Stop Disrespectful Bumper Stickers

I find it interesting there are so many people in Bloomington that are compelled to display bumper stickers on their vehicles with anti Bush slogans. Maybe it’s no more than in other communities but I seriously doubt it. When I’m walking down a sidewalk and see a vehicle with a “Dump Bush” bumper sticker on it, it makes me want to put a post-it note on the window that says, “just get over it”. You might disagree with the President’s policies but really, enough already. Even more of a mystery is why so many people in our town continue to display Kerry for President bumper stickers on the rear of their vehicles so long after the election. After all I would think posting a Kerry for President sticker on your car after all this time, is to me like saying hey look at me, my team lost, I’m a loser, but I could be wrong.

Contemplating the reasons why people feel so compelled to utilize their vehicle to make a political statement turned into a rather interesting exercise. The first reason I came up with was these people are just plain lazy and honestly don’t want to take the time to remove them. After all removing them can be quite a task as they typically leave a sticky adhesive film on the car’s finish, especially after almost a year has gone by. Another possible excuse for not removing these bumper stickers is that it could be the only thing holding the vehicle together. I think this is a distinct possibility with a couple of Volvos and a Subaru I have personally observed. A more profound observation may be that some people are just looking for acceptance and they need to fit in. They want to be sure they’re well received when they pull up in front of their favorite cafe or juice bar. Otherwise it could be somewhat uncomfortable, akin to fitting in with a group of Harley riders when you’re riding a Honda. Or it could be these people just want to oppose something, they’re not always sure what they want to oppose just as long as it’s something. I think this is evident in the individuals with multiple bumper stickers like “Stop I-69”, “Stop Logging” or “Stop Eating Tuna”.

I think its just human nature to oppose people in power especially to those individuals that feel they don’t have a lot of it. Or is it possible there could there be something more to it. My theory is it has something to do with the resentment these people feel over the treatment of President Clinton in the last couple of years he was in office. After all he embarrassed most of the people that elected him with his extra curricular activities and his opponents never let them forget it. The reminders included a whole host of off color jokes and you guessed it, a variety of humorous and less than flattering bumper stickers. You see I think these people are just getting even for all of the abuse we put Clinton through.

Examining this phenomenon further I found it just a little peculiar that people are so quick label them selves when it comes to politics and yet other things they want maintained in total privacy. Driving down any road often time the car in front of you will be adorned with a Christian symbol or bumper sticker with some religious slogan on it. What if that was taken a step further and people started pasting their vehicles with religious labels like Jew, Lutheran or Catholic. I wonder would there also be individuals that fear control by certain religious group and oppose them with negative bumper stickers similar to what has happened in politics. It just makes me wonder, what is considered disrespectful and in poor taste and what is not?

Thanks Mike!

It seems our new Congressman from the 9th District, Mike Sodrel, knows how to deliver the goods. The 109th Congress approved the $286 billion transportation budget Friday, which includes a windfall for the residents of Bloomington, Indiana to the tune of $4 million. The funding will be dedicated to support new or improved public transportation facilities and or new buses. There is already discussion underway the money could be utilized for a new downtown transportation facility to replace the one at Fourth and Washington.

Included in this new budget bill is more than $800 million per year for Indiana, a 34% increase in the rate of return on the federal gas tax receipts. This is reported to put Indiana number eight on the list of the states with the largest percentage of increase. Also included in the bill is partial funding for the I-69 project with a minimum of $400 million to be shared among the states involved in the highway extension.

In the past our representatives to Congress have done little to fight for Indiana’s fair share of the federal gas tax money. This money is divvied up by the Congress and dispersed in whatever manner they see fit. For years a significant portion of Indiana’s gas tax receipts have been used to fund highway projects in states like California and New York, all the while our roadways and highways have rapidly deteriorated, not to mention become antiquated by comparison. Bringing back our tax dollars to Indiana is a huge step in the right direction. Obviously Congressman Sodrel is a quick study by his ability to succeed where others have failed especially considering he has only been playing the game for a little over six months. Thanks to Mike’s hard work in Washington, Bloomington will soon have a better public transportation system with improved facilities and newer, more fuel efficient buses. This should go along way in assisting with local sustainability efforts of the current administration by making transportation more readily available to a larger segment of the population with a reduction in fuel consumption. Congressman Sodrel is doing a great job and deserves our support and our thanks.

Just Mention Trails If You Want To Get The Council's Attention

Is a two-mile, twelve-foot wide trail that winds in and around businesses on the west side really an appropriate use for $757,000 of the TIF districts funds? Isn’t it rather ironic that Democrats on the County Council are so quick to appropriate funding for so much impervious surface that will ultimately cover up several acres of natural green space? Admittedly the pathway does provide for alternative modes of transportation, including walkers, joggers, cyclist and roller-bladers. It also happens to fit within the use and intent of the funding source and it even meshes with the County’s overall plan, exactly why I’m not sure. The question is, how many people will truly benefit from the use of this trail and furthermore what are the long-term expenses in maintaining it? Currently the trend in our community seems to be that virtually every land use issue and funding source is tied to trails and pathways. As a result, when these trails and pathways come to fruition has anyone addressed the impact of what it will cost the taxpayers to maintain these amenities?

Most communities consider TIF money as funding for infrastructure within the district to provide for and offset the cost of developing the area. It is typically utilized to attract and provide for existing businesses for the purpose of economic development. Since this pathway doesn’t connect with any housing developments it is difficult to fathom enough people using this pathway to justify the expense. Furthermore, it will be a pathway between industrial and commercial buildings that are constantly exhausting byproducts into the surrounding atmosphere. Does anyone really want to jog or cycle through an area that smells of burning plastics and paint fumes. This pathway proposal makes almost as much sense as the concept of a trail extension on the south side of town that will extend past the City’s sewage treatment plant by following the old railroad system.

There is a reason why communities designate areas as industrial and commercial. What seems to be occurring in our community is a complete oversight as why companies locate to a particular area in the first place. To them amenities include roadway and highway access, sewers, water and other utilities as well as the impact of their business on the surrounding neighborhood. The availability of the appropriate workforce is another major factor. It is difficult to understand why our community leaders continually try to intermix the uses of the land that we have available for economic development. When you look at the potential uses of this money it appears the trail concept should be way down the list. Regardless, the tax and spend liberals see it as a pot of money they can dedicate right now to one of their pet projects rather than leaving it to the more conservative approach of saving it for use when its really needed. You really shouldn’t be surprised.

Blue Ribbon Pork

If he’s interested, the Mayor could surely win a prize if he entered his budget at the Monroe County Fair as it would easily take top honors in the swine or should I say the pork division. In the Mayor’s 2006 City of Bloomington’s budget there is a $10,000 increase in funding for the local WFHB radio station. The funding is under the category of economic development. Can anyone possibly explain how this local radio station has anything to do with economic development? Is this simply another example of the skewed idealisms Democrats utilize when making their decisions or is it a tactic to expand their liberal message throughout the community? Lets examine the later.

It was common knowledge throughout the Republican Party that during the last general election the WFHB radio station got caught with their preverbal pants down when the shenanigans of one its hosts was brought to the station managers attention. Reportedly one of their talk radio hosts was inviting only Democrat candidates into the station for live interviews and circulating reports that Republican candidates failed to respond to his invitations. This charade obviously provided their listeners with programming that was very timely in nature and extremely biased in content. Fearing the incident would be reported to the FCC the radio station quickly went into the damage control mode and reported corrective measures would be taken to remove any political bias from their programming.

It is difficult to imagine this incident is an isolated case when still to this day you can find vehicles sitting in front of the station with Kerry / Edwards or Kernan / Davis bumper stickers in conjunction with others that contain anti I-69 or anti Bush slogans. My guess is that you would be hard pressed to find a registered Republican on staff at the station but I could be wrong. In his notes on the city’s proposed budget the Mayor’s indicated the funding would help the underwriters get their message to a broader market, I must say truer words were never spoken. The Democrats know the demographics of the listening audience of this radio station and it is their message they want to get out to a broader market and furthermore, they want to do it with your tax dollars. Isn’t it ironic that even in tough economic times when excess levies are necessary the Democrats somehow find a way to justify this kind of pork? Furthermore, if $10,000 wasn’t bad enough now they want to double the amount. The question remains, why does WFHB radio station deserve $20,000 of your tax dollars and better yet how does this fit into the economic development budget. As Desi Arnaz would say, Mayor Kruzan “you have some splaining to do”. What’s next, economic development funding for “The Bloomington Alternative” publication? Wait a minute I better not give them any ideas.

Same Money, Different Outcome

News out of City Hall reports they're expecting the Living Wage Ordinance to cost the taxpayers approximately $50,000 in the 2006 budget year. City officials reported the Living Wage Ordinance would only affect a handful of city personnel. It is also expected to increase with inflation and as more companies the city does business with meet the ordinances threshold, which are contracts that exceed $25,000.

The County Commissioners 2006 budget proposal included a $70,000 increase, from $30,000 to $100,000 to the Bloomington Economic Development Corporation. $40,000 of this increase is earmarked for the BEDC’s, Life Sciences Initiative that helped attract the new BioConvergence firm that is anticipated to employ as many as 127 people by 2010 not to mention a capital investment of several million dollars in our community.

What I want to highlight is the difference in philosophy between the City Council, which is Democrat controlled, and the Republican controlled Commissioners. The cost / benefit ratio between the two investments is quite clear and regardless of which governmental body the money is coming from it is still tax dollars. In rough numbers the City’s initiative will cost the taxpayers $50,000 next year and will result in an increase in pay for a small number of existing city employees. The County’s proposal includes $40,000 in funding to further promote employment in a unique industry within our community that will result in 127 new jobs over the next five years. The obvious impetus behind the City’s proposal is to provide additional income for; you guessed it, city employees. By comparison the County’s proposal helps bring hundreds of new non-government related jobs to our community.

County Council President Mark Stoops has indicated that the Democrat controlled Council will put the Commissioner’s BEDC funding proposal under the microscope in an effort to find tens of thousands of additional dollars for social service funding. This once again proves the Democrats are more interested in maintaining their stronghold over the socially dependant population of our community and feathering their own bed than they are at bringing good paying jobs that offer a real opportunity for economic independence. It‘s important to understand what motivation is behind their liberal policies and it is even more important to publicly denounce these self-supporting tactics.

Councilwoman Sophia Travis Clueless About 4-H

At Wednesday’s County Council budget presentation session the County Commissioners presented the Council with its 2006 budget, which included an increase in funding for the Monroe County 4-H program from $1,000 to $4,000. Commissioner Poling staunchly supported this increase in light of the huge increases in social service funding at the request of the Democrats on the County Council. Sophia Travis questioned the increase by asking if 4-H teaches kids “civic engagement”. What Hoosier doesn’t know what 4-H is about. 4-H chapters can be found in every state of the union, additionally 4-H related programs exist in over 80 other countries around the world. It solely exists to provide young people with opportunities to learn leadership, citizenship and life skills. With approximately seven million members across the US alone how does someone not know what 4-H does?

Councilwoman Travis could obviously use a lesson in the attributes of participating in 4-H. The 4H’s represent “Head”, “Heart”, “Hands” and “Health”. Expounding on that “My HEAD to clearer thinking”, “My HEART to greater loyalty”, My HANDS to larger service” and “My HEALTH to better living for my club, community, country and world”.

The National 4-H creed is as follows:I believe in 4-H Club work for the opportunity it will give me to become a useful citizen. I believe in the training of my HEAD for the power it will give me to think, to plan and to reason. I believe in the training of my HEART for the nobleness it will give me to become kind, sympathetic and true. I believe in the training of my HANDS for the ability it will give me to be helpful, useful and skillful. I believe in the training of my HEALTH for the strength it will give me to enjoy life, to resist disease, and to work efficiently. I believe in my country, my state, and my community, and in my responsibility for their development.

Some pretty famous people have been involved in 4-H including astronaut Alan Shepard, former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy-Onnasis and even the inventor of the internet and former Vice President Al Gore. It truly baffles me how a person gets elected to a public office in Monroe County that doesn’t understand the influence 4-H has had on so many of its citizens. The reason she probably doesn’t know anything about 4-H is that she is completely oblivious that programs actually exist that are virtually self-sufficient and still provide an important community service. She is obviously only used to the social service agencies that have their hands out for tens of thousands of our tax dollars. If you happen to see Councilwoman Travis at the Monroe County Fair you might share your thoughts and experiences with her about 4-H, she obviously doesn’t have a clue!

Masterful Budget Work by Commissioners Poling & Kilmer

Remember the old saying, you have got to watch what you ask for because you might just get it. The Democrats wanted to increase funding for every social service program going and that is just what the Commissioners handed them. The Commissioners budget included raising the subsidy for Bloomington Hospital’s CHAPS health clinic, increased the grants for social service agencies, doubled the subsidy for the Monroe County Historical Center and they even threw in a little additional funding for the Monroe County 4H program. Now along with the increased cost of funding the additional courts and let’s not forget the County employees will need a raise since they didn’t get a raise last year, the County Council will have the task of funding all of these and more with a mere $390,000 increase in the tax levy.

The Democrat controlled County Council ran their last campaign based on promises to increase funding to virtually every social service agency and they didn’t stop there. They also promised the county would get a new juvenile treatment facility and they wanted improved treatment and services for jail inmates. Now let’s see them deliver the goods! The reason they made all of those promises is very simple; they don’t understand the funding process. The County’s budget has been razor thin the last several years and the cold hard fact is there is never enough money to fund everything. Conservative Republicans tried their best to be honest with the voters in the last election about what was realistic and what was not. The voter’s spoke, they wanted pipe dreams and lollipops.

What this basically means is hold onto your wallets folks because I have a feeling what we will see next out of the Council will be similar to the little message on your rear view mirror: Tax Increases Are Closer Than They Appear. Remember the Council has already shown favoritism for raising taxes outside of the frozen levy to cover increased funding for Options for Better Living. The Council is now positioned to do the impossible, make good on their promises or dip into the County’s cash reserves to fund their pet projects. Let us not forget our former Mayor, John Fernandez, used this same budgeting technique to fund the cities current financial train wreck. Actually, I can hardly wait until the official budget hearings when the Democrats have to start making cuts to some of their pet budget items. Hopefully our three Republican Council members will use this opportunity to the fullest and let the Democrats stew in their own juices. They asked for it and baby they got it!

Alternative To What, Consciousness?

The other day I noticed some printed material lying at the entrance to a local restaurant where I was preparing to eat lunch. Not having anything else to read I picked up a copy of what I first anticipated to be something similar to Wheels and Deals. It turns out to be some cheesy publication called The Bloomington Alternative. If I would have only known then what I know now I could have saved myself a half a roll of Rolaids and two Rheaban tablets. This publication is obviously distributed around downtown Bloomington for the purpose of spreading a special brand of liberal bias to subcultures within our community that subscribe to such reading. Scanning the various articles I quickly surmised that it contained nothing worthy of actually taking the time to read. Knowing that I dearly hate to throw anything away and since I do recycle, I determined that since this publication had little or no other value maybe it should be saved to wipe my backside in the unlikely event that I ran out of the commercially available product. After a brief contemplation of my options I come to the only logical conclusion. Knowing the content of the publication I decided that I really didn’t want to irritate that area of my anatomy either. With little remorse I finally put the paper where it rightfully belonged, in the trash.

From this day forward whenever I see one of these publications in a place of business where I frequent I will suggest to the owner / manager that I will not patronize a business that supports the distribution of this type of fallaciously biased material. Having scanned the various advertisers in the copy that I picked up I am also left with a whole host of businesses that I will not step a foot into now simply because of there support for this brand of political bile. Next time you see a copy lying around I suggest that you do the same.

Oppression Comes In Many Forms

Something that has always amazed me is how the Democrats have managed to manipulate the poor and oppressed in into thinking they are actually making some attempt at making their lives and living conditions better. Similarities would exist if I would offer a band-aid to someone who is in need of stitches. Subsidized programs and wage controlling ordinances that have little or no effect on the overall quality of life of this segment of our population and can actually be counterproductive to that end. However, programs and subsidies are quite useful when it comes to controlling people. Being able to manage and manipulate them by keeping them right where they want them as dependent followers. Most of these people don’t need a hand out they need a hand up. They need good paying jobs, jobs that are available to people with little more than a high school education. Companies that need such a workforce and a community that supports their endeavors do actually exist if we only did a better job of recruiting them and making them welcome. What the liberal left knows and has utilized to their advantage over the years is the impression that Democrats are the only people in the United States that care about other people. They have realized that by keeping oppressed people dependent and feeding from the government trough they can manage and control this entire segment of the population. They can control how they think, how they vote, how much money they make and where they live.

What this group of individuals doesn’t realize is the Democrats really don’t want them to ever become independent or self-sustaining because if they were, they no longer could be controled. This socialistic type of control is being eased into our community, slowly but surely as we surrender more and more freedoms and agree to ever increasing fees, fines and taxes. Certain individuals within our government want everybody to look the same, think the same and act the same essentially controlling your every move. Remember the old saying, How do you eat and elephant? One bite at a time.” Caring for people is not political, its just that Republicans have a different outlook on the cause effect relationship between income and poverty. Which reminds me of the old proverb that goes something like “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach him how to fish and he will never go hungry.” Conservatives believe that in order to truly help this segment of the populace you must provide an atmosphere that is conducive to real sustainability and self-sufficiency or in other words, jobs equal freedom. We all know there is a segment of the population that can’t provide for them selves, therefore government assistance will always be necessary.

My focus is on the brainwashing of a group of people that doesn’t understand their being brainwashed. It’s the organization that makes sure their “clients” understand that in order for the gravy train to continue, certain people must stay in office. Or how about all of the local groups that spring up to oppose reform with names like “Citizens for Less Oppressive Government” or “Citizens for Worldwide Peace”. The impact is enormous; the control is absolute. I’m certainly not suggesting that all local organizations that provide social services are being ran this way but unfortunately a great many are. The question exists, why does providing services that truly assist the poor and oppressed in our community have to be manipulated by political factions? True independence is at the very core of Republican values and therefore the battle against oppression must go on.

Bloomington's Population, Among Other Things, Is On The Decline

A recent report indicated Bloomington’s population is on the decline, a decline that amounted to an exodus of 3% of its total population since 2000. Bloomington’s current population is listed as 68,779. From 2003 to 2004 it is estimated that Bloomington lost as many as 1,863 residents. When asked, Mayor Kruzan said he finds the recent report somewhat of a mystery, going on to say the decline goes against conventional wisdom. I have to wonder, what part of the equation does our Mayor not understand. The law of physics could easily be applied here; for every action there is an equal an opposite reaction. The action, for the last several years the tax and spend liberals have plundered our city. The reaction, people can no longer afford to live within its boundaries.

Lets take a quick scan of what has happened over the last several years to cause this decline. Property taxes have increased significantly while services have decreased. Water and sewage costs have gone up to cover the cities mismanagement and the cost of trash removal has doubled. The plundering liberals that control the city have taken property rights away from the property owners by deciding what they can and can’t do with their own property, not to mention the theatrics developer’s encounter attempting to provide affordable housing for our community. The City Council’s utopian view of our city’s workforce is clearly out of touch with reality by supporting only those companies providing “high tech” jobs and ignoring the many hard working folks that have made Bloomington their home long before the likes of people like John Fernandez and Mark Kruzan.

It is said that sometimes the most obvious things in life are sometimes the hardest to things to see. It is truly a shame that our current mayor and City Council don’t realize what long-term effects their decisions have on Bloomington. The legacy of democrat leadership in our city has had a profound and lasting effect, which now translates into a loss of population and thus the accompanying revenues. It gives cause for concern that maybe our city could have done without the multi-million dollar sludge pond on the north side and all of the extraneous ordinances that stifle growth. Better yet, we could do without the current city administration including the majority of the city council and put a stop to their socialistic rule. When most of the surrounding communities are experiencing a healthy population growth our city is on the decline. Something tells me people simply don’t want to live here anymore, why is that so hard to understand?