By: Sid Riley
9/25/08
" The potential for an economic "doomsday" for America is very real. It is now time for our "do-nothing" congress to "do-something"!
Historically, when our nation has faced times of great crisis and threats to our revered democratic systems, our politicians have been able to set aside their petty, self serving, political agendas, and are able to function as our forefathers intended for our government to work.
With the existing crew of clowns currently in control, I am not sure they are capable of this feat.
They have been warned by the Administration and our economic specialists that a critical financial condition has developed that endangers our entire economy. Unless they are able to pass needed legislation quickly, without the usual pet programs and earmarks as encumbrances, our way of life is at peril. Already, several of the more foolish leaders have begun to discuss adding other issues, programs, and requirements to this needed emergency legislation.
They are still wasting time pointing fingers at each other, seeking political gain by blaming the other party for the situation.
In my opinion, for either party to attempt to place total blame on the other is utter hypocrisy. The situation is the result of many interrelated components, errors, and ill conceived concepts which were encouraged over a period of decades, some Republican, some Democrat, and some from both.
To place the blame on the existing Bush administration would be like having a farm where one farmer planted a crop, then another farmer took over the farm and cultivated and fertilized the crop, then another farmer took over and harvested the crop. If the crop failed we would then blame the last farmer (Bush) for it all.
As late as the 1980’s only saving and loans banks could make mortgage loans. They were tightly regulated, always required excellent collateralization, and usually 20% of the purchase price was paid up front by the borrower. Then under Regan and the concept of deregulation, many other forms of banks were allowed to enter the mortgage financing market. Then, through the Clinton era, programs were enacted that injected the social issues of the Democrats into the financial picture. Banks were forced to seek out and make minority loans. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were created by the Federal government to reduce the risk to mortgage lenders for taking low income, poorly qualified loans. The concept was to make financing so available that almost every American family, regardless of their qualifications, could own their own home.
Habitat for humanity was moving too slow for these social activists, so the financial scene became a vehicle for the "American Dream" home ownership concept for everyone. Thus we entered an era of "creative financing" and "designer loans" that made the only requirement for obtaining a mortgage was the ability to stagger to the closing.
Even President Bush was strutting around for awhile bragging that more Americans now owned homes than at any time in history. What lending rules still existed were poorly enforced and investigated.
Money was easy to get. TV commercials, daily mail solicitations, and many promotions bombarded the public as the entire financial community begged people to borrow money. And they did.
Add to this situation a mixture of economic influences created by the out-migration of the US industry under free trade, the resulting terrible balance of trade that helped create a weakening dollar on the international currency markets, excessive spending and international loans generation by a "spend happy" government which further weakened the dollar, then add the impact of downgrading of the quality of jobs for the blue collar workers because of the loss of good industrial jobs (which made them less capable of paying back a loan), then throw in extreme inflation caused by our total dependence on costly Mid East oil, and finally add a sprinkle of unethical practices, over speculation, and excessive greed on behalf of the financial institutions and their executives and you have an explosive situation.
Which farmer is to blame for all of this bad management?
All of Them!
What should we do now? Well, first we must back away from the edge of the cliff. The proposed bail out of the banking system by having the government assume all of the weak, risky loans that should have never been made is probably a good first step. After all, the government played a role in the reasons why these loans were ever made.
If nothing is done, banks will not be able to lend money and the entire financial and economic system for the nation will fail. No one will be able to buy a house, a car, a boat, new appliances, or do any transaction requiring credit. Business will not be able to get business financing. As a result, demand for products will plummet, businesses will close, unemployment will soar to record levels (unemployment was 35% during the Great Depression), and out economy will shut down. We can not allow that to happen.
During the depression of the 1930’s government did not intervene until the situation had become a total disaster. At least today our government is aware and reactive before the crisis becomes a reality.
After we have corrected the immediate problems, and have backed away from the edge of the economic abyss, we should then restore some logic and sanity to the financial systems and controls.
Mortgage requirements should be strengthened and enforced.
Greater limitations on what types of banks can issue mortgages should be created. Social considerations should be removed from the lending process. For publicly traded corporations there should be controls placed over the allowable compensation for top executives and board members.
The concept of incorporation and public issuance of stocks was built on the premise that the interest of the stockholders would be represented by the Board of Directors. That concept has failed to function as boards have become part of the top level excessive greed in many companies. Top executives and board members should have their allowable level of compensation tied to the profitability of the company. CEO’s should only be paid up to 1% of the net profits, and Board members .1%. Stock options should be included in this value calculation.
