Mark’s Musings – June 12, 2013

Mark Fortune

It was quite another exciting weekend and flurry of activities in our community. You know, the one that some people say, “There is never anything going on here”. That one. The Hot Air Balloon Festival, the corvette show at Roscoe Village, dedication in Warsaw of the Walhonding Valley Historical Society, Farmers Markets across the county, and more. Several local athletes competed in the state track and field meet held at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus.

There are almost always multiple events going on in our community. First Friday was this past week, the Community Band performed on the court square, vacation Bible schools are going on now at many local churches and of course, let’s not forget those that maybe can’t spend their time running to local events because they are in the fields making hay. Our farmers work hard to keep our nation – and a lot of the world – fed. Instead of being frustrated by those slow moving vehicles on the highway, maybe we need to say “thanks” and appreciate a brief moment of slowing down this hectic pace of life. (That message is for me too!)

The national scene and all that is happening on the world stage is somewhat fascinating right now to say the least. Opinions will vary on Edward Snowden, hero or traitor to our country? What is your opinion?

Snowden is the man who admitted to leaking that the U.S. government gathered information on billions of phone calls. A former CIA employee, Snowden is in Hong Kong. Will China extradite him? Or will they instead keep him and use him as a source of valuable information? However, according to CNN, the extradition treaty between Hong Kong and the U.S. is just that – Beijing is not involved unless the matter concerns national defense or foreign policy. An argument could be made for national defense? Thus, Snowden could be coming back to the United States. Time will tell.

What do you think? Should the government be gathering all of this information? Or should they just leave us alone? I am very curious to read your thoughts on this one. Send your thoughts to my email address: [email protected]. Thanks.

Let’s return to a more positive note – the Hot Air Balloon Festival. The committee of volunteers, the balloon sponsors, entertainment sponsors, the Frontier Power Company, the Coshocton County Chamber of Commerce, the many folks that make this event possible – the audience that gave Lacey Richcreek such an outpouring of support – these are all the things that make Coshocton County truly a fantastic place to live, work and play.

And things continue to improve. The Ethanol plant sold at auction Friday for 27 million, the appraised value of the plant. There are seven ethanol plants in Ohio – and this is one is the only one not operating. Keep watching – the folks that bought it probably did so with operational intentions in mind. More good stuff for our community. Things are moving in the right direction.

Be sure to catch part of Dulcimer Days this weekend. Good music. Good people. And the root of it all.

Category: Mark's Musings