What the Heck Are Progressive and Emphatic Verbs?
Today I took a grammar test and became completely confused on this section of Grammar. So I decided to explain it to you. How can a person who bombed something explain it? I don't know either. If my explanation is incorrect, please take the time to tell me. The rest of you, bear with me.
Progressive verbs
Progressive verbs means that the verb phrase shows that the action is still progressing. They are studying at the library. This means they have been studying, that they are currently studying, and that the will probably be studying for a while longer. (workaholics)
Emphatic verbs
Verbs are the most interesting of all the words. They do things. Left alone, the President, the skateboard, and the girl would sit there and do nothing. (and that sentence had an emphatic verb group)
An emphatic verb emphasizes the verb even more so in the sentence. And that is done by adding the word 'do', 'does', or 'did.' In this sentence: But Marissa did go to Grandma's house; the sentence stresses that Marissa went, and it wasn't about who went to Grandma's house, or where Marissa was going.
Hopefully this is an adequate explanation for the Grammar. This is more in depth than what my book said, and I was tested on it. Grrr, I hate that book. And yes, this is a shameless way of studying. Well, at least I understand it a bit better now.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Friday, February 12, 2010
A Girl Named Hannah
There are those times when life sneaks up behind you and surprises you with joy. Such is the case with Hannah Glenister. My life was mapped out and the course was set: I would debate this semester; I would go to journalism school; and I would work hard there. I might find somebody in College, but I might not. After college, I would go to Afghanistan as a war correspondent (to be brutally honest, getting shot right at this point of the narrative would be OK with me) and maybe finish my life as an editor. Funny how God gives you gifts, things you think you don’t need, and it gives your life, oh, So much joy! He doesn’t give us bread, he gives us manna.
Hannah and I met at Backyard Shakespeare three years ago. I was playing Shylock and she was Solanio. We parted ways that year as casual friends, although she gave me a goodbye hug the last performance. I remember that hug vividly. It was the first hug anyone outside my family gave me. We might have chatted once during the year. Drama experiences work that way. You work and become very close to a group of people and then when the last bow is taken, and the costumes put away, everyone goes their separate ways.
Hannah didn’t participate in the second year of Backyard Shakespeare. I want to say parents stopped her from attending. I’m not that sure on that point, so don’t quote me on it. We saw each other, but in passing at the performance.
Finally, there was last summer of Backyard Shakespeare. I was Third Murderer in Macbeth while she was First Witch. It was great banter material.
“You’re a witch.”
“Well, you are a murderer.”
“Once a witch always a witch!”
“I’ll put a hex on you”
“Ohhhhh!”
We started talking, these long, lengthy messages on Facebook. One day Hannah writes to me and says “hey I kinda want to talk to you about something that's important to me..... Is it ok if I call you?”
Well, what am I to say, no? I told her a good time and then I waited. That night, I got this strong attraction to Hannah. In my single days, I would get these “crushes." In the past, I would push the feelings down and fight them. This time I prayed, “Lord, if this is the time to start a relationship, specifically with Hannah, let me know.”
I think God answered my prayer though Hannah’s phone call the next day. The important thing Hannah stammered out was that she liked me. She liked me for awhile. And I said “ummmmmmm well… I… Like you… As a friend….” It wasn’t easy on Hannah for that conversation. I liked her, but what would it mean if I told her? What would happen? I had no idea how this relationship stuff would work. Diving into a relationship could hurt both of us. I didn’t want that to happen.
I left the conversation thinking that Hannah understood I kinda liked her, but I was cautious about jumping into a relationship. Hannah thought I said I wasn’t really that interested. Thus began a month of misunderstanding. Hannah thought we would go our separate ways, but every time she was almost over me, I would reply to our messages on Facebook, setting off all those feelings in Hannah again.
I am a guy (obviously) and I had no clue what was going on with Hannah. Thank God for friends. My guy friends, all who never had a relationship, gave me free advice. “What?! You didn’t tell her you liked her back? Ugh, I should slap you!” Another, a mutual friend, finally alerted me to the fact that I better tell Hannah my feelings because she was beginning to “wonder if it was worth it.”
Hannah was seriously depressed at this time. It was so bad that it was affecting her schoolwork. One December 14th, she was lying in her bed; in tears praying to God that if this relationship was meant to be, give her some sign. She was finally going to let it go.