Controls over qualification for consumer credit through credit cards must be strengthened. This area of loose credit is also endangering the financial stability of thousands of households.
Then our leadership should begin to attack that long list of related issues including the weak dollar, budget restraints, bad trade deals, energy dependence, and other out of control aspects of our system. It will take decades to restore our nation to what it should and could be. If they will do these things they will be "Getting it Right".
Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning-
♦ I applaud the Jackson County Commissioners for confronting the budgeting process used by County Constitutional Officers throughout the state. Their union-lobbying organization in Tallahassee arranged several years ago to have legislation passed that allowed them to operate outside of the budgeting process used by all other county functions. It allowed shades of grey in areas where sunshine was supposed to shine. This approach is wrong and needs to be corrected by our legislature. Perhaps the attention our Commissioners have brought forward in this instance will be a first step to solving a state wide problem.
♦ The tractor dealership that has been trying for many, many months to build and locate out on highway 90 west has been struggling with several permitting agencies. I hear they are now completely through the permitting process, have placed the project out for bid, and have awarded the bid to a construction firm from Colquitt Georgia. Ground breaking is expected to occur in the near future.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Getting It Right- How to Ruin a Great Nation In Six Easy Steps
9/18/08
By: Sid Riley
This column presents a non-partisan, conservative viewpoint about items of interest in our community and our lives. Focus is on items impacting your pocket book, your personal freedoms, and your rights. I hope you will read the column regularly and it occasionally influences your opinions and actions.
Our wonderful nation is struggling. I believe we are standing at a crossroads in our nation’s history. The American population is almost split perfectly into a 50%-50% mix of opposing, basic philosophies.
The core aspect of this disagreement is whether or not our nation should continue as a capitalistic democracy based on personal freedoms, contributions, responsibilities, and accomplishments…or if our nation should continue its evolution into a socialistic, government dominated, system where individualism is discouraged. This division in our government creates a situation where it is difficult to enact the meaningful legislation which is needed for us to properly react to the elements that today threaten our economy, our national good, and our society.
How has this potentially disastrous situation developed? It hasn’t been easy. It has required assembling an enduring group of Senators and Congressmen over a thirty year term that have been willing to always follow the crowd, respond to every self serving offer made to them, and to cocoon themselves inside a beltway institutionalized environment that separates them from the real world of the average American.
Over this period of extended lunacy they have either failed to take needed actions…or have taken actions in error that may have resulted in the ruination of our great free enterprise, Christian based democracy. I have listed some of the most critical elements of their folly.
Error #1. - In order to assure reelection, jump aboard every movement that appears to be popular and will win you votes. This would include the concepts of a "global economy", "free trade", and "world market". As part of this movement enter into flawed trade deals where we give away industry after industry to other parts of the world by allowing low cost, competing foreign made products to enter our market freely…while those nations continue to restrict our products from entering their markets. Then doggedly hang on to these flawed concepts while job after job, plant after plant, and industry after industry moves out of the country. Solution: We should only allow open trade on a par for par basis. When the incoming product values from a nation exceed our outgoing product values to them…duties are again applied.
Error #2. – Be sure and also jump aboard the popular passing parade called the "green" movement. Appear to become an avowed, tree hugging political environmentalist that will promote and enact any crazy, costly, unnecessary idea that any nerdish, close-minded, environmental scholar dreams up. Create a massive environmental bureaucracy called the EPA and allow those endowed bureaucrats to enact any regulation or requirement they desire on industry or the general population. Be sure to include restricting all drilling for oil in Alaska and anywhere off shore. Prohibit mining all oil shale in the Rocky Mountains, do not allow any new refineries to be built, and never, never consider allowing any more nuclear plants to be built. This will effectively kill any attempts to make our nation energy independent, and will allow our Arab enemies to effectively destroy what strength our economy has after we have given away most of our industries. Solution: Create a qualified, non-political oversight board comprised of people from environmental concerns, industry, and educational sectors to approve all environmental restrictions. Perform cost-benefit analysis on all proposed environmental rules and legislation. Elect legislators with common sense.
Error #3. – Destroy the moral, Christian based family structure that has been the foundation of our nation since its inception. Create a liberal Supreme Court that will make rulings encouraging amoral activities, reduce the effectiveness of the churches, impair family relationships, allow bombardment of the nation’s youth with a destructive, pornographic, "cool", drug oriented culture. Create a society where over 50% of the children are born out of wedlock, and the drug culture prevails. Make being "politically correct" more important than being sensibly correct. Solution: Elect Politicians that will only select conservative Supreme Court Justices….and return our society to basic Christian values.
Error #4. – Destroy the effectiveness of the educational system. Encourage the "Dumbing of America". Lower the educational standards down to the level where any social or cultural group can pass…instead of elevating the students in those groups. Unionize the teachers so that they become more interested in their benefits, their tenure, and their retirements than they are in the students. Make the schools totally dependent on Federal and State funding so that these entities can create bureaucratic rules, regulations, red tape, and special needs programs within school systems that effectively escalate costs, restrict local control, and bog down all processes. Solution: Return local control of schools to local officials. Return to basics in teaching. Raise expectations and create other development paths for those that can not or will not learn. Encourage those with superior abilities.
Error #5. - Prostitute the political process so that most qualified citizens will not and can not seek to participate. Allow "big money" special interest groups to donate heavily to the process so that only their "chosen few" are elected. These groups would include labor unions, industrial associations, political party organizations, professional associations, and thousands of other special interest lobby groups and PACS each hoping to bribe a candidate for their favor. Make the entire election process too expensive for any one person to afford, thus opening the door for criminal involvement, fraud, and deception of the general public. Allow illegal immigrants to freely enter our country and encourage them to also become "illegal voters". Solution: Only allow a very limited amount of well defined funds to be raised. Publish the funding sources for every candidate including second and third party transactions. Require television stations and other media forms to provide a defined amount of government financed public exposure for qualified candidates. Strengthen voter identification systems in every state.
Error #6. – Create a welfare, government dependent society that will obediently follow any requirement laid out by their overseer, "big brother" government. Allow government to grow and expand all of its programs at every level, until every choice, every personal action, every aspect of their lives is determined by government regulations and oversight. Tax all fruits of their labor, take away as much of their disposable income as possible, and then redistribute these earnings among the population so that everyone is essentially equal in lifestyle. Create an environment where individuals who are willing to take risks, work hard, and those with the skills needed to succeed are not rewarded enough to make it all worthwhile. Remove all incentive to be productive. Remove all personal choice and personal responsibilities for actions. Create a concept where the role of government is to provide housing, food, medical care, spending money, entertainment, safety, disaster restoration, and all other needs of the population. All government should ask in return is relinquishment of all personal freedoms of choice, all abilities to make any decisions, and complete obedience to all political and bureaucratic authority. Solution: Elect only candidates that will promote a minimum of government regulation and a maximum of individual freedoms.
If you are getting yourself and your family informed and ready to vote in a few weeks…you are "Getting It Right".
Rudiments: Odds and ends worth mentioning-
♦ In case you are wondering how our nation failed to develop an energy independence policy and thus became totally dependent on our Arab enemies……we couldn’t check our oil, All of the "Dipsticks" were in Washington!
♦ Our economic "cow" is getting sicker and sicker, I think we should quit milking for awhile.
♦ For your information, the mortgage banking regulations were significantly loosened during the Clinton administration in a bipartisan social agenda to make it where every American could own a home….whether they could pay for it or not.
♦ I drove up highway 73 to Dothan this week. It might be my last view of those beautiful trees on each side of the road that shade the drive.
♦ Isn’t it amazing how gasoline prices flow upward so much easier than they flow downward? I wonder if there is a scientific rule of physics involved….no I think it is merely an economic characteristic. I think the name for it is greed. Their Golden Rule appears to be "Do it to others before they can do it to you!" Where is "Big Brother" when you really need him?
♦ Next week’s issue of the Times will feature that day of hell in Marianna…the day the Yankees took our town.
Note: The opinions stated in this column are solely those of the author and do not represent those of Hatcher Publications.
By: Sid Riley
This column presents a non-partisan, conservative viewpoint about items of interest in our community and our lives. Focus is on items impacting your pocket book, your personal freedoms, and your rights. I hope you will read the column regularly and it occasionally influences your opinions and actions.
Our wonderful nation is struggling. I believe we are standing at a crossroads in our nation’s history. The American population is almost split perfectly into a 50%-50% mix of opposing, basic philosophies.
