APRIL REAR VIEW

THE PLOT THICKENS: BIRD BARRIER FEATURED IN MURDER MYSTERY NOVEL
A Los Angeles serial murderer has been leaving plastic owls at the scenes of his killings. Police have determined that Bird Barrier America Inc., supplier of bird control products, may have sold them to him. Cameron Riddell, Bird Barrier’s president, has provided police with a customer list from which to work.

That’s the story you would learn if you were to read best-selling fiction author Michael Connelly’s latest book "A Darkness More Than Night," which was published in January and is quickly climbing the New York Times best-seller list.

Connelly visited Bird Barrier as he researched his book, and included details of his visit in the story. The only difference is that in the book the visit is from Terry McCaleb, an ex-FBI agent and the main character in several of Connelly’s books. In the book’s 16th chapter, the investigators quiz Riddell about details of Bird Barrier owl sales, and ways to identify the time frame they may have been purchased.

Since the book’s release, readers have been contacting Bird Barrier looking for bird problem solutions. "It’s been really funny," said Riddell. "Callers aren’t sure if we’re a real company or not. We have to convince them that we are."

Connelly has sold more than 8 million books and does research on all aspects of his stories. His visit to Bird Barrier in 1999 helped him describe details of the fictional interview.

Did Bird Barrier help crack the crime? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

DELAY: "GEORGE W.'S BIGGEST PROBLEM"
In the January 8, 2001, issue of Fortune magazine, former Texas PCO-turned-U.S. Representative Tom DeLay is featured as President George W. Bush’s "worst nightmare." DeLay was a member of the PCT/Syngenta Leadership Class of 1991.

DeLay (R-Texas) is the most powerful man in Congress as House Majority Whip but the article says, "The Texans don’t get along personally or politically, and there’s no guarantee they ever will." Among other things, the two men, "come from different worlds," the article reads. "Bush is an ivy-education patrician eager to accommodate in order to succeed. DeLay is a former termite exterminator so zealously ideological that he recently said he was willing to shutter the government rather than acquiesce to President Clinton’s increased-spending proposals. Bush aspires to unite, not divide. DeLay revels in division; he nicknamed himself the Hammer."

A side note: obviously no one told Fortune magazine how pest management professionals work today — the art that ran with the story featured a sprayer with skull and crossbones.

UNEMPLOYMENT INCREASES IN JANUARY
Unemployment increased in January and payroll employment rose by 268,000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported in February. Of interest to PCOs, construction employment increased by 145,000 after seasonal adjustments, as unusual weather patterns throughout the last three months contributed to extremely light layoffs in January. Average hourly earnings were unchanged.

The number of unemployed rose by about 300,000 to nearly 6 million, pushing the unemployment rate from 4.0 to 4.2 percent. The jobless rate had ranged from 3.9 to 4.1 percent since October 1999.

COMING IN MAY:

• A Guide to Cockroach Baiting
• Public Health Benefits of Pesticides
• Preventing Public Health Pests