IS IT TRUE November 13, 2014

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IS IT TRUE that it should come as no surprise that Johnson Controls has issued a statement supporting the assertions of the 1000 plus letters that Mike Duckworth and Allen Mounts sent to the CUSTOMERS of the Evansville Sewer and Water Utility that the homeowners with less than pristine pipes are on the hook to get those pipes in good order to accept one of their space age smart meters?…what Johnson Controls has cleverly said is “what Duckworth and Mounts says goes?”…the official position of Johnson Controls that former Mayor Weinzapfel dealt us from the bottom of the deck during his lame duck month is as follows:

“Johnson Controls was selected to implement Evansville’s Smart City initiative, which includes installing a city-wide automated water meter reading system and replacing old residential and commercial water meters as needed. City of Evansville ordinances, codes and utility guidelines determine what technology will be replaced and what cost, if any, is the homeowner’s responsibility. Johnson Controls is committed to following the Smart City contract approved by the Evansville Water and Sewer Board, Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission, and the Evansville City Council. Johnson Controls implements the project, but does not make decisions regarding ordinances, codes and cost. The project is currently on schedule and should be complete by the end of 2015.”

IS IT TRUE we heard from informed sources that the City of Evansville plan to send out more water line repair letters to city water and sewer customers?  … when all hell broke loose concerning the first 1000 pluswater line repair letters the city decided to defer the additional mass mailing for another date?

IS IT TRUE Evansville has had a rash of idiot criminals the last several days?…we just had one that shot himself while committing a robbery?…this comes a day after a crime victim successfully kept the perpetrator at bay until the police came to take the perp to jail?…this is par for the course and we would like to see some more criminals mess up and injure themselves or get taken down by their victims?…we are glad to see that crime has not paid for these two numbskulls?

IS IT TRUE that the next State of Indiana legislative session that starts in January may take on the task of reforming the way that cities are able to annex adjacent areas?…in particular, the drive is expected to be to make it nearly impossible for a group of homeowners who do not want to be annexed from being taken over by a tax hungry municipality?…we encouraged the state legislature to take this step as annexation without the consent of the governed is simply not American?…it was tried in a back door way in Vanderburgh County last year and went down by a margin of 2 to 1?

IS IT TRUE although the US unemployment rate has declined, more and more Americans are choosing to opt out of the labor market altogether and no longer even figure in the employment data?…efforts by the Obama administration to dress up the employment picture are a bit like attempting to stuff a circus elephant into a ballerina costume?…as Washington trumpets last month’s drop in the unemployment rate (5.8 %), it has quietly moved more than 988,000 Americans into the “not participating in the labor force” column?…if one adds the current “official” number of Americans without a job (8.95 million) to the number of US citizens not in the labor force (92.05 million), you come up with 101 million working age Americans who do not have work, according to data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)?…if you compare that figure to April 2000, when 5.48 million Americans were unemployed and 69.27 million Americans were not participating in the labor market. The number of Americans 14 years ago without work was 74.75 million?…that means that the number of working age Americans without a job has risen by 27 million since the year 2000?…the increasing irrelevance of the “official” unemployment rate as a metric for prosperity or even recovery is disturbing?…it has been suggested that if politicians could design algorithms that the United States would “just define every American that is not working as ‘not in the labor force’ and then we can have ‘0.0 percent unemployment’?…then we can all have a giant party and celebrate how wonderful the US economy is?…in another report, released recently it was disclosed that 20 percent of all American families in do not have a single member that is working, according to BLS?…the BLS defines a family as “a group of two or more people who live together and who are related by birth, adoption or marriage?”…in 2013, of the estimated 80,445,000 families in the United States, in 20 percent – or 16,127,000— of them none of the members was employed?…of course we ended that year with an “official” unemployment rate of only 6.8%?

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65 COMMENTS

  1. Is this “working age” considered normal Social Security age retirement? Does this take in mind of the post war baby boomers who hit 62 years old and retired? What about us that after 30-40 years of service in our skills that a percent of our wages was fore go so we could retire earlier in a form of a pension which allowed younger bodies to take our place?

    A true US employment rate would include a number of people working at the Federal poverty rate or below. The number of workers that are earning above that level. Then total of both. This also will tell us what the employers are offering as employment. I thought of maybe stat. that would indicate jobs that employers are offering, but not filled. But this list could be badly manipulated by the employers.

