Mr. Frozengore & The “Precautionary Principle”

Ice sculpture of AL GORE in Fairbanks, AK

ig_GP_Frozen_Gore-001 (56k image)
(His mouth is connected to a pickup truck’s exhaust pipe)

Some people are poking fun at our former Vice-President ( The Frozengore ) because he refuses to debate global warming with skeptics in Fairbanks, where this weekend, it is -60 degrees below zero. They plan to keep Al on ice until he comes up north in his private jet to talk.

It is not the point of this column to make fun of Mr. Frozengore. Too many people are already doing that. I would like to ask a serious question about the “precautionary principle.” It is best illustrated by the global warming debate. It is important because this principle is going to be the basis of new laws that will restrict our freedom. We need to ask, “Is it government’s job to restrict any human activities they consider harmful to the environment even if the facts are not clear? How should scientific information be translated into laws of society?”

A simple definition of the “precautionary principle” is, “It’s better to be safe than sorry.” Some people value this advice, others don’t. Nevertheless, this old proverb defines the essential principle of precaution. Even though this may be a good rule to live by, the “precautionary principal” has recently been elevated to the place of science. Is this a good idea?

Policy makers are using the precautionary principle to codify their “best guess” about what might happen and make it law before all the scientific facts are known. For example, we don’t yet understand the cause and effect of carbon emissions on global temperatures (if any). That does not stop politicians from making laws that restrict carbon emissions as a precautionary measure.

Science asks, “What is the proof?” The Frozengore skips that step. He concludes that like a sick little kid, “the planet has a temperature” because of human activities. Therefore we must stop zooming around in SUV’s before the sea rises and our islands become an amusement park for divers. This illustrates the precautionary principle.

What The Frozengore should ask is, “Will flying my jet to Copenhagen for the big global warming summit cause sea levels to rise or not?” The answer to this question involves a value judgment. It is not based on sufficient knowledge so the final answer can’t be substituted for scientific certainty. It’s just a guess.

“Predictive science” is an oxymoron. A prediction about future events is not science. Guessing is not a sufficient basis to take away our freedom. The precautionary principle elevates uncertainty by placing a value judgment like, “better to be safe than sorry,” over scientific fact.

Consider this quote from Life Magazine, January 1970, “Scientists have solid experimental and theoretical evidence to support . . . the following predictions: In a decade, urban dwellers will have to wear gas masks to survive air pollution . . . by 1985 air pollution will have reduced the amount of sunlight reaching Earth by one half.”

When Al Frozengore makes predictions, he is no different than Life Magazine. There is no such thing as predictive science or even accurate predictions, but The Frozengore spouts them as facts all day long.

In the case of global warming, there is no tolerance for dissent. Pure science considers all possibilities and questions all paradigms including (at the minimum) the effects of the Sun on global temperature. What has happened to this concept?

When government regulates human activity based on predictions, people are expected to bear the burden of the unintended consequences even if the regulations cause economic chaos, destroy personal freedom, extinguish liberty, and take private property. To do this based on someone’s predictions is hogwash.

Now I will finally make my point. Local government is about to use the precautionary principle on you! As a precaution, government is going to restrict your building project, limit the use of your property (if they determine it is a wetland or near a small stream), and kick your butt back from the shoreline, because you could cause damage to the environment, but we’re not sure. However, you can be sure that conflicts will arise when government restricts the use of your private property without proof that you are harming anything. I’m just saying that the precautionary principle is coming to the islands. Look out!

(Gordy has been writing a fun filled -and sometimes even fact filled- column for The Island Guardian for five years. He has a talent for poking fun at us while pointing out the absurdness of the unintended consequences of many of our actions, and has become a must read for politicians and the populace. Gordy graduated with honors from Seattle Pacific University with a degree in Philosophy. He also attended Theological Seminary. He has spent most of his life sequestered in the remote San Juan Islands where he has survived by fishing, hunting, and growing prize-winning vegetables. He once owned a small chain of grocery stores in the islands. He has served on many committees and has held elected office. )

Highlights of 2009

Yikes! I just got used to writing the correct date on my checks. Now it is going to take me another year to figure out how to write 2010! The year started out with hope. I hope next year turns out better.