The core aspect of this disagreement is whether or not our nation should continue as a capitalistic democracy based on personal freedoms, contributions, responsibilities, and accomplishments…or if our nation should continue its evolution into a socialistic, government dominated, system where individualism is discouraged. This division in our government creates a situation where it is difficult to enact the meaningful legislation which is needed for us to properly react to the elements that today threaten our economy, our national good, and our society.
How has this potentially disastrous situation developed? It hasn’t been easy. It has required assembling an enduring group of Senators and Congressmen over a thirty year term that have been willing to always follow the crowd, respond to every self serving offer made to them, and to cocoon themselves inside a beltway institutionalized environment that separates them from the real world of the average American.
Over this period of extended lunacy they have either failed to take needed actions…or have taken actions in error that may have resulted in the ruination of our great free enterprise, Christian based democracy. I have listed some of the most critical elements of their folly.
Error #1. - In order to assure reelection, jump aboard every movement that appears to be popular and will win you votes. This would include the concepts of a "global economy", "free trade", and "world market". As part of this movement enter into flawed trade deals where we give away industry after industry to other parts of the world by allowing low cost, competing foreign made products to enter our market freely…while those nations continue to restrict our products from entering their markets. Then doggedly hang on to these flawed concepts while job after job, plant after plant, and industry after industry moves out of the country. Solution: We should only allow open trade on a par for par basis. When the incoming product values from a nation exceed our outgoing product values to them…duties are again applied.
Error #2. – Be sure and also jump aboard the popular passing parade called the "green" movement. Appear to become an avowed, tree hugging political environmentalist that will promote and enact any crazy, costly, unnecessary idea that any nerdish, close-minded, environmental scholar dreams up. Create a massive environmental bureaucracy called the EPA and allow those endowed bureaucrats to enact any regulation or requirement they desire on industry or the general population. Be sure to include restricting all drilling for oil in Alaska and anywhere off shore. Prohibit mining all oil shale in the Rocky Mountains, do not allow any new refineries to be built, and never, never consider allowing any more nuclear plants to be built. This will effectively kill any attempts to make our nation energy independent, and will allow our Arab enemies to effectively destroy what strength our economy has after we have given away most of our industries. Solution: Create a qualified, non-political oversight board comprised of people from environmental concerns, industry, and educational sectors to approve all environmental restrictions. Perform cost-benefit analysis on all proposed environmental rules and legislation. Elect legislators with common sense.
Error #3. – Destroy the moral, Christian based family structure that has been the foundation of our nation since its inception. Create a liberal Supreme Court that will make rulings encouraging amoral activities, reduce the effectiveness of the churches, impair family relationships, allow bombardment of the nation’s youth with a destructive, pornographic, "cool", drug oriented culture. Create a society where over 50% of the children are born out of wedlock, and the drug culture prevails. Make being "politically correct" more important than being sensibly correct. Solution: Elect Politicians that will only select conservative Supreme Court Justices….and return our society to basic Christian values.
Error #4. – Destroy the effectiveness of the educational system. Encourage the "Dumbing of America". Lower the educational standards down to the level where any social or cultural group can pass…instead of elevating the students in those groups. Unionize the teachers so that they become more interested in their benefits, their tenure, and their retirements than they are in the students. Make the schools totally dependent on Federal and State funding so that these entities can create bureaucratic rules, regulations, red tape, and special needs programs within school systems that effectively escalate costs, restrict local control, and bog down all processes. Solution: Return local control of schools to local officials. Return to basics in teaching. Raise expectations and create other development paths for those that can not or will not learn. Encourage those with superior abilities.
Error #5. - Prostitute the political process so that most qualified citizens will not and can not seek to participate. Allow "big money" special interest groups to donate heavily to the process so that only their "chosen few" are elected. These groups would include labor unions, industrial associations, political party organizations, professional associations, and thousands of other special interest lobby groups and PACS each hoping to bribe a candidate for their favor. Make the entire election process too expensive for any one person to afford, thus opening the door for criminal involvement, fraud, and deception of the general public. Allow illegal immigrants to freely enter our country and encourage them to also become "illegal voters". Solution: Only allow a very limited amount of well defined funds to be raised. Publish the funding sources for every candidate including second and third party transactions. Require television stations and other media forms to provide a defined amount of government financed public exposure for qualified candidates. Strengthen voter identification systems in every state.
