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By now, most of you have heard about the horrific natural gas well fire and explosion that occurred during the early hours of February 11 th in Dunkard, Pennsylvania. This well fire burned for days, but eventually extinguished itself on Saturday. Unfortunately, the aftermath of this accident gas left one worker injured and recently identified employee, Ian McKee, missing and feared to be dead. Gas well site injuries caused by negligence have become more and more common. For Chevron, a titan in the natural gas business, this is a public relations nightmare. How does a corporation begin to do damage control in a situation like this? Well, obviously, not using the method that Chevron chose. It has been reported that on February 16 th the Chevron Community Outreach Team delivered letters to one hundred homes residing around the explosion. In the correspondence provided to these families, Chevron states: "Chevron recognizes the effect this has had on the community. We value being a responsible member of this community and will continue to strive to achieve incident-free operations. We are committed to taking action to safeguard our neighbors, our employees, our contractors and the environment." And what action did they take to safeguard their neighbors? Chevron included with their letter a coupon for a free large combo pizza and a 2-liter beverage from Bobtown Pizza. It seems to me that Chevron and their Community Outreach Team need to reevaluate their standards for " outreach." In their minds, a free pizza certainly outweighs the fear and outrage that comes from living next to an exploding gas well. Oh no, wait, I forgot! They included a free 2-liter with that offer. When you keep that in mind, I guess their efforts don't seem insensitive or inconsiderate to the members of the Dunkard community now.

Tune in to the Bordas & Bordas Legal Review on West Liberty Television to receive top-flight analysis of the intersection between the legal world, sports and the culture at large. This week, Jamie Bordas and Chris Regan discuss the attempt by Northwestern College football players to form a union and collectively bargain for fair treatment from the university and the NCAA. In the show's second segment, Jamie and Chris discuss Michael Sam, the Missouri linebacker, who is seeking to be the first openly-gay player drafted into the National Football League. You will not want to miss this exciting and informative half hour of television that explores the legal ramifications of the situations at Northwestern and Missouri. Click here to view the program on vimeo, or watch the embedded version if your browser supports it. Click this link to see the WLUTV schedule so you can view a live-stream of WLUTV and check this page for a schedule of when the program airs.

Tens of millions of Americans, including over 60% of lower-income Earned Income Tax Credit recipients, use paid tax preparers. Yet nearly all states have more regulatory requirements for hairdressers than for tax preparers. Certified public accountants, tax lawyers, enrolled agents credentialed by the IRS, and certain unpaid volunteers are the only tax preparers subject to testing and regulatory oversight. The lack of oversight has led to widespread and endemic problem across the industry. Mystery shopper testing done by the government agencies and consumer advocacy groups over the last several years has revealed a large number of errors, fraud, and other abuses. In addition, high and inflated tax preparation fees of up to $500 for simple returns were documented by mystery shoppers. Accordingly, Bordas & Bordas recommends consumers consider a local certified public accountant as opposed to large tax preparation chains. Often, a more qualified CPA can prepare your return for a similar or even lower price. Furthermore, Bordas & Bordas recommends filing your taxes early in the tax season as opposed to waiting in order to lower your chances of becoming a victim of identity theft. Stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) is a growing subset of identity theft, which accounts for up to 43% of identity theft complaints. Similar to any identity theft, a criminal committing tax identity fraud gathers key information about the victim. In the tax context, the key is obtaining the individual's name matched with his or her social security number. The thief then submits a false tax return in the name of the victim claiming a tax refund. Unfortunately, in many instances the refunds are issued. Cleaning up the mess left behind by the identity thief and getting your refund can take more than a year and countless hours of your time. One way to prevent this from happening is to file early. Why? The IRS may be able to process your return before the identity thieves can. "It really can be a race to the IRS," said Steve Toporoff, coordinator of the Identity Protection Program at the FTC. "They usually don't have access to W-2 forms, so they just make up income numbers and hope their phony return gets through the process," Toporoff explained. The IRS has published a Taxpayer Guide to Identity Theft which contains additional tips that you may wish to review. Don't let tax season be more of a hassle for you than it already is. Find a qualified tax professional and file early. This article is for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact an attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. Use of and access to this website or any of the email links contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship between Bordas & Bordas and the user or browser.

