Off the I-15

Sometimes, story leads do not pan out. Case in point.

Earlier this week, a man came into my office claiming the a truck stop in town had been charging sales tax on candy bars. He had proof, receipts dating back a few years showing an extra seven cents or so added to his Snickers bar.

Under California law, candy bars are exempt from the 7.25 percent sales tax on goods. Most food items are exempt from the law because they are consider necessities of life. Candy certainly fits that description.

I decided to investigate this man’s claims. The investigation was simple. I went to the truck stop and picked up a Resee’s Peanut Butter Cup and a Kit Kat bar. A little nervous, I approached the register. I thought they could be onto to my undercover investigation.

When I got the receipt, no sales tax. Bummer. Failure. No story. This doesn’t mean that the man was lying. It just means that right then, on that day, I didn’t have a story on illegal sales tax on candy.

But wait, what if other candy vending merchants in town were violators of the sales tax law. I stopped at several other gas stations and markets, looking to be charged extra for my candy bar. I bought two Butterfingers, no tax. I bought another Kit Kat, no tax. The same went for the Milky Way, Snickers and Cookies ‘n Creme Hershey bar I bought.

Every store passed, and I was left with a load of candy bars. But no worries, that is what the late night staff at the Desert Dispatch is for. The sports department and designer enjoyed the sugar buzz of their evening candy snack.

So we didn’t get a story. But we did get candy bars.

Aaron Aupperlee | city editor

The Marcus family unveils the signage atop the Lyndon Marcus, Jr. International Hotel at the hotel’s dedication Aug. 22 in the simulated Iraqi village of Medina Wasl at the National Training Center and Fort Irwin. (U.S. Army photo by Vickey M. Mouze)

The town maybe fake, but the hotel and the soldier behind its name are real.

On Friday, Brig. Gen. Dana J.H. Pittard along with Lyndon and Carla Marcus opened the Lyndon Marcus, Jr. International Hotel in the simulated town of Medina Wasl. The hotel, fully functional, open for reservations and part of the training scenarios at Fort Irwin, honors the Marcus’ son, Lyndon, a private first class who served under then Col. Pittard in Iraq.

Marcus, 21, of Long Beach, was killed in Balad, Iraq when his vehicle flipped over into a canal on May 3, 2004, according to a release from Fort Irwin. He was assigned to 3rd Brigade, 1st Infantry Division of Fort Hood, Texas. Pittard, who was Marcus’ brigade commander at the time, said he saw Marcus that morning in a dining hall, the release stated.

After taking command of Fort Irwin a year ago, Pittard learned that Marcus’ parents worked at Fort Irwin. Pittard’s wife, Lucille, suggested the hotel be named in his honor. During a speech at the hotel’s dedication, Pittard praised Marcus and the meaning his sacrifice has to each soldier who trains at Fort Irwin.

“Pfc. Lyndon A. Marcus was a great soldier and a wonderful young man. We dedicate this hotel in honor of him,” he stated. “It is fitting that a hotel that will be used for training honors one of our fallen warriors. It is important to name the hotel after one of our own.”

The hotel is just one of the many improvements Pittard has made to the training environment at Fort Irwin. Rotations of soldiers bound of Iraq of Afghanistan train at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin prior to deployment.

Taking command of the Army’s premier training post fresh from Iraq, Pittard has made it his goal to make the simulated towns dotting Fort Irwin’s desert feel, smell, sound and look as much like Iraq as possible. That has included increasing the number of Iraqi role players, hiring people from Barstow and the surrounding areas to dress like Iraqis to populate the towns and using Hollywood special-effects companies to make the blood, explosions and designs of the buildings more real.

Carla Marcus is the first to sign the guest register at the hotel named in honor of her son, Pfc. Lyndon A. Marcus, Jr. after the hotel’s dedication Aug. 22 at the National Training Center and Fort Irwin. Mrs. Marcus works at the NTC’s G-1 office. (U.S. Army photo by Vickey M. Mouze)

Aaron Aupperlee | city editor