Like me, her prayers were answered with a phone call. My call to tell her I liked her as well. I told her I didn’t know what this would mean, what was expected, but I thought it was God’s will and I would give it a try.
Hannah and I aren’t dating, nor are we courting; it’s something in between. Since we are both homeschooled, we call it courting. Our goal is simply to glorify God through our relationship. We both like it this way as it is more organic—how a relationship should be.
Two weeks ago, we finally had our first outing together when we saw the movie Avatar. It was the best movie I ever saw. Of course, having your arm around your girl’s shoulders improves any movie.
Our relationship is a long-distance one. Some say that long-distance relationships don’t work, but this is a relationship founded on trust. We trust in God that if this is truly His story, He will see that the ending ends like a fairy tale: they lived happily ever after.
I love you Hannah Glenister!
Hannah and I met at Backyard Shakespeare three years ago. I was playing Shylock and she was Solanio. We parted ways that year as casual friends, although she gave me a goodbye hug the last performance. I remember that hug vividly. It was the first hug anyone outside my family gave me. We might have chatted once during the year. Drama experiences work that way. You work and become very close to a group of people and then when the last bow is taken, and the costumes put away, everyone goes their separate ways.
Hannah didn’t participate in the second year of Backyard Shakespeare. I want to say parents stopped her from attending. I’m not that sure on that point, so don’t quote me on it. We saw each other, but in passing at the performance.
Finally, there was last summer of Backyard Shakespeare. I was Third Murderer in Macbeth while she was First Witch. It was great banter material.
“You’re a witch.”
“Well, you are a murderer.”
“Once a witch always a witch!”
“I’ll put a hex on you”
“Ohhhhh!”
We started talking, these long, lengthy messages on Facebook. One day Hannah writes to me and says “hey I kinda want to talk to you about something that's important to me..... Is it ok if I call you?”
Well, what am I to say, no? I told her a good time and then I waited. That night, I got this strong attraction to Hannah. In my single days, I would get these “crushes." In the past, I would push the feelings down and fight them. This time I prayed, “Lord, if this is the time to start a relationship, specifically with Hannah, let me know.”
I think God answered my prayer though Hannah’s phone call the next day. The important thing Hannah stammered out was that she liked me. She liked me for awhile. And I said “ummmmmmm well… I… Like you… As a friend….” It wasn’t easy on Hannah for that conversation. I liked her, but what would it mean if I told her? What would happen? I had no idea how this relationship stuff would work. Diving into a relationship could hurt both of us. I didn’t want that to happen.
I left the conversation thinking that Hannah understood I kinda liked her, but I was cautious about jumping into a relationship. Hannah thought I said I wasn’t really that interested. Thus began a month of misunderstanding. Hannah thought we would go our separate ways, but every time she was almost over me, I would reply to our messages on Facebook, setting off all those feelings in Hannah again.
I am a guy (obviously) and I had no clue what was going on with Hannah. Thank God for friends. My guy friends, all who never had a relationship, gave me free advice. “What?! You didn’t tell her you liked her back? Ugh, I should slap you!” Another, a mutual friend, finally alerted me to the fact that I better tell Hannah my feelings because she was beginning to “wonder if it was worth it.”
Hannah was seriously depressed at this time. It was so bad that it was affecting her schoolwork. One December 14th, she was lying in her bed; in tears praying to God that if this relationship was meant to be, give her some sign. She was finally going to let it go.
Like me, her prayers were answered with a phone call. My call to tell her I liked her as well. I told her I didn’t know what this would mean, what was expected, but I thought it was God’s will and I would give it a try.
Hannah and I aren’t dating, nor are we courting; it’s something in between. Since we are both homeschooled, we call it courting. Our goal is simply to glorify God through our relationship. We both like it this way as it is more organic—how a relationship should be.
Two weeks ago, we finally had our first outing together when we saw the movie Avatar. It was the best movie I ever saw. Of course, having your arm around your girl’s shoulders improves any movie.
Our relationship is a long-distance one. Some say that long-distance relationships don’t work, but this is a relationship founded on trust. We trust in God that if this is truly His story, He will see that the ending ends like a fairy tale: they lived happily ever after.
I love you Hannah Glenister!