Barley, Guinness and Caroline would like to remind you that if you really want a true Valentine, you can have one for 365 days a year. Adopt a pet from your local animal shelter, and never worry about not having a Valentine again! We hear so many humans say "I wish I had someone to love me on Valentine's Day! The girls and some of the guys at work are going to be getting flowers, cards and candy from their significant others, and I'm not going to get anything because I don't have a true Valentine!" Well, we would like to know why anyone feels that they need to have a loved  one just on Valentine's Day? Just think, you could have someone to love you unconditionally for the whole year, and then some. We (the four-leggers) may not send presents or cards, (that's because we can't order online yet) but every day when you come home from work we will be there to greet you like you have never been greeted before. We will always love you each and every day of the year, and not just on Valentine's Day. We are happy to see you when you come in the door, even if we or you have had a bad day. No matter what, we will be oh-so-happy to see you! You, our human friends, (and the loves of our life) make our lives complete. All we want is to do the same for you. We, the Bordas & Bordas Dogs, would love for our shelter fur-friends to find loving fur-ever homes. Please, if you are thinking about getting a pet for yourself or for someone else, go to your local animal shelter first. The life you save might just be your very own pet! Happy Valentine's Day! Bark on Bordas Dog Nation, Bark on. (We would like to say thank you to our dog moms for helping us write this for you. High paw!)

At Bordas & Bordas, we make it a priority to give back to the community in any way possible. Below are some of the many philanthropic sponsorships that we've recently been involved in. Faith in Action Caregivers supports the independent living of older adults and people with disabilities in Ohio, Marshall and Belmont counties. The organization provides services ranging from escorted transportation to medical appointments and shopping trips to friendly visits and phone calls. Faith in Action Caregivers is holding its annual Triathlon/Duathlon on July 12, 2014 at Wheeling Jesuit University. The money raised at this event plays a large role in funding the organization's efforts. We are happy to support an association that offers so much good to the people of our community. Here at Bordas & Bordas, we are very supportive of any organization that benefits those less fortunate than us. Since its inception, the Greater Wheeling Coalition for the Homeless has been passionate about providing temporary shelter for Wheeling's homeless, seeking and creating long-term solutions to homelessness, as well as communicating with other agencies to provide comprehensive services to the local homeless population. Coalition staff and personnel strive to address the many issues involved with homelessness and enrich the entire community in the process. Monetary donations aid the Coalition in its efforts. Bordas & Bordas is very involved many of the youth sports programs within our community, one of them being the Wheeling Amateur Hockey Association. The WAHA celebrates its fiftieth anniversary this year, and offers hockey leagues for Wheeling residents of all ages. WAHA staff and personnel teach the fundamental skills of hockey such as stick handling and speed skating. Moreover, WAHA also offers a roller hockey league for kids of all ages and skill levels. The Oglebay Institute prides itself in offering a multitude of experiences to the Upper Ohio Valley, from cultural and educational to environmental and recreational. One component of the Institute is the Towngate Theatre and Cinema. Located in Wheeling's historic Centre Market district, Towngate showcases plays and productions year-round for children and adults alike. The theatre also houses favorite local musicians and bands for all to enjoy. Support from generous sponsorships enables the Towngate Theatre and the Oglebay Institute as a whole to sustain and expand its cultural programming. Bordas & Bordas is honored to be involved with such outstanding organizations and events. We will continue to reach out to community partners who are passionate about making a difference. As always, we encourage everyone to support these very worthy causes in any way possible.

