Hall County GOP lying?

On May 8th, I contacted Hall County in reference to a GOP political event being hosted "in conjunction" with the 'Hall County Sheriff's Office.'

The Commission did not respond.

Finally, I contacted the Commission's under paid and over worked clerk. Through her efforts, the Sheriff made a non-responsive reply.

I've demanded a press release to clarify to the public the exact role the Sheriff's Office is taking by hosting "in conjunction."
I've demanded the Sheriff's Office avoid the appearance of providing it's service and name to the campaigns of the GOP by withdrawing any unpaid or free service to the GOP.

I have no written reply and the ad remains worded:

"We are very excited to announce that we will be hosting a Community Day on Saturday, May 19th in conjunction with the Hall County Sheriff’s Office! "

To clarify my position, If the ad said, "We are very excited to announce that we will be hosting a Community Day on Saturday, May 19th in conjunction with the Southern Poverty Law Center," then I would understand the Law Center is a host and not merely making an appearance.

Here is a snap shot of the GOP's homepage.

What do you think? Is the GOP using the Sheriff's Office to attract donors? Is the GOP mixing it's brand with the Hall County Sheriff's Office for political gain?

Two days of asking Hall County for a direct response.

Nothing

Throwing our money away with tax cuts in 2017

Hang with me as I run this idea down.

The average price for a new car made in the US is just under $24,000.

Last year, the US consumer bought 7,105,162 new cars.

Some math follows:

$24,000 times 7,105,162 equal $168 billion dollars.

The tax cuts from the Republican Party will add $1.5 trillion dollars to the national debt.

My conclusion:

If, for the next 9 years, the federal government would buy the entire annual production run off every car made in America and dumped the cars into the ocean instead of cutting corporate taxes; the middle class would be better off.

At least those making cars, car parts, and selling hot lunches to factory workers.

And, CEO's would still get to drive the Mercedes or BMW of their choice.

Do you have a better understanding of the waste?

For further consideration:

Can a retired widow benefit from an income tax cut?

How many cars are really 100% made in America, with all American parts, American steel, and America rubber ...?

How many new cars are bought or sold in the USA each year?

Hall County's future under Tax Reform

As the Republicans silently debate their tax reform in Congress, a couple of letters in the Times provided some open and honest discussion on the future for the country under the once secretive proposal. I respond, not to those letters or the partisan work of Republican Representative Collins. I target Kevin Hassett, Republicans' Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers.

Hassett recently authored 'The Growth Effect of Corporate Tax Reform and Implications for Wages.' He boldly proposes a conservative increase of $4,000 for average households in 10 years. He weasels a bit in his paper. He writes about households earning $83,143, his chosen average income. He adds a caveat on the type of income earned, over 20% of that $83,143 comes from non-wages. I'll be more plain. His average household earns 20% of its income from something other than wages or salary. Hassett's average family earns $351 a week from things like stock option and capital gains. Let's translate that to the average family in Hall County.

The Census reports median household income for us at $50,853, some $33,000 less than Hassett calls average for all Americans. So we need to make 60% more to meet his standards. A long stretch for Hall County firefighters and police officers and bank tellers.

But, those wage earners must supplement their paycheck with $11,000 in other income to be Hassett's average type of household. I didn't make $11,000 last year on stock options, capital gains, or something called a 'bonus.'

I predict that in 10 years, the average Hall County household, will have less purchasing power than today. I predict the Hall County Republican Party will refuse to support raises for County and City employees.

So who in Hall County living in the average household will get Hassett's $4,000 increase in their income? Ask a Republican. They know.

Digging a hole to fit a lake

Over a decade ago, some land developers in Hall County, Georgia, decided to create an amenity lake by damning a creek. The creek feeds into the river which feeds into the lake which supplies the water to flush toilets in Atlanta, Georgia.

So, there were permits to buy. Inspectors to bribe. And reasons to lie.

So the permits were purchased fair and square but magic happened.

'Our lake is too small. We don't like that at all. Give someone a call. Let the government fix the law.'

