Opinion

WWW.FAUQUIER.COM

Fauquier Times | March 25, 2020

EDITORIAL

In March 1985, artist William Woodward was interviewed while at work in his studio above former Warrenton firehouse at Fourth and Main streets.

FAUQUIER FLASHBACKS FROM THE FAUQUIER TIMES

75 Years Ago March 29, 1945

Mrs. John Crosby Butler, wife of Lt. Col. Butler of Kelvedon Farm, Rectortown, and mother of Lt. John C. Butler, has joined the WAC and has been assigned to Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia for eight weeks basic training. She is carrying on for her hero son, a Marine fighter pilot, who lost his life in the Pacific on Nov. 13, 1944, while flying on a low-level bombing mission.

The Fauquier Board of Supervisors this week published a record $450,665 tentative county budget for 1945-46 but added a note that no increase in the tax rate is contemplated.

Gunnery Sgt. Harry W. Smith, USMC, son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry I. Smith of Midland, was reported wounded Feb. 20 in action against the enemy on Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands.

50 Years Ago March 26, 1970

At a special session March 23, the Middleburg Town Council elected Humphrey O. Dodson to fill the unexpired term of Mayor Norris Royston, who died March 20. A member of the council since 1950, Mr. Dodson will serve until 1971, the next municipal election year.

Sharpe and Hamaker Inc., Arlington builders, have been awarded the contract to build Fauquier National Bank’s new $499,000 main building on Courthouse Square, Warrenton, adjoining the Fauquier County Library. William G. Prime of New York has been named executive vice president of Stuyvesant Asset Management Corporation, a newly organized firm specializing in the management of large employee benefit funds. Prime is the son of Mrs. Juan M. Ceballos of Warrenton. Pfc. Cecil Cameron of Hume was wounded in the back by mortar fragments in Da Nang, Vietnam on March 15, less than two months after he arrived there. The 20-year-old soldier is assigned as a rifleman with the 5th Infantry Division.

25 Years Ago March 29, 1995

Fauquier County telephone users, and their counterparts from Lee County in the southwest and Winchester in the north, must start using the 540 area code six months sooner than previously announced, officials from GTE Telephone Operations said Monday. Capt. Rene Stevens of the Fauquier County Sheriff’s Office was selected Officer of the Quarter by the Morrisville-Bristersburg Ruritan Club. Capt. Stevens is the chief correctional officer in command of the Adult Detention Center.

A state conservation agency last week approved an unprecedented and controversial lease of an 800-are tract of land in Fauquier and Prince William counties to a private group for 15 years at $1 per year, a deal arranged by Scott District Supervisor Georgia Herbert. The Virginia Outdoors foundation turned the property over to the Friends of Bull Run. Known as the Bell tract, the land was the site of the Battle of Thoroughfare Gap.

– Compiled by John T. Toler The coronavirus is about to get real. As of Tuesday, Prince William had reported 18 confirmed cases, Fairfax had 46, Culpeper had two confirmed cases of COVID-19 and Madison and Orange each had one. Fauquier has had several “false alarms,” but no confirmed cases as yet.

Wade Kartchner, MD, MPH, health director of theRappahannock/Rapidan Health Districtof the Virginia Health Department, said that the lack of available testing makes it impossible to know how many people have been infected. “We don'tknow if we're not able to test. Knowing that should disabuse anyone of feeling secure, Fauquier County will have cases soon, itis just a matter of time.”

Medical experts at Fauquier Hospital are taking a deep breath before the storm. They are preparing for a potential influx of patients by using their supply of personal protective equipment prudently. It’s their first line of defense. Without it, nurses, doctors and technicians will be in real danger. And by extension, so will patients.

Postponing elective surgeries is one step being used to preserve PPE, and the move also keeps other precious resources free in case they are needed for severely ill patients. It’s difficult for patients who have been waiting months for a knee replacement or bariatric surgery, but the decision is designed to save lives. The folks at the Fauquier Free Clinic are continuing to care for residents who have limited or no health insurance. They too, are taking creative steps to minimize exposure for their staff and volunteers and preserve PPE.

Fauquier residents are good people. They want to help, but the usual avenues of comfort aren’t open to us. We can’t visit the sick. We can’t hold large fundraisers. We can’t provide “an extra pair of hands” for exhausted health care workers. Those hands might be infected. Sewing face masks won’t help. The masks that can be produced that way won’t protect against the coronavirus. The best help we can offer is to protect ourselves and our loved ones by practicing social distancing, staying healthy and steering clear of the hospitals, urgent cares and doctors’ offices unless it’s imperative. Without a vaccine or even any treatment options, self-isolation is our best tool to slow down the spread of the disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control. And it’s the best way to protect health care workers as they prepare for what’s to come. We may be in calm before the storm

FROM THE PUBLISHER OF THE FAUQUIER TIMES

The daily news has all of us reeling as the coronavirus dominates every conversation.