Winter Edition of iAwaken
Here is the long awaited newsletter! Ten pages of analysis written by the youth of Connecticut. To see it, click here. My article on VIP which I published here a few posts ago is in there as well as a short sidebar which I also wrote. The sidebar is on page nine, at the end of my longer story.
My piece was chopped. The whole last third was taken out, the Philistines! I you want to read the whole, unedited article, its on my blog right here. The last third is the part not in the newsletter, which was the most interesting to write. If I found it interesting, you might find it interesting too.
Tell me what you think of the newsletter. Also, is the article best longer or shorter? Please comment below.
My piece was chopped. The whole last third was taken out, the Philistines! I you want to read the whole, unedited article, its on my blog right here. The last third is the part not in the newsletter, which was the most interesting to write. If I found it interesting, you might find it interesting too.
Tell me what you think of the newsletter. Also, is the article best longer or shorter? Please comment below.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Eats, Shoots and Leaves
I don't understand grammar. The workbooks which I am supposed to be working through are drudgery; they are filled with busy work and confusing rules. My writing sounds fine the way it is, thank you very much! Except, I have yet to master the language. Semi-colons are a mystery and my knowledge on where to insert an apostrophe is sketchy. And those grammar text-books are not working. Perhaps, just maybe, I can get by as a writer and college student just by using spell-check and what sounds right to my ear. If someone could make grammar alive and interesting, not just a pesky test to pass through on the way to good writing, I might learn it.
My wish was partially answered yesterday when I picked up and read Eats, Shoots and Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss. I never knew punctuation was so much fun. For example, the author writes, "I apologize if you know all this [proper punctuation], but the point is many, many people do not. Why else would they open a large play area for children, hang up a sign which says 'Giant Kid's Playground', and then wonder why everyone stays away from it? (Answer: everyone is scared of the Giant Kid)."
Yes, it's British humor. She not only approaches grammar with humor, but with a bit of history and Shakespeare; yes, Shakespeare. Lynne Truss examines several moments of Shakespeare’s plays as examples; scenes which I know and love. I was delighted. I never knew the Bard referred to grammar and punctuation in his plays.
Learning about the history and evolution of punctuation gave me an appreciation for it. Because I learned so much more than the usual high-school grammar course, the book easily solidified the basic concepts in my head. Grammar may still be a struggle—hey, if you see mistakes in this post, my defense is I am still learning—but thanks to books like Eats, Shoots and Leaves, grammar is made worthy of learning.
My wish was partially answered yesterday when I picked up and read Eats, Shoots and Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss. I never knew punctuation was so much fun. For example, the author writes, "I apologize if you know all this [proper punctuation], but the point is many, many people do not. Why else would they open a large play area for children, hang up a sign which says 'Giant Kid's Playground', and then wonder why everyone stays away from it? (Answer: everyone is scared of the Giant Kid)."
Yes, it's British humor. She not only approaches grammar with humor, but with a bit of history and Shakespeare; yes, Shakespeare. Lynne Truss examines several moments of Shakespeare’s plays as examples; scenes which I know and love. I was delighted. I never knew the Bard referred to grammar and punctuation in his plays.
Learning about the history and evolution of punctuation gave me an appreciation for it. Because I learned so much more than the usual high-school grammar course, the book easily solidified the basic concepts in my head. Grammar may still be a struggle—hey, if you see mistakes in this post, my defense is I am still learning—but thanks to books like Eats, Shoots and Leaves, grammar is made worthy of learning.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Journalism Advice
Over the weekend, I traveled to Bryan College in Dayton, Tennessee. Bryan is one of the schools I am considering attending for my degree in Journalism and there, I got the opportunity to visit with the Journalism professor. Over the course of two days, I asked him several questions about how to become a journalist. He had several good responses.
Question 1: How to Get A Good Job In Journalism
According to John Carpenter, there are two ways to get a good journalism job, the one that pays the comfortable sum of a dollar a word and adoring fans devour every phrase ever scrambled from your keyboard and published in the New York Times, USA Today, or Times Magazine.
The first is to go to a college, such as Bryan, get your bachelor’s in Journalism, and work hard and long to reach the top. Your first job will probably be at the village weekly, the small publication where all four of you work long hours for little pay.
“We were almost starving,” recalls Professor Carpenter “but God always provided. When four kids came along, I said I had to stop. I wouldn’t see them from Sunday night to Wednesday because I was working at the newspaper.”