    One also need to look at business mentality these past 25 years. What is done with workforce here? Slashed!
    What has business done with manufacture. Outsourced! The blood is on “their” hands. This is “a” reason that government is going broke. When jobs evaporate, the people are still here and need to live, and government is that source!

    A “balance trade” would do wonders with those employment/unemployment numbers, not like the negative $500 billion average we had for years!

  2. What is the plumbing code on this? Was this a issue when the other meters were replace in the past? Does the city still have any asbestos pipes being used as water mains? Is the water plant up to code?

    This remind me of when a local asphalt company redid highway 65 about 9 years ago. We all received a letter from them and the state that we were responsible for our mailboxes. That “we” had to move them back so “They” could put a wider apron to the mailboxes. This is always the contractor’s part of the contract which I have witness my past employer doing it for the past 38 years! My mailbox was laying on the ground when I had came back from a trip. I put up my mailbox on a 55 gal. barrel and painted a “Thanks *********” which stood for years, show my appreciation!

    • Not understanding the ********’s. Please tell us what you said, this is a 1st Amendment site.

      • The Thanks (*******) was the name of the paving company which I did not want to disclosed this morning. I can see why you were wondering because how I had it worded!

  3. Editor:

    It would be helpful if you would clarify your objections to the way the US Government is measuring labor force participation rate.

    1. Are you saying it is the Obama administration that is measuring incorrectly?

    2. Or are you saying it is the US Government that is measuring incorrectly?

    In other words……Does Editor believe a 2017 Republican Presidential Administration (…i.e., assuming the GOP wins the White House in 2016) would scrap the labor metrics Editor is complaining about….

    …..or would that GOP administration continue to use the same metrics and bask in the light of continued drops in employment numbers?

    • …..let’s be clear Editor. The REAL question for Editor is:

      Does Editor believe a 2017 Republican Presidential Administration (…i.e., assuming the GOP wins the White House in 2016) would scrap the labor metrics Editor is complaining about….

      …..or would that GOP administration continue to use the same metrics and bask in the light of continued drops in employment numbers?

      • I do not think they will scrap the metrics and at that time they would be in charge of distributing meaningless propaganda for political purposes. The departure of a statistically significant part of the able bodied work force happened under Obama so right now the nonsense is on him. I do not think the metric would have been a darn bit different under a republican president.

        So to answer you question my answer is 2.

        • Thanks. That is a more fair and authentic statement from Editor than the IIT today on the metrics of labor force participation.

        • …….AND Editor could at least acknowledge demographic changes are underway in the American labor force that account for a significant shift in the labor force participation rate. Retirement among boomers, earlier retirement among boomers, retraining/education of many labor participants that have useless legacy skills, and a large segment of the labor force that simply refuses to train and/or educate themselves for jobs that were replaced by technology.

          Editor behaves as though none of these changes are underway….it is not 1960 labor force any more. Muscle jobs go where muscle is cheapest.

          • CountryBoy…..and you don’t see the difference? You are leaning close to Sarah-Palinesque happily ignorant. The jobs that are missing are Bucyrus-Erie, Whirlpool, Ford, Chrysler, GM, Emge’s (that if you walked in and could prove you would show up on time, you got the job), and every other company that employed a mostly assembly line unskilled labor force that could raise a family and buy a home on their annual wages. Those jobs are gone replaced by technology and muscle that was cheaper elsewhere in the world. The jobs that do pay decent wage on that list require a college education or specialized technical and technology training that — the former coal miners and other unskilled workers and such will not step up and undertake to improve themselves. Now, you’re gonna change the subject and say, “Well we should have import/export restrictions” and the anti-NAFTA stuff to stop that…..but you wanted an answer on how those jobs are different…and there it is.

  4. A look at the employment by age groups is very disturbing,—Our Country’s young people are underemployed and the numbers are painting a bleak environment for a sustainable recovery, no matter the outright lies of the Politicos about employment, and Fiat Money feeding the Stock market numbers,–these workers needing to enter the workforce are America’s tomorrow.
    Even worse, with Obama set to “buy” the Latino vote with amnesty/citizenship for 5-6 Million illegals/invaders the entry level jobs are going to get even more scarce.

    • …..Crash, you’re not paying attention. The Latinos are already doing those entry level jobs.

      And YOU won’t do those jobs, not unlike the super majority of all Americans.

      Your form of argument is wrong Crash…..but it is a common tool of those who are paranoid about immigration and just attack Latinos because their skin is brown. These are hard working, church-going God-fearing, family people willing to work hard to make a better life for their kids. What is not to like? What is more American than that?

      • Americans(white,brown,green, whatever, who cares? they were American Citizens!)) used to do those jobs, but for better money.
        NAFTA took some of those entry level manufacturing jobs to Mexico to take advantage of the low wages the Mexicans would work for. Today no need to relocate, Big business has a low wage workforce in the US courtesy of the illegals/invaders and the Liberals bleed for them, while the the American workforce takes a hit.
        Some factories in Korea have no heat, the wages are appx $6hr The American way of life cannot be sustained on that wage environment, –that is unless you want to work for that, how do you compete as a worker for that job—
        Why do Americans on American soil, have to compete with illegal/invaders for a job , and accept the low pay that the illegal/invaders will accept–or be unemployed?
        Also cut the insinuation of Racism, with that “Brown” Crap–that’s irrelevant to the issue!
        I recognize these humans as hard working people, Church, going families, all the things you say, I have great respect for their work ethic,—But they are Not Americans, they are invaders,– and they are dragging down the wage scale for the common American Family/Worker,- putting a burden on our school systems financial soundness,, and “workin” the safety net programs meant to assist
        — America’s Citizens.

        • The short answer is because we are a free open society that like to buy inexpensive goods that are imported. We could choose to be an island like the USSR was and be the best we can without buying or selling abroad. I do not think an isolationist policy would work any better for us that is did for the USSR. The globalization train has left the station. It is up to us to decide how to respond.

          • So does Free Trade/Globalization bring with it a competition, that has it’s foundation in who will do it (the work) for less, with America–“The Coast to Coast Mall”, driven Economy, as the Prize?
            Where does that leave the domestic workforce and the Cash flow that’s needed to fuel this Consumerism/Economy?
            Globalization Reality?– Whats for Dinner ?–It’s Us!

            • You make some strong points. Our zeal for getting a deal drove work offshore and took our jobs with it. The nation that could once build everything is now a nation that has a jobs base that is mostly retail. It was a bad trade. The result is that those with high end skills in design, process, and analytics are getting very wealthy doing tasks that regular folks can’t do while the regular folks are doing mundane things for less money. It is sort of an economic death spiral for the unskilled. The best solution is for the unskilled to master some skill that pays well that the offshore competitors can’t do. A word to the wise is that if an unskilled foreigner can do your job and is willing to do it for $5 a day, it is time to find another way of making a living that the unskilled worker just can’t do.

          • Editor:

            Your answer is exceptional…..part of which is here…….”The result is that those with high end skills in design, process, and analytics are getting very wealthy doing tasks that regular folks can’t do while the regular folks are doing mundane things for less money. It is sort of an economic death spiral for the unskilled…..”

            SO, there are those who say “strict market forces alone cannot solve this death spiral”……(sic)

            ….that advocating strictly market-oriented solutions to the problem you described so well, will not only solve the problem, it lead to a super-divided society in the US….the rich class….and the WAY, WAY, far below, cannot subsist class.

            And a prescription for making the decision to stay with strictly market-oriented solutions…..will NOT save money in the long run…..in fact, (and I know this is a dark picture, but it is not the first time in history it has happened….in other words, the US is not immune to this) the human cost, the conflict, the excessive need to control and provide security from the “not able to subsist masses” who will go to likely extreme measures to SURVIVE…..the cost is far higher to US society than an active governmental policy choice instead of strict market oriented choices.

            So…..Editor…..my question is…..do you believe all solutions should be laissez-faire in the approach to the problem you’ve defined so well?

