Bill Stewart 1952-2012 Rest In Peace

Tragic news as Bill Stewart, former WVU head coach and one-man tourism and recruiting dynamo for West Virginia and WVU, died May 21 of a sudden heart attack.

We had many mutual friends but considering the number of friends Stew had that may not be much of a distinguishing mark for me!

Football seems unimportant right now but it was his life and despite the messy end to his tenure he got to enjoy one night of unbridled joy and fulfillment.

Condolences to his family.

In Which The DP Misses The Point

Hell hath no fury like an Obama-intoxicated editorial board scorned.

The Dominion Post is upset - angry, even - regarding the significant number of votes cast for Keith Judd, a Texas inmate, on Democratic primary ballots.  They are wagging their finger and flinging the usual scolds employed by the press when they disapprove of election results:  informed electorate, responsible, lax ballot laws, red flags, etc.  Note the contrast with media-approved results, when we see terms like democracy, direct participation, the people have spoken, groundswell, popular support, etc.

They are upset that the AP, which costs them money, didn't provide the full story on Keith Judd.  In this they get to share our opinion of the terminally feckless AP, at least for a day.

But nowhere in their huffy editorial will you find the word 'protest' - which is unfortunate for the DP because that's exactly what this vote was.  To anyone paying attention (and not still in the tank for Obama), those who voted for Judd did so not because they want a Texas inmate to appear on the ballot in a general election or because they want him to serve as president, but because they don't want Barack Obama to appear on the ballot again.  These are lifelong registered Democrats - the 'working families' of union agitprop - who want to maintain their party affiliation but who also want to express their disdain for the current occupant of the White House.  Like Ronald Reagan, they see their party leaving them.

The DP also ignores the clever humor of fellow West Virginians.  Many cast their vote for Keith Judd with a twinkle in the eye.  They knew that a significant number of anybody-but-Obama votes would draw attention in this once-reliable blue state, and that a significant number of votes for a felon would draw even more attention to their disapproval of Obama's policies and performance.

The DP demands that people 'vote intelligently' - in this case, establishment candidates.  But what is more intelligent - and creative - than individuals subverting a rigged and/or flawed system while adhering to the rules of that system?  And what is more democratic (small d) or Democratic (big D) than expressing their displeasure via an election?

Does this make West Virginians a laughingstock?  Quite the contrary.  It gives West Virginians the opportunity to make a loud and clear statement about the candidates and to disrupt, at least temporarily, the lazy lockstep coverage of this president and this election - the same coverage willingly reprinted by the Dominion Post.

It's come to this

The city of Morgantown will be devoting four - FOUR - police officers on bicycles to patrol a - street? avenue? boulevard? - no, a trail. Are they looking for rapists, muggers, or murderers? No, they are looking for helmets - specifically, those goofy tapered bicycle helmets. In the over-the-top spirit of SAAAFETY everywhere, adults moving 5 mph and already operating under the premise of assumed risk will be warned and possibly cited by police if the adults lack a helmet.

Violence on High Street? Fires burning throughout the student housing areas? I'm Shmacked? We'll jawbone those issues to death but preventing them is apparently beyond the reach of the local constabulary. Bike helmets in broad daylight? That's more their speed.

Real bias attacks false bias

The Dominion Post plumbs new depths of unintentional comedy with their huffy editorial today complaining about bias in a questionnaire regarding truck traffic in the city of Morgantown.

As almost everyone knows, WV Route 7 meanders through busy commercial districts (Sabraton), residential areas and downtown Morgantown. The result is no surprise: noise, congestion (especially at lights when the heavily-laden trucks brake slowly to a stop at red lights and 'accelerate' even more slowly at green), diesel smoke, and roads pulverized by the weight of the trucks, to say nothing of curbs and sidewalks damaged by these, er, professional drivers. Route 7 is also infamous for the 'hogback' turn which involves a near-180 on the side of an incline no less. Finally, the trucks must crawl through downtown and make a tricky left turn at the bottom of a relatively steep hill. What could go wrong?

