A quick thought on the coming election and then some information on the 2009 budget:
Obama on the 2nd amendment to the federal constitution:
"Just because you have an individual right does not mean that the state or local government can't constrain the exercise of that right."
-- Barack Obama (in the 2008 Philadelphia Democratic Primary Debate)
http://www.gunbanobama.com/default.aspx?NavGuid=8880c08e-8bb0-4d8c-985b-2468868d096d
(See the video of that quote at the link above)
This Obama quote reminded me of an Ayn Rand quote (from the THE VIGIL, a publication of The Motion Picture Alliance for the Preservation of American Ideals, Beverly Hills, California. 1946)
The mark of an honest man, as distinguished from a Collectivist, is that he means what he says and knows what he means.
When we say that we hold individual rights to be inalienable, we must mean just that. Inalienable means that which we may not take away, suspend, infringe, restrict or violate -- not ever, not at any time, not for any purpose whatsoever.
You cannot say that "man has inalienable rights except in cold weather and on every second Tuesday," just as you cannot say that "man has inalienable rights except in an emergency," or "man's rights cannot be violated except for a good purpose."
Either man's rights are inalienable, or they are not. You cannot say a thing such as "semi-inalienable" and consider yourself either honest or sane. When you begin making conditions, reservations and exceptions, you admit that there is something or someone above man's rights who may violate them at his discretion. Who? Why, society -- that is, the Collective. For what reason? For the good of the Collective. Who decides when rights should be violated? The Collective. If this is what you believe, move over to the side where you belong and admit that you are a Collectivist. Then take all the consequences which Collectivism implies. There is no middle ground here. You cannot have your cake and eat it, too. You are not fooling anyone but yourself.
Do not hide behind meaningless catch-phrases, such as "the middle of the road." Individualism and Collectivism are not two sides of the same road, with a safe rut for you in the middle. They are two roads going into opposite directions. One leads to freedom, justice and prosperity; the other to slavery, horror and destruction. The choice is yours to make.
You can see the entire Ayn Rand quote here:
http://www.laissez-fairerepublic.com/textbook.htm
Barack Hussein Obama fits Ayn Rand's definition of a collectivist. Many of his issues place him in the collectivist camp. There is his answer to “Joe the Plumber” in addition to his equivocation on individual rights.
By the way, McCain (like Obama) also equivocates on individual rights. Free speech is one such example. (see the McCain-Feingold Law and contrast it with the 1st ammendment) You can read about it at this link:
http://www.reason.com/news/show/34642.html
Remember, Republicans are better than Democrats because Republicans do bad things slower, and on a smaller scale.
Quick information on the Maidencreek 2009 budget:
The economy has affected the budget. In short, our tax receipts are down (mostly from the real estate transfer tax) This will affect the township and the school. People are driving less and switching to more fuel efficient vehicles, therefore PA liquid fuels will also be down. Consequently, there is less money for roads police and other local government functions.
The 2008 budget already projected a decrease in the real estate transfer tax, but the actual decrease for 2008 was larger than the expected decrease. At this point, it looks like the earned income tax will be OK (for both 2008 and 2009) but the 2009 budget needed over $200,000 of additional money to balance. As a result, the supervisors have done what our families and homeowners are doing. We are making priorities, and funding the essential projects, and delaying the non-essential.
The budget is not yet final, so anything I write now is subject to change between now and December. The big project for Park and Recreation is the bathrooms at the community park. They have applied for a state grant that would be a 50% funding of the project. I favor building the bathrooms, if we get the grant, It will create a cash flow squeeze (since the grant money comes in after the building is complete) but I suspect grant money will be more scarce in the coming years. If the grant does not come in, we'll save the money for the bathrooms, and apply for the grant again. Eventually we either get the grant, or the money we save for it will fund the project.
Nearly all other projects for Park and Rec will have to be put on hold (this does not include the Wyatt Drive tot lot) that project was already bid out and is nearing completion.
Money saved from Park and Rec will be re-directed to other township functions like Police and Roads. The police originally proposed a budget with an 8.2% increase. Your police commission has whittled that down to about a 5% increase, and we are hopeful that more can be saved.
The Township contribution toward fire is likely to have no increase this year. Donations to organizations like visiting nurses etc. are experiencing cuts on the order of 10 to 20%
At this point (with the cutting and postponement of projects) it looks like the emergency operating fund will go from about $230K to $170K.
Right now it looks like we will not need to increase the property tax (that's the township portion, I can not speak for the schools)
As you all know, investments have taken a BIG hit. In the last 12 months, the market indexes are down about 40%. THIS IS A BIGGER 12 MONTH DROP THAN THE FIRST 12 MONTHS OF THE 1929 CRASH. As you look at your 401K, I suspect you've noticed the drop. Well, the law requires us to have a pension for the police and non-uniformed employees. Money is put away each year for the pension. The amount is called the MMO (minimum municipal obligation) The MMO is calculated based on the age and salary of the employees. This calculation is done every three years by a PA certified actuary. Our last MMO calculation was done in 2007, the next will be in 2010. Unless the markets recover between now and 2010 (this is not likely) I'm sure our MMO payments will increase significantly for both the township employees and the police.
The bottom line is:
The budget cuts will do well for a couple of years, but unless there is unexpected economic improvement, a tax increase is likely. The tax increase will likely be precipitated by the MMO.
Democratic victories in the fall elections could yield a democratic house, senate and president. Such an outcome would exacerbate the economic down turn, just like the New Deal exacerbated the depression of the 1930s. Times have not changed. Hoover made the depression worse by metaling in the economy in a small way. FDR's New Deal was Hoover's metaling on steroids.
In short, Republicans are better than Democrats because Republicans do bad things slower, and on a smaller scale.
Free Book Offer:
Demand has caused me to order another case of books. I have copies of the Fredrick Bastiat book “The Law” available to Maidencreek residents. Email me if you want one.
Paid for by Roy Timpe