As I went back and reviewed the stories of ’09, certain themes emerged. Many people drove into the ditch and had a photo of their car featured in the Island Guardian. I ranked news stories into a list according to how many times they appeared. The dump controversy was featured the most in ’09, followed by stories about ferries, planning/building department, swine flu, and budget woes. Let’s take a quick look back at some of these top stories of last year.

January rocked. The Islands were hit with a 4.5 Earthquake and local musician Tom Doenges was nominated for an award for his hit song “I’m Looking for a Bailout.” (A seriously good song).

January was also a good month for political controversy. CD&PD (Community Development and Planning Department) Director Ron Hendrickson proposed new permit fee increases saying people should be punished for having a large house. He convinced the Council to place an additional charge on homes that are larger than 3,500 square feet. The Council drew the line however on Mr. Hendrickson’s proposal for beheading the rich.

Standing room only crowds heard a SWAC report, which confirmed that only a few NIMBY’s were opposed to moving the dump into their neighborhood except for the NIMBY’s who want the dump to move away.

In other dump news, an emergency landing in New York on the Hudson River occurred because birds had stopped both engines. This argument, was now adapted for crows and seagulls in Beaverton Valley, and officially added to the “Don’t Move the Dump” file.

Headlines said, “Still Time To Tell WSF What You Think!” The public was invited to travel around in a circle on the Hiyu and listen to the same endless crap about why the ferry system is broke and why San Juan residents need to fix it by paying exorbitant fees. The deadline for public comment was extended by WSF. They also extended their middle finger to those who decided to take the time to ride around the islands.

Weed Tax Passed By Council. The new tax promises to end the scourge of weeds and caused Council member Gene Knapp to exclaim: “This proposal will send a message that the County doesn’t take seriously the care of the elderly and the sick, but does take care of it’s weeds.” In other news, agents at Roche Harbor seized 100 pounds of B.C. weed, estimated at several billion dollars street value. The Weed Board got excited.
No reports of swine flu yet in February! However, we did get a report on “The Health of San Juan County” that contained some rather odd findings. Adult cigarette smoking and binge drinking is the highest in the state. This could explain all the cars in the ditch.

Meanwhile our Public Works Director was up to his old tricks as headlines read, “DOE Faults Management of SJI Dump.” In hindsight it was not a smart move to call on the State to condemn the dump so we could get a new improved version. The plan backfired when the DOE blamed the Director for the problems there.

San Juan County Treasurer’s Office sent out $41 million in property tax bills. The Treasurer said their office is receiving a record number of calls about the bills, and noted that, “Most of them are asking about the Storm water Utility fee.” She changed the message on her answering machine to say, “ Don’t blame us. We know you voted against the storm water tax but the Council put it in again!”

Ron Hendrickson was in the news again. He reported that nobody has applied for the limited number of permits for Detached Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU). When the Island Guardian called the ADU lottery “Hot Line” we reached the Hooter’s Restaurant and Casino in Las Vegas.

March
Obsessed with Garbage the County Council started their Monday meeting on Orcas with a tour of the local transfer station, including “The Exchange.” They found a man wandering around the facility complaining, “I sure have to take a lot of garbage in this job.”

The Island Guardian’s informal poll results on the dump were, 378 votes to keep it, 7 votes to move it. Apparently all 7 votes to “move it” came from the same phone number at Public Works.

The Guardian announced that after 4 years in the planning and development stage community volunteers were finally given the green light to plant a few colorful flowers in the town tree wells. The town had objected to this program for years because if flowers were planted tourists would have no place to throw their cigarette butts. The Mayor announced a smoking ban with fines starting at $75,000.00 and possible jail time for smoking on town property thus solving the cigarette butt crisis.

Planning Department Director Ron Hendrickson appointed a new Code Enforcement officer.  Ron said,  “ In the past we have demonstrated an ability to get large numbers of people to rat out their neighbors and get them thrown in jail for doing things without permits. I think this is something we need.” Mr. Hendrickson is looking into the possibility of water boarding as a way to get confessions from people suspected of code violations.

Turtles made the news. Headlines asked, “Have you seen a turtle on your land, or in a pond?”  There have been turtle sightings in the county, but so far there has been no confirmed identification. The Feds, the State, and the County would like to know if in fact turtles exist here.

It is April and there is still no report of Swine Flu in the Islands but the Health Department is holding clinics on all the islands to teach people how to sneeze safely into the inside of their elbows.

“Ask and you shall receive,” reads the headline as requests from Public Works (PW) for inspections of the Sutton road transfer station have resulted in continuing problems for the County. PW has called for inspections this week by the State Department of Labor and Industries, NOAA, FEMA, the FBI’s Counter-Terrorism Task Force, and CSI Miami. These departments were instructed to look for any excuse to close the dump. The CSI team will be looking for the HINI virus (from a swine’s hind end). It is not clear if the Public Works Director is calling for these inspections on his own, but it sure looks that way.

Director Ron Hendrickson of CD&PD is back in the news again. Apparently he will not issue building permits for buildings common to a house, such as a garage, unless there is already a house on the property. When asked for his comments he stated, “This is how it starts. The next thing you know people will want to build a house on their property. These people need to be punished, not rewarded with permits.”

In other news, Lea Lambiel from Orcas put up some signs outside his place with a greeting for Ron Hendrickson. Marilyn Monroe says “Hi Ron,” and the sign with the Governator of California says, “Hey Ron, I’ll be back! When asked what the signs meant, Lambiel said “The director of CD&P doesn’t have much of a sense of humor -I’m trying to help him with that.”

Lights went out for Earth Day. It was not to protest, “global warming.” A single car accident striking a power pole left more than 100,000 people in five counties without electricity. Although it was dark people were able to send “tweets” from their cell phones to let the outside world know we were still alive.

May
After months of being pinned down by hostile firing of questions by NIMBY’s the Council finally voted to keep the dump we have. After over twenty years of serving on the SWAC (Solid Waste Advisory Committee), George Post of Orcas Island has resigned his membership. When asked for comment he replied that he was tired of taking this kind of garbage about the dump.

The County Council voted unanimously to appoint a Building Code Board of Appeals to break the logjam of permits. The vote was cast against the advice from the Director of (CD&P), Ron Hendrickson, who has said, “Just because I won’t issue permits? Is that what this is about?!”

The Waldron Community Meeting sent a letter to the County Council asking them to re-install the official County road signs at “all San Juan County Ferry Terminals (and outer islands)” that state SJC is a nuclear weapons free zone. According to the letter it is proudly claimed that the old signs successfully ended the cold war and have prevented all attacks from enemies foreign and domestic on the San Juan Islands.

A public hearing regarding land use code enforcement procedures and penalties was held. Some of the recommendations would allow the Director of Community Planning and Development, (Ron) to revoke permits, issue fines, and even jail offenders of development codes and permits; and may “at any time, use a ‘Taser’ on contractors to enforce building codes.” This triggered Lea Lambiel to put up another sign with the phrase “Don’t Taze Me Ron!”

June
United States Coast Guard ordered WSF (Washington State Ferries) to discontinue the practice of crewing its boats with tired old Skippers. As a result, sailings to the San Juan Islands will be cancelled. After several threats from angry Waldronites to “Nuke” the ferries, service was restored and the Coast Guard orders were ignored.

Turtles were finally discovered as headlines said, “Vehicles Squashing Turtles On Lopez & San Juan -Crossing Signs Requested” This caused one motorist to declare, “I thought those were speed bumps!”

On June 8th the headlines announced, “CC Told County Spending Will Be Cut” and on June 10, 160 County workers who were members of Local 1849, got a big pay raise!

“No More Untreated Sewage From Victoria”
The Associated Press has reported that Yours Truly made news when he posted a video on “You Tube” and made the papers of Victoria. The outcry resulted in the County Council receiving a report from governmental representatives from Victoria, who were accompanied by the Victoria media. Petersen said, "Threaten to squeeze them where it hurts and it gets their attention every time."

July
The “Kiss A Pig” contest was conducted as a Soroptimist fundraiser. Note: up until then anxiety about swine flu had people breaking out in hives, but so far no cases of actual swine flu had been reported in the County.

On July 8, San Juan County Administrator Pete Rose announced Ron Hendrickson had left the County’s staff in a departmental reorganization. Sources inside the department said that Hendrickson was removed from his office after a struggle that involved a team of firefighters who pried him out of his chair with the “Jaws of Life.”

“Attack By Re-Enactors Leads To Felony Charges” (I didn’t make this one up).
 Guys dressed up as Pig War soldiers attacked some tourists at British Camp. “They just wanted to use the bathroom, but ended up being held at gunpoint, and with a smashed window of their Lincoln Navigator.” 

September
“2 of 4 Ferries On Way To Mexico”
 The Nisqually and Quinault came to the northwest from San Francisco in the 1940s; now they are headed south again. In November of 2007 the state determined they are rusted out junk. In fact, a spokesman for WSF stated that all the ferries are rusted out junk. These two boats are scheduled to bring Mexicans across the border to work in the Islands. There will actually be more sailings to Mexico than to Anacortes on the new schedule, which has the County Weed Board very excited.  

Public Works Director Jon Shannon told the Council that "the solid waste transfer stations are losing money.”  Shannon is asking for a new round of inspections of the Sutton road facility by the Department of the Treasury, and is calling for a complete IRS audit. He was quoted as saying, “Somehow we have to close this darn thing down.”

October
The FLU has arrived in the San Juans. Whether it is the seasonal flu or the new H1N1 flu, it is all the flu. Clinics have begun shoving vaccine up little kids noses and strictly enforcing the regulations about coughing into the elbow. They have also instituted a complete ban on kissing pigs.

November
The County Council will hold a joint meeting with the SWAC (Solid Waste Advisory Committee) to discuss the idea of turning the hauling of garbage over to a commercial hauler. PW Director was quoted as saying, “This could be the end of this inadequate old facility, and it’s about time.”

Just days after the Council raised your taxes they voted themselves in as full-time employees for retirement purposes!

San Juan Islands Receive More Publicity as “Lonely Planet” names the San Juan Islands to a World's Top 10 List of places tourists can kiss a pig.

December
The County Council met with the Commanding Officer of the Seattle Coast Guard sector, and with the Director of the WSF, to discuss ferry service issues. They plan to ask for more sailings to Mexico, and in particular the status of “Touring Watches” so that more passengers can take turns driving the boats.

San Juan County may become a pilot program for a statewide reservation system. SJC Councilmember Howard Rosenfeld reported to the full council on Tuesday that “The plan is to have it in place by the summer of 2012” adding, “This could be a big deal.” Later Mr. Rosenfeld denied saying any of this.

It was reported that Mr. Hendrickson may have been spotted living under a bridge in Las Vegas near the Hooters Restaurant and Casino chasing contractors around with a Taser. It appears that he may have at last successfully bonded with the homeless community beneath that city.

That is all the news! Happy New Year!

Rules for Acquisition

Local governments have plunged into the real estate market with a big splash! They have gobbled up land and commercial property like crazy. The Orcas Dock purchase by the County, and the Farmer’s Market proposal by the Town/Land Bank, are good examples.

What criteria have they used to justify this drain on the public treasury? How do they distinguish a good purchase from a bad one?

Just for fun, let’s examine these two recent real estate purchases and proposals in an attempt to decipher and demystify the rules that were used for the acquisition of property by government. As far as I know, these rules have never been written down. The basis for them is self-evident. Like an archeologist digging for bones in the sand, I will attempt to blow away the dust and uncover these gems for the benefit of future generations.