For the foreseeable future, our format will be news only. There are two reasons we have made this difficult choice.

Our loyal advertisers have suspended their support as they tighten their belts, so our page count has been severely reduced. We have decided to focus that precious newsprint on essential news. Remember that even though our print paper is lighter, we continue to publish news stories every day at Fauquier.com, for those of you who have internet access.

The articles that filled our Lifestyle, Business and History sections were largely about activities and businesses that are suspended for now. When those activities resume, we plan to continue that coverage.

Although our offices are closed to the public, our editors and reporters remain on the job. Our new hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Feel free to call 347-4222 with questions or concerns, or email FrontDeskTeam@fauquier.com. We are committed to serving our community; with your help we can navigate our way through these troubling times together.

Design of Marshall Main Street project off the mark

The Marshall Main Street Improvement Project has become a contentious and divisive subject. What started out nearly two decades ago as a genuine grassroots effort to improve the look of Main Street Marshall has been turned over to county administration, where it has become very top down and heavy. The project’s estimates have ballooned in cost, the bids are coming in over budget, and the scope of the project has been reduced to only one block of Main Street and benefits only the property owners in that exclusive section.

The bulk of the project is to be funded by a federal grant and also from donors. Then the rest is to be paid for by a 400% tax increase to those in Marshall’s Lighting Tax District.

Those in favor are arguing that if we don’t do the project, we will lose the grant and donor money, and those opposed see this is as an unnecessary boondoggle that smells fishy, will narrow the street by 2 feet in an already congested area and create risks to pedestrians and people trying to park and exit vehicles in that section. Most people like the idea of improving Main Street but are opposed to narrowing it. Other and better options do exist. Let’s just say that, for argument’s sake, we are to accept the premise that the scope of the project should only be in this one-block section. One of the wishes of the community was that there would be trees going down Main Street. Currently, there are a few trees here and there just out of the VDOT right of way on private property just off the sidewalk. The current design of this project calls for new trees to be installed between the sidewalk and the curb. The tree pits are to be 4 feet by 8 feet, and this is important because this measurement controls the final street width. Currently, the street width is at 40 feet. The current design takes 2 feet off of the current street width from curb to curb.

The project has to meet specific design criteria by VDOT and also the federal law, the Americans with Disabilities Act, or the ADA. The requirements are related to sidewalk width, ramps, setbacks and so forth. The key requirement in our case, in regards to final street width, is that at least a 4 feet sidewalk is created behind where the trees are located. The sidewalk can then expand to a wider section once one is past the tree. The county administration has falsely presented that there is no way to have trees and also keep the street width at its current 40 feet. It is important to realize that the width of the VDOT right of way varies as one goes up and down Main Street, and some buildings are closer to the street than others. Certain trees could be eliminated, the tree pits could be made a little less wide in certain cases, and/or cast iron tree grates can be installed around the trees -- which are ADA compliant and allowed to be used as part of the pedestrian pathway. The 4-foot tree pit width is not set in stone and was simply put forth by the design firm with whom the county contracted.

Strasburg, Virginia, has a similar ongoing street improvement project which is covering several blocks, coming in cheaper, is a better design, and is well supported by the community. They have kept the street at 40 feet, have trees with ADA compliant tree grates installed, and have used curb bump outs with decorative plantings at intersections as a traffic calming measure. The current Marshall plan has pitifully little in the way of serious traffic calming other than simply narrowing the street. Cars may indeed slow down because of a narrow street, but that is because drivers do not want to hit people entering or exiting vehicles.

It is better to use inanimate objects, rather than people as the traffic calming device. Traffic through Marshall is a mixed bag of cars, heavy trucks, buses, trailers, tractors and farm machinery, and there is just barely enough room as there is now. The supporters of the current design point to Upperville as a model of how the plan for Marshall might work, but hardly anybody parks on the street in Upperville because there are hardly any businesses there, and when one does try to park there, it feels like you are going to be clipped unless you are very careful. Unlike Marshall’s design, the Upperville design has also used an entire arsenal of traffic calming measures.

It is unfortunate that so much time and energy has been put into this to come up with a design which is poor and unpopular, especially in light of the original high hopes and good feelings with which this project was started. I seriously hope the county will revisit the design or cancel the project entirely.