The second option is to go onto graduate school, get your masters in Journalism, and go straight to the cushy job. The only consolation the poorer journalists have is that people who go this route probably have huge school loans to pay off.
Question 2: Developing Your Writing
It occurred to me to ask Professor Carpenter how much daily writing I should do if I want to become a professional writer. I had heard many different answers to the question. I had heard advice such as “write 1000 words a day” to “4 hours every day.” As you can probably guess, it looked like this could be the question where everyone has their own opinion.
John Carpenter’s take on it was practice writing well. Sure, you could blast off 1000 words everyday in a journal, but the writing would lack thought and you wouldn’t have practiced good writing. He told me that posting regularly to my blog should be fine, because, with this blog, I am attempting to communicate and think.
He continued and said that this idea also carries over to reading. He told me we should read deeply, slowly and with our whole mind. This is reading so that we understand what the writer said and also how he said it.
This makes sense to me. If you are practicing good writing, eventually you will get good writing. The method of writing less but with more content is how I got my start in writing. In the beginning, I took a week to write a 500 word essay because I was focusing on what I was saying.
This method of improving my writing will take effort, especially the reading habits. Reading with your whole mind is hard work. It is a much easier task to watch TV. But it will be worth it.
What do you think? Comment below.
Question 1: How to Get A Good Job In Journalism
According to John Carpenter, there are two ways to get a good journalism job, the one that pays the comfortable sum of a dollar a word and adoring fans devour every phrase ever scrambled from your keyboard and published in the New York Times, USA Today, or Times Magazine.
The first is to go to a college, such as Bryan, get your bachelor’s in Journalism, and work hard and long to reach the top. Your first job will probably be at the village weekly, the small publication where all four of you work long hours for little pay.
“We were almost starving,” recalls Professor Carpenter “but God always provided. When four kids came along, I said I had to stop. I wouldn’t see them from Sunday night to Wednesday because I was working at the newspaper.”
The second option is to go onto graduate school, get your masters in Journalism, and go straight to the cushy job. The only consolation the poorer journalists have is that people who go this route probably have huge school loans to pay off.
Question 2: Developing Your Writing
It occurred to me to ask Professor Carpenter how much daily writing I should do if I want to become a professional writer. I had heard many different answers to the question. I had heard advice such as “write 1000 words a day” to “4 hours every day.” As you can probably guess, it looked like this could be the question where everyone has their own opinion.
John Carpenter’s take on it was practice writing well. Sure, you could blast off 1000 words everyday in a journal, but the writing would lack thought and you wouldn’t have practiced good writing. He told me that posting regularly to my blog should be fine, because, with this blog, I am attempting to communicate and think.
He continued and said that this idea also carries over to reading. He told me we should read deeply, slowly and with our whole mind. This is reading so that we understand what the writer said and also how he said it.
This makes sense to me. If you are practicing good writing, eventually you will get good writing. The method of writing less but with more content is how I got my start in writing. In the beginning, I took a week to write a 500 word essay because I was focusing on what I was saying.
This method of improving my writing will take effort, especially the reading habits. Reading with your whole mind is hard work. It is a much easier task to watch TV. But it will be worth it.
What do you think? Comment below.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
The Neighborhood Sex Shop
What would you do if a sexually orientated business was coming to your town?
Trucks were unloading into the vacant building next Hair for All, a family orientated hair salon located in Southington. Curious, several of the employees went over to find out what kind of new business was gracing the town. They came back with bad news. The business coming in was VIP, Very Intimate Pleasures, an adult store selling “adult” products. Having this store next to Hair For All’s family business would destroy their customer base. Concerned, they called the town hall, but they were brushed aside. They then called the newspaper.
The local newspaper, the Southington Citizen, rushed a story to print just hours before their deadline. Nobody heard about the news until the story was in the paper. In fact, members of the Southington Zoning Board were notified only days before the news broke. VIP was going in across the street from the town’s Wal-mart in the heart of their retail area, making residents uncomfortable. Something needed to be done.
Berlin residents discovered that VIP was trying to move onto the Berlin Turnpike in a similar way as well. In September of 2006 the Hartford Courant ran an article reporting that VIP was headed to a town Zoning Board of Appeals after it was denied a permit to operate on the Berlin Turnpike. This was the first time the neighbors heard the news.
