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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us March 2, 2006 Strange sage with Peace Corps begs explanation If there is a better way to prove those completely distrustful of the present administration correct, it is hard to fathom right now. Because the Peace Corps’ decision to rescind an offer to send Ashland’s Derek Volkart to Morocco smacks, on the surface anyway, of every allegation of autocratic dictatorial control made by folks since the stolen election of 2000. Isn’t this still America, where freedom of speech and the right of every voter to hold elected officials accountable serve as twin foundations to the tenets of our democracy? Have American leaders become so concerned about propaganda that a single Peace Corps volunteer, critical of the present Bush administration is a threat to our country’s image? One would expect such tactics from behind the Iron Curtain of the 1970s, not America circa 2006. Thomas Jefferson, the man who believed upheaval (he used the word “revolution”) is necessary to keep democracy on track, is surely rolling over in his grave. Are we really to believe that one outspoken critic from Ashland is enough of a threat to warrant being removed from his Peace Corps assignment, just days before he is to leave for a two-year volunteer hitch overseas? We know this is not as clear cut as it seems on the surface. Many Peace Corps veterans will say you don’t allow yourself to be quoted offering harsh criticism of American policy. Since our story ran, they have been critical of Mr. Volkart’s comments. Peace Corps guidelines are quite specific about conduct while on assignment, but, at least from the scant information we have gotten from the Peace Corps officials so far, the matter is less clear when it comes to actions prior to starting an assignment. Still, some would argue that Mr. Volkart was trying to stir the pot and got the comeuppance he was vying for. Even so, the inconsistency of the official Peace Corps position is troubling at best, and knee-jerk extremism at worst. Mr. Volkart is deemed unfit to serve in Morocco, but instead offered another assignment on the Pacific Islands? If he’s unfit, he’s unfit. Are we less concerned about how Pacific Islanders view America than we are Moroccans? Perhaps more of this story exists and the Peace Corps has a better explanation than what they are giving us to report. But, until we see such evidence, the entire strange saga smacks of a systemic problem throughout all things federal right now. This type of leadership has implications for all Americans and at all levels of public service. We want to know more about this episode in the hope it tells us a little more about just how things are run back in Washington, D.C. The Ashland Daily Tidings has issued a request for all internal and external Peace Corps communication pertaining to the service, or lack thereof, of Derek Volkart. We want to see for ourselves why a critic of the Bush administration is not fit to proudly serve the United States of America on a mission of peace and environmental advocacy overseas. DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Deep Muscle Stimulator Ceramic Piggy Banks FREE Entertainment Guide Women's & Men's Slippers Accelerate Weightloss Products Backpacks Generic Viagra Vegas Travel Guide Search Engine Optimization Sportsbook Absinthe Supply Student Loans Hotel & Airline Reservations African Safari Hammocks Helzberg Diamonds Online Casinos Community Bonus Casino King of Spirits ink cartridges Mortgage Calculator Security Systems Mailing Lists Click Here Advertisement .:Advertisements:. Site Search: RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams