Naughty Washington Township School Board shenanigans and what you can to stop it

Mervilde is still bucking to increase his already massive compensation package and the school board has even more wanton spending planned if you don't stop it. They scare the public when they threaten to cut teachers. Anyone notice that they NEVER threaten to cut administrators? Activist extraordinaire, Penney Bigelow sent us the following shameful details about the school board and what you can do about it! --Melyssa, for HFFT

The new MSDWT Board President, Cheri Harris, has announced that there were be an Executive Session Board Meeting by the end of July (closed doors, no public allowed by law, since they will be discussing personnel – Mervilde -- issues), with the goal of placing the raise for Supt. Mervilde on the August 12 regular Board Meeting Agenda (public allowed to attend, but will they be allowed to comment?

This Mervilde salary increase issue is NOT DEAD.

Here’s what you can do NOW:

1. Please email the entire School Board (see list below). Send more than one email to the Board, each one on a different topic – or repeatedly on the same topic, as you wish… If you only send one now, please make about the first topic – the Superintendent’s salary increase.

Addtional suggested topics:

1) The public MUST see details of the Superintendent’s contract BEFORE the Aug 12 meeting and the public MUST have public comment on this issue specifically at the Aug 12 meeting (or whenever they bring this topic up again). Do not forget to mention your views of Mervilde’s salary and pension increase!

2) Your views about the number of administrators in MSDWT while they are cutting teachers’ aides and teachers (see info below).

3) Your views about the use of PR firms, paid for with taxpayer money, to convince taxpayers to pay more taxes (see info below).

4) Your views about the management (or mismanagement) of tax dollars for schools by the Supt. and the complicit School Board. Ask yourself if additional funds (e.g., the 2011 referendum for $250 million) are needed for construction instead of instruction. Ask yourself if you want MSDWT to emphasize education over athletics. Ask yourself if you believe that there is too much money spent in some areas other than DIRECTLY on education.

Here is the list of School Board members and their emails:

President Cheri Harris charris@msdwt.k12.in.us

VP Don Kite dkite@msdwt.k1.in.us

Secretary Tony Dzwonar tdzwonar@msdwt.k12.in.us

Member Wanda Spann Roddy wsroddy@msdwt.k12.in.us

Member Greg Wright schoolboardgreg@att.net


For the Board’s phone numbers, see the list . Please note that Greg Wright prefers to be contacted at a different email address schoolboardgreg@att.net, which affords both the sender and Greg privacy.

Does Washington Township School Board serve Superintendent Mervilde or does Mervilde serve the school board?

And by the way, WHY is Supt Mervilde listed at the top of the BOE list? He is the primary employee of the Board, not an elected member of the Board. He should not even be on this page! You will also find this oddity in the Board picture, with Mervilde in the center!

Does this tell you how Mervilde and most of the board view his position and power? During school board meetings, I have also seen him interrupt then-President Don Kite numerous times; Kite not only permitted it, but deferred to Mervilde in the most ingratiating manner AND paid rapt attention to him – unlike the way Kite treated the public.

2. While you are at it, why not send copies of your emails to all the legislators who represent MSDWT?

NOTE: Please list the legislators in the cc: area of the email, NOT the bcc: area. This way the Board knows that you are letting our legislators know your thoughts, also. Believe me, this will get the attention of the Board Members and the Supt.

INDIANA HOUSE EMAILS

Jeb Bardon
H25@in.gov

Edward DeLaney
H86@in.gov

Cindy Noe
H87@in.gov

Brian C. Bosma
H88@in.gov

John Bartlett
H95@in.gov

Gregory W. Porter
H96@in.gov

Vanessa Summers
H99@in.gov

INDIANA SENATE EMAILS:
Michael A. Delph
S29@in.gov

Teresa S. Lubbers
S30@in.gov

Greg Taylor
S33@in.gov

Jean Breaux
S34@in.gov


1. Greg Wright, the lonely fiscal conservative on the School Board who consistently votes against excessive spending, has written an article which appeared in the Opinion section of Saturday’s (July 11) Indy Star -- online:

Trying to contact Greg through this link is impossible. First, they had his author’s name listed as Gary Wright. Then, they had an incorrect link for his email address. Be sure to read the Comments under the article – and leave your own, if you are so inclined. The number of comments an article receives is an indication to the Star of the interest in that topic and whether or not they will cover it more intensely.

The Indy Star’s coverage of MSDWT and Mervilde has been one-sided, at the least, and could be described as fawning over the Supt and Board… For this glowing coverage, Indy Star reporter Gretchen Becker has been granted special privileges and access repeatedly. On two separate occasions that I personally can verify, she received advance copies of reports before the meeting.

The latest incident was her receiving a copy of the Investigative Report hours before the June 24 meeting. No copies of the report were given to the public at that Board meeting. The poor taxpayers were only allowed to read it when Greg Wright released it after the meeting; it was attached to my last email.

Only when Greg complained about the latest unbalanced Star/Gretchen Becker coverage of the Spring Mill investigative report did the Indy Star tell Greg to write his article--and then published it late and with incorrect info about Greg.

2. As part of his increased compensation package, Mervilde had requested ANOTHER administrator – which he has already received. See the Star article , which details this new position. Also note that there is a “Superintendent’s Cabinet”. Thus, Mervilde has another level of administration, which further removes him from the students and teachers. What does HE do, besides think of ways to feather his nest and increase OUR taxes? Oh, yes, he also makes public/government appearances in support of his spending plans. And he has two public relations firms to help him do this. Is this what you want to pay the Supt. to do?

3. Speaking of public relations firms, Mervilde has plans to hire a THIRD, out-of-state PR firm to help convince WT taxpayers to support the two referendums that are planned for 2010 and 2011. Not surprisingly, this coincides with his request to extend his contract for another year, -- just enough time so he can shepherd (“sheep” -- that’s US! – “herd” -- us into paying more taxes) these two referendums. With THREE PR firms, who needs Mervilde?

Regards,
Penny Bigelow, WT activist
1424 Sandi Drive
Indianapolis, IN 46260-2729
876-0707
Email: pbigelow6@comcast.net

Are we left to the mercy of last-minute deals, spin doctors and fast-talking lobbyists?

"Indiana government has grown so complex there are not enough reporters or even informed activists to stay with its twists and turns. There is simply too much going on. We are left to the mercy of last-minute deals, spin doctors and fast-talking lobbyists."

--Craig Ladwig for INDIANA POLICY REVIEW

If Indiana's Tea Party activists would work toward the goal of reform of local government, I believe we could get Indiana's government under control with the help of a handful of good politicians who are doing all they can to serve us well. It's time to take the tea parties to school board meetings, city council meetings, and the state legislature. --Melyssa for HFFT

Town Hall to discuss downtown ICVA & CIB

Jose Evans, CityCounty Councillor, District 1

Invited: All members of the public.

Topic:
Future of the Convention Center, Downtown & Proposal from the Special Session of the General Assembly

Presenters:
Don Welsh, President & CEO of the Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association,
Barney Levengood, Executive Director of the Capital Improvement Board
Craig Huse & John Short, members of the CIB

WHEN: Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Reception at 6:00 pm
Program at 6:30 pm

Opportunity to comment and Q&A to follow.

Public input & feedback is vital!!!

WHERE: 4925 S. Shelby Street Perry GovernmentCenter
(Behind Fire Station on Thompson Road near Northwest corner of Madison Ave. & Thompson Road)

Contact: Mike Speedy, 317-786-6689
m.speedy@sbcglobal.net

WE THE PEOPLE: How We Win

We will win if
we fight at the school board meetings,
city council meetings, and
make our Indiana state representatives and senators do our will,
while we hold their feet to the fire to burn if they disobey.

We will never win our attacks against Washington
as long as our own local political backyards are filthy.



.

FREEDOM IN MARION COUNTY: What it looks like

Got an email that said Wheeler was whining I didn't publish the photos of the Libertarian Cigar Roll he submitted with his assault on personal freedom. He finds the photos above to be shocking. Wheeler is likely too uncultured (uneducated) to understand that smoking flavored tobacco via a hooka or cigar spans many centuries and many cultures.

Someone needs to tell the patriot in costume only that people can freely choose in America whether to place themselves in smoky places or not. We can choose what we want to do on our own property. Next thing you know he'll be crying to the government to outlaw auto races because the sport is "dangerous" to the health of the drivers and sometimes it is dangerous to the health of the bystanders who can get hit with flying debris!

Wheeler seeks to limit your freedom while making you think he's a patriot. As someone said earlier, he's a bored old man with too much time on his hands. It's time someone said so publicly.

PAUL WHEELER WANTS YOU TO SUPPORT
RACE FREE INDY
The sport of racing kills and seriously injures employees of race car teams every year and the noise will make you go deaf!
.

The Anti-Patriot: Paul Wheeler

This is Wheeler in Ft. Wayne at the 2007 Ft. Wayne Tea Party.
I branded him Patriot Paul by encouraging an unsure and nervous newbie activist to continue to show up to protests in costume.

Recently I discovered this message written by the so-called "patriot" Paul Wheeler, in response to a Libertarian outing that supports small business owners' rights to choose to allow smoking in their establishments. While Paul claims to be anti-smoking, he never once said a word that cigarette smoke offends him as he attended countless activist meetings as I puffed away on cigarettes earlier this year.

I specifically asked Wheeler if he minded if I had a smoke in my own house, to which he replied (as always) that he did not mind. I'm not sure what Wheeler's overall problem is, but I do know one thing. He's a hypocrite in a costume. The inside doesn't match the outside, folks.
--Melyssa for HFFT

Wheeler writes:
Do Libertarians Need a Facelift?
Desiring to take a stand for business owners' rights in the field of smokes, local Libertarian Party members and like-minded went on a 'Cigar-roll' on Saturday in Indianapolis. Yes, we all want business owners to be in charge of their own property, but at what risks to others and to what extent? A man's home is his castle, but even the Constitution directs the government to enter, albeit with a warrant. One cannot hide behind his doors and do anything he wants. Without a full
fledge debate, the matter becomes presentation and emphasis. What message is sent by published pictures of the event showing LP members and such imbibing toxins? While it seems there are as many brands of libertarians as cigars, there are just as many causes to fight for. The question of emphasis becomes whether ingesting poisons is the best way to promulgate the cause of freedom. Fighting for the 'right' to poison others and call it a business seems a strange way to highlight the Libertarian Party, when basic freedoms affecting and transcending both smokers and non-smokers are far more plentiful, given the breathtaking national issues besetting us during the last several years and aggressively thrust upon the American people during 2008-9; the Fed, fiat money, taxes, bailouts, banking. The question is not whether the LP has a right to ingest poisons, but whether it wishes to be seen as extremists in perpetuating an addiction to others by example. It's one thing to take to the streets with signs for freedom and another thing to participate in something knowingly harmful to yourself & others under the guise of liberty. The means don't justify the ends. Patrick Henry wanted liberty or death; not liberty as a means to death.Bottom line: can libertarians get away from these displays and define itself on broader issues confronting Americans and be relevant. Donny Ferguson, communications director of the national LP, wrote recently that 2 items, guns and legalization of drugs, are worthy causes. The latter is exactly what has marginalized the LP. The LP needs to rise to the issues of immigration and abortion, among others (even libertarian icon Ron Paul is against abortion on libertarian grounds, based on not using force to effect change). For 30+ years, the LP has done instant replays of fringe antics. Take a look at the pictures and ask yourself if this is the message of hope or hopelessness. Is this the direction of the LP? Will the real reformers please stand up. Would you vote for these people for public office to represent you?

A RESPONSE:
Here is a well-thought response to Wheeler I was emailed today. It states what I continue to hear from people who interact with him. Paul is a guy in a costume with a mighty overblown ego.

It is Ironic that Patriot Paul is reading the Declaration of Independence at the 4th of July Tea Party. I say ironic because Patriot Paul is a statist. He believes in government intervention not only in your personal life, but in how one can run his own small business. While movements often feel the need to have some kind of mascot, Wheeler has not distinguished himself in the area of pro-liberty ideology or in demonstrating any understanding of things. He has mostly relegated himself to some kind of critic who just likes to throw rocks at people wiser than himself.

Patriot Paul called those opposed to the forced government smoking bans on private property "murderers" and "baby killers". His comment alienated many people and will certainly not earn him a spot amongst Indiana's great statesmen. Patriot Paul is a staunch supporter of Smoke Free Indy's campaign to eliminate smoking in cigar bars, hookah bars, clubs and pubs. This of
course would cause many small business owners to lose their life's work, all in the name of government saving people from harming themselves. Patriot Paul believes that others should not be able to smoke on private commercial property, even though an individual has a choice whether or not to patron an establishment. Patriot Paul believes that choice should not exist. Suffice to say that places like Indy Cigar Bar, by the Keystone Fashion Mall, would be forced to close if Patriot Paul, Smoke Free Indy and the local statist politicians get their way.

By the way, Smoke Free Indy is a government funded special interest group that lobbies local government to adopt legislation that forces their ideals and views onto the general population. Anyone see the conflict of interest in a government funded special interest group? If someone was to support an organization like that, then they don't deserve the title of Patriot to me, nor should that person be reading the Declaration of Independence at a rally denouncing government intervention. It's just an insult to the founding fathers and to insult them on the 4th of July is unfathomable.

But, hey, some people will cozy up to any group or organization or even throw their former friends under the bus if they think it will get them some form of minor notoriety. There are far better advocates around Central Indiana that could have been tapped for this, insulting everyone with someone just because they have a nice costume to wear wasn't necessary. It's time to start paying to attention to who the smart, principled and ideologically grounded folks are not just who is vocal and flamboyant.

In Liberty,
Travis Zellers

Letter to Indiana State House of Representatives

Wayne published this letter in the comments over on Abdul's blog. It's re-print worthy!
--Melyssa for HFFT

Dear State Representatives,

While you wheel and deal with our monies, ensuring a future of more enslavement and decrying the other party as being unreasonable, we are starting to realize that the Libertarian Party is the only political party of reason.

Please understand, the vast majority of Americans now consider themselves to be a person without a political party. We take our time to read up on the bills (more than even yourself) and cross reference your voting records. We know where you live, go to church, shop and play. Yes, you can say we are the eyes and ears of our community filled by sharks and vipers ready to strike at the feet of us taxpayers and we are armed with a new gun which will revolutionize our ability to ensure you will never win office again.

Say hello to my gun. It's a fine piece of equipment which doesn't fire bullets like a normal gun, but rather, it records video and audio that is easily uploaded to YouTube. This technology is much more powerful than a single crazy man shooting up an office because he knows his government is a bunch of traitors and is quite easy to conceal.

We plan on using this gun for a number of years while watching you. We even plan on making snazzy campaign commercials showing the public where you lie and cheat them out of their hard earned dollars. In time, you will understand that you cannot escape the power of this weapon even as you try to intimidate us by putting your own "guns" in every public place.

Give up, you've lost the battle. Even the media has realized that they are not the only one's wielding this powerful weapon and they oftentimes feel quite consumed that a lowly blog gets more people talking points in our community than their news story which is filled with fluff. Good luck in your escapades for you're going to need it and remember, our video guns will be watching you. ;)

Sincerely,

Mr. Shoot Back (with video only)

Note: This article is written in sarcasm. The writer does not encourage or endorse any violence upon anyone-including our elected idiots.