Error #6. – Create a welfare, government dependent society that will obediently follow any requirement laid out by their overseer, "big brother" government. Allow government to grow and expand all of its programs at every level, until every choice, every personal action, every aspect of their lives is determined by government regulations and oversight. Tax all fruits of their labor, take away as much of their disposable income as possible, and then redistribute these earnings among the population so that everyone is essentially equal in lifestyle. Create an environment where individuals who are willing to take risks, work hard, and those with the skills needed to succeed are not rewarded enough to make it all worthwhile. Remove all incentive to be productive. Remove all personal choice and personal responsibilities for actions. Create a concept where the role of government is to provide housing, food, medical care, spending money, entertainment, safety, disaster restoration, and all other needs of the population. All government should ask in return is relinquishment of all personal freedoms of choice, all abilities to make any decisions, and complete obedience to all political and bureaucratic authority. Solution: Elect only candidates that will promote a minimum of government regulation and a maximum of individual freedoms.
If you are getting yourself and your family informed and ready to vote in a few weeks…you are "Getting It Right".
Rudiments: Odds and ends worth mentioning-
♦ In case you are wondering how our nation failed to develop an energy independence policy and thus became totally dependent on our Arab enemies……we couldn’t check our oil, All of the "Dipsticks" were in Washington!
♦ Our economic "cow" is getting sicker and sicker, I think we should quit milking for awhile.
♦ For your information, the mortgage banking regulations were significantly loosened during the Clinton administration in a bipartisan social agenda to make it where every American could own a home….whether they could pay for it or not.
♦ I drove up highway 73 to Dothan this week. It might be my last view of those beautiful trees on each side of the road that shade the drive.
♦ Isn’t it amazing how gasoline prices flow upward so much easier than they flow downward? I wonder if there is a scientific rule of physics involved….no I think it is merely an economic characteristic. I think the name for it is greed. Their Golden Rule appears to be "Do it to others before they can do it to you!" Where is "Big Brother" when you really need him?
♦ Next week’s issue of the Times will feature that day of hell in Marianna…the day the Yankees took our town.
Note: The opinions stated in this column are solely those of the author and do not represent those of Hatcher Publications.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Getting It Right- Liberals have Short Memories
9/11/08
By: Sid Riley
" On this date seven years ago, 2,998 loyal, hard working Americans were killed while innocently going about their daily routines by a cowardly band of religious Muslim radicals. I will not forget!"
By: Sid Riley
" On this date seven years ago, 2,998 loyal, hard working Americans were killed while innocently going about their daily routines by a cowardly band of religious Muslim radicals. I will not forget!"
As I listen to anti-war, peace at any cost, pacifist, foolish, brainwashed liberals discuss Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, and other septic tank sites around the world I can not believe my ears as I digest what they are proposing. It is unfathomable to me to realize that they have already forgotten the emotions stirred in our nation by 9-11. They propose to merely create harmonious international relations with the radical elements of these nations by engaging in peaceful "dialogue". Bullfeathers!!
Shortly after this attack, while our tempers were flared to their highest pitch, our President, George Bush led the charge into the deserts where the threats seemed to be the greatest for the launch of a second attack upon us and our allies. At that time he penned what was called "The Bush Doctrine".
Simply stated, this doctrine said "If you ain’t with us…then we consider you to be against us". If you are not our friend and ally against radical terrorism, then you are supporting those acts and are our enemy.
My main criticism of George W. Bush is that he did not strictly adhere to that eloquent doctrine. Many countries have demonstrated that they are not with us in this matter, yet we have not proclaimed them as enemies and treated them thusly. France, Germany, Russia, and others have not supported our efforts to make the Mid-eastern deserts environmentally clean of vermin.
Most of these countries have refused to assist us due to "liberal overload" in the population. This is a condition which unfortunately also exists in many areas of the United States. I have noted a peculiar phenomenon relating to liberalism….as an individual absorbs more and more liberal philosophy it seems to simultaneously create memory loss. As I listen to these liberal loonies proclaim their anti war, peace at all cost philosophy, I realize that they have completely forgotten 9-11 and the very real future dangers that exist for our society. To them there is no war against radical terrorism.
Well, I will not forget….I was there! I was in another building about 25 blocks away looking across at the first trade center when it fell. At that moment I realized I was watching thousands of people die as a result of a cowardly attack on our nation. The generation of World War II will never forget the sneak attack by the Japanese on Pearl Harbor….but at least that attack was military against military. To me, what they did to us in New York City on 9-11 was much worse. It was a thrust designed to hit the heart of our nation.