Oklahoma State player Marcus Smart recently received a three-game suspension from his college basketball team for shoving a Texas Tech fan named Jeff Orr. The shove came after Orr said something to him when Smart went out of bounds under the basket while making a play. The focus since then has been on whetherOrr used a racial epithet - Smart said he did - or whether Orr only said "something he shouldn't have" - Orr's words. It has since come to light that that Orr, a middle-aged man, considers himself a "super-fan" of Texas Tech. A photo of him directing an obscene gesture at opposing players has surfaced from another game and a number of players have indicated he has a lot of negative things to say to opposing players from his seat under the bucket. Smart's shove raises a question that isn't getting enough attention at all levels of inter-scholastic athletics: Why do we allow grown men and women to scream at and insult school-age boys and girls just because these students play sports? Is it because it's always been that way? Why should kids signing up for their high school or college teams have to agree to take verbal abuse from adults as part of the deal? Some seem to think that as long as Orr didn't use the n-word, anything else he felt like saying to Smart is "fair game," and Smart has to take it. But why? It's been pointed out that there is next to nowhere in the world where Jeff Orr can curse at or insult Marcus Smart to his face and feel he can get away with it, except where he was, under a basketball hoop. Some have made much of the fact that Orr is white and Smart is black. But white student- athletes get heaps of abuse as well. J.J. Reddick of Duke was notoriously hated during his career, and Ohio State's Aaron Craft seems to be getting the full treatment this year. The question is not so much about race as about why the discussion revolves around punishing players and protecting fans, instead of protecting the young people actually involved in the competition? There is no reason why athletic contests between young kids, high schoolers, or even college students should create a safe place for people to heap abuse on the players who are, after all, just playing a game, for free, for their schools. Comments and taunts directed at student athletes don't have to be racially-motivated to be out of bounds. When Marcus Smart shoved the loud-mouth jerk under the basket, he was telling all of us that if we aren't going to protect him while he plays, he'll do it himself, and I think he had every right to do that.

Reports indicate that one worker has been injured and another is missing after a natural gas well fire and explosion in southwestern Pennsylvania early this morning. Fire was reported at the Lanco 7H well in an area about 50 miles south of Pittsburgh and just miles from the West Virginia border. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by this tragic accident and it is our hope that the appropriate personnel handle the situation safely and efficiently.

I read an article the other day about a woman who was murdered by her estranged husband in the bathroom of a hotel room while her three children were in the other room. Her oldest daughter tried to dial 911 four times, but it didn't work because of how the hotel's phone system was set up. This hotel, along with a lot of other hotels, required you to dial 9 to get an outside line - even if you were trying to dial 911. The child never got through to 911, and her mother died. I was shocked when I read this because I have never considered the possibility that dialing 911 wouldn't be enough. If I needed to dial 911 from a hotel room, would I remember to dial 9 first? Probably not. Especially if it was a true emergency. In those times of panic, it's hard to stay calm and focus and think clearly. We have always been taught to dial 911, and we have always taught our children to dial 911, but now I guess we need to be aware that sometimes we may have to dial 9911. But we can change this. The father of the woman who was killed has started a petition to require hotels and other businesses to update their phone systems so that you don't have to dial 9 before dialing 911. Please go to the website and sign the petition so this doesn't happen to anyone else.

If you believe their slogans, insurance companies are like a good neighbor. They're on your side. They keep their promises. They're helping people, guiding people, serving people. Rest assured, they say, you're in good hands. But that's the world of advertising, not the gritty world of reality where insurance companies are far more concerned with making a buck than being honest, reasonable or fair. It goes without saying that insurance companies should be fair. West Virginians work hard, and part of their hard-earned money goes toward paying for things like insurance to cover their homes, cars and small businesses. We should get what we pay for, right? We pay for protection. If we suffer a loss, the insurance company should promptly investigate and pay any claims that are covered by the policy we're paying for. But it seems like insurance companies are constantly on the lookout for ways to fatten their pockets, even it means hurting their own customers. This year our Legislature will be considering two bills to require insurance companies to be fair. These are small steps, I know. But these are two specific areas where our own experience has shown us that insurance companies deprive customers of basic fairness. Remember the derecho a year and a half ago? Thousands of people throughout West Virginia suffered wind damage and made claims under their homeowner policies. Many of those same people received cancellation notices in the mail. Why? Because insurance companies were counting the derecho claims against them and now they were considered to be unacceptable risks. But the Legislature is responding. During the Legislature's interim sessions, a joint  committee approved a bill that would prevent insurance companies from canceling or failing to renew property insurance after a claim relating to an act of nature. That bill has now been introduced in both houses. A similar situation can occur with auto insurance. If a customer submits too many claims, insurance companies will increase their rates because of the increased risk. But what if the accident wasn't their fault? Should it count against them anyway? The Legislature says no. A bill that is being reintroduced from last year, HB 2551, HB 2551 would prevent insurance companies from increasing premiums under an auto policy for claims that weren't caused by the customer's own fault. Unfortunately, these bills won't force insurance companies to live up to the promises they make in their advertising. Nor will they change the profits-over-people mentality that we see far too often from insurance companies operating in our state. But they will provide a real fix for a real problem that's affected thousands of West Virginians who did nothing more than file a legitimate claim. The Legislature should give swift consideration and passage to both of these bills.