School board meeting tonight has no agenda for public input regarding Mervilde's proposed raise

Message forwarded to us to pass along...

"Tonight will be a busy school meeting schedule. The superintendent’s raise will be contained in the first issue of business: Consent Agenda and contained within Item 3. “Approval of Human Resources Report” The board will be asked to approve everything in the Consent Agenda -- considered along with the water bill – by simple voice vote without discussion. "

Already massive compensation package is not enough for Washington Township's Educrat, Dr. James Mervilde!

I cannot believe the emails I've received today from Washington Township citizens outraged that the school board is considering giving Superintendent James Mervilde another raise.

Advance Indiana writes in detail about this latest outrage against the taxpayers.

This blog has much about Mervilde, including his contract, throughout our archives.

SEE RELATED POSTS:
Mervilde's BLOATED compensation contract

Mervilde thinks he deserves a FAT RAISE

Mervilde takes San Diego Junket

Cronyism dominates school construction spending at Washington Township

Mervilde lobbies for property tax staus quo

Mervilde and school board president squander your money!

Worthy local roofing business doesn't get Washington Township contract

Washington Township School $$$: Spent on education or architectural firm?

Connecting the dots: Washington Township School System Spending

IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED! BOARD MEETING TOMORROW!
Please notify everyone you know via your email and social media networks and ask school board members Tony Dzwonar and Wanda Spann Roddy and tell them you expect for them to vote against Mervilde's proposed pay increase.

Tony Dzwonar tdzwonar@msdwt.k12.in.us

Wanda Spann Roddy wsroddy@msdwt.k12.in.us

Fiscal conservative school board member, Gregory Wright, has pledged to vote against Mervilde's pay raise at tomorrow's board meeting.

--Melyssa for HFFT

Indianapolis Public Schools claims it is "Revolutionizing Education"

"We're revolutionizing education"

click to enlarge photos
New Signage at Indianapolis Public School Building

"Excellence, Scholarship, Respect, Courage...Discover IPS"

This would be funny if:
1. IPS was not one of the worst school systems in the country
2. IPS did not fail the majority of our city's students
3. IPS did not employ one educrat administrator for every three teachers at substantially higher salaries than the teachers earn
4. IPS did not fire a popular and excellent principal, Jeff White
5. IPS did not fight the advance of charter schools which perform better and spend less money
6. This falsely advertised travesty did not cost Marion County taxpayers 51% of our property tax bills!
7. Our tax dollars were not used to pay for this propaganda

STOP PAY TO PLAY: What you can do

Hat tip to tax activist Penny Bigelow for compiling this information concerning who to contact to put a stop to pay-to-play politics in Indianapolis. At a time when our cities, states, and country are in fiscal crisis, our elected officials (and appointees) should be more concerned with saving taxpayer dollars, than political cronyism. Sadly, most of them are not.

Penny writes:
Since Indiana dismantled the AEPA no-bid roofing scheme, “consultants” have been working with friendly people to allegedly write tight specifications to favor the Tremco roofing materials. This allows the company/governmental agency to declare only one company has met the bid specs so they are awarded the bid. It is extremely rare that another company is ever awarded the bid – usually when the salesman has been able to convince the buyer that his product/service is better than specified. The buyer must write a justification report when he wants to accept a different bid – something that many buyers are too lazy or too complacent to do. And lord help the underling who goes against his superiors…

Tremco, an Ohio company, has been very active in Indiana for many years and is now, finally, in the spotlight for such schemes in many states, allegedly overcharging by MANY hundreds of thousands of dollars. Yet, when these Tremco allegations surfaced, I questioned Superintendent Mervilde in a public Board meeting more than a year ago. He defended MSDWT’s no-bid practice of using the Wilson Center, which was, at the time, a State agency which had only one roofing contractor, TREMCO! So much for open bidding in MSDWT, with general specs…



PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:
My husband and I have experienced such tactics firsthand. We often ran into such unfair dastardly business tactics in our business when we were quoting and bidding on equipment. We learned quickly not to waste our time with most governmental bidding schemes. If the specs were slanted to one company, we did not bid. Only if the specs were written to accommodate general bidding did we participate. Even then, it was not a level playing field; many times the customer already knew what he wanted and justified it in his purchase report.

This scheme for limiting bidders/bids cost the government and therefore cost the taxpayers plenty of money. It has happened in a wide variety of industries, as well, for over forty plus years, but government seemed to be the worst offenders to us.

MY RECOMMENDATION:
Government should assure fair purchasing practices on ALL levels. Email your government representatives to tell them how you feel. You will be surprised what a flurry of emails can do to change their minds! Each email counts – more than you would ever guess!

1. Here’s how you find YOUR state legislators and email them:
http://www.in.gov/apps/sos/legislator/search/

2. Here’s how to email your City Council Councilors (all or a few, your choice – I am going to email them all):
http://www.mcanaindy.org/helping/council%20email.htm

3. Here’s how to email your Washington Township Trustee and Board: (The new WT Government Center interior was built without bidding because “the landlord chose the contractors”. Baloney: I’ll bet that the lease could have had a clause allowing WT Administrators to choose the contractors by open bidding. But that didn’t happen. I wonder how much input Trustee Short had in recommending the contractors to the landlord… Also a number of positions have been filled without posting notices of job openings to the public. POOR management, IMHO.