Rules for acquisition of private property by local governments:
1. Always pay too much for something we don’t need. Appraisals are expensive, irrelevant, and unnecessary. If the State Auditor challenges us we can always pay the money back or sell it for less than we paid for it. It’s not our money.
2. Avoid flexibility. Be sure the property has as many restrictions and easements as possible so that any change in future use will be impossible. The public should be stuck with the existing use in perpetuity even if it is not sustainable. We’ll be out of office by then anyway.
3. Give the job of managing the property to a group or a person that has no idea how to do it.
4. Lease the property for 50 years (or more) to a fledgling group that has no experience, no assets, and no means of payment when they default. Additional taxes must be the end result.
5. Be sure that the purpose of the acquisition is a duplication of something that already exists and costs less or is free.
6. Make it as inaccessible as possible (parking, docking) and make sure the public benefit is exclusive.
7. Take productive job-creating commercial property off the tax rolls forever. Why let the public sector thrive? Government can provide jobs too!
8. Ignore any potential liability that may be associated with the past use of the property, especially the possibility of an expensive environmental cleanup.
9. Make sure to maximize the cost to the public to bring the existing structures up to current codes.
10. The purchase should make us “feel good” or at least make us feel “warm and fuzzy.”

If we keep digging we may discover more rules, but when we get this deep in the hole perhaps we should stop digging.

Free To Good Home

Some people will twist the truth just a teensy bit if it means that the greater good of society will be served. These people may despise an entire industry and blame that industry for all kinds of evils, but they will put their disdain aside and embrace it if they think a greater public good can be achieved.

Take tourism as a hypothetical example. Some people (you know who you are) blame tourism for many things, like exploitation of the environment by greedy merchants selling cheesy souvenirs and t-shirts for personal gain. However, if these same folks can get money for a permanent farmer’s market facility from tourist dollars, they will jump up and down and wave to bring in more tourists. They might even encourage the sale of plastic souvenir orca whales in some of the booths if that’s what it takes. These folks will act as if they want to promote tourism, all for the greater good, of course.

Now hear this, a real opportunity for the good of our community may be knocking. Unlike buying an old concrete block building for a farmer’s market, this would really be a tourist attraction. There would be no doubt that this would qualify for Lodging Tax money. Parking is not an issue.

The benefits to our community from this opportunity could be huge. It could supply fresh clean water from the sea and emergency power to thousands of people. A large hospital comes with it so we won’t have to build one. It has a commercial kitchen that could cook up locally grown foods and a mess hall that could serve as a large meeting place. With its accommodations it could solve our affordable housing crisis. It could bring in a steady stream of tourists and boost ferry revenue without exploiting the whales. Heck, it could be a whale-watching platform. The best part is it’s free!

I came across this article and thought San Juan County would be the perfect applicant:
PHILADELPHIA -The U.S. Navy plans to give away the retired aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy for a museum or memorial.
The ship is currently in docked in Philadelphia with other retired warships.
The Navy says the deadline for submitting initial applications is Jan. 22. Bidders have to be a government or nonprofit group that pledges to use the ship as a museum or memorial. The winner gets the ship for free, but will be responsible for moving the 1,050-foot vessel from Philadelphia to its new home.
Known as "Big John," the ship was the last conventionally powered aircraft carrier built by the Navy. It once carried a crew of about 4,600 and 70 combat aircraft. It entered Navy service in September 1968 and was decommissioned in 2007. (-Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

ig_boat_John_F_Kennedy-1 (55k image)
( -Wikipedia photo)

Sharpen-up your grant-writing skills because this great American Warship is free to a good home! Almost the size of Johns Island, the USS “Big John” would become the 22nd largest in our archipelago. There would be an increase in total county shoreline of about a half mile. It may even have its own critical areas. With more than 250’ of beam there would still be usable deck area even considering the proposed shoreline setbacks. It is conventionally powered so it could not be banned under the County’s “No Nuke” ordinance.

