Thanksgiving Transcends Politics

Thanksgiving Transcends Politics

(Andrews in Denver Post 11/19, also Townhall.com 11/18)

Gloomy, dejected, defeated? Not this Republican. It’s Thanksgiving, and I have too much to be grateful for.

Yes, the Democrats elected a governor, gained legislative seats, and took Congress. Yes, our judicial term limits proposal lost, and few ballot issues went as I hoped. And no, the GOP currently doesn’t have the “got’em where we want’em” defiance of John Elway’s old Broncos.

So why am I not down? Because before I am a Republican I’m a conservative, and I am an American before that. At bedrock, prior to anything, I am on a lifetime enlistment as a servant of my Maker and a soldier of the Cross, poor though my example may be.

Through such eyes, the blue wave and red rout of Nov. 7 have no more finality than a chess king tipped over at game’s end. We’ll vow to do better next time, of course – but with light hearts in the joy of a world too bright for any election to darken.

The common-sense recognition that politics isn’t everything happens to be a distinctively American trait, just as Thanksgiving is a distinctively American holiday. The day’s occurrence so soon after votes are counted is helpful in reminding us what really matters. While congratulations are due Bill Ritter and all the winners, along with condolences to Rick O’Donnell and others who lost, this week is about giving thanks for the bigger picture.

We give thanks for constitutional government and democratic capitalism, the framework of liberty and law that has made these United States the freest, most prosperous, most open, most generous, most decent, and most powerful nation the world has ever seen. We hear the voice of conscience bidding Americans always use that power for good.

We give thanks for a stable, competitive, mutually respectful two-party system that forces consensus toward the center and fairly registers the people’s choice, so the trustees of power can be turned out when they lose touch or break faith – and the reins of authority can then be peacefully transferred. Much of the world lacks that.

We give thanks for the blessings of material abundance, opportunity, tolerance, innovation, cultural creativity, and the most optimistic educational system on earth, adding up to a magic escalator for group after group from marginal status to full participation in American life – minorities, women, immigrants, the disabled, who next? The striving of millions to come here isn’t just a policy problem, it’s an accolade to us.

We give thanks for living in the most religious nation in the world, a country where humanity’s restless search for God is unfettered by state-sponsored churches or compulsory worship, a country where much individual conduct is still regulated by the sense of moral obligation before an eternal Judge, allowing government’s hand to rest more lightly on our lives.

We give thanks for freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and the right to petition the government for redress of grievances. This daring, exuberant, risk-defying openness gives our system an almost miraculous capacity for self-criticism, self-correction, and self-renewal. This is what doomed slavery and defeated communism. It makes tyranny unlikely here. It is the jewel of humility in America’s crown.

We give thanks for our families. Parents and spouses, babies and elders, siblings and kids, eccentric uncles and cousins, grandparents and grandchildren, foster and adoptive relatives, those difficult in-laws, that couple who fits no conventional definition but just undeniably belongs together, the “stray” at your Thanksgiving table who doesn’t need to be blood to have a place in your heart – what would we do without them? Family transcends all politics, thank heaven.

But consider the last phrase. When “Oh thank heaven” can become a convenience-store slogan, America’s problem isn’t theocracy, it’s superficiality. Too many of us bring only a Hallmark faith to Thursday’s national feast.

The mere attitude of gratitude is not enough. As the turkey is carved, remember that thanks are meaningless unless given TO someone – in this case to the Creator of all things. “Our fathers’ God to Thee, Author of liberty, to Thee we sing.” From our house to yours, happy Thanksgiving.

Posted by John Andrews in Andrews in Print

A happy and blessed Thanksgiving to all from Woodford Tax Facts.

The French Have Some Sense

Charles De Gaulle:

from Quotes of the Day

"I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be left to the politicians."

Wind Full Of Hot Air for Farmington

The Farmington School District, Abingdon, Knoxville, Galesburg and ROWVA Districts, and Sandburg College spent $70,000 and a year of study time to figure out that local generation of power from wind wouldn't pay off.

The PJS article says:

Part of the study looked at the possibility of the schools sharing the benefits of a wind farm, but the cost of getting electricity to the different schools appears to have nullified potential cost savings.

Apparently they think they could get something working with grant money to the tune of around $2 millions per turbine. Uhhh-huuhh.

Any takers?

Electric Bill Savings

If you haven't looked at florescent lighting lately, you are in for a real treat. These energy savers used to be slow to light, dim, and huge. They now come in bright, compact (same size as your incandescents), "decorator", and even dimmable versions.

Regardless of what happens in Springfield in connection with the electrical rate "freeze" you can save some big bucks by switching.

At an electric rate of seven cents per kilowatt hour (kWh), using a 75 watt incandescent light bulb for 5 hours per day will cost $9.58 per year to run.

Replace it with a 20 watt compact fluorescent light bulb, the annual electricity cost will be $2.56.

That's a savings of $7.02 per year. Over the life of the bulb (6,000 hours is the lowest rated life for most compact fluorescents), the savings will total $38.50. That's $38.50 per bulb, folks!

Plus, and this is a big selling point for us, you don't have to change the things every couple of months like "regular" bulbs!

More pay for all in Springfield

Even though they can't seem to find funding for paying Illinois' bills (like Medicare payments and pension contributions for down-state teachers), the General Assembly in Springfield didn't balk at giving themselves $5 millions a year in raises.

Here was the "hard work of the people":

Gov. from $150,700 to $165, 150

General Assembly from $57,600 to $63,150

Lt. Gov., Comptroller, Treasurer from $115,250 to $126,300

Att. General, Sec. of State from $133,000 to $145, 700

The vote also raised salaries for other top elected officials, including judges and states attorneys. At least they work full time and it's clear what they do to earn the dough. Salaries for those public officials vary, but many of them earn more than legislators. (this would indeed fall into the category of "unfunded mandates")

This is just bad, bad, bad.

School District 140 avoids "Truth in Taxation" - barely

Eureka-Congerville-Goodfield CUSD #140 is asking for around $270,000 more with their property tax extension levy this year versus last. That's about $165 per student enrolled.

The tax increase is around 4.3 %. Is it co-incidental that it comes in just under the 5% level which would trigger public hearings?

The District School Board would have us believe that there is no tax increase, because the tax rate won't change much, but as always, the budget and the extension tell the true story; not the rate, not the EAV, not abatements.

The Board is pocketing the tax rate ($4.48 per $100 EAV) multiplied by the increase in the value of property taxed. It's a built in budget increase every year for ALL taxing authorities.

Unfortunately, our property tax bill goes up no matter what they call it.

Some folks retort, "hey - your home is WORTH more! You should pay more."

We say something only has value when it is sold. Tax us then. Otherwise, you're taxing our savings and retirement - our assets, and we can't keep up. The CUSD 140 extension over the last ten years has doubled. And they, comparatively, do a GOOD job.

ComEd and Ameren monies plugged in

From the aforementioned Board of Elections site, these are 2006 to date contributions $10,000 and above:

Ameren PO Box 66892 St Louis, MO 63166	$20,000.00 10/12/2006	Individual Contribution The Illinois Chamber Pac
Ameren P.O. Box 66892 Saint Louis, MO 63166	$10,000.00 5/2/2006	Individual Contribution Friends of Blagojevich
Ameren P.O. Box 66892 Saint Louis, MO 63166	$15,000.00 10/30/2006	Individual Contribution Friends of Blagojevich
Ameren PO Box 66892 St. Louis, MO 63166	$10,000.00 9/30/2006	Individual Contribution Democratic Party of Illinois
Ameren PO Box 66892 St. Louis, MO 63166	$15,000.00 11/2/2006	Individual Contribution Democratic Party of Illinois
Ameren 607 E. Adams Street Springfield, IL 62739	$10,000.00 3/1/2006	Individual Contribution Republican State Senate Campaign
Ameren 607 E. Adams Street Springfield, IL 62739	$10,000.00 9/22/2006	Individual Contribution Republican State Senate Campaign
Ameren P.O. Box 66892 St. Louis, MO 63166	$10,000.00 9/19/2006	Individual Contribution Citizens to Elect Tom Cross
Ameren P.O. Box 66892 St. Louis, MO 63166	$10,000.00 2/27/2006	Individual Contribution Citizens to Elect Tom Cross
Ameren P.O. Box 66892 St. Louis, MO 63166	$15,000.00 10/11/2006	Individual Contribution Citizens for Emil Jones
Ameren P.O. Box 66892 St. Louis, MO 63166	$10,000.00 10/23/2006	Individual Contribution Citizens for Emil Jones
Ameren 607 E. Adams St. Mail Code C100 Springfield, IL 62739	$10,000.00 3/6/2006	Transfer In Citizens for Frank Watson
Ameren P.O. Box 66892 St. Louis, MO 63166	$10,000.00 3/6/2006	Individual Contribution House Republican Organization
Ameren PO Box 66892 St. Louis, MO 63166	$10,000.00 3/8/2006	Individual Contribution Friends of Michael J Madigan
Ameren 607 East Adams Springfield, IL 62739	$25,000.00 3/1/2006	Individual Contribution Ameren IL PAC
Ameren PO Box 66892 St. Louis, MO 63166	$10,000.00 9/27/2006	Individual Contribution Friends of Michael J Madigan
Ameren 607 E. Adams St. Springfield, IL 62739	$15,000.00 3/7/2006	Individual Contribution Illinois Senate Democratic Fund
Ameren 607 E. Adams St. Springfield, IL 62739	$10,000.00 11/3/2006	Individual Contribution Illinois Senate Democratic Fund

ComEd PAC 1 Financial Place 33rd FL. Chicago, IL 60605	$14,000.00 9/18/2006	Transfer In Citizens for Emil Jones
ComEdPAC 1 Financial Place 33rd FL Chicago, IL 60605	$10,000.00 10/3/2006	Transfer In Manufacturers PAC (MPAC)
ComEdPAC 1 Financial Place 33rd Floor Chicago, IL 60605	$10,000.00 9/22/2006	Transfer In Illinois Merchants PAC Team

ComEd looks cheap compared to Ameren, huh?

Today in the Illinois Senate we saw what PAC money did for the mimimum wage hike. We'll soon see how the Electic Rates come out.

S(c)hocked

While trolling through the campaign contributions at the Illinois State Board of Elections Campaign Disclosure site, we were a little surprised to find this last minute contribution to Citizens for Schock:

Khazzam, Alexis N

$16,000.00 11/2/2006

We were, frankly, also a little surprised at this one:

Illinois PAC for Education (IPACE)

$10,000.00 11/1/2006

seeing as how they usually fund Dems a little more heavily. A little further investigation reveals that Big Education did fund Republican candidates a little heavier this time around, but only if they were incumbents. Next to nothing went to Republican challengers. Interesting.

We will be posting some more numbers (what we were originally searching for) in the near future.

Peoria Chronicle Skewers PJS

Here's todays impalement of the Peoria Journal Star on its recent stand regarding the bonds for District 150:

Journal Star could use some remedial civics classes itself

from The Peoria Chronicle by C. J. Summers

Speaking of the Journal Star’s editorial yesterday, they sum up their case for PBC funding with this condescending paragraph:

But again, the primary criticism comes from those who’ve never quite come to grips with the fact that they live in a republic, not a direct democracy. Should District 150 regain its PBC connection, perhaps it should spend those funds constructing a building in which they teach civics, the lessons of which seem lost on a certain segment of the population.

Translation: if you’re against the school being able to get funding through the Public Building Commission (PBC), then you’re an ignorant boob in need of remedial education.

Maybe the editors of the Journal Star should attend those civics lessons instead. They can start by studying the words of Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence, where he says that governments “deriv[e] their just powers from the consent of the governed.” Thus, if the people don’t want the school board to have the power to spend tax money on new schools without a binding referendum, that is perfectly within the rights of the citizens of a republic.

Indeed, one needn’t throw out the school code or the Constitution, nor do they need to resort to direct democracy, in order to place reasonable limits on their representatives in our current form of government. In the case of the PBC, these limits already exist, and those who oppose PBC funding are not arguing for new legislation, but the status quo.

And since when is it the job of our legislators to represent other municipal corporations? Are Schock and Shadid representatives of the school board or the people? In this case, they’re acting as representatives of the school board, since the people clearly don’t consent to additional bonding authority being given.

And since the Journal Star thinks PBC funding should be available to all, why are they in favor of SB2477 which would only grant this bonding authority (a) for 5 years, and (b) only for Peoria Public School District 150? The Journal Star should be fundamentally opposed to this abridgment of our republic and advocate instead a bill that would completely repeal the 1993 law that stripped all school boards from using the PBC. Of course, such a bill would never pass the legislature, because it’s easier for representatives from elsewhere in Illinois to pass laws that don’t affect their constituents.

Here’s another civics lesson for the Journal Star: citizens of Illinois have the right under Illinois’ constitution “to make known their opinions to their representatives and to apply for redress of grievances.” In other words, voting our representatives out of office is not our only avenue for participation.

What Education means when they say "community involvement"

This article, and a response, have some interesting insights into how our school districts stack the deck when it comes to "citizen advisory committees":

Daily Pantagraph: Olympia wants to spend money on new grade school

STANFORD -- Olympia school district residents want to spend referendum
money on a new Olympia North Elementary School and upgrading electrical
and security systems at all the schools.

That was the consensus of five groups of residents reporting this week to the district’s Citizens Facilities Planning Committee.

That was the consensus of five groups of residents reporting this week to the district’s Citizens Facilities Planning Committee . . .

The planning committee was organized to collect public opinion on how
to spend money from the April 2007 referendum. The five groups that
report to committee were formed as part of a series of public meetings
last month at Olympia’s five schools . . .

The April 2007 referendum will have two questions asking for a total
tax rate increase of $1 per $100 equalized assessed valuation . . .

One referendum will ask voters to let the district issue $12.5 million in
bonds for construction. That would carry a rate increase of 50 cents
per $100 EAV.

The other referendum would seek an increase of 50
cents per $100 EAV for the education fund, which pays for most
operating expenses. The education rate would increase from $2.40 per
$100 EAV to $2.90 per $100 EAV . . .

“They [the committees] have now been able to see the common needs throughout the district and definitely have developed a district view and perspective,” [District Superintendent Hahn] said. “(District architect Sam) Johnson (of BLDD Architects) told them to put their board member hat on, and they did just that.”

Too bad the architect didn't tell them to put on their "tax payer hat" instead of their "Board hat".

In response to that Pantagraph article, the following was posted anonymously on their website in the way of a reply:

"Just so you all know. I was part of one of the "Community Groups". Yeah, we
were told to put our "board member hats" on, BUT we were also given constraints surrounding how we spent our money. The "BOARD" had already decided that we would build a new school for North. The only thing we got to "recommend" was how big the replacement school would be and how we should spend the rest of the $$ from the bond. We had to make sure we were "fair" with how we split the rest out in order to try and sell the idea to the rest of the district. What a total joke!"

The Illinois Loop has an excellent piece on School Committees and the administration strategies involved. It's nine pages for those of you interested in the whole thing. Here are some excerpts:

At best, many "consensus" committees whittle away personal goals in favor of lukewarm
conclusions that make no one happy. Emerson said, "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of
little minds."

These techniques (sometimes labeled as "Delphi" methods), were developed early in the 20th
century, where they were heavily used by trade unionists and by progressive social organizers
such as Saul Alinsky. These techniques are heavily in use today by corporations, churches,
human resource organizations, trade organizations and social groups in forming a "consensus"
supporting pre-constructed goals. It use of the "committee" along these lines has been a powerful tool used by schools in building support for changes in school policies or curriculum.

The key to such committees using these techniques is that the desired outcome is planned in
advance. The purpose of the committee is not to design or plan or come up with a new course of
action. Rather, the purpose is to "achieve consensus" on a desired course of action that is already known (by the organizers).

Many people are well-familiar with these techniques from their use in business, though they don't usually recognize them as such unless it is pointed out. Corporations might use such committees to enlist employee support for a new program or reorganization.
The same techniques are also often used by trade organizations and professional associations to
solidify support for the most commonly-held agenda items, and to winnow out more marginal
concerns.

A key element of these committees is the "small workgroup". Members of the whole committee
are assigned into smaller groups to "work" on some subset of the "task" assigned. This has a
number of effects.

1. First and foremost, it breaks up cohorts so that like-minded people each find themselves as
the odd man out in their small workgroups.
One strategy that is extremely common in school presentations and committee meetings is
"random assignment": As participants enter the meeting room, they are handed a card with
a number, which is the number of the groups that have been assigned to. This technique is
extremely effective in breaking up sets of people that arrive together. If three people feel
strongly about an issue and arrange to go to the meeting together, they could exert
influence if they were allowed to be in the same group. This technique prevents that.

2. Beyond that, these small workgroups keep people from challenging the big picture, from
questioning the limitations of overall structure or the material provided, and from limiting
concerns to one's own group and not disturbing or questioning the progress of another
workgroup.

In schools, these committees are used to get teachers, parents and others to "buy into" a proposed initiative. There is nothing resembling Robert's Rules of Order or any informal procedure even vaguely related. There is no open debate, no discussion of what the goals of the committee should be, and certainly no voting. It goes without saying that there is no process to select a leader for the group -- the leader is already a given, typically a school administrator who has been trained in the techniques of being a group "facilitator".

Any of this sounding familiar, folks?

For another take on this problem, see this post from C.J. Summers:

Arnstein’s Ladder

Tazwell County Spending To Rise 1%

According to the Peoria Journal Star:

The Tazewell County Board is set to approve a $49.5 million fiscal year
2007 spending plan that includes money for additional correctional
officers at the Tazewell County Jail and funding for improvements
within the Supervisor of Assessments Office.

They go on to say later in the article that:

Overall, the budget is up about $500,000 from what was budgeted in fiscal 2006.

Sixty percent of the budget for next year will go for salaries and benefits.

Illinois HB 750 Tax Swipe . . . erhh . . . Swap.

The Illinois Democrat election wins and domination in Springfield seem to presuppose the passage of Illinois HB 750. The teachers unions have made it quite clear what they expect for their massive contributions to candidates.

The HB 750 "tax swap" to reform education funding has been in the works for nearly two years. The idea is to reduce dependence on property taxes for education. That sounds like a reasonable plan until you examine what they really mean by this. Hint: all education money will go first to Springfield and then to the schools; no more local referendums - no more local control, and no guarantee that local property taxes won't go right back up to previous levels.

This is simply a tax increase, and a move to put education funding into Springfield where it can be controlled by Big Education and the unions.

Income taxes are to go up by 2% and business income taxes by 4%. There will be a 6% sales tax on "services". There is to be a tax abatement to reduce the portion of property taxes going for education, subject, of course to interpretation in Springfield. However, there is really no guarantee that this money will find it's way back to property tax payers and indeed, without being cynical, we wouldn't be surprised to hear an announcement down the road that this money is needed to make up short falls in the teachers' pension funding.

The estimated increase in taxes will be $7.2 billion; the estimated property tax reduction will be $2.5 billion; as if we don't have enough problems with the business climate and job creation here in Illinois!

HB 750 sounds good if you listen to education, Springfield, the media, and the unions; not so hot if you examine the real bill. Unfortunately, there is no real clout lined up to oppose this assault on tax payers.

The Extensions Are Coming. The Extensions Are Coming!

Over the next few weeks your friendly local neighborhood Taxing Authorities will be releasing their requested property tax extensions. We think we can safely predict that none of them will be less than last year although some may be claiming they are "reducing taxes" because they are temporarily lowering the tax rate.

In addition, the "stealth tax" - the silent tax hikes due to rising appraisals - will continue to rise. This is due to taxing districts spending the increased property taxes from higher appraisals but not lowering the tax rates.

There are three factors to keep in mind when reviewing these extensions. The first is the tax rate, which Woodford County for example, plans to lower. The second is the EAV (equalized assessed valuation). That's the sum of all the assessed valuation property in the taxing area. The last is the levy, which is what the taxing district says it needs to operate, which Woodford County for example, will be up.

To avoid the confusion, which benefits the taxing authorities because it decreases criticism from the public, the easiest thing for a voter to do is focus on spending by the taxing authorities. Is it up? How much? Is that reasonable? Where is this "new money" coming from?

The real issue for the County, School Districts, Library Districts, Fire Districts, Community Colleges (especially ICC) is SPENDING, and how much is the budget increase? The rest can be, and usually is, smoke and mirrors.

Still No Woodford County Web Site!

It has now been eight months since the Peoria Journal Star headline screamed, "Woodford County To Develop Web Site"!

Chairman Whitaker said, "Ten years ago, I would have scratched my head and said, 'Is this something we really need?' Today, we really need it."

The newly hired Administrator Greg Jackson said, "There are efficiencies that can be gained from e-government technologies," Jackson said. "It also shows the public that we are an open government and allows (the general public) to come online and see what we can do."

Of course this was during the primary election when certain candidates were vowing to "drag Woodford County, kicking and screaming if necessary, into the 21st century". We believed then and we believe now that this publicized vapor-ware of a web site was a stunt.

The County Board granted over $6,000 to Minonk to develop a web site. It's granted money to El Paso. Presumably the need is perceived for a county website:

Jackson said his efforts, thus far, have been well-received, with all the county department heads and elected officials supportive of the Web idea. "They are as excited about this as I am," he said.

Meanwhile, citizens of Woodford County must drive by the County Boardroom in order to see meeting agendas and minutes. There is no easy way to email Board Members. There is no easy way for voters to monitor budgets or committee meetings. The majority of Illinois counties had up to the minute elections results last week. Not Woodford. Many Illinois Counties allow for fee paying online. Not Woodford County.

Perhaps the leadership has been too busy scheduling special meetings to discuss the sanctioning of other Board members to worry about tax payer participation in local government.

This is an issue of transparency in government. Woodford should open up to scrutiny by the taxpayers.

Eight months and counting since the promises. We'll keep you posted.

Peoria Pundit Calls 150 on Bonds

Peoria Pundit hits this one out of the park in his blog:

Retiring State Sen. George Shadid is torn over whether or not to try to override Gov. Blagojevich’s veto of legislation that would let the Public Building Commission raise taxes on behalf of Peoria School District 150 without benefit of a referendum.

“I don’t think we’re able to satisfy the governor because the governor has a very narrow definition, or a very conservative definition, of what a tax increase is,” said district treasurer Guy Cahill.

The school district’s position is that the legislation would not lead to a tax increase.

Rather, the district would replace old bonds with new bonds. As a result, the tax rate would hold steady, but people would pay that rate for a longer period of time. If the school district does not issue new bonds, the tax rate gradually would decrease starting in 2007.

Shadid said he is trying to get a consensus from community leaders about whether to attempt the veto override.

The senator says he normally would be completely in favor of helping out District 150, but too many people have told him they they just flat out do not trust the people in charge of the district these days.

My two cents: I am one of those people who just doesn’t trust District 150 these days. But I would be opposed regardless.

Let’s dispense with the “it’s not a tax increase because your tax bill is the same argument.”

Lets say you took out a car loan. The last payment was made in October and you owe no more money, your obligation is over. But the bank sends you a bill anyway for the exact same amount in November. You call them to ask what’s going on and they say you have no right to complain because it’s the exact same bill you got last month and it’s no increase in your financial obligation to the bank.

That’s exactly that District 150 wants to do. Folks, the district is retiring one debt and that means taxpayers’ obligation is over. State law prevents them from going into debt again without a voter referendum. Because trust for District 150 is at an all-time low, there is no way voters will approve. So, they want a state law to allow the city’s public building commission — the PBA — to have the power to issue bonds to help pay for District 150’s planned building spree without benefit of a referendum. And the backers of this plan are walking around telling folks it’s not a tax increase because the tax bill is going to be the same .. just like my hypothetical bank.

It’s a tax increase folks. Cahill knows it. He’s a money guy. He knows he’s feeding taxpayers a smooth line.

Don’t fall for this line.

State universities created for sons of toil

We were particularly struck by the following editorial letter to the Indianapolis Star dated Friday, November 10, 2006. While clearly discussing Purdue in particular, we think Mr. Morills comments are worth remembering as our state universities and community colleges race ahead further and further from their roots. As always, the emphases are our own:

I was disappointed in my alma mater, Purdue, and Indiana University, after reading The Star article ("In-state students increasingly on the outs," Oct. 30.) It felt like I just got kicked out of the house so my dad can give my room to a stranger from Illinois.

The state university's first priority is with the natives because we pay for them through our taxes. Purdue is certainly to be beholden to sons of the state because it is a land-grant college whose chief congressional architect, Rep. Justin Smith Morrill, said in 1862: "This bill proposes to establish at least one college in every state upon a sure and perpetual foundation, accessible to all, but especially to the sons of toil."

Admission standards are expected and understood. However, these state universities were not designed for the intelligentsia and their own elitist ends by recruiting "talent" and exclusive bumper-sticker honor society students. They were designed for us -- the sons of toil.

Greg Rosen

Indianapolis

ANOTHER Tax District in Woodford County?

We can see right now that a referendum is coming on a "Eureka Park District" being created and funded from new property taxes on owners in what is roughly the CUSD #140 area.

We need another taxing authority in Woodford County like we need another piece of SPAM e-mail.

There are already too many taxing districts (authorities) in Woodford County - 140 at last count. That's one unique taxing body for every 265 residents!

We can see why the City of Eureka and District #140 would be on board for this train wreck, the former eager to shift costs out of budget and the latter figuring it will be good for the athletic program, and better to keep those costs elsewhere on the tax bills. What is also clear is that the main thrust is a land-grab by the Eureka Youth Recreation Association and the local Junior Football League.

We (and we hope you) will keep a close eye on this one.

For The "Common Good"

We suspect that you will be hearing a great deal about "The Common Good" over the next months and years from the "new" congressional leaders.

(As a side note, this "national 'vote for change' " translated into a massive reelection of incumbents - as usual. This year's rate is around 96%.)

Hold on to your wallets. This "Common Good" work is code for transferring money to the special interest groups which elect the majority.

It will be a "difficult slog", but if you, unlike the majority of Americans, can hold onto an integrated philosophy of what is best for you, your family, and ALL citizens, you will prevail.

Unfortunately, most voters don't have a consistent, coherent political philosophy. They will pick and choose issues which benefit them and they really don't care about society as a whole. It's a contradictory patchwork; and it works for pandering politicians.

Americans seem to also have a taste for telling other what or what not to do. Referrenda on banning smoking, caging pets, extending zoning ordinances, etc. are more popular than ever - as long as it's the OTHER guy paying and getting regulated. Voters at the local level have tasted using government power to force others to their viewpoint and it makes them feel empowered.

Stay the course and do not be seduced. Stay active locally with your county, school board, lobrary board, fire district, etc.

Your taxes on a state and federal basis are going to be increasing more rapidly than ever before. Get prepared for it and work to ensure your local taxes are held in check.

Good luck, we're all counting on you.

Election Night Online

Two spots not to miss for you election results junkies:

1. Illinois State Board of Elections

They've promised to have "live" updating numbers beginning when the polls close at 7 PM.

2. CNN.com

Yeah, we know, but coverage can be expected to be extensive and the Web site has been promoting the CNN Pipeline live video-news premium service touting live pundits and reports from election headquarters. You can also create a personalized scorecard to watch individual races.

In addition, they've invited almost two dozen political bloggers to "live-blog" the results from an Internet cafe in Washington, D.C. Some of the blogs will be taken live on the air on the tv side.

Guest Post: Illinois Pension Nightmare

A "Nightmare" Indeed

from illinoisreview by Bruno Behrend

Yesterday's Tribune headline blared "Illinois' pension nightmare." Here are some excerpts, with thoughts attached.

Illinois, with an estimated $45.8 billion pension shortfall, has among the worst funding records in the country. From Connecticut to Oklahoma, pension obligations are threatening to overwhelm budgets, pinching states' ability to pay for pressing priorities such as education, transportation and health care.

From a political perspective, this offers the best opportunity in a generation to create real political reform. The culture has always been able to digest a little corruption, but the politicians here have a) created a huge patronage army of government workers (yes Virgina, teachers are government workers), and b) showered them with unsustainable benefits, which sadly, are Constitutionally protected once vested.

What few people understand is that there isn't enough future tax revenue to pay off these promises. Taxation will only yield economic decline that destroys the ability to pay the promises. Reform is no longer an "option," it's now a force of nature.

The parsite no longer lives in harmony with it's host.

Then came the 2001 recession and stock market collapse, which reduced pension funds' value and triggered a budget crisis during Gov. George Ryan's administration. At the same time, a costly early-retirement program increased the pension obligations.

The "recession" had barely any impact. Stock values are back above where they were in 2001, and this should be reflected in the article. The fact is that our politicians, bought and paid for by the patronage army they created, showered unsustainable benefits on their funders.

The mediocre Tribune, strategically running this article 1-2 years too late, (but clearly designed to benefit Topinka) is as responsible for the shortfall as any entity in the state. They probably endorsed 80-90% of the politicians that voted for this obscene largess, all while promoting the myth that "more money = better education."

At an HB 750 "Dog and Pony" show, I pointed out to the crowd that IL spending on education increased 153% from 1985 to 2003, while enrollment had only increased 13.1%. The Honorable John Frichey's response was refreshingly honest. He said, "Yeah, but that all went to pensions.

Though not covered in the article, Illinois Review readers should know 2 things about the recent "roll back" in the piggish "Early Retirment Option." First, your legislator's paymasters (teacher's unions, BIg Ed) are busy working to restore the full obscenity through large exceptions. Second, the obscenity of the ERO can and will continue at the local level, provided the district has the money.

Did you ever wonder why so many districts are crying poor? They are loading up for providing locally funded EROs. Go ahead and FOIA your latest teacher's contract. Look at the goodies. If you don't have the time, at least have the decency to vote down all referenda.

But unless it's solved, Msall and others warn, taxpayers will be the losers. The state constitution requires that retirement benefits be paid at the level they were promised. While lawmakers can decide to cut school funding, they can't get out from under the pension obligations.

"Pension funding will trump all other contributions over time," Msall said. "It should be at the front of anybody's mind who cares about education, about transportation, because if you don't get the system fixed you're not going to have any money for those in the future."

Nothing would be more deliciously ironic than watching 'real' education spending being cut to fund the piggishness of the generation that came before it. Whether the vehicle is a
"fake" tax swap, another give away to retired government workers, or an argument over funding an increasingly failing education system, the ground may well shift under Illinois political status quo . . .

Guest Post: My Libertarian Propositions

A Dialogue With A Liberal
By Arnold Kling, October 13, 2006

"Consider this an invitation. Are these propositions meaningful? Are they helpful? Are they simply wrong? As a liberal, how would you change them or modify the list? As a conservative, how would you draft a similar list for conservatives?"

-- Geoffrey R. Stone, What it Means to be a Liberal

I will take up this invitation University of Chicago law professor Geoffrey Stone, speaking not for conservatism, but for my own brand of libertarianism. First, let me comment on a couple of his propositions.

Stone writes,

Liberals believe individuals should doubt their own truths and consider fairly and open-mindedly the truths of others...Liberals are skeptical of censorship and celebrate free and open debate.

I agree that this is the liberal ideal. In my experience, liberals are not as open-minded as I would like, but open-mindedness is a difficult ideal to uphold. I am pleased to see open-mindedness listed first.

Later, he writes,

Liberals believe government has a fundamental responsibility to help those who are less fortunate. It is liberals who have supported and continue to support government programs to improve health care, education, social security, job training and welfare for the neediest members of society. It is liberals who maintain that a national community is like a family and that government exists in part to "promote the general welfare."

I believe that in reality what has helped the less fortunate is economic growth. Today's elderly are affluent not because of Social Security, but because of all of the wealth created by private sector innovation over their lifetimes. Government involvement in health care and education is an impediment to progress in those fields. Job training and welfare are demonstrable failures. I think that treating a national community like a family is a grave intellectual error. A national unit is an institution that creates a legal framework for a large group of strangers to interact. A family is a small group that interacts on the basis of personal bonds. Strengthening government serves to weaken families and other vital civic institutions. If Professor Stone is truly as open-minded as he says, then he ought to examine what economists have found about the sources of economic growth and the ways that poverty has been alleviated over time.

My Libertarian Propositions

1. Liberty is important for its own sake. People are entitled to make their own choices.

2. There are other values in addition to liberty. However, many noble causes end up infringing on liberty without achieving their desired ends. Government policies should be evaluated on the basis of their consequences, not on the basis of how they make us feel. It may feel good to set a minimum wage, to impose rent control, or to declare a war on drugs, but the evidence is that such policies tend to work to the detriment of their intended beneficiaries.

3. I value relieving the suffering of others. However, compared with liberals, I have considerable humility when it comes to advocating taking other people's money in order to satisfy my urge to alleviate poverty.

4. Corporate power is adequately checked by market forces. Competitors are the main force protecting consumers. Alternative job opportunities are the main force protecting workers. For corporate power to be a threat, it must be allied with government power.

5. We would be better off with much less regulation. I will grant that some forms of deregulation, such as eliminating meat inspection, appear to have risks that outweigh the potential benefits. On the other hand, many forms of deregulation, such as eliminating licensing restrictions for medical practice, have potential benefits that outweigh the risks.

6. Government is just one of many institutions for collective action. There also are trade associations, civic associations, religious groups, charities, and many other organizations that can provide collective goods.

7. Government's unique institutional characteristic is the legal use of coercive force. This creates enormous potential for abuse, and indeed, there are many countries where government abuses its powers constantly, to the severe detriment of the population. The abuses are less evil in the United States, but where liberals look at government expansion and see opportunity, libertarians see threat.

8. Providing for the common defense is a legitimate function of government.

9. There is no such thing as the "international community," only a constantly-changing array of allies and adversaries. The United Nations serves mainly to prop up authoritarian regimes. The European Union is a bureaucratic nightmare. The United States should be proud of our ideal of liberty, especially economic liberty.

10. In a world where small, covert operations (also known as terrorism) are a significant threat, government needs to use the tools of surveillance. However, surveillance power must be subject to checks and balances that are beyond those currently available.

Arnold Kling is author of Learning Economics.

Governments Oppose Things That Work

Courtesy of Coyote, we submit this,
via Neal McCluskey at Cato:

District officials, as well as the president of the teachers union, bristle at assertions by the Charter Schools Association that middle and high school charters are significantly outperforming their district counterparts.

A fairer comparison would be with the district’s magnet schools, which outperform charters, school board member Jon Lauritzen said.

“I think it’s basically unfair to compare an entity that is able to take their entire budget and focus it entirely on their own schools,” he said. “They have some real advantages over our schools in the flexibility of actually providing the type of education that a particular community wants, whereas we are trying to provide a curriculum that works for everyone all across the school district.”

This last paragraph is hilarious on its face. The average parent must wonder what Mr. Lauritzen is doing with the public school funds in contrast to focusing his entire budget at, you know, the schools, like those evil competitors do. And what government official would ever be caught dead providing the type of serves that a particular community actually wants. And this is all in the context that charter schools are, in McCluskey's words, a "pale shade of choice."

So, what does the teachers union and school board members do in the face of competition that they acknowledge works better? Do they demand the same flexibility in spending and rules in their own schools? No! Of course not! They demand that the schools that work better be eliminated:

It’s no wonder that, a few months ago, Mr. Lauritzen proposed a moratorium on charter schools, and that public schooling’s defenders fight even harder against reforms like vouchers and tax credits. After all, who could just sit by and watch parents get schools they want when an old, hopeless system is suffering?

Ahh, John Kerry - Ya Gotta Love Him

Senator Kerry stepped in it again and his timing was pretty bad. We think we can accept that he was trying to slam President Bush (although his own university performance was rather lackluster "his own self") and blew the joke. Never the less, it provides an opportunity to examine the myth, promoted by anti-military types, that the poor make up the majority of those that serve.


The facts simply don't bear this out:




The military really doesn't ask how much money your parents make when they sign you up. However, they do ask you what zip code you are from, and this analysis seems to belie the assumption, showing the army is actually made up disproportionately of recruits from the richest rather than the poorest zip codes.

Halloween Gets The Ax

Halloween gets the ax:

"School crime was dealt a sharp blow in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, when Jordan Locke was suspended for bringing an ax to school. In an open letter to area media, Superintendent Joel Carr and school board President Thomas DeBolt wrote, 'As administrators of schools, with the safety of hundreds of children in mind, it is also our job to protect lives, too!'

"The incident was controversial because: 1) Jordan is five years old; 2) his ax was five inches long and made of plastic; and 3) it was part of his Halloween costume. Jordan dressed as a firefighter. He was suspended for violating a district policy that prohibits weapons - real or toy. Firefighters objected to their tool being labeled a weapon, prompting Carr and DeBolt's open letter apologizing for the incident."

Abentee and Early Votes More & More Important

Early voting has grown in the past 15 years, from around 2% of the national electorate participating to about 20% in 2004. Experts predict this year that 19% to 25% of the electorate will vote early at the polls or by mail-in absentee ballots. That compares with about 14% in 2002, the most recent midterm election.

Fueling the trend toward early voting, 30 states now allow unrestricted absentee voting, with 15 , including Illinois, allowing early voting in person at county-clerk offices and polling areas.

These votes, by definition, cannot be included in media "exit polling", so don't listen to the exit polling data which you'll hear throughout election day. They don't mean squat.

If you didn't vote early (and often, as a friend of ours likes to say), go ahead and get to the polls on election day, November 7th, regardless of whether you think your vote will "make a difference" or not.

We know it will.

The True "October Surprise"?

One week from today the votes will be tabulated and all of the guessing will be over!

The Mike Allen report lays out some interesting last minute information:

Top Republican officials believe the GOP will keep both houses of Congress next Tuesday, and they have five good reasons to think so (in addition to Bush's residual popularity in some crucial states and districts:

1) No Republican is being taken by surprise, unlike many Democrats in 1994. Shortly after Bush's reelection, White House and Republican National Committee officials began working to convince House members that the formidable reelection record for incumbents (since 1996, 97.5 percent) was not something they could take for granted. "What we attempted to do last year," said one of these officials, "was to go out of our way to say to people: 'You face a potential of a race. In order to win as an incumbent, you better have a plan,' " including an intensive focus on voter registration, a message plan that would unfold in phases, and a ground organization that was operating in a measurable, quantifiable way. One official involved in the process said Republican officials deliberately "scared" lawmakers, telling them: "You face a very tough road. You better be ready."

2) Absentee ballot requests and returns, closely tracked by the party, are meeting or exceeding past levels for Republicans in key states and districts. Republican officials say White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove and party operatives are scrutinizing this data with the same intensity that they followed metrics like voter registration earlier in the cycle. For at least 68 races, they have been getting reports once a week on the number of voters registered, phone calls completed and doors knocked on. Now, they're getting a second report on the number of absentee ballots requested, absentee ballots returned and early votes cast. "We can look at that data flow and make an assumption about what's going on and plotting it out," a Republican official said.

3) When the national parties, national campaign committees, state "victory" committee accounts and competitive campaigns are added up, Republicans maintained a substantial financial advantage over Democrats at the last filing period. "We didn't look on it as one pot," said one official involved in the process. "We looked upon it as four pots, with synergy available through all four."

4) Republicans say the district-by-district playing field favors them in several structural ways not reflected in national polls. Here is their thinking, starting with statistics from the President's 2004 race against John F. Kerry: "There are 41 districts held by a Democrat that Bush carried, and 14 seats held by Republican that Kerry carried, so we're fighting on better turf. You see it in the open seats, where Bush carried 18 of the Republican open seats and Kerry carried two. So we're fighting on better turf."

5) The get-out-the-vote machine designed by Rove and now-Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman in 2001 was dubbed the "72-hour" program, but officials say that's quite a misnomer and that it's really a 17-week or even two-year program. "In Ohio, we are making more phone calls this year than we made two years ago," said an official involved in the process. "Now, that's not the case necessarily in Virginia, which was not a battleground state. You have to build that. In other places, we built that and built it early."

Don't touch that dial!

Recent Illinois Races Fund Raising Efforts

This bulletin arrived today from our good friend Bob H.:



Here's a snapshot of money raised in top local races over the past 16 weeks. Totals include all contributions from July 1-Oct. 8, and donations of more than $500 received since Oct. 9.

GOVERNOR

Rod Blagojevich, Democrat, $3,492,109

Judy Baar Topinka, Republican, $3,707,499

Rich Whitney, Green, $24,519

LT. GOVERNOR

Pat Quinn, Democrat, $60,524

Joe Birkett, Republican, $460,992

ATTORNEY GENERAL

Lisa Madigan, Democrat, $672,011

Stu Umholtz, Republican, $42,713

SECRETARY OF STATE

Jesse White, Democrat, $344,167

Dan Rutherford, Republican, $316,948

COMPTROLLER

Dan Hynes, Democrat, $338,391

Carole Pankau, Republican, $122,843

TREASURER

Alexi Giannoulias, Democrat, $2,193,211

Christine Radogno, Republican, $552,340

COOK COUNTY BOARD PRESIDENT

Todd Stroger, Democrat, $638,515

Tony Peraica, Republican ,$407,229

"Tax swap" won't cut taxes or help schools

Guest "blogger":

October 21, 2006
BY MICHAEL VAN WINKLE

The Rev. Jesse Jackson led a rally at the Thompson Center last Saturday, officially jumping on board the education funding reform bandwagon. The rally was held to show support for Senate Bill 750, which Democrats will likely try to push through the General Assembly during November's veto session.