Incredibly, there is a perfectly good Interstate and federal four-lane highway (US 119) that would carry the trucks to the same destination (a depot along the Mon River). An alternate route (Greenbag Road) that carries far less traffic was used during a construction period and worked well for all. But for reasons known only to governments and engineers, the trucks are kept off the freeways and on the narrow two-lane roads through the heart of the city. Occasionally a lame excuse about fuel costs, shortest distances, etc. is trotted out but is it better for trucks to idle in traffic and take 3 hours to make a round trip of 20 miles or is it better for trucks to be moving and make a round trip of 2 hours/25 miles?

It's been a problem for years but attempts to address or even discuss the problem are routinely squelched by the Raese family, owners of Greer Limestone (whose 'aggregates' fill the third-party trucks) and owners of the Dominion Post. Ironically, the trucks rumble by the Greer Building (which houses the DP offices) every day.

The DP's editorial is of the 'kill the messenger' variety but with a twist: they don't want the message issued in the first place. Local residents, unsurprisingly, know the most about the problem but apparently this is unacceptable. Instead, the DP wants a 'professional agency' (the same kind that made a hash of property assessments?) or the DOH (not exactly known for their rapid and targeted response).

Predictably, the DP emphasizes that the trucks are using designated state routes and such routes are beyond the purview of city agencies. But if these same routes are the city's arterial roads and choked by trucks that could very easily be diverted. Win-win scenarios are invisible to those determined to preserve the status quo at all costs.

And so, a newspaper that is irreversibly biased by virtue of its links with the trucks decries the Morgantown Traffic Commission's attempt to simply GATHER information. It's not a law, a ballot issue or even a referendum, simply a survey. What are the chances that if and when the city attempts to discuss the issue the Dominion Post will assail the city for a lack of data?

The editorial is like asking the elves what they think of Santa.

DP quietly raises its price

Somewhat odd timing but the Dominion Post quietly increased its single-issue newsstand price to 75 cents effective January 9, 2012.

Issues immediately preceding the change mentioned nothing about it - no surprise there.

The DP is hardly alone in facing difficult conditions given the economy at large and specifically the newspaper business but such a decision is typically the product of closed-loop thinking wherein the publisher attempts to improve the bottom line by making a move that will almost certainly decrease already-dwindling circulation.

What is the DP telling its advertisers, one wonders? I doubt their rates will be adjusted in proportion to any improvement in revenue while their potential impression rate (eyeballs) will decrease along with circulation. A nice Catch-22 for the entities on which the DP depends most for revenue!

A weekday edition of this newspaper is typically 22-25 pages exclusive of special inserts (read: ads), TV guides etc. It's fair to ask what improvements, expansions of coverage, etc. if any, will result from this increase, given that the DP is hopelessly addicted to reprints of AP articles that most readers already saw on the internet on the previous day. No doubt this AP recycling program will continue, including the maddening practice of printing a lame 'quirky' story ('150 year old tortoise has birthday party') on the lower front page with every single issue. If the price increase is due to an increase in AP subscription costs then that is another reason - beyond the AP's bias, shoddy journalism and stilted style - to consider reducing the AP content.

Like most papers, the DP is happy to pat itself on the back whenever it receives some award from its mutual-back-scratching peers but their PR machine shifts quickly and quietly into silent running when it increases its price by 50%.

Good Riddance Rodney Pyles

Mon County Assessor Rodney Pyles selected a third party (Tyler Technologies) to perform the nuts-and-bolts tasks associated with new valuations of property in the county. Since the title of his office is a very large hint, you might ask what else he had to do with his time. And you would be right. But not in county government, apparently.

He went for the Cowardly Politician's Daily Double when he disavowed any knowledge of Tyler's methods or data and then refused to face the music when it became clear that Tyler had made a complete hash of things, including 8100% increases for small parcels of land. In many cases Tyler claimed to have visited properties and/or taken photographs but when challenged (by those lucky enough to obtain a Constitutionally-protected redress of their grievances) admitted that they had no such evidence.