I sometimes think it might have been better if those valiant heroes on United Flight 93 had failed to stop the airplane from hitting the Capital Building. Perhaps if several hundred of our Washington politicians had also been killed our level of outrage would not be waning at this time. If that portion of their plan had succeeded our national resolve would have been even greater…..and perhaps these liberal loonies would still be able to remember.
Anyway, please take time to honor fallen 9-11 heroes and remember to vow to clean out the sub human desert trash that attacked us ….and you will be "Getting It Right".
Rudiments: Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning
♦ I applaud the Marianna City Commission for evaluating their options before entering into a renewal agreement with the franchise for Florida Public Utilities. They may find some solutions that will "ease the pain" for the citizens of the city….I hope so.
♦ Work on Kelson is progressing at a fast pace…I saw a grader moving there the other day.
♦ Our beautiful, new $1,600,000 Emergency Operations Building is completed on schedule…..All we need now is a good emergency for the new Director to hide in while he tells us all what to do!
♦ Socialist Philosophy = "More government is the solution to the problem".Libertarian Philosophy = "More government is the problem".
- If you want to enjoy a canopied drive up Hwy 73 to Dothan, you had better go soon! In a few days the DOT will cut down all of those beautiful trees.
♦ My wife and I are bowling this season after skipping a year. During our first bowling night I noticed some new signs above the lanes that said "Do not cross the foul lane or you may slip and hurt yourself on the slick floor". I summoned the owner, Jeff Kendelspire and asked him if some bureaucrat inspector had made him put up that clever sign. He confirmed that it was a new requirement resulting from one of his many inspections. Folks, the code-a-crats have been crawling over this project like an angry swarm of fire ants, and this is just another example of their foolishness. Of course you will bust your butt if you step over the foul lane! Next week I expect to see that they have made him put up signs saying "If you put your hands into the ceiling fans, you will injure your fingers". How could we ever survive without this bureaucratic leadership?
Note: The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Hatcher Publications.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Getting It Right- McCain and Sarah Who??
9/4/08
"The nominations are set and the final stages of the campaigns are in full throttle, Obama – Biden Vs. McCain – Palin. The next 60 days should be fun to watch."
Obama wowed them in Denver with a carefully orchestrated show of rock star proportions, punctuated with fireworks, magnificent oratory, party unification as the Clintons gave up, and touching scenes of a loving family. The Democrats left the event charged up and ready for battle.
With a stunning announcement timed to wash away the lingering visions and tastes of Denver, the Republicans quickly sprang into action. Everyone was expecting McCain to make a ho-hum announcement that Mitt Romney was his running mate as they prepared for their nominating convention in Minneapolis this week. Romney offered the ticket great depth of executive management experience which in these trying economic times is much needed at our topmost levels. But McCain had a well kept surprise in store for everyone.
Instead he brought forth a dedicated, determined, pit fighting conservative bull dog, clothed in the radiance of a beauty queen and the loving grace of a mother of five, Sarah Palin. It is undoubtedly a giant political gamble for McCain, but at the same time it may be a great stroke of political brilliance.
I believe that McCain realizes the American public is totally disgusted with the Washington political establishment, the same old party rhetoric, the stifling weight of an oppressive bureaucracy, and the ineptness of the existing political system. As Obama has preached throughout his campaign…. "It is time for change."
McCain realized that if his campaign could not offer an opportunity for change that at least equaled the promises being made by Obama, his chances of winning were slim. Obama is promising a change in the philosophy and extent of social programs in Washington…McCain is now promising to change the way Washington does business.
Palin is a conservative, reformer state Governor who has a varied and rich experience level for a 44 year old woman and mother of five. In high school she was captain of a state championship girl’s basketball team, and made a game winning, final seconds free throw with a fractured ankle. Her nickname was "the barracuda" because of her determined style of play.
She and her husband operate a fishing boat, fishing out of Bristol Bay, Alaska. She favors government reform, is a member of the NRA, loves to hunt and fish, favors Anwar drilling, and elimination of "pork barrel" politics. To me, one of the most significant aspects of her philosophy was demonstrated by the manner in which she, as governor, dealt with the infamous "bridge to nowhere" earmark project that was approved for Alaska by our wonderful Washington politicians.
This series of reeking pork barrel earmarks for a total of $320,000,000 were attached to critical legislation and were thus passed by a shameless congress. This massive expenditure of taxpayer dollars was to be used to build a bridge from the Alaska shoreline at Ketchikan to the nearby Island of Gravina Island which houses fifty residents and the Ketchikan airport.