Jackson and Co. complain that our education funding system relies too heavily on property taxes, an arrangement they claim leads to vast inequities in available resources between rich and poor school districts. The bill purports to solve the problem by providing property tax relief in exchange for higher income taxes that would fund an increase in education spending. Proponents claim the ''swap'' would enable the state to increase its share of education funding, reduce the schools' reliance on property taxes and increase the overall equity of school funding.

Sounds great, right? Who could possibly say no? Unfortunately, the details of the bill expose the superficiality inside. Here are a few reasons we should forget about S.B. 750:

1. Education funding disparities are mostly irrelevant because spending differences between districts are not a good indicator of school quality. Spending differs across school districts for a variety of reasons. Not all low-spending districts are poor and not all high-spending districts are rich. Disparities are not themselves proof that someone is being denied access to quality educational opportunities.

2. There are a few cases in which funding gaps might matter, but S.B. 750 is not designed to fix them. The legislation being considered will not take money from overfunded schools and give it to underfunded schools. It will take money from all taxpayers and give it to all schools by increasing the ''foundation level'' support. It pays no regard to which might need more money and which might not.

3. Education funding reform does nothing to address problems with the allocation of education resources, particularly teaching. Teachers are paid on a strict union salary scale. Teachers also earn seniority -- which gives them, effectively, the ability to choose where they want to teach. Not surprisingly, most want to teach in schools where students have fewer educational and behavioral challenges. Because schools have no real freedom to offer higher pay for challenging environments, the net effect is that the most qualified teachers generally end up where they're needed least.

4. Despite being proffered as a tax swap, S.B. 750 is no such thing. The alleged property tax relief is an illusion. Taxpayers will actually get a property tax abatement, to be paid out of a fund into which roughly $2.4 billion of revenue generated by the income tax increase will be dumped. This fund will then be used to pay a portion of your property tax bill every year.
Your tax rate will not go down. The first time an economic recession hits and income tax revenues are not enough to fill the tax relief fund, the state will cry broke and you will once again be expected to cover the full balance of your tax bill.

5. There is insufficient oversight of school budgeting, which means there is no way for taxpayers to know whether the extra $1.6 billion S.B. 750 gives to schools will be spent on teaching kids or refurnishing the principals' offices.
To monitor how your district spends its cash you will have to attend countless school board meetings, make endless phone calls and probably file more than a few Freedom of Information Act requests. Will you get any help from the Illinois State Board of Education? Do I have to ask?

The state doesn't expect you to take it upon yourself to audit Central Management Services or the governor's office -- there is an auditor general for that. But when it comes to auditing your school, you're on your own.

I applaud Jackson and Co. for keeping education reform a topic of discussion, but their tax swap will only increase the cost of failure. To talk about education funding reform without also discussing accountability, standards, oversight and performance is a waste of time. And time is something many Illinois schoolchildren are running short on.

Michael Van Winkle manages media relations for the Heartland Institute.

"First Responder" Pork

The Daily Pantagraph today reports on a federal Department of Homeland Security grant for the city of Pontiac.

Would someone please tell us why the heck the Department of Homeland Security is sending money to municipalities to help relieve their fire department "overtime" problems?

Precisely how does this impact the general safety and welfare of the American people?

Or could it just be pork sandwiches for all?

Imagine the cartoon-like steam coming out of our ears as you read this piece from last April in the Washington Times.

Voters, Procrastinators, UNITE!

This year Illinois has joined the 34 other states which allow "early voting". These early votes are recorded but not counted until every other vote is counted on election day. Then and only then are absentee ballots and early ballots counted.

Now, can you tell us why "exit polling" data was so far off in the last presidential election? Don't believe the exit polls.

Don't believe these pre-election polls either. The paradigm has changed with cell phone emergence and the lack of public interest in responding to polls and surveys in general. What you're left with is a sub-group of fanatics that WANT to be polled.

Under no circumstances allow any media information to deter you from recording YOUR vote, be it absentee, early, or at the polling place on Election Day!

Just Vote!

Try to ignore the incredibly negative campaigning and advertising out there this election season, overcome your disgust, and get out and VOTE!

It's easier than ever this year. The State of Illinois has inaugurated what is called "early voting", which means you can vote at your designated location (usually the County Clerk's Office) beginning next Monday, October 16th through Thursday, November 2nd. After that, you must vote on election day which is Tuesday, November 7th this year (unless you obtain an absentee ballot).

Re-elect your incumbents or "throw the bums out" - we don't care as long as you excercise the right to vote. Next, become involved in your local political scene through your municipal, county, and taxing authorities' meetings as much as you can. It's a sad fact that real political power these days lies not so much in the vote as in the passage of budgets and laws.

As an aside, contrary to all of the County Administrator and media hand wringing, it is our prediction that Woodford County will indeed have a wind farm. Not to worry, we'll "grow" that power for Chicago - as long as the price is right.

"All Kids Illinois" health insurance

Well, it's been a month since our last post.

This is primarily due to our disgust and disillusionment with politics in general and "the media" in specific.

That being said we must tell you about this "Health Care for All Kids" in Illinois scam.

We just "applied" for enrollment in the program online.

Apparently "health care for all kids" only applies to those kids that have not been insured for a year.

Now we certainly aren't wealthy, but we have scrimped, saved, and sacrificed to provide health insurance for our kids. We shall now be penalized for this.

Now, if we can't prove our citizenship, we just sign something and we're put right through into the program.

If we divorced and just lived in the same residence we would be put right through.

If we were Black, Hispanic, or "Native American" (which, actually, we are - although we can't join the tribe without historical documentation which doesn't exist [gambling money with the tribes, don'cha know]) we'd be put right through into the program.

Here's our point - those who play by the old tried and true rules will receive no help. Those who play by the "new" cultural rules, which seem to reward selfishness, pettiness, and "Balkinization", will get all the "help" which they can stand.

As for us, we'll continue to pay cash for our health care; and we'll continue to treat our doctors, dentists, and nurses like we treat our auto mechanic, lawn-care guy, and HVAC folks - with respect, as friends, and trust them to take care of our needs.

We don't need no stinkin' help from Springfield, thank you very much. In addition, we won't even complain about our tax dollars going to Chicago and East St. Louis to subsidize health care for whoever qualifies. That's just the way we are.

But we don't have to like it.