            • It would take years to address this completely. Robert Reich predicted this with much precision in “The Work of Nations”. The group he referred to as symbolic analysts are those that are doing well without regard to who is in political power. It is almost to the point that nothing can keep them down. The government and quasi-government employees like teachers, fire, police, health workers, etc. are also prospering and in some cases at levels that are at the expense of producers and service providers, both of which struggle outside of entrepreneurs among them. Much disruption has occurred to the producer class in particular. In the post WW2 times producers (makers of things) enjoyed upward mobility like never before anywhere. There was no viable infrastructure or expertise offshore to compete. They got complacent and even a little bit lazy and were blindsided by Asian products, luxury goods from Europe, and NAFTA. That is where the biggest problem is. People have seen their skills become obsolete or devalued.

              I wish I had a one paragraph solution but I do not. I know that upgrading the skills is the best answer but the success rate is low. Take Whirlpool’s departure as an example. The workers were provided training opportunities and some did successfully transition into other fields but most did not and are in low end service jobs now. You asked me a question and I will answer that we have to take some collective action to try to upgrade some of our people. My question to you is, what do we do with the ones who can’t seem to succeed in upgrading? Do they make do with minimum wage work or do we subsidize them in some manner keeping in mind that we do not collectively have the means to support everyone? This is a tough question that I have much interest in. Then what do we do with those who refuse to even try to improve?

          • Editor,

            That’s just terrific. Thank you. You’ve rounded it up pretty well. This is a subject that is best problem solved….with collaborative parties….and it will test everyone in the US. The Chinese (now anyway) have a luxury we don’t…a semi-totalitarian state. Or a benevolent dictatorship, depending on your point of view I guess. Either way, they have the luxury of stepping over the horribly messy give and take that has to take place.

            The answer…..I don’t know for sure either…..but I have come to conclude, that those that say some laborers have to be at least partly subsidized (and their are those who would exploit…, acknowledged) who are trying to strategically solve the death spiral……they are not “commies.” I’m an Adam Smith free market person philosophically, but I know that the laissez faire solution alone….is high risk, high reward at best…and more than likely, not possible w/out literal class warfare in the long term.

            Thanks for thoughtfully strategic words.

          • Is it not true that to “up grade”one’s skills, you employers/business people must do your part first in creating those jobs that need those skills? It appears the focus is on (your term of low skills) workers on assembly lines. Assembly lines don’t happen without engineers, tool and die makers, millwrights, and the list can go on and on!

            Your “globalization support” has plunge this country from greatness to pathway of a third world country. My question to you is what has globalization done to this country that is positive to it’s sovereignty as a whole? I remember being a senior in high school in “77” with a Federal debt only of roughly $300 billion, which we just got out of the long term war in Southeast Asia. We are $17 trillion now with a average of trade debt of $500 billion a year for the past upteen years!

          • I think we will respond like Greece. Live for the day, the government will take care of your future, no need to save or prepare for the out years. Too much comfort kills motivation. Hunger is a great source of motivation, in this country hunger is part of the liberal lie, it doesn’t exist.

        • Then I assume you would support stiff fines and significant jail time for the people who employ undocumented workers, or “illegal invaders”, as you prefer to think of them.
          I have a real problem understanding the “double think” that praises people for doing whatever they can to care for their families, but berates undocumented workers for doing just that.
          This is one issue I agree with Ronald Reagan on. I don’t expect POTUS will do anything so sweeping as the GOP idol did on immigration, but I expect far-right wingers to cry for his head for years to come.
          As for you not wishing to be called a racist, maybe you should re-examine the things you write here. I assume you write what you truly believe, so maybe some self-examination is in order. The ” I don’t care what color….” meme is worn out.

          • lkb. Can’t speak for the editor but my answer to your first assumption is a resounding yes. The law was enforced until Pelosi and the dems jettisoned E VERIFY simply to garner votes.
            One to two hundred illegals in our country may be called “undocumented.” Millions are an invasion. The fact you can’t understand the difference between being an American citizen and an illegal alien is hard to understand. Guess it helps to be a dem.
            Your praise of Reagan is laudable, but misguided. Reagan did nothing remotely like what Obama is poised to do. Reagan signed an amnesty bill passed by congress (Simpson- Mazzoli act) meant to end an illegal aliens problem. Predictably, it made it worse.
            Obama is poised, by executive fiat, to provide amnesty to 3-5 times more illegal aliens than Simpson-Mazzoli. Tell us why you think that’s a good thing, other than your admiration for Reagan.

          • Commonsense. Here’s your answer. It’s good for business. It helped create new business and businesses under Reagan too. Immigrants, especially hard-working family-oriented Latino immigrants who buy and build homes and build families and support the churches in their community…are good for business and growth of the economy. This is precisely why the Chamber of Commerce if FOR an immigration bill. The paranoia among the Tea Party people who use language like ‘invaders’…is _____________ (fill in the blank).

          • I will add the “Racist” card is worn out as well.

            I know who my brother is,
            and I don’t care what your take is on how I view my fellowman/woman.
            Your, and Shem’s thinly veiled self-righteous crap carries no value with me. Self-examination? At 71yrs old I know myself better than ever,
            –and you DON’T.
            Why do you choose to use a benign term like “undocumented workers” for someone who has broken the Laws of America , and entered this Country illegally?

          • @ not a lick of “commonsense”: What a crock! POTUS in NOT “poised to grant amnesty” to one, single human being.
            I am not an admirer of the Alzheimer’s-ridden criminal. He just did one decent thing by taking the fear out of the existence of 2.7 million human beings who were living in this country and contributing to society. He did it because a lot of his wealthy pals didn’t want to lose their nannies and gardeners, so his motivation was not the best, but it turned out good for those people.

          • HEY CRASH…..

            You said, (only a few words before you accused someone ELSE of being ‘self-righteous’…) …..”Why do you choose to use a benign term like “undocumented workers” for someone who has broken the Laws of America , and entered this Country illegally?”

            BECAUSE Crash, you self-righteos p.o.c., YOUR ancestors, and 99.9% of everyone else in Evansville who entered the US…….showed up……crossing the border without seeking permission first….entered as an IMMIGRANT…..and asked to be a US citizen.

            Crash, you’re a piece of work. And that is being polite.

          • @Crash: I choose to characterize undocumented workers in the way I do because it is a far more compassionate description than the hateful, “button-pushing” way you do because I’m not driven by a panic-ridden fear of change the way you are. You are the epitome of the pale, stale, males that comprise the most mean-spirited part of the far right hate machine. Old age does not make one immune to self delusion, if that person doesn’t like what they see when they look in the mirror.
            I care about living human beings that have a hard lot in life. I don’t limit compassion to “US Citizens”, and it is sad that you and so many like you do.

        • Editor,

          That’s just terrific. Thank you. You’ve rounded it up pretty well. This is a subject that is best problem solved….with collaborative parties….and it will test everyone in the US. The Chinese (now anyway) have a luxury we don’t…a semi-totalitarian state. Or a benevolent dictatorship, depending on your point of view I guess. Either way, they have the luxury of stepping over the horribly messy give and take that has to take place.

          The answer…..I don’t know for sure either…..but I have come to conclude, that those that say some laborers have to be at least partly subsidized (and their are those who would exploit…, acknowledged) who are trying to strategically solve the death spiral……they are not “commies.” I’m an Adam Smith free market person philosophically, but I know that the laissez faire solution alone….is high risk, high reward at best…and more than likely, not possible w/out literal class warfare in the long term.

          Thanks for thoughtfully strategic words.

      • “Double think” about those who do everything they can to care for their families is the only defense the far-right can find to make them believe that prejudice doesn’t play a part in their thinking. Flawed as it is, it’s all they have.
        The 1% NEED their undocumented workers to victimize, and they certainly need “the little people” to blame the workers, NOT the true culprits. You only have to look to what is going on in Mexico and Central America right now to see this as a HUMANITARIAN issue, but the far right will never do that. It is up to the President to protect these people, and bring them out of the shadows.

        • The President’s job is to defend and uphold the Constitution of the United States. That single duty has nothing at all to do with humanitarian needs outside of our borders.

            • That is not what you posted. I do agree that humanitarian needs of our citizens is part of upholding the constitution. As for blaming this on the 1% you are seriously incorrect. Have you ever seen a 1%er shopping at WalMart? It is the lust for cheap crap that has driven wages down and that is not coming from the 1%.

          • Apparently you are very literal-minded. By point out what is happening in the countries south of us, I meant that one can surely understand the conditions that would drive a person who is devoted to their families to do something as desperate as sneaking into the US. You seem to think you really have a rare grip on Constitutional law, so surely you understand that the President has wide latitude about the treatment of refugees, and that people do not have to be citizens to be entitled to due process.

        • LKB- True, it’s the government’s job to bring “these people” out of the shadows– and return them from whence they came. They can then apply to come here legally.
          After all, it’s the law. If you think that’s a racist statement, in the infamous words of Sgt. Schultz, “you know nothing.”

        • What a crock, LKB. Back to the racist charge. Pathetic.
          Potus is poised to give amnesty to millions of illegal aliens. He keeps saying he is. To call it “pathway to citizenship” rather than amnesty is a distinction without a difference. The end result is the same. There are none so blind as those who refuse to see.
          I see you’re now channeling Bush/Rove with the “hard working” families who want a better life mantra (first Reagan, then Bush/Rove. Are you a closet Republican?) Good for them. A better life should not start with breaking the immigration laws of the country were you seek a better life.
          Humanitarian??? The conditions in Mexico are no more dire than one half the people on earth endure. What about them? Get a grip.

          • I’m not sure that it makes any difference what the president does. The gate is open and the guards are gone. I don’t even see amnesty as a vote getter for the democrats, the recent elections pretty well proved that. Voting is a generational thing that is handed down. Most democrats would not vote without a push and threats from their social/political/labor groups. Those little folks coming in from the south are a given, they’re being pushed and pulled, pushed out of their country because they have no value there and pulled into this country by the democrats and even the catholic church, they’ll keep coming. The statistics on immigration in LA is worth noting. They will come in, work under the table, pay no tax, and become part of the system, criminal justice, welfare and so on. African Americans should be the most outraged, immigrants have been coming into this countries for years and they move up, African Americans have been here for hundreds of years and are still at the bottom. The democrats have been instrumental in creating a different type of immigration, people leaving this country, they are being pushed out because of high tax and bigotry and pulled in by countries that recognize and value their quality. Sort of lose lose for us. The northern Europeans and Asians are winning, they’re just smarter and superior to us.

          • Man POV, you probably think you’re just being rational (for you anyway), but it’s clear you got some racist-ass-shit going on in your head.

      • Go ahead play that race card. Stealth racism at it’s best on display. There’s really no reason for folks in this country to work, all you have to do is adjust your living expectations down and get a hustle going to have some disposable income. The first generation of latinos will work, the second generation will do welfare or time. The wealth and job creators in this country are not reproducing at a rate to sustain welfare. The only latinos coming to this country are the ones that are failing in their mother country. Shem You don’t do a very good job covering your envy of folks doing well.

  5. Concerning water meters less than 10 yrs. old. ON my meter, which is about 18 months old they just replaced the transmitter and do not replace the meter at all. It took about 15 mins. to switch it out. I talked to the fellow changing it and he said on meters less than 10 yrs. old that is all they change.

  6. IS IT TRUE that Mt. Vernon, IN nearly four years ago replaced their meters with the same kind of “Smart Meter” and one out of seven installations caused damage to the homeowner and guess who was the contract with, oh, yes, our friends at Johnson Control…gets better, ol’ JCI tried to sidestep the responsibility and the contract said differently…the City Council asked Mr. Schaefer shouldn’t Johnson Controls known about these sort of issues? Guess they must according to the events in Mt. V…oh, BTW, 47,000 meters divided by 7 = 6,700 x $1,500 = 10 MILLION DOLLARS…GUESS OL’ WINNIE THE POO WANT THE RATEPAYERS TO PAY FOR BUNGLING THE CONTRACT WITH JCI….

    • Mr. Wolves:

      I appreciate the insight re: Mt. Vernon. You say 47,000 meters, but the C&P repeatedly says 65,000. Do you know who’s on First ? Also, why are you dividing by 7 ? Not following the math.

      • I think 47,000 is the number of meters currently installed or in process of installation. I believe the division is being done by 7 because the average of approximately 1/7 of meters have “problems” , based on previous JCI experience. I could be wrong, but that’s how I understand it.
        I appreciate this enlightenment from “Wolves”, too,

        • Approx 40% of the 47k have been replaced and expect that the new meters that have been replaced will fail because the nature of the replaced meter…i.e. plastic on to metal will fail…so, leak will begin and the homeowner better assume the position…FUBAR!!!!