TRUSTEE:
Frank Short: Frank@shortstrategy.com or fshort@indygov.org

BOARD MEMBERS:
David Smith dfsinvol09@yahoo.com

Don Barr duobar@sbcglobal.net

Jack Werner jackwerner@aol.com

Joe Simpson jesimp@earthlink.net

Mary ORea; marry_orea@att.net

Maureen M. Faul m.faul@sbcglobal.net

Newest board member – not listed yet

This info is from http://www.washtwp.org/publiccontactlist.html



Without your input, these bad practices will continue. So take a few minutes and email your elected officials!

Welcome to My Tea Party blog exposes more Indiana bidding schemes

Big hat tip to Diana Vice for her continued relentless exposure of contract bid schemes in Indiana.

Please tune into her blog to read about roofing bid schemes at Washington Township Schools and IndyGo which exhaustively details a plot to write roofing specifications that puts Indiana based Firestone roofing out of the competition in favor of Ohio-based Tremco.

Does it ever end? I know one thing, it won't without public oversight and transparency.

Thanks, Diana, for the hard work you do for us, sometimes at great personal risk.

As Government Debt Increases, Interest Rates Will Rise, Dollar Will Fall

I've been paying very close attention to the 10 year treasury bond rate since the current economic meltdown started taking hold. As the Federal Reserve began massively printing money, essentially doubling the money supply in the last four months of 2008 alone, it occurred to me (and anyone else with a casual understanding of economics) that a couple of things must happen:

(1) bond yields will need to significantly increase in order to find buyers for the increased supply and risk of U.S. treasury bonds [ie: our government's borrowings].

(2) the value of the U.S. Dollar must fall relative to more stable currencies that are expanding at a slower rate [ie: Euro is bad comparison, I suggest evaluating dollar value against a basket of world currencies]

As with many things in economics, timing is always difficult to guess and even though you know the treasury rate must increase, other actions the government may take or human beings (and the markets) reaction to conditions and such is always difficult to guess ... but the long-term outcome is undeniable.

Instead of immediately rising, treasury rates (10 year) dropped to as low as 2.08%. Of course, this happened as I incredulously told people it was going the wrong way and HAD to go to 4 or 5 percent and then probably, and potentially much, higher.

The challenge here is that as people dumped their stock market investments and moved their holdings into what are historically considered "safe" government bonds, the demand drove up the price of the bonds. Understanding that bonds trade like stocks and can increase and decrease in price which affects the net percentage income you can derive from them, this made the bond's "effective interest rate" lower. So people may have been paying $1080 for a bond that pays 3% on $1,000. Thus, another asset bubble was created by the Federal Reserve intervening in the economy.

Now, the government is having trouble finding enough buyers for the massive amount of borrowing it is doing and that is driving the price of those $1,000 bonds DOWN. So, now anyone who bought those bonds at prices at $1,000 or higher, thinking they were "safe" is sitting on bonds worth $930. What this also means is that the interest rate our government is having to pay on 10 year debt (just to use this example) is now approaching 4% and is continuing to spike. In fact, it should rise past 4% pretty easily and quickly at this point.

At the same time, the government is planning to intentionally devalue our currency so as to "buy down" the value of its debts. Unfortunately, this also "buys down" the value of your savings, essentially creating a different kind of tax, and to the extent that it increases the dollar value of your home and other assets, you ultimately get taxed on the "inflation portion" should you sell assets and derive income from such. (ie: inflation rises over a period of time by 20%, your equity investments go up 40% ... you pay taxes on the 40% increase, not the 20% "REAL" increase - another reason the Income Tax is a terrible way to extract revenue from citizens).

The long and short of this is that our government is going to have to pay increasingly higher interest rates on ever increasing debt. Remember, "...trillion dollar deficits as far as the eye can see..." ? Without looking it up, I believe in 2007 the U.S. Government paid around $420 billion in interest on the debt. Imagine the interest rate on that doubling while the debt increases by ever more trillions of dollars. The personal income tax brought in around $1.1 trillion that year, which means we could very quickly see every penny of income tax revenue going to nothing but the Interest on our government's debt.

And you wonder why libertarians and other fiscal conservatives keep saying government is out of control, spending is out of control and we can't afford the programs we have now, much less new ones like national health care. Even if you raised the tax rate to 100% on EVERYBODY you wouldn't be able to collect enough money in a decade to pay our current and future obligations.

CIB's Bob Grand: "Nobody reads the blogs."

The soon ex-Chairman of the Indianapolis CIB
Bob Grand

Well, well, well.

Could it be that The People and policy makers of our fair city really do read the blogs?

At an April 16th special public convention of our Indianapolis City Council desperate to learn about the unexplainable income shortfall and potential remedies for the CIB's inability to meet its obligations, Bob Grand publicly testified that the blogs have no influence on Indianapolis policy by asserting that no one reads them.