MATT DAVENPORT Delaplane

Writer claims COVID-19 crisis represents ‘abdication of leadership’

Just a few questions: Why does [President Donald] Trump constantly try to sugar-coat this pandemic? Even though the market has already tanked, and we all know that …

Why did he do NOTHING when he knew this disease was coming? It was common knowledge in December. Why does Trump not support widespread testing of most Americans? He keeps promising that “millions” of tests will be available, but they never are. My daughter is an Army sergeant and they couldn’t test her this week. She has the symptoms, but they don’t have the tests. Why does Trump think closing the southern border is more important than providing our medical community with personal protective equipment-appropriate masks and gowns to protect them? The virus is and has been here for months; perhaps it might have been more intelligent to try to protect our citizens from the disease than from Hispanics?

Most importantly, why did he in

Corporate bailouts? Not this time!

While many of our family, friends, and neighbors are denied paid sick time because their employer is either too small (less than 50 employees) or, yes, too large (think Walmart, CVS, Citibank, Exxon) and wondering where their next meal will come from … President [Donald] Trump and our congressional representatives are seriously considering bailouts for the airline, hotel, and cruise industries. The bailout will cost taxpayers over $50 billion.

These are the same organizations that impose Draconian rules on customers to pinch every penny out of us that they can. The airlines are infamous for gouging us on ticket prices, baggage fees and other arbitrary expenses...

Remember when our government bailed out Wall Street and the banks in 2008? They received a combined total of $45 billion in taxpayer dollars, while voke the Defense Protection Act and then refuse to use it for production of ventilators and medical masks?

This is absurd and a complete abdication of leadership. Trump should resign immediately. He has proven himself entirely incapable of leading our country for several years, on many levels. This one will cost us many lives and probably bankrupt our country, like he did with most of his business ventures.

JOAN HELLANDSJO Warrenton

they bankrupted Americans. Did folks who couldn’t pay their mortgages get a bail out? No, they got an eviction notice and foreclosure.

There should be no bailouts for the airline and travel industry. Let the CEOs and other corporate officials in those companies do the hard work of surviving this pandemic like the rest of us must. No matter what your political affiliation, I hope you will join me in calling our representatives in Congress to say, not this time!

KATHY KADILAK The Plains

Taking a lesson from ‘The Drowning Man’

I am baffled that many churches in Fauquier and across the country held services March 15 despite the CDC’s warning to avoid crowds as much as possible.

I’m reminded of the story of “The Drowning Man.”

A fellow was stuck on his rooftop in a flood. He was praying to God for help.

Soon a man in a rowboat came by and the fellow shouted to the man on the roof, "Jump in, I can save you." The stranded fellow shouted back, "No, it's OK, I'm praying to God and he is going to save me." So, the rowboat went on. Then a motorboat came by. The fellow in the motorboat shouted, "Jump in, I can save you."

To this the stranded man said, "No thanks, I'm praying to God and he is going to save me. I have faith." So, the motorboat went on. Then a helicopter came by and the pilot shouted down, "Grab this rope and I will lift you to safety." To this the stranded man again replied, "No thanks, I'm praying to God and he is going to save me. I have faith."

So, the helicopter reluctantly flew away.

Soon the water rose above the rooftop and the man drowned. He went to heaven. He finally got his chance to discuss this whole situation with God, at which point he exclaimed, "I had faith in you, but you didn't save me, you let me drown. I don't understand why!" To this God replied, "I sent you a rowboat and a motorboat and a helicopter, what more did you expect?" How do pastors and church leaders justify ignoring the advice and research of our brightest scientists and physicians, and thereby putting at risk the lives of our most senior citizens? SCOTT CHRISTIAN Marshall

Letters to the Editor The Fauquier Times welcomes letters to the editor from its readers as a forum for discussion of local public affairs subjects.

WRITE: Letters to the Editor 41 Culpeper Street Warrenton, VA 20188 FAX: Editor 540-349-8676 EMAIL: news@fauquier.com Letters must be signed by the writer. Messages sent via email must say “Letter to the Editor” to distinguish them from other messages not meant for publication. Include address and phone for verification (Not to be published.) Letters are subject to editing for clarity and length. Personal attacks will not be published. Long letters from those with special authority on a current issue may be treated as a guest column (with photo requested). Due to volume, letters cannot be acknowledged. All letters are appreciated. Letters must be received by 5 p.m. Monday to be considered for Wednesday publication.

