Wannabe Leader or Misleader

Photo credit Facebook.

As a journalist (Blogger’s note: Look up the definition; I fit the profile), I have a passion for the truth. To that end, I will not sit back and watch some wannabe political candidate stand up and mislead the public on serious issues, such as those that will impact our wounded warriors.

Yet, with every public statement, Mr. Joe DiCara continues to spout false information regarding the Fort Howard development. He acts as though he is trying to pay homage to our veterans, but the facts say otherwise.

This all started one night at the VFW when Mr. DiCara was in attendance while I addressed the veterans and members of the Maryland and Washington delegations of the VFW on the Fort Howard issue. Mr. DiCara must have thought I was clueless as he spoke to me, so I paid particular attention to his rhetoric—not only in words, but what I believed was his agenda if he were elected. And, in my opinion, that agenda would spell disaster for those living on the North Point Peninsula.

I firmly believe that Mr. DiCara will write the necessary PUD to clear the way for the Fort Howard Senior Retirement Community. I use that label because that is what Fort Howard is going to be. The Federal Register makes no reference to veterans in its listing.

I have said repeatedly if you say or do something in my presence, you had better do your homework and have your ducks in a row; otherwise, you will answer to the voters for your faux pas.

This is one of those cases (and not the first one) involving Mr. DiCara.

However, for those who believe I have some sort of super-secret agenda against Mr. DiCara that causes me to cast my professional ethics aside, I assure you that I’m not asking you to simply take my word for this debacle. Rather, I have (in my secret files) material to back up what I say with plain and simple facts.

When you listen to Mr. DiCara’s remarks, remember who supports him—John Olszewski Jr. On the Fort Howard issue, the Senate hopeful has, in the past, shied away from answering any questions on the subject. During community meetings, Mr. Olszewski Jr. has refused to comment when asked to state his position on Fort Howard. Meanwhile, his father—John Olszewski Sr.—is on record as supporting the project, not to mention actively raising funds for startup costs for the Enhanced Use Lease that would be signed with the VA.

From my research and sources, after the EUL failed, the current developer—Mr. Munshell—realized that meeting the NEPA regulations would be a daunting task. To that end, Mr. Munshell simply resubmitted data from the previous developer, John Infantino, whose lease was terminated after he was fined $10,000 for keeping veterans’ deposits.

Mr. Munshell, at the only community meeting held regarding the project, said that focusing on the veterans was not financially feasible, which is why the Federal Register lists the development as a Senior Living and Affordable Retirement Community.

There no mention of the word “veterans,” and the age requirement for living in this community is 62 and older.

Here are some of the quotes you can view on the video that I took of the last debate at the NPVFD in Edgemere.

A question arose about the proposed 1473 units at the development when Mr. DiCara spoke after Mr. Crandell.

Mr. DiCara: “Fourteen hundred, 800, we don’t know what’s it going to be.”

Excuse me, Mr. DiCara, but some simple research would tell you everything about Fort Howard. There are volumes written on this subject by me, the Eagle, the Sun, and the East County Times.

Mr. DiCara goes on to state he has not heard anything about this project for a long, long time. Well this was the story in the Dundalk Eagle by Ben Boehl on July 9, 2014 announcing the signing the lease. Again, Mr. Dicara you should have know this important announcement.

After all, as a councilman you need to be informed on such matters.

Another quote from Mr. DiCara: “We want to create something there we can be proud of, that helps our veterans live in dignity, when they come back bruised and battered with limbs missing and psychological issues and it’s not going to be about housing but medical centers and assisted living … and you live on this property and be taken care of.”

My response rhymes with “bull hockey.” Again, this is a Senior Living and Affordable Housing Unit, as listed by the VA’s Federal Register. Those wounded warriors Mr. DiCara speaks of don’t even qualify to live at Fort Howard.

Another gem from Mr. DiCara: “I have worked a lot with veterans groups here and Washington. I’ve seen the grief from the families as the dead body comes from overseas. We need a place down there that the State of MD can be proud of, the country can be proud of and Baltimore County can be proud of and each and every one of you.”

If Mr. DiCara worked with veterans groups he would know what this is all about and he obviously does not.

My answer again is “horse droppings.” Now that Mr. DiCara is working with veterans groups, he suddenly knows about Fort Howard? How can that be, considering that he has no clue about the issues at hand? I believe that statement is a direct attempt to mislead the voters into believing that Mr. DiCara is supporting our veterans, when in fact he will (if elected) play a leading role in the PUD process that will seal the fate of this boondoggle.

Here is another comment that irks me: “I’ve traveled all over the world dealing with problems like Dundalk.”

If that is the case, then where are the documents to back up that statement?

It boggles the mind.

So, before my blood pressure rises to a number that requires a complex mathematical equation to correctly assess, I invite you to see the shenanigans yourself by visiting the following link, which will allow you to see the portion of the debate to which I’m referring:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NcJzEt6wdc

Hopefully you saw what I saw.

After all, I know that there are some people out there who believe the resume issue and the being terminated from a county job over a conflict of interest is merely cannon fodder. However, the issues of which I write go well beyond that belief. In fact, the Baltimore Sun illustrated the serious consequences over someone falsely claiming an educational background:

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-ci-bpd-commander-charged-20141022-story.html.

I am going to leave you with this for now. I will post the rest of the debate in the coming days, once my blood pressure stabilizes.

There is so much going on, and I will keep all of you informed to the best of my ability.

Stay tuned…