“I had come home from work and on my front door two of my neighbors had left a Xeroxed, laminated flyer of the copy of that day’s Hartford Courant article.” Recalls Laura Michaud, “I didn’t get a chance to read the newspaper that day so that was the first time I had heard about it.”
One of the first concerns which ran through her mind was that how her then four year old daughter would be affected by this new business. Another was, “who would buy my house now?” Although there are other sexually orientated businesses on the Berlin Turnpike, this is the first to try to go into a retail building surrounded by residential homes.
The rest of Connecticut should take heed of what is happening to Berlin and Southington. “VIP has established a ‘modus operandi’ of stealth and subterfuge to get into towns unannounced.” says Peter Wolfgang of the Family Institute of Connecticut, “They claim that they are not a sexually orientated business. This is a deliberate strategy to take over the state and we need to respond in kind.”
Court Battles in Berlin
After the article in the Hartford Courant, Berlin residents attended the Zoning Board of Appeals meeting. About 100 people packed into the town hall to hear the proceedings and to encourage their elected Board officials to oppose VIP. The board listened and rejected VIP’s appeal for a permit, sending the town into a tangle of court battles which lasted from 2006 until the present. It will culminate in a ruling from the Federal Second Court of Appeals which is expected to hand down its ruling sometime soon.
The strongest opposition to the VIP store in Berlin is the residents of the neighborhood next to the VIP location. The residents of Webster Heights organized by exchanging emails and began meeting in a fellow resident’s home. Roughly 30 people attended the first meeting. Laura Michaud placed a six foot by eight foot sign on her lawn; painting golden yellow she printed “NO VIP!” She used it as a message board to post the minutes to the next neighborhood meetings.
The residents used the email chain to give updates on the situation and notify people when town meetings were and encouraged people to attend. Laura Michaud also designed paper bumper-stickers which some neighbors put in the back window of their cars.
Overall, the town of Berlin is in a good position to fight VIP. It has the strong regulations to prevent a business like this from foisting itself on the town. The town attorney feels confident that the court will rule in their favor. After all, past court rulings have set a legal precedent giving towns the right to limit the growth of sexually orientated businesses through zoning laws.
The Skirmish in Southington
In Southington, the citizens face what looks to be an uphill fight. On August 6th the town enforcement officer had granted the request for VIP to go ahead and set up shop. This was done without the planning and Zoning Board’s knowledge. When the story broke, the town planner, Mary Savage, was issuing statements to the press claiming that VIP complied with the town’s zoning laws and regulations. This made it look like VIP was in town and nothing could be done to change that decision, but the residents weren’t about to let this act go uncontested.
For anyone to build in a town, they must pass two check points with the Planning and Zoning board before they are “legal”. The first hurdle it to receive a permit to build or to develop their property, second, is a certificate of occupancy which just means that they developed their property and met the specifications stipulated in the town regulations and the permit. If the board rejects either the permit or the certificate of occupancy, the owner of the property can appeal the decision at the Zoning Board of Appeals.
When Southington resident Tony Luna heard the news, he sent an email to many of the churches in town asking “are you aware of this?” An email chain was started and Mr. Luna became a key player in the grassroots organization to stop VIP.
Regardless of the perceived legal tangle some of the town officials found themselves in, the citizens believed the Planning and Zoning Commission had a legal right to overturn VIP’s permit. “The town employees are there to enforce town regulations” said Tony Luna, “not interpret them. That’s the job of the Planning and Zoning Commission.”
Southington residents tried to convince the Planning and Zoning Board to revoke VIP’s permit. However, on their October 20th meeting, the board decided on a four to three decision to let the permit stand and to review VIP when they apply for their certificate of occupancy. This move was counseled by the town attorney as well as an attorney specializing in town zoning laws. Revoking the permit outright would send the town into a part of nebulous law the lawyers argued.
When asked if VIP lied in the permit application process, a move that would give the board strong legal grounds to revoke the permit, Paul Choplinsky, a planning and zoning commission member who argued for the wait and see method in the meeting, said “I was not involved in the permit process. I go only with what the attorneys say.”