We, Indy's bloggers, beg to differ. Here's what Republican attorney Gary Welsh, publisher of the Advance Indiana blog, reported that confrontational night six weeks ago at City Hall in a very detailed post he titled "About that CIB meeting tonight."

Welsh writes,

"Grand says he has acknowleged his position and has sometimes abstained from votes to avoid any conflict. And to the suggestion that he step aside, he said, "I strongly disagree." He referred to "aspersions" cast on blogs that "not many people read." That brought jeers from some in the meeting room. Grand was there, at least. The Pacers and the Colts declined the committee's invitation to attend the meeting."

Today Terry Burns, publisher of the Indianapolis Times blog, reports that Governor Daniels, together with Mayor Ballard, are soon to announce the removal of Bob Grand as Chairman of the Capital Improvement Board (CIB).

City Councilor-At-Large Ed Coleman was our first elected public respecting official with enough kahunas to publicly ask for Bob Grand's resignation as Chairman of the CIB.

How appropriate that Libertarian Councilor Ed Coleman serves The People At-Large?

HFFT, Advance Indiana, and WIBC each documented City Councilor Coleman's move to be first to call for for Grand's resignation.

Hat tip to Indy's bloggers and to WIBC for reporting Coleman's courage. We're sure that more city councilors in the future will follow his lead in putting The People first, regardless of the pressure of insider politics and party.

Hat tip to Terry Burns, publisher of Indianapolis Times for breaking the story today. Burns writes:

"Daniels and Ballard have agreed to get rid of Grand by dismantling the existing CIB and turning over the responsiblity of running Lucas Oil Stadium, Conseco Fieldhouse and the Indiana Convention Center to either a newly configured agency or to an expanded Indianapolis-Marion County Building Authority. We also hear that there's a possibility of "outsourcing" management of the current CIB facilities."

HFFT is concerned about the potential accountability of a "newly configured agency" and "an expanded Indianapolis-Marion County Building Authority".

Together with the best of Indiana's blogger insiders, we will endeavor to keep, you-alleged-non-blog-readers, informed first.

--Melyssa for HFFT

Andy Horning Farewell Bash -- This Friday @ Rick's Boat Yard

Andy Horning speaks at the first property tax protest
Governor's Mansion, July 4th 2007

Our loss is a gain for the state of Texas! Here's the press release sent today regarding Andy Horning's departure from Indiana to accept a job in Texas. --Melyssa for HFFT

Longtime Face of the Party, Andy Horning, Leaves Indiana

Sadly, the face of the LPIN for the last 10 years is leaving Indiana for Texas. Andy Horning and his family are leaving Freedom, Indiana for a new job. Andy is available for interviews on in the coming days via phone at 812-585-0504 on his accomplishments, his future, and the current state of politics and government.

The LPIN will have a going away party for Andrew Horning. At that event, Horning will have media availability for the final time in Indiana.

The farewell party information is as follows:
Date: Friday, June 5, 2009
Time: 5:00pm - 10:00pm
Location: Rick's Cafe Boatyard - The Deck
4050 Dandy Trail, Indianapolis, IN

"I am a Libertarian because of Andy Horning," said Executive Director Chris Spangle. "Andy is the first person in my life that explained that citizens are in charge of the government, and that I may need to pull it's leash a little harder. He challenged the way I thought about governing. I am not alone. For most of the current active members in the Libertarian Party of Indiana, Andy was the first representative of our party they were exposed to. Our explosive growth and strength the last decade is in large part due to Andy's statewide candidacies."

Former State Chair Todd Singer had this to say:
"Andy has run for the positions of State Representative-District 96 (1996), Marion County Recorder (1998), Mayor of Indianapolis (1999), Governor (2000), 7th District of Congress (2002), and Governor once again (2008) under the Libertarian banner. He is a strong candidate that has represented us well in the media, and in person. He is especially adept at inspiring and energizing younger voters with his message of freedom, personal responsibility, and Constitutional government."

"Time and time again, Andy is cited as the first introduction Hoosiers have had to the Libertarian Party of Indiana, and also the original intent of our Constitution, the rule of law. Andy Horning is one of the main reasons that I became a Libertarian."

Tax Activists needed to RAISE HELL tomorrow at 1pm - City Hall

POST MEETING UPDATE: Welcome To Fantasyland
Hat tip to Gary Welsh and Advance Indiana

What: Metropolitan Development Commission Public Hearing
Why: Proposed $20 million to give to Kosene & Kosene Developers
Where: City County Building - 2nd Floor Public Assembly Room
When: Wednesday, June 3rd @ 1pm

Yep, this is short notice, but we need you to spend your lunch hour at the City County building Wednesday at 1pm to raise hell with the Metropolitan Development Commission. The MCD is a board of non-elected appointees who are itching to spend your money again.

Even though the CIB is coming up $47 million short without raising taxes, our so-called "People's Mayor" Ballard thinks we've got $20 million to give to a private real estate developer!

The city wants to give away another $20 million of your money to Kosene & Kosene, to develop property near the old MSA site. Kosene & Kosene is known as a pay-to-play developer according to Indy Star reporter John Ketzenberger's sources. Who knows what Kosene and Ballard's people are doing behind the scenes to get this deal moving so quickly.