1 restrict the effi ciency of (9) ___________ 2 childish act (5) ___________ 3 snackable cheese type (6) ___________ 4 ad for a movie (7) ___________ 5 kids’ party drink (5) ___________ 6 a baby one will fall out (5) ___________ 7 unexpected swap (10) ___________ Find the 7 words to match the 7 clues. The numbers in parentheses represent the number of letters in each solution. Each letter combination can be used only once, but all letter combinations will be necessary to complete the puzzle. © 2020 Blue Ox Family Games, Inc., Dist. by Andrews McMeel CLUES SOLUTIONS STR MS PRA CH NG 1 writer Agatha (8) ___________ 2 comedian Billy (7) ___________ 3 actress Daryl (6) ___________ 4 actor Topher (5) ___________ 5 singer Carmen (7) ___________ 6 baseball player Satchel (5) ___________ 7 poet Percy Bysshe (7) ___________ Find the 7 words to match the 7 clues. The numbers in parentheses represent the number of letters in each solution. Each letter combination can be used only once, but all letter combinations will be necessary to complete the puzzle. © 2019 Blue Ox Family Games, Inc., Dist. by Andrews McMeel CLUES SOLUTIONS 1 writer Agatha (8) ___________ 2 comedian Billy (7) ___________ 3 actress Daryl (6) ___________ 4 actor Topher (5) ___________ 5 singer Carmen (7) ___________ 6 baseball player Satchel (5) ___________ 7 poet Percy Bysshe (7) ___________ Find the 7 words to match the 7 clues. The numbers in parentheses represent the number of letters in each solution. Each letter combination can be used only once, but all letter combinations will be necessary to complete the puzzle. © 2019 Blue Ox Family Games, Inc., Dist. by Andrews McMeel CLUES SOLUTIONS

ST PU NCH TRI NK ING SW ER TRA NN MIR PAI AH HA ST CRY DA ELL CE NN MIR PAI AH IT IL ELL CE CRY

DA

RI ER IE OO OTH IE RI CH AN HA AN SH TO CH SH

SUDOKU Today’s Answers: 1. HAMSTRING 2. PRANK 3. STRING 4. TRAILER 5. PUNCH 6. TOOTH 7. SWITCHEROO 3/22 SUDOKU Today’s Answers: 1. CHRISTIE 2. CRYSTAL 3. HANNAH 4. GRACE 5. MIRANDA 6. PAIGE 7. SHELLEY 4/14 GE AL GRA ST EY SUDOKU Today’s Answers: 1. CHRISTIE 2. CRYSTAL 3. HANNAH 4. GRACE 5. MIRANDA 6. PAIGE 7. SHELLEY 4/14 GE AL GRA ST EY

KENKEN SOLUTIONS

KENKEN SOLUTIONS KENKEN SOLUTIONS

CROSSWORD SOLUTION

CROSSWORD SOLUTION CROSSWORD SOLUTION

SUDOKU SOLUTION

SUDOKU SOLUTION SUDOKU SOLUTION

Flooring Specialists & More...

EARLY’S CARPET, INC.

“Your Hometown Store” The largest in-stock Inventory of Carpet, Area Rugs, Orientals,Vinyl, Hardwood, Laminate, Ceramic & Remnants!

540-937-5500 • Only 13 miles West of Warrenton • Highway 211 W. Amissville, VA • www.earlyscarpet.com 24 Hrs • 7 Days! Flooded basements • Busted pipes • Sink & Commode Overflows • Structural drying • Floor Refinishing Cleaning & Sanitizing • Restoration • Class A Contractor HOME & OFFICE CLEAN Carpet • Vinyl • Ceramic Hardwood Upholstery • Air Ducts Pick-up & Delivery of Area Rugs CALL FOR FREE QUOTE We Accept All Major Insurance Companies Serving the Community from One Location for 50 years! 540-937-5500 EARLY’S CARPET, INC. Flooring Specialists & More... • Water Extraction • Structural Drying • Carpet/Oriental Rug Cleaning • Accept All Major Insurance Companies • Latest & Fastest Drying Technology! 50th Anniversary Cleaning Specials We can keep your image clean! Home & Office

Carpet Cleaning Two or More Rooms Get One Minimum charges appl 10% Off VCT - Vinyl - Ceramic - Hardwood - Upholstery - Air Ducts Oct. Only! Serving the Community from One Location for 50 years! 540-937-5500 ONLY 1 LOCATION - HWY 211 W, AMISSVILLE VA • Water Extraction • Structural Drying • Carpet/Oriental Rug Cleaning • Accept All Major Insurance Companies • Latest & Fastest Drying Technology! 50th Anniversary Cleaning Specials We can keep your image clean! Home & Office

Carpet Cleaning Two or More 10% Off VCT - Vinyl - Ceramic - Hardwood - Oct. Only! Ask the Experts We Do It All! Mon.-Fri. 9-5 Sat. 10-4 Flooring Specialists & more... EARLY’S CARPET, INC. EMERGENCY WATER EXTRACTION 53rd 1966 2019