Think of it as a portable airport that we could move around. No more complaints about airplane noise from a few NIMBY's! Every citizen around San Juan County would get a chance to live near an airport equally and without prejudice.

There would be plenty of room on the decks for a farmers market and plenty of tourists would be on hand to buy locally produced cabbage, goat cheese, and lamb sausage. It would probably cost less in the long run than the proposed new permanent farmer’s market. The only downside is that some people (you know who you are) only want to pretend to promote tourism if it fits their own idea for the greater good of society. So don’t be surprised if this idea is not pursued with the same zeal.

NOAA-Go Away Zone

Big bumbling bureaucracies are incompetent and inefficient. Take the Post Office for example. They raise the price of stamps one cent just after we buy a new book. Their employees have morale problems and tend to shoot up the place occasionally. Their hours are not convenient for people who work for a living but they really don’t care. They lose more than a billion dollars a year.

Another big bumbler is Federal Emergency Management (FEMA). They have become too big to manage a crisis. They simply can’t respond to desperate situations unless they are given a year or so to decide who should be in charge of what and who should be officially blamed when things go wrong.

Social Security, Department of Health, Education & Welfare, Treasury, United Nations, all these agencies have big systemic problems causing them to function without even a modicum of efficiency. Is NOAA any different? Should we trust them to manage our surrounding marine waters and do what they think is best for our beloved whales? No!

The following evidence of their incompetence is proof enough. Our Prosecuting Attorney has questioned NOAA’s authority over the “Boundary Straights” area. In a brilliant piece of research Mr. Gaylord was able to dust off an international treaty that has governed maritime navigation since 1846. In this Treaty between the U. S. and Great Britain, it was intended that navigation in the whole channel where the proposed “no-go” zone is located, “would remain free and open to both parties.” Unfortunately, Mr. Gaylord’s findings devastate NOAA’s proposal and spoil all of their regulatory fun.

The bureaucrats at this department seem oblivious to the Treaty of 1846. Why? Shouldn’t we trust NOAA to know what laws and treaties govern the waters they are supposed to oversee and protect? If not, why should we trust them to be competent in their regulation of our local waters?

San Juan County should be a NOAA-go-away zone. First the Marine Sanctuary, now this, how many times do we have to tell them to butt-out? We can manage our own local affairs thank you very much.

People come from all over the world to see these magnificent Orcas, and like many intelligent animals, they seem to like the attention. When they splash and play to the delight of awestruck audiences, they look like they are enjoying themselves to me.

I don’t think the whales care about NOAA’s no-go zone at all. If they could talk they would probably say “More salmon please?” If the salmon could talk they would probably say, “Stop saving the whales!” Porpoise and the Seals would probably agree with both of these statements.

It‘s a big ocean where the only law is survival of the fittest. Big fish eat little fish. Whales don’t need bumbling bureaucrats who treat them like big pet poodles. They have survived for millennia without NOAA’s help. They’ll get through this. The zone we should support is not NO-GO but NOAA- GO.

Label Me Not

Facts not ideology
Truth not deception
Liberty not tyranny
Freedom,
Independence.
These are American values
Our values
Don’t put a label on them
Don’t put a label on me,
For insisting on them.

Abandon the prejudice
That your labels suggest
Crush them under your boot
Like a bug you detest
Act like free people
Refuse to be slaves
The tyrants will fall
A republic saved.

HAPPY Homeless

According to Best Government Available Social Science (BGASS) officials are now required to address the problem of homelessness in our state through the planning and permitting process. The number of homeless has dramatically increased due to tough economic times. If you own a home you are fortunate. What is unfortunate is that if you want to remodel, add-on, or build a new house, you will be required to share your house with the homeless. This plan is referred to as Homeless Advantage Protection Plan for You! (HAPPY).

Don’t panic. In order to avoid the “takings” clause in the Constitution, you will have “reasonable use” of your own home. A management tool called a Critical Re-Action Plan (CRAP), impartially negotiated with each family, shall be a condition of every permit. Under this CRAP you will still be able to use some portions of the house -like your bedroom- with no changes. Other bedrooms will be assigned to the homeless enrolled in the HAPPY program. The number of HAPPY applicants will be assigned by the administrator according to the square feet of available space and the availability of water/sewer, and parking.

