Super Wide Blog: 2021

Monday, December 20, 2021

Friday, December 17, 2021

Monday, December 6, 2021

Sunday, December 5, 2021

What agencies are covered?

The Act covers any administrative or legislative unit of state, county or municipal government including any subunit (e.g. committees) authorized by law to exercise some portion of executive or legislative power. The Act does not apply to courts or private organizations that receive government funding.

What is a governing body?

Two or more members of a public agency who have the authority to make decisions for, or recommendations to, the public agency on policy or administration is considered a governing body.

What is a meeting for purposes of the Open Meetings Act?

A “meeting” covered by the Act is a convening of a quorum of a governing body or subcommittee in order to make a decision or to deliberate towards a decision. Meetings may be held by telephone conference or other electronic means, such as video conference. In these instances, governing bodies must ensure that all their members can hear, and be heard by, each other and any media or member of the public present at the meeting.
When a quorum of a governing body discusses matters that would require official action by the governing body, then this is a meeting. If this discussion takes place outside the confines of a public meeting—whether in person, by telephone, email or other telecommunication means — it is an illegal meeting.

Where/how to post an agenda?

A governing body complies with the Act by posting its meeting agenda for each regularly scheduled meeting in a public place at its central office and by having copies of the agenda available there during regular business hours.

In addition, it may distribute agendas to the news media by mail, facsimile or e-mail. The agenda also may be posted on the governing body’s website if it has one. While additional dissemination to the public and the media is encouraged, failure to provide an agenda by such additional means will not invalidate an otherwise proper public meeting.

ENFORCEMENT and PENALTIES

How is the Act enforced?

The Ethics Commission has no role in enforcing the Act and does not investigate complaints of alleged violations.

The circuit court in the county where the public agency regularly meets has jurisdiction to enforce the Act upon civil action commenced by any citizen of this state within 120 days after the action complained of was taken or the decision complained of was made. The circuit court is empowered to compel compliance or enjoin noncompliance with the Act and to annul a decision made in violation of the Act. An injunction may also order that subsequent actions be taken or decisions be made in conformity with the Act.

It is a violation of the Act for a governing body to hold a private meeting with the intention of transacting public business, thwarting public scrutiny and making decisions that eventually become official action.

Citizens filing such civil actions should be advised that other requirements of the West Virginia Code, including at least 30 days’ notice of the suit to the state executive branch agency and the Attorney General, may be required. This summary is of the Open Meetings Act’s provisions only.

Penalties for violating the Act

A public agency whose governing body is adjudged in a civil action to have conducted a meeting in violation of the … [Act] may be liable to a prevailing party for fees and other expenses incurred by that party in connection with litigating the issue of whether the governing body acted in violation of this article, unless the court finds that the position of the public agency was substantially justified or that special circumstances make an award of fees and other expenses unjust.

Anonymous Letter

Monday, November 22, 2021

Religious Exemption

As a practicing Christian taking the vaccine goes against my religious beliefs for multiple reasons. The first reason is that the vaccine was developed from aborted fetal cell lines. It is well known that many born again Christians and Catholics are against abortion.

The Bible states:

Exodus 20:13 “You shall not murder.

Psalm 139:13-16 “13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

Proverbs 6:16-17 “16 There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood”

Job 31:15 “15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?”

I believe in the Bible and that God forms babies in the womb. God has a plan and a purpose for their lives. Aborting a baby in the womb is murder. It is taking away another human’s life and is a sin. Taking the vaccine which was created from tests on aborted fetal cell lines goes against my religion as it is the product of abortion which is a sin.

In addition, my second reason has to do with free will. The Bible says that man has free will. We have the right to decide what medication and vaccinations that we can take.

The Bible says:

Genesis 1:26 “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”

Genesis 3:22 “And the Lord God said, “Now that the man has become like one of us, knowing good and bad, what if he should stretch out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever!”

These verses explain that humans are made in the image of God and are given the same mental capacities as our creator. Therefore I am granted free will to think for myself and make my own decisions in this world. In Genesis 3:22 it is explaining how I have the consciousness to choose what is good and bad. With my conscious mind, I have the right to exercise my free will that was granted to me by God.

That being said, I am using my free will to reject the vaccine. I have numerous concerns about the vaccine. One important concern is that there is no research on the long term effects of the vaccine. I have met many people who have gotten sick with Covid after taking the vaccine which makes me doubt its effectiveness. In addition there is very little research done on how the vaccine affects fertility.

The Bible says:

Genesis 1:28 “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea,”

I do not want to partake in any vaccine that could jeopardize my ability to reproduce and have babies which is something God has called me to do.

In Matthew 9:22 “Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well.”

I have faith in the body that God gave me to fight Covid. I have never taken flu shots and never gotten sick. In addition Covid has a 99% survival rate. I believe that taking the vaccine would be an expression of my lack of faith in my God given immune system.

I would like to help keep Long Island University safe which is why I am requesting to take remote learning. By taking remote learning, vaccinated members of the community do not have to worry about my vaccination status. I think this would be a win-win solution.

The past year I have done my studies remotely online and was very successful. I believe that this would be the best solution to protect my religious freedom and keep Long Island University safe.

Thank you for taking the time to read my letter and considering my religious exemption request.

Reasons for Religious Exemptions

The Bible states:

Exodus 20:13 “You shall not murder.

Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

Proverbs 6:16-17 “16 There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood”

Job 31:15 “15 Did not he who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?”

In addition, my second reason has to do with free will. The Bible says that man has free will. We have the right to decide what medication and vaccinations that we can take.

The Bible says:

Genesis 1:28 “And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea,”

I do not want to partake in any vaccine that could jeopardize my ability to reproduce and have babies which is something God has called me to do.

In Matthew 9:22 “Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well.”

The past year I have done my studies remotely online and was very successful. I believe that this would be the best solution to protect my religious freedom and keep Long Island University safe.

Thank you for taking the time to read my letter and considering my religious exemption request.