Like a whole lot of other folks, I look forward to the Super Bowl as much for the commercials as for the football (at least when the Steelers aren't playing). Over the years, marketing firms have outdone themselves in coming up with one great commercial after another. Who can forget Mean Joe Greene tossing his jersey to that young boy in the Coke commercial? Or the Budweiser commercial where the Clydesdales kneel to the empty New York skyline after 9/11? Although the vast majority of the commercials tug on our heartstrings or our funny bones, this year we had a new emotion added to the mix: anger. I am, of course, speaking of the Coke commercial in which "America the Beautiful" is sung in multiple languages. Shortly after the commercial aired, I began seeing a lot of Facebook comments and Twitter posts expressing a very wide range of emotions. The common theme in these comments was that this is "our" song, written to be sung in "our" language, and "our" language is English. Some of these comments came from folks that I know and respect, so I know they aren't made out of ignorance. Lots of times, people just haven't been presented with the other side of the issue at hand. Let me see if I can fix that. As you can quickly guess from my last name, the roots of my family tree in America don't run particularly deep. My grandfather was a Spanish immigrant, and my grandmother was the daughter of German immigrants. In thinking about the various reactions to the Coke commercial, I spent a lot of time reflecting back to my childhood. I remember the days when my Mom and I would drive my grandmother to visit her friend, Josefa Maria Garcia, at her home in the south part of Moundsville, known as "Spanish Row." Family names there were Menendez, Rodriguez, Garcia, Alonzo, and many others. My grandmother would get out of the car, and she and Mrs. Garcia would begin shouting to one another. I never understood the conversation, because they were shouting in Spanish. It never once occurred to me that their failure to speak to each other in English was  objectionable. I also recalled images of my grandfather, who we all called "Papa". Papa came to  the U.S. at the age of 13. He died in his early eighties, having retired from two different jobs after spending more than twenty-five years at each one. He first worked at the zinc smelter, which was located where the Moundsville Kroger store now stands. After retiring from there, he took a position as a corrections officer at the Penitentiary. He was there for over twenty-five years, retiring in the late 70s as a captain of the guards. He was proud of the fact that in twenty-five years, there had never been a successful escape during his shift. He had no delusions that his record was due to his incredible vigilance; instead, he was convinced the prisoners did not want to make him look bad. I remember asking him why he felt that way. In his broken English, he told me: "They respect you Papa. I treat like men, no like dogs. They respect." I can still see Papa sitting in his chair in the living room, chewing on an unlit cigar. He loved to sing, and he sang often. Despite the fact that he lived in this country for over 70 years, Papa never got a good grasp on the English language.  Accordingly, almost all of the songs he would sing were in Spanish. There was one and only one song I can remember hearing him attempt in English. It was "How Much is that Doggy in  the Window". He butchered that one pretty badly as well, but he tried. My grandparents raised two sons: my father and my uncle, Manuel. Both were taught the value of hard work and family. Both were instilled with a deep love for and pride in their country. Both put their lives on the line to fight for our country in World War II. Uncle Junior (Manuel) was a scout in the infantry who suffered a serious battlefield injury that affected him the rest of his life. My grandparents were fiercely proud of their sons' military service. I sometimes try to imagine what it must have been like for my grandparents to go to sleep, night after night, wondering if tomorrow was the day they would get the telegram that began "We regret to inform you." That is a hell they lived for years, yet never once did they complain or object. Photos of both sons in uniform occupied a place of honor in my grandparents' living room until the day they died. I can still see Papa walking over, looking at those photos,  and smiling. He was SO  proud that his sons had fought for HIS country. When I mentioned my grandmother earlier, I neglected to note she spoke five languages: German, Hungarian, Spanish, Russian and English. She learned those  languages growing up in "Spanish Rows" all over this area, living next door to  immigrants from all over the world. These were the communities that built this  country some now arrogantly call "ours," to the exclusion of anyone who doesn't speak English. Our country was built on the hard labor, heart, and determination of people who came here for a better life. The coal mines and the steel mills that produced the energy and materials which were the lifeblood of the Ohio Valley were run by men to whom English was a second language at best. Take a look at the roster of the men who died in the Benwood Mine Disaster in 1924. Now tell me how many of their funeral hymns you think were sung in English. And so, I continue on to the argument that "America the Beautiful" is "our" song and should be sung only in "our" language. I am struck by the arrogance of such an edict, and I wonder why anyone would feel that way. Is it because some folks feel they are "more American" than others who have yet to (and may never) master English? To me, the argument is the ultimate example of placing form over substance. What should matter is the thought one seeks to express, not the language in which you express it. My Papa loved this country as much as anyone I have ever known, but he couldn't have sung the first verse of "America the Beautiful" in English if his life had depended on it. He and my grandmother were the embodiment of American values: opportunity, sacrifice, hard work, and honor. So, if he chooses to sing what has become our country's national hymn in his native language, wanting to avoid the embarrassment and appearance of disrespect that would certainly come with butchering the lyrics in his broken English, he is to be chastised? I don't think so. I choose instead to focus upon the love and respect he shows by learning the song to begin with. My grandparents, and thousands just like them, BUILT this country. It was THEIR children who were sent off to fight the wars that secured our freedom. It was THEIR sweat and blood and tears that built our cities and our factories. The United States of America is THEIR country, every bit as much as it is yours and mine. People today who claim the right to define what is and is not sufficiently "American" have forgotten where they came from. There is an inscription on the Statue of Liberty that begins "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. . ." I looked long and hard to find the part that says "but make sure they learn to speak English." I'm still looking. I hope I never find it.