The lawyers did not discuss several points which could have possibly persuaded the board to vote otherwise. While concerns were raised that this legal fight would cost the town money when it has a tight budget to begin with, it was never mentioned that the town has insurance which covers the cost of legal issues such as this. The Board should have explored in greater detail whether or not VIPs mislead the town in the application process, to figure out if they really did have grounds to revoke the permit.
Waiting until VIP applies for their certificate of occupancy is giving in an inch which makes the residents fear VIP will take the mile. Waiting until VIP applies for the certificate of occupancy sounds like the safe and legally sound move, but either way, Southington will most likely end up in court. Waiting will only raise the stakes as VIP is spending time and money setting up in town. They will seek to be paid damages if they win.
Currently, VIP is decorating and stocking its store; awaiting and no doubt preparing for a showdown with Southington when it comes time to get the certificate of occupancy.
Adult Toys and the Ilk
There are already several VIP stores in Connecticut: located in Manchester, Orange and Hartford. Several of the Berlin residents have visited these stores to investigate what might be going into their local store. The results don’t look good.
The residents were greeted with an inundation of sexual material. VIP’s advertising lives up their claims of the largest adult store in the Northeast, selling lingerie, lotions, adult toys, DVDs and other sensual material. Also sold were bongs and edged weapons. Laura Michaud visited the Manchester store and the DVDs “Don’t tell Mommy” and “The Girl Next Door” gave her concern. Her daughter is the girl next door to VIP.
VIP’s website describes the stores in Berlin and Southington as different than their other stores. “Coming soon 2 new concept stores the first of their kind coming soon to Berlin and Southington Ct.
“The new concept stores are designed in mind who prefer the less sex(y) version of V.I.P. but would like a little more than just simple lingerie.” (Authors note: this quote has been taken from the website verbatim. The grammatical errors are not the author's)
But according to Tony Luna, resident of Southington who has researched the other VIP stores, VIP has used the same inventory list to apply to Manchester as they did to Southington. Thus we have no guarantee that the Southington and Berlin stores will be different. We only have the word of a business that was less than upfront while applying for their permit.
Residents of both towns have had to face opposition from fellow residents. Laura Michaud records her saga with VIP on her blog, novip.wordpress.com. She disabled the comments from other users because of the many flames she has received calling her such things as a “prude.” Michaud, a self described liberal, is not opposed to these kinds of businesses existing, they just need to be regulated to give residential areas a wide buffer. She has noticed that many college age people have been supportive of VIP. One reason could be that pornography is deeply engrained in our society. “They don’t see it [VIP] as a problem” she says “I counter that and say ‘well, it would be a problem if it was in your backyard.’”
VIP has many problems associated with it. The threat of secondary side affects sexually orientated businesses bring to an area is one major concern. Residents have cited studies which state sexually orientated businesses increase the crime rate in their immediate area and encourage illegal activities such as gambling and prostitution. The residents and the town officials do not want this kind of activity to occur in their retail areas and close to residential homes.
Although Christians will most likely fight a sexually orientated business because of moral reasons, the only arguments which grassroots members are using are secular ones. These are the arguments that the most people are persuaded by. Southington residents have used the reason that their town is a family friendly town—until VIP moves in. “Right after World War II, Life Magazine had an article calling Southington America’s town, but what we are doing is turning it into times square.” says Tony Luna.
Until there is a statewide remedy, individual towns can limit the number of sexually orientated businesses in their town if they have strong zoning regulations and active, passionate citizens. “Don’t tell me we can’t fight them” Tony Luna said “everything is stacked in our favor except the courage to fight it”
Trucks were unloading into the vacant building next Hair for All, a family orientated hair salon located in Southington. Curious, several of the employees went over to find out what kind of new business was gracing the town. They came back with bad news. The business coming in was VIP, Very Intimate Pleasures, an adult store selling “adult” products. Having this store next to Hair For All’s family business would destroy their customer base. Concerned, they called the town hall, but they were brushed aside. They then called the newspaper.
The local newspaper, the Southington Citizen, rushed a story to print just hours before their deadline. Nobody heard about the news until the story was in the paper. In fact, members of the Southington Zoning Board were notified only days before the news broke. VIP was going in across the street from the town’s Wal-mart in the heart of their retail area, making residents uncomfortable. Something needed to be done.
Berlin residents discovered that VIP was trying to move onto the Berlin Turnpike in a similar way as well. In September of 2006 the Hartford Courant ran an article reporting that VIP was headed to a town Zoning Board of Appeals after it was denied a permit to operate on the Berlin Turnpike. This was the first time the neighbors heard the news.