The federal grant money was awarded and available to the Governor for the project. However, Sarah Palin knew it was wasteful and other much more deserving needs existed for the use of this money. She refused to accept the grant.
Local Jackson County Politicians and Bureaucrats…did you read what I just wrote?? ….SHE REFUSED TO TAKE THE GRANT OF $320 MILLION FEDERAL TAX DOLLARS! She did not say "I know it is a waste and not really justified, but if I don’t take the money…someone else will", which is a familiar philosophy expounded by many in our various local administrations. It is refreshing to find a politician that still focuses on separating "right" from "wrong" and has the conviction to only deal with the positives.
Instead she and her staff identified a bridge project awaiting funding for a hurricane destroyed bridge in Louisiana, and encouraged congress to divert the funds to that project which helped many more people than the Alaska bridge to nowhere project. In my opinion, in today’s political, bureaucratic system, that type of action took immense courage and a sense of putting national good ahead of personal, local gain. As a result, she gained an 80% approval rating in the state of Alaska.
So, local bureaucrats and politicians, please remember this example when Tallahassee or the Federal Government dangles money for unneeded parks, playgrounds in remote areas, seldom walked sidewalks, unnecessary second courthouse ramps, unnecessary replacement and upgrade of infrastructure, unnecessary bridge widening, overly expensive girls softball fields, plush offices, unjustified vehicles, new buildings when suitable structures exist, approving add-on features to water treatment systems because of excess left over grant funds, unnecessary building restorations, and other "nice but not necessary" projects while the taxpaying public is struggling each month to keep their electricity turned on. If you can not accept the mantle of responsibility and insist on wise use of public funds, we need to find those among us who will.
Rudiments - Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning:
♦ There is one story in this week’s paper about the "crats" in Georgia deciding to close several state parks in response to budget tightening. This is the old bureaucratic tactic of closing parks and taking away school sporting events when their money is threatened. They never consider laying off unnecessary staff, dropping foolish requirements, not traveling to annual conferences and events and staying in first class hotels at taxpayer expense, doing away with unnecessary programs, or taking away unjustified government provided vehicles.
♦ Our esteemed Washington politicians in Washington are still on their five week tax paid vacations. Meanwhile, our nation founders with nothing being done to cure our ailing economy and our dependence on the sheiks of the deserts for our energy. They needed the vacation, pointing fingers of blame at the other person month after month is hard work.
♦ Well, the proposed tax notices for next year have been mailed. I have received complaints from several property owners about the fact that although they received a tax decrease over last year, it was swallowed up by the impact of an increase in valuation by the property appraiser and the increased millage from the school tax increase which was mandated by the State. I can not understand the justification for increasing property valuations during this severe real estate downturn. Do they really think property values have increased during the past year? Anyhow, the net result managed to keep all of the tax decreases we were promised. If you were unfortunate enough to live inside the city of Marianna, they added enough millage there to give you a tax increase in your total computation…….You didn’t really think you were going to get a tax decrease, did you?
I hope you will have a long memory about these issues when you step into the voting booth in November. Vote wisely and you will be "Getting It Right".
Note: The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Hatcher Publications.
"The nominations are set and the final stages of the campaigns are in full throttle, Obama – Biden Vs. McCain – Palin. The next 60 days should be fun to watch."
Obama wowed them in Denver with a carefully orchestrated show of rock star proportions, punctuated with fireworks, magnificent oratory, party unification as the Clintons gave up, and touching scenes of a loving family. The Democrats left the event charged up and ready for battle.
With a stunning announcement timed to wash away the lingering visions and tastes of Denver, the Republicans quickly sprang into action. Everyone was expecting McCain to make a ho-hum announcement that Mitt Romney was his running mate as they prepared for their nominating convention in Minneapolis this week. Romney offered the ticket great depth of executive management experience which in these trying economic times is much needed at our topmost levels. But McCain had a well kept surprise in store for everyone.
Instead he brought forth a dedicated, determined, pit fighting conservative bull dog, clothed in the radiance of a beauty queen and the loving grace of a mother of five, Sarah Palin. It is undoubtedly a giant political gamble for McCain, but at the same time it may be a great stroke of political brilliance.
I believe that McCain realizes the American public is totally disgusted with the Washington political establishment, the same old party rhetoric, the stifling weight of an oppressive bureaucracy, and the ineptness of the existing political system. As Obama has preached throughout his campaign…. "It is time for change."