HFFT has begun to alert the media who will likely be there. Make sure you are there and together we can stop this by making a big stink in public about it!

It's up to us to stop it. We CAN do this!

Pravda: "American capitalism gone with a whimper "

Those crazy Russian conspiracy theorists! --Melyssa for HFFT

It must be said, that like the breaking of a great dam, the American decent into Marxism is happening with breath taking speed, against the back drop of a passive, hapless sheeple, excuse me dear reader, I meant people.

True, the situation has been well prepared on and off for the past century, especially the past twenty years. The initial testing grounds was conducted upon our Holy Russia and a bloody test it was. But we Russians would not just roll over and give up our freedoms and our souls, no matter how much money Wall Street poured into the fists of the Marxists.

Those lessons were taken and used to properly prepare the American populace for the surrender of their freedoms and souls, to the whims of their elites and betters.

First, the population was dumbed down through a politicized and substandard education system based on pop culture, rather then the classics. Americans know more about their favorite TV dramas then the drama in DC that directly affects their lives. They care more for their "right" to choke down a McDonalds burger or a BurgerKing burger than for their constitutional rights. Then they turn around and lecture us about our rights and about our "democracy".

Pride blind the foolish.

Then their faith in God was destroyed, until their churches, all tens of thousands of different "branches and denominations" were for the most part little more then Sunday circuses and their televangelists and top protestant mega preachers were more then happy to sell out their souls and flocks to be on the "winning" side of one pseudo Marxist politician or another. Their flocks may complain, but when explained that they would be on the "winning" side, their flocks were ever so quick to reject Christ in hopes for earthly power. Even our Holy Orthodox churches are scandalously liberalized in America.

The final collapse has come with the election of Barack Obama. His speed in the past three months has been truly impressive. His spending and money printing has been a record setting, not just in America's short history but in the world. If this keeps up for more then another year, and there is no sign that it will not, America at best will resemble the Wiemar Republic and at worst Zimbabwe.

These past two weeks have been the most breath taking of all. First came the announcement of a planned redesign of the American Byzantine tax system, by the very thieves who used it to bankroll their thefts, loses and swindles of hundreds of billions of dollars. These make our Russian oligarchs look little more then ordinary street thugs, in comparison. Yes, the Americans have beat our own thieves in the shear volumes. Should we congratulate them?

These men, of course, are not an elected panel but made up of appointees picked from the very financial oligarchs and their henchmen who are now gorging themselves on trillions of American dollars, in one bailout after another. They are also usurping the rights, duties and powers of the American congress (parliament). Again, congress has put up little more then a whimper to their masters.

Then came Barack Obama's command that GM's (General Motor) president step down from leadership of his company. That is correct, dear reader, in the land of "pure" free markets, the American president now has the power, the self given power, to fire CEOs and we can assume other employees of private companies, at will. Come hither, go dither, the centurion commands his minions.

So it should be no surprise, that the American president has followed this up with a "bold" move of declaring that he and another group of unelected, chosen stooges will now redesign the entire automotive industry and will even be the guarantee of automobile policies. I am sure that if given the chance, they would happily try and redesign it for the whole of the world, too. Prime Minister Putin, less then two months ago, warned Obama and UK's Blair, not to follow the path to Marxism, it only leads to disaster. Apparently, even though we suffered 70 years of this Western sponsored horror show, we know nothing, as foolish, drunken Russians, so let our "wise" Anglo-Saxon fools find out the folly of their own pride.

Again, the American public has taken this with barely a whimper...but a "freeman" whimper.
So, should it be any surprise to discover that the Democratically controlled Congress of America is working on passing a new regulation that would give the American Treasury department the power to set "fair" maximum salaries, evaluate performance and control how private companies give out pay raises and bonuses? Senator Barney Franks, a social pervert basking in his homosexuality (of course, amongst the modern, enlightened American societal norm, as well as that of the general West, homosexuality is not only not a looked down upon life choice, but is often praised as a virtue) and his Marxist enlightenment, has led this effort. He stresses that this only affects companies that receive government monies, but it is retroactive and taken to a logical extreme, this would include any company or industry that has ever received a tax break or incentive.

The Russian owners of American companies and industries should look thoughtfully at this and the option of closing their facilities down and fleeing the land of the Red as fast as possible. In other words, divest while there is still value left.

The proud American will go down into his slavery with out a fight, beating his chest and proclaiming to the world, how free he really is. The world will only snicker.

Stanislav Mishin

VAT tax is doomed...but the FairTax makes sense!

The Consumption Tax That Does Make Sense
Friday, May 29, 2009
By: Ken Hoagland

The recent trial balloon out of perennially cash-hungry Washington testing whether Americans would abide a European style Value Added Tax is suffering the same fate as the doomed Hindenberg. The sooner this idea crashes and burns, the better. The proposed VAT would be added on top of the badly broken income tax, increasing American's tax burden and hiding even more federal taxes from plain sight. Yet another hidden federal tax would take the nation in exactly the wrong direction.