The kitchen and recreation rooms shall be shared spaces with defined BGASS buffer zones around other persons. Entertainment will also be part of the CRAP. Each available bathroom or Wetland and Home Odiferous Area (WHOA!) shall be assigned so that sharing will be done on a first come-first-served basis. In some cases family members shall need to take a number for this service.

If you plan to build on or near the shoreline your permit will be placed in the top priority stack on the permit coordinator’s desk. Many HAPPY people are signed-up and waiting for lodging in waterfront houses. Your waterfront plans will be subject to the Shoreline Questionable Unchallenged but Assumed True Science (SQUATS) unless there is a conflict with BGASS. In that case both BGASS & SQUATS apply and the CRAP will be strictly enforced. WHOA!

Top Heavy

Like a fat girl in a bikini, San Juan is a teensy-weensy county with a huge budget. It is a fact that recent budgets have dramatically increased while sacrifice at the top-levels has been minimal. Some attentive readers may remember my column about the whopping $53 million dollar 2008 budget entitled” Bikini”. In that article I made an observation and a prediction.

Let me quote, “Looking at the county budget is like staring at a really fat girl in a bikini, you can’t help but look and then you wish you hadn’t. I predict our County will spend all of this big budget and more. . . ” It didn’t take Nostradamus to predict this. It is what happens when we elect leaders who can’t say no.

I am against raising taxes when everyone in the private sector is broke. The Council just gave county employees a pay raise. Did you get one? They have refused to cut their own salary or benefits. How about you? This whole “buddy can you spare a dime” routine gets old when the fat cats in government hold their hands out to island families and businesses who are suffering. How did we get to the point where everyone is expected to make sacrifices except the top government executives?

When times were good our government expanded at an alarming rate. They spent our cash reserves, accumulated new debt, and they raised taxes and fees. When we voted down the outrageous storm water fee they passed it again in a different form. They passed a noxious weed tax and REET tax. They have taken the maximum tax increases allowed by law every year. Now that times are tough and people are hurting they can’t seem to find the button to turn off the tax and spend machine.

The County Council is now in full campaign mode with the "levy lift." How is this campaign deceptive and why?

It started when the Council went on the road and announced that they had cut the budget to the bone. Really? I think Ray Charles could have seen fat hanging out of this budget. They told us that popular low-tier programs such as parks, 4H, Master Gardeners, Beach Watchers, Senior Services, Etc would be cut. Why cut these things instead of making sacrifices at the top? Because these programs have one thing in common; they have the support of a large number of sympathetic voters that are involved in the programs. We were told that the only reason they are on the chopping block is that these programs are not state-mandated. Is all other spending state mandated? Not exactly.

This is the first deception in the campaign to raise taxes. They must convince us that cutting popular programs is the only choice we have. It’s not. It is just the easiest way to get voter support for a bailout. If voters choose to raise property taxes -the children can still have their guinea pigs, lambs, and bunnies-if not -the voters are responsible for pushing grandma down the stairs in her wheelchair and destroying the shoreline that the Beach Watchers could have saved. It is a false choice.

The fact is that government is top heavy. The bikini top has been stuffed full with a big increase in administration, pay raises, and a doubling of the "communications" budget. It is packed with accumulated debt that they have racked-up. The Double “D” cup is stacked with new executive offices, high-tech meeting rooms with all the bells and whistles, and a large staff of capable assistants to take care of them. The Council has not made the kind of sacrifices at the top we might expect.

If they want popular support for a tax increase in difficult times there should be an honest debate. Sacrifice at the top should be on the table. We shouldn’t be held hostage to threats to close our parks and cut programs for seniors and kids. I might be willing to change my mind about a levy lift if there was a little sacrifice by top government executives and the debate was honest. Sadly it is not.