“I had come home from work and on my front door two of my neighbors had left a Xeroxed, laminated flyer of the copy of that day’s Hartford Courant article.” Recalls Laura Michaud, “I didn’t get a chance to read the newspaper that day so that was the first time I had heard about it.”
One of the first concerns which ran through her mind was that how her then four year old daughter would be affected by this new business. Another was, “who would buy my house now?” Although there are other sexually orientated businesses on the Berlin Turnpike, this is the first to try to go into a retail building surrounded by residential homes.
The rest of Connecticut should take heed of what is happening to Berlin and Southington. “VIP has established a ‘modus operandi’ of stealth and subterfuge to get into towns unannounced.” says Peter Wolfgang of the Family Institute of Connecticut, “They claim that they are not a sexually orientated business. This is a deliberate strategy to take over the state and we need to respond in kind.”
Court Battles in Berlin
After the article in the Hartford Courant, Berlin residents attended the Zoning Board of Appeals meeting. About 100 people packed into the town hall to hear the proceedings and to encourage their elected Board officials to oppose VIP. The board listened and rejected VIP’s appeal for a permit, sending the town into a tangle of court battles which lasted from 2006 until the present. It will culminate in a ruling from the Federal Second Court of Appeals which is expected to hand down its ruling sometime soon.
The strongest opposition to the VIP store in Berlin is the residents of the neighborhood next to the VIP location. The residents of Webster Heights organized by exchanging emails and began meeting in a fellow resident’s home. Roughly 30 people attended the first meeting. Laura Michaud placed a six foot by eight foot sign on her lawn; painting golden yellow she printed “NO VIP!” She used it as a message board to post the minutes to the next neighborhood meetings.
The residents used the email chain to give updates on the situation and notify people when town meetings were and encouraged people to attend. Laura Michaud also designed paper bumper-stickers which some neighbors put in the back window of their cars.
Overall, the town of Berlin is in a good position to fight VIP. It has the strong regulations to prevent a business like this from foisting itself on the town. The town attorney feels confident that the court will rule in their favor. After all, past court rulings have set a legal precedent giving towns the right to limit the growth of sexually orientated businesses through zoning laws.
The Skirmish in Southington
In Southington, the citizens face what looks to be an uphill fight. On August 6th the town enforcement officer had granted the request for VIP to go ahead and set up shop. This was done without the planning and Zoning Board’s knowledge. When the story broke, the town planner, Mary Savage, was issuing statements to the press claiming that VIP complied with the town’s zoning laws and regulations. This made it look like VIP was in town and nothing could be done to change that decision, but the residents weren’t about to let this act go uncontested.
For anyone to build in a town, they must pass two check points with the Planning and Zoning board before they are “legal”. The first hurdle it to receive a permit to build or to develop their property, second, is a certificate of occupancy which just means that they developed their property and met the specifications stipulated in the town regulations and the permit. If the board rejects either the permit or the certificate of occupancy, the owner of the property can appeal the decision at the Zoning Board of Appeals.
When Southington resident Tony Luna heard the news, he sent an email to many of the churches in town asking “are you aware of this?” An email chain was started and Mr. Luna became a key player in the grassroots organization to stop VIP.
Regardless of the perceived legal tangle some of the town officials found themselves in, the citizens believed the Planning and Zoning Commission had a legal right to overturn VIP’s permit. “The town employees are there to enforce town regulations” said Tony Luna, “not interpret them. That’s the job of the Planning and Zoning Commission.”
Southington residents tried to convince the Planning and Zoning Board to revoke VIP’s permit. However, on their October 20th meeting, the board decided on a four to three decision to let the permit stand and to review VIP when they apply for their certificate of occupancy. This move was counseled by the town attorney as well as an attorney specializing in town zoning laws. Revoking the permit outright would send the town into a part of nebulous law the lawyers argued.
When asked if VIP lied in the permit application process, a move that would give the board strong legal grounds to revoke the permit, Paul Choplinsky, a planning and zoning commission member who argued for the wait and see method in the meeting, said “I was not involved in the permit process. I go only with what the attorneys say.”
