set up by the Allied powers after World War I to prevent Germany from regaining a military presence.

Quoting Cris Miles, editor of PolyMic.com, “The German (gun control) regulation was in response to the Treaty of Versailles and the Weimar government passed the legislation (not the Nazis).” Article 169 of the Treaty of Versailles stated, “Within two months from the coming into force of the present Treaty, German arms, munitions, and war material, including anti-aircraft material, existing in Germany in excess of the quantities allowed, must be surrendered to the Governments of the Principal Allied and Associated Powers to be destroyed or rendered useless.”

As Mr. Miles points out in his own article on the subject, the wording of this policy must sound like the nightmare of every pro-gun activist in the country. So far, there is no national legislation being proposed promoting confiscation of personal firearms. Keep in mind that the German regulations were put into effect nearly a decade and a half before Hitler’s Fascist party took control of the country in 1933. In a strange twist of irony, pro-gun advocates might be surprised to learn that they had something in common with the vile German dictator.

As it turns out, Hitler was a strong supporter of gun deregulation. In 1928, German citizens were granted the right to carry a firearm (applying only to handguns at that point) with a permit but where ownership was restricted to, “Persons whose trustworthiness is not in question and who can show a need for a (gun) permit.” (That had to be interesting to enforce before the days of the Internet).

The 1938 German Weapons Act effectively removed most other barriers to gun ownership, deregulating the acquisition of rifles, shotguns and ammunition. It also lowered the gun ownership age to 18 and forbid Jews from manufacturing or selling firearms. It wasn’t until the Nazi surrender after World War II in 1945 that the country was once again disarmed.

So, in effect, it was the United States and the Allies that disarmed Germany each time, not the Nazis. In 1956, German citizens were once again allowed to own firearms, but gun laws in that country are far more restrictive than those in America. The point is that America’s leaders are not trying to circumvent the Constitution but are desperately faced with the seemingly insurmountable problem of rampant gun violence against innocents.

Comparing President Obama, or any other U.S. leader, to one of the most notorious mass murderers in the history of the world is, to put it mildly, disrespectful and unpatriotic. Such statements only further demonstrate the ignorance of a few gun-obsessed people trying to make a point from an uneducated, feeble position.

Any fruitful debate on gun control must originate from facts and effective solutions will have to include some better method to keep deadly weapons from the hands of career criminals and the mentally ill. The idea that weak arguments can be made stronger simply by citing events from Nazi Germany is foolish, to say the least, and just weakens the position of the debater, particularly when the history being quoted is so inaccurate.