There is, however, a consumption tax that restores the proper relationship between citizen and government, brings about a new era of American economic growth and cuts the Gordian knot of complexity, unfairness and damage to our economy caused by our own tax system. Most significantly, this consumption tax, called the FairTax, reveals the price tag of federal spending to taxpayers picking up the tab. The most compelling virtue of the FairTax, in fact, may be that it turns every consumer in the United States into a "stakeholder" who will finally pressure politicians to limit spending. For this reason and because it strips Congress of the ability to manipulate the tax code for power and profit, the FairTax finds stiff opposition inside Washington and growing support outside the beltway.

Advocates for pending FairTax legislation rail against the destructive effects and corrupted application of the income tax system. They point to trillions of dollars of private investment that are expected to flow into the United States with elimination of corporate and capital gains taxes. They love the idea of illegal immigrants and the entire underground economy joining the tax base. They endorse the idea of an universal monthly "prebate" to offset the tax on the necessities of life which eliminates federal taxes on the poor and provides the middle class with dramatic tax reductions. And they like the idea of a simple, visible tax on consumption that entirely replaces the income tax system, freeing work, savings and investment from the hobbling effect of such taxes.

But it is the medicine for the Achilles heel of our democracy that may prove the most compelling strength of the FairTax. Our Founding Fathers warned that when, in a democracy, the public discovers that it can vote itself wealth from the public treasury, self-government may destroy the economic foundation of the nation. Many would argue that cynically ambitious candidates and elected officials have been buying votes with the public treasury for years.

Top economists across the nation helped design the FairTax and have proved that it can replace all revenues now collected under the income tax system. Under the FairTax, every retail purchase of new goods and services is subject to federal taxation. The tax paid at the cash register is visible, unlike taxes that are now hidden through payroll withholding and embedded within the price of goods and services. The FairTax visibly connects federal spending to earnings. Today, by contrast, massive spending for entitlements, stimulus projects, pet projects and every other government program seems like “free money” to a lot of voters. One need only look at the courting of the powerful senior citizen’s block of voters, or the growth of “earmarks” to understand the siren song of such promises both to elected officials and to the body politic. Neither voters nor politicians have been able to resist spending beyond our means.

The effect is destructive as politicians from both parties have taken us down a path of unsustainable debt. Some economists cite current and obligated future government debt at the local, state and federal level as so large that it threatens the “full faith and credit” of the United States.

Our destructive answer has been to spend even more by borrowing more from foreign creditors—both to assuage public fears and to address real problems. We are now immorally spending the earnings of our children and grandchildren on both the current challenges of our modern society and the politically popular wishes of entrenched interest groups across the political spectrum. The other primary answer from national leaders has been to collect less by legislating tax cuts in the legitimate hope that lower taxes will spur investment. If we were not already in such deep debt, the debate between the two sides might make sense and a rational middle ground might be achieved. But with more than $11 trillion of national debt, a looming Social Security IOU for tens of trillions more and $40-60 trillion of debt at the state and local level, this argument begins to look a lot like zealots endlessly arguing over whether to bake bread or grow wheat while standing in the middle of a long-parched desert.

Under the income tax system our earnings belong first to the federal government with only the remainder belonging to the citizen. Payroll withholding and direct taxation of earnings turns the whole notion of the American citizen as sovereign on its head and creates a nation of citizens--and now their offspring-- working first for our government. The FairTax restores the role of the citizen by insisting that what we earn belongs first to us and only through our consumption decisions is money then provided for the common good. Most significantly, it makes clear to every American the cost of government promises and programs. In this, the FairTax may prove not just a far better tax system but the best way to both strengthen our economy and provide needed medicine to our Republic.

Ken Hoagland is a national director of http://www.facebook.com/l/;FairTax.org, the grassroots campaign to replace the income tax system with a non-regressive national retail sales tax. Pending legislation now has 53 co-sponsors. Find more information at http://www.facebook.com/l/;FairTax.org
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Melyssa's Paycheck

$920.33 Federal Income Tax
$378.83 Social Security Tax
$ 88.60 Medicare Tax
$207.74 Indiana State Income Tax
$ 98.98 Marion County Income Tax

$1,694.48 is the total bill for my productivity this pay period that I am forced to hand over to the government. This is partly why I'm a liberty activist and a proud Libertarian soldier.

(I normally don't look at these numbers because it causes my stomach to get tied into knots. and that could lead to ulcers and a whole array of expensive associated health issues.)

Melyssa called to volunteer for Ballard's re-election campaign

I received a phone call today from a very polite young man at GOP HQ who said I had been identified as a Ballard supporter who would volunteer for his campaign activities.

He staffer did not know who I am. I explained the tax activist movement I led in 2007 that was key in ushering in his victory. I explained that citizens like myself worked thousands of hours in extremes of weather to help get Ballard elected, to be betrayed in the end.

I emphasized that Ballard will not get our support again unless he keeps his campaign promises to end country club politics, to not raise even a single tax, and said we expect Mayor Ballard to join with city councilman Ed Coleman and call for the CIB to file bankruptcy so that The People can renegotiate all the bad contracts entered into by previous administrations.

I also warned that folks are already planning now to actively work against Mayor Ballard in his re-election bid if he fails to do the above.

The volunteer staffer told me he would have someone higher up call me back.

I do not hold my breath that call will come.

--Melyssa for HFFT