McCain realized that if his campaign could not offer an opportunity for change that at least equaled the promises being made by Obama, his chances of winning were slim. Obama is promising a change in the philosophy and extent of social programs in Washington…McCain is now promising to change the way Washington does business.
Palin is a conservative, reformer state Governor who has a varied and rich experience level for a 44 year old woman and mother of five. In high school she was captain of a state championship girl’s basketball team, and made a game winning, final seconds free throw with a fractured ankle. Her nickname was "the barracuda" because of her determined style of play.
She and her husband operate a fishing boat, fishing out of Bristol Bay, Alaska. She favors government reform, is a member of the NRA, loves to hunt and fish, favors Anwar drilling, and elimination of "pork barrel" politics. To me, one of the most significant aspects of her philosophy was demonstrated by the manner in which she, as governor, dealt with the infamous "bridge to nowhere" earmark project that was approved for Alaska by our wonderful Washington politicians.
This series of reeking pork barrel earmarks for a total of $320,000,000 were attached to critical legislation and were thus passed by a shameless congress. This massive expenditure of taxpayer dollars was to be used to build a bridge from the Alaska shoreline at Ketchikan to the nearby Island of Gravina Island which houses fifty residents and the Ketchikan airport.
The federal grant money was awarded and available to the Governor for the project. However, Sarah Palin knew it was wasteful and other much more deserving needs existed for the use of this money. She refused to accept the grant.
Local Jackson County Politicians and Bureaucrats…did you read what I just wrote?? ….SHE REFUSED TO TAKE THE GRANT OF $320 MILLION FEDERAL TAX DOLLARS! She did not say "I know it is a waste and not really justified, but if I don’t take the money…someone else will", which is a familiar philosophy expounded by many in our various local administrations. It is refreshing to find a politician that still focuses on separating "right" from "wrong" and has the conviction to only deal with the positives.
Instead she and her staff identified a bridge project awaiting funding for a hurricane destroyed bridge in Louisiana, and encouraged congress to divert the funds to that project which helped many more people than the Alaska bridge to nowhere project. In my opinion, in today’s political, bureaucratic system, that type of action took immense courage and a sense of putting national good ahead of personal, local gain. As a result, she gained an 80% approval rating in the state of Alaska.
So, local bureaucrats and politicians, please remember this example when Tallahassee or the Federal Government dangles money for unneeded parks, playgrounds in remote areas, seldom walked sidewalks, unnecessary second courthouse ramps, unnecessary replacement and upgrade of infrastructure, unnecessary bridge widening, overly expensive girls softball fields, plush offices, unjustified vehicles, new buildings when suitable structures exist, approving add-on features to water treatment systems because of excess left over grant funds, unnecessary building restorations, and other "nice but not necessary" projects while the taxpaying public is struggling each month to keep their electricity turned on. If you can not accept the mantle of responsibility and insist on wise use of public funds, we need to find those among us who will.
Rudiments - Odds and Ends Worth Mentioning:
♦ There is one story in this week’s paper about the "crats" in Georgia deciding to close several state parks in response to budget tightening. This is the old bureaucratic tactic of closing parks and taking away school sporting events when their money is threatened. They never consider laying off unnecessary staff, dropping foolish requirements, not traveling to annual conferences and events and staying in first class hotels at taxpayer expense, doing away with unnecessary programs, or taking away unjustified government provided vehicles.
♦ Our esteemed Washington politicians in Washington are still on their five week tax paid vacations. Meanwhile, our nation founders with nothing being done to cure our ailing economy and our dependence on the sheiks of the deserts for our energy. They needed the vacation, pointing fingers of blame at the other person month after month is hard work.
♦ Well, the proposed tax notices for next year have been mailed. I have received complaints from several property owners about the fact that although they received a tax decrease over last year, it was swallowed up by the impact of an increase in valuation by the property appraiser and the increased millage from the school tax increase which was mandated by the State. I can not understand the justification for increasing property valuations during this severe real estate downturn. Do they really think property values have increased during the past year? Anyhow, the net result managed to keep all of the tax decreases we were promised. If you were unfortunate enough to live inside the city of Marianna, they added enough millage there to give you a tax increase in your total computation…….You didn’t really think you were going to get a tax decrease, did you?
I hope you will have a long memory about these issues when you step into the voting booth in November. Vote wisely and you will be "Getting It Right".
Note: The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Hatcher Publications.
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