Because it hasn't been said enough, I would like to extend a sincere thank you to all of the teachers, aides, school administrators, principals, bus drivers and staff that help educate and take care of our kids. Watching out for our kids and helping provide them with good education is among the most important jobs in our society. I know that as I look back at my own childhood, I can think of many teachers who not only taught me what I needed to know, but who also inspired me to want to learn more. The job of a teacher is incredibly challenging. There is no "one right way" to teach a child. Each kid is an individual, with their own needs, goals, and abilities. Each kid learns in their own way and at their own pace. Every day, in every classroom, teachers, along with the support of the school's staff and administrators, face an enormous challenge. They must balance the effective education that we all expect with the daunting task of completing that mission in a room filled with kids who have their own emotional and educational needs. The best teachers make this balance look easy, but it's not, as I know from my own observations. My mom taught at a small Catholic elementary school where I grew up in Burlington, Vermont. After retiring from IBM, my dad taught high school before going on to his current position as a Professor in the Computer Science Department at Boston College. Both of them taught me the value of an education, a goal so important to them that after they were done helping me and my brother, they went on to help others further their own education. Most of what I know about how challenging it is to be a teacher comes from my wife. She is the first-grade teacher at St. Vincent's School in Elm Grove and I'm not sure many people know how hard teachers like her work. After spending all day in the classroom, she comes home and drives our kids around to their various after-school activities. Because I travel so often for work, a lot of time, she has to accomplish all of this by herself. When the after-school activities are finished, the kids and I usually find some time to relax, but she goes back to work. Grading papers, preparing lesson plans, and getting ready for the next day are all things that she does on her own time, when nobody is looking. It is an amazing effort and it happens every day. Teaching is a true calling. It's hard work and no way to get rich, as we usually understand the word. It is my hope that all teachers and administrators can find encouragement in knowing that they are helping our children become smarter, happier, and more confident people.