So county government began digging a financial hole called The Glades. Yes, I should have used a swamp metaphor. Next time.

During the worst economic crisis in the modern era of man, local government laid off hundreds of people with some terminations announced on radio. Yeah. Some people were driving to their jobs when the local radio stations repeated the terminations. As in, last night, in a public meeting, the Hall County Board of Commissioners voted to fire 25 people immediately to save a few thousand dollars.

Have to explain that better.

The Commission decided to fire the people on a Thursday night rather than a Friday morning to save money.

Yeah. Desperate times. Desperate measures.

So we saved a little money at the price of basic human dignity and happily used the money to dig the hole to fill with gold.

So in the second decade of the Glades, we have a $15,000,000 hole. A scheme to spend unlimited money, whatever it takes, to recover the losses made by political bosses.

Time to fire some County Commissioners or give them shovels.

Our children shot snd killed 13 times more often than our Afghanistan war troops

For every member of our armed forces who died in Afghanistan during the 11 years of that war, 13 of our children were shot to death in the USA.

We should be ashamed.

Seven, count them, seven children will be shot to death today. Why? So some numb nuts can carry his AR15 in Walmart. So some biker can sit in a bar with gun. So your priest can wear a gun during Mass.

Guns anywhere.

A News21 investigation of child and youth deaths in America between 2002 and 2012 found that at least 28,000 children and teens 19-years-old and younger were killed with guns. Teenagers between the ages of 15 and 19 made up over two-thirds of all youth gun deaths in America.

Vote pro-gun Republican today and you kill seven kids tomorrow. Tell me that guns reduce crime. Tell me how safe you feel with a six gun on your hip in Sunday school. Tell me that you're upset because a journalist got beheaded in the Middle East.

When it is your child, grandchild, or a neighbors child dying from a gunshot wound, tell me it is just the price of freedom.

Right ...

The letter from Rick Frommer

In a recent letter to the editor, the writer alleges a 1960's conspiracy to stop profitable recycling of nuclear waste. According to the authror, the massive conspiracy stopped civil rights legislation, defeated General Westmoreland in an election, and preserved corruption in the Democratic Party.

I remember the Sixties. So do many other people. It would do well to remember the facts in that decade.

Young President John F. Kennedy proposed civil rights legislation in 1963. The 1964 Civil Rights Act came to a Congressional vote and was signed by President Lyndon Johnson on July 2, 1964, just months after Kennedy's assassination in Dallas, Texas. Among the nay votes were Democrats and Republicans with every Southern Republican voting against the new law. Southern Republican refers to the Congressman from the 11 states which constituted the Confederate slave states a hundred years earlier. In the Senate, 69% of Democrats voted for the bill.

Johnson would sign the 1968 Civil Right Act before leaving the White House. Hardly a Democratic conspiracy to stop civil rights legislation.

General Westmoreland didn't retire from the military until 1972. His military service and career were stained by US involvement in Vietnam and his several decisions to suppress military reports. Suppressing information hit a low point in 1968 when the Calley massacre cover-up lasted 13 months. Westmoreland left Vietnam after the horrific losses of the 1968 Tet Offensive. His unsuccessful political campaign was in 1974 not in the Sixties.

No President has been as corrupt as Republican President Richard Nixon who was elected in 1968. Nixon used what is know as the Southern strategy in national politics. The strategy was to appeal to the white Southern racist called "Negrophobe whites" by Nixon's people.

As to profitable recycling of radioactive waste in the 1960's? Not possible. Not possible today. Although Governor Deal and others like the Heritage Foundation have made false reports of successful efforts in the UK and France. The UK and France are actively seeking underground disposal options and not any mythical recycling program.

The UK offers 'bribes' to communities to consider storage of its 260,000 cubic meters of radioactive waste.

France had 1.32 million cubic meters of nuclear waste in 2010, a 13% increase over 2009.

People have been trying to explain how the world works since we first walked upright. Lying about the past isn't new. Lying about nuclear waste is just tool of Republicans.