An individual submitting an insurance claim for a nonexistent loss would be prosecuted for fraud and rightly so. But government (including contractors) feel justified in inventing property value numbers that have a immediate and permanent financial impact on the taxpayers.

Incredibly, some defended Pyles' actions and offered up the non-defense that he hadn't broken any laws. Perhaps, but he displayed an unconscionable level of sloth, arrogance and stubbornness when the full scale of the debacle was exposed.

Pyles says he will step down after this term due to 'pressure and stress,' mostly of his own making. Good riddance to another hypocritical public official too cowardly to clean up his mess.

The Mantrip Mess

The Mountaineer Mantrip - WVU's version of a pregame team walk through a crowd of fans - was a shambles for all concerned. It was disorganized and failed utterly to live up to a fraction of the hype that preceded it.

The first sign of trouble was one of the blue-shirted CSC event staff. You know the type from the Coliseum: self-important to a fault. Had one of those Mission Control full-ear headsets on which presumably put him in contact with someone, somewhere but - as usual - prevented him from hearing anything or anyone in his presence. So much for communication and coordination.

State troopers arrived late and, disciplined fellows that they are, asked for orders from their superiors. Except there were neither superiors nor orders. The troopers fell back into usual parade-route routine, vaguely waving at the crowd and telling them to - wait for it - 'Get back.' Real helpful stuff, this.

Nobody - including CSC Headset Man - knew where the team buses were or when they would arrive. The cheerleaders and band had arrived at the trailhead many long minutes before and cheek cramps were imminent as the female cheerleaders' forced smiles for the cameras became grimaces.

Finally the buses arrived. The driver of the lead bus attempted the impossible: a simultaneous left and right turn. And so as he frantically cranked the wheel from side to side his 60 ft vehicle headed straight at the assembled crowd causing a bit of a panic. He fought valiantly and brought it to a stop in the middle of the intersection. Whew.

Who would lead the team out? Coach? Captains? Prominent players? Again, planning was rather thin on the ground as a random assortment of anyone BUT players and coaches (trainers, managers) wandered aimlessly off the buses. The band blurted out the least enthusiastic rendition of the fight song in the history of the university. Eventually the players emerged, wearing random outfits and every athlete's standard accessory of headphones - which means they neither spoke to nor heard the crowd. So much for unity with the fan base.

Coach Holgorsen strode through the crowd, exhibiting all the warmth of a harried business traveler attempting to make his late-night connection in the busy Delta terminal at Hartsfield Airport. He neither spoke nor smiled. This was not a game face, rather it was clear annoyance at having to interrupt his usual gameday routine with a half-baked marketing stunt imposed upon him and his team by Athletic Director PT Barnum.

The Mantrip is emblematic of the sort of wrongheaded thinking that an inferiority complex produces i.e. They Do It Therefore We Should Do It Too. Sorry but that isn't how identity or tradition is built.

But if the Mantrip is to be made a permanent fixture then someone needs to move beyond They Do It and seek out the schools at which They Do It Right e.g. SEC schools like Auburn with its Tiger Walk.

For example: http://tnjn.com/content/storyimage/2008/10/04/100_1960.box.jpg
Crowd barriers! What an amazing concept! No cops, no CSC martinets needed.

Those who view it as a success are using some high-powered rose-colored glasses. As is too often the case, the enthusiasm and cooperative nature of West Virginia fans overcame the lack of planning and coordination to save everyone some blushes.

The Mantrip is not an organic, spontaneous thing. It is derivative. It is yet another attempt to trade on honest, heartfelt fan loyalty and spirit for crass marketing purposes. Logistically it is a nightmare since WVU's campus layout does not provide a natural and/or picturesque route. The team is not walking FROM somewhere else on campus - they are being dropped off on a street corner like urban summer day campers only to hoof it up a nondescript asphalt path past scenic Port-O-Lets and dirt piles pushed up by bulldozers and left for no apparent reason.

For these reasons and others, the Mantrip will be discontinued and perhaps soon. Good riddance. If the fans truly want the best results from their team, they should let the coaches and players concentrate on their duties full time.