The lawyers did not discuss several points which could have possibly persuaded the board to vote otherwise. While concerns were raised that this legal fight would cost the town money when it has a tight budget to begin with, it was never mentioned that the town has insurance which covers the cost of legal issues such as this. The Board should have explored in greater detail whether or not VIPs mislead the town in the application process, to figure out if they really did have grounds to revoke the permit.
Waiting until VIP applies for their certificate of occupancy is giving in an inch which makes the residents fear VIP will take the mile. Waiting until VIP applies for the certificate of occupancy sounds like the safe and legally sound move, but either way, Southington will most likely end up in court. Waiting will only raise the stakes as VIP is spending time and money setting up in town. They will seek to be paid damages if they win.
Currently, VIP is decorating and stocking its store; awaiting and no doubt preparing for a showdown with Southington when it comes time to get the certificate of occupancy.
Adult Toys and the Ilk
There are already several VIP stores in Connecticut: located in Manchester, Orange and Hartford. Several of the Berlin residents have visited these stores to investigate what might be going into their local store. The results don’t look good.
The residents were greeted with an inundation of sexual material. VIP’s advertising lives up their claims of the largest adult store in the Northeast, selling lingerie, lotions, adult toys, DVDs and other sensual material. Also sold were bongs and edged weapons. Laura Michaud visited the Manchester store and the DVDs “Don’t tell Mommy” and “The Girl Next Door” gave her concern. Her daughter is the girl next door to VIP.
VIP’s website describes the stores in Berlin and Southington as different than their other stores. “Coming soon 2 new concept stores the first of their kind coming soon to Berlin and Southington Ct.
“The new concept stores are designed in mind who prefer the less sex(y) version of V.I.P. but would like a little more than just simple lingerie.” (Authors note: this quote has been taken from the website verbatim. The grammatical errors are not the author's)
But according to Tony Luna, resident of Southington who has researched the other VIP stores, VIP has used the same inventory list to apply to Manchester as they did to Southington. Thus we have no guarantee that the Southington and Berlin stores will be different. We only have the word of a business that was less than upfront while applying for their permit.
Residents of both towns have had to face opposition from fellow residents. Laura Michaud records her saga with VIP on her blog, novip.wordpress.com. She disabled the comments from other users because of the many flames she has received calling her such things as a “prude.” Michaud, a self described liberal, is not opposed to these kinds of businesses existing, they just need to be regulated to give residential areas a wide buffer. She has noticed that many college age people have been supportive of VIP. One reason could be that pornography is deeply engrained in our society. “They don’t see it [VIP] as a problem” she says “I counter that and say ‘well, it would be a problem if it was in your backyard.’”
VIP has many problems associated with it. The threat of secondary side affects sexually orientated businesses bring to an area is one major concern. Residents have cited studies which state sexually orientated businesses increase the crime rate in their immediate area and encourage illegal activities such as gambling and prostitution. The residents and the town officials do not want this kind of activity to occur in their retail areas and close to residential homes.
Although Christians will most likely fight a sexually orientated business because of moral reasons, the only arguments which grassroots members are using are secular ones. These are the arguments that the most people are persuaded by. Southington residents have used the reason that their town is a family friendly town—until VIP moves in. “Right after World War II, Life Magazine had an article calling Southington America’s town, but what we are doing is turning it into times square.” says Tony Luna.
Until there is a statewide remedy, individual towns can limit the number of sexually orientated businesses in their town if they have strong zoning regulations and active, passionate citizens. “Don’t tell me we can’t fight them” Tony Luna said “everything is stacked in our favor except the courage to fight it”
Monday, February 1, 2010
Student Newsletter on Culture--iAwaken
Several months ago, I was published in the newsletter of the Family Institute of Connecticut (FIC), iAwaken. iAwaken explores today's culture to the limited audience of Connecticut readers. What was notable was that it was a totally student produced publication which went out to an audience of approximately 4000. My review of the book, Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris, is on page four. I thought that you, my readers, might be interested in seeing the E-zine so here is the link.
You will notice that the publication is a bit old. This is their first issue. Their second issue is due to come out any day now. It has been a long time coming and it promises to be an excellent issue. I will post it here as soon as it is released.
You will notice that the publication is a bit old. This is their first issue. Their second issue is due to come out any day now. It has been a long time coming and it promises to be an excellent issue. I will post it here as soon as it is released.
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