      • Oh, yes it was originally 60 k for residences and approx 5k for commercial, but, Winnie re-negotiated it down to 47 k for residences…this is why the original contract went from 57 mil to 45 mil…..

        • No, Dances; I seem to remember City Council taking credit for getting rid of a new City-wide WIFI backbone, and using ATT’s existing fiber saved $ 8 Million. The deduct change order for the 16,000 meters was “just” $ 1,016,000. I do remember the $ 56 Million, and now it’s $ 45 Million, $ 11 Million less and these two items above add to $ 9 Million. Someone must have swiped the other $ 2 Million, ‘eh Comrade ?

    • A few days ago someone posted that the City Council was 7-2 against these new meters and someone named McNeely convinced the CC to change their votes 9-0 for the meters. How does this guy weld this type of power with our elected council? Shouldn’t there be some sort investigation into the finances of Weinzapfel, the only way to make sense of this whole deal is to add some type of kickback to the equation. Years ago I was told that the hidden mission statement of local democrats was to, get the money, as much and fast as possible, get it by lying, cheating and stealing, and if you must, get it honestly, but get it.

      • You were lied to not told anything or you just flat out lied and made that up. Either way no one in their right mind believes most any thing you say.

        • Check out article on 11/7/14, SBR stands up for citizens against water dept. David Garrett response at 735. David pretty well set everything straight. You are part of the of the liberal union criminals that have run Evansville into the ground. Hopefully Obama will do some sort of NAFTA Act II before he leave office that will open up government contracts to Mexican companies. That would be a win win for the tax payers, it would also lower wages to the point that a person could live on minimum wages. Unions have done irreparable damage to the working men and women of this country. Shame on you.

      • pov,

        Yes, I posted that it was at one time 7-2 council members opposed to Johnson Controls (JCI). The two in favor were Mosby and Weaver, supporting their favorite Mayor as they always do. Danks called me up and asked me to meet with Mosby and Weaver to make it 9-0 opposed, but I refused: those two voted against my nomination for an oversight role, so I left them to figure out JCI on their own. I was real disappointed in the Council turning around and approving this 9-0. Councilman McGinn, for instance, said something to the effect that ” if these guys (JCI) were so bad, where are all the lawsuits” ? If the poster ‘danceswithwolves’ is correct, and our neighbors up Hwy 62 in Mt. Vernon had lots of problems, it reveals that most employees of a municipality–and ESPECIALLY Evansville–would rather cover up, conceal and do damage control than having to admit mistake, by filing a lawsuit, of having approved a JCI contract. The idea that JCI “guarantees the savings” is pure fiction, these meters will get blurred in with all of the other water and sewer operations so as to make them indistinguishable.

  7. Johnson Controls: here is paragraph 8 of the Joint Petition filed with IURC 1/22/2014, Cause 44295:

    CLEANUPIREP AIR. JCI shall keep the premises and the surrounding area free from accumulation of waste materials or rubbish caused by the Work and, upon completion of the Work, JCI shall remove all waste materials, rubbish, tools, construction equipment, machinery, and surplus materials. In the event that JCI or any of tts employees or agents causes any damage to any premises or injury to any person where Work is being performed, JCI shall promptly repair such damages and shall indemnify Customer from and against any and all damages, costs, expenses. liabilities, claims, penalties, and actions arising out of or related to any such damages to suclh premises or injury to such person.

    The pipes are part of the premises. If JCI contractually accepts responsibility for damages to premises, how can EWS send out the goofy letter to 1,000 people demanding to be held harmless ???

    • Great point. I guess they should have not sent out any of those letters and instead sent them to Johnson Controls.

  8. This is just a guess on my part, but I think Ducky is used to doing whatever pleases his masters. He really doesn’t care about anything else, professional public servant that he is.

    • http://www.tristatehomepage.com/story/d/story/some-businesses-remain-divided-on-n-main-parking-p/68537/aYOVeYAR-k6502wo8kd-rA

      Flapping in the cold breeze this morning. The mention by the “main” stream’s in your local. Even in “the furrier and suppressed” breeze flagged some flap this morning, as well’.
      That’s the type of issue that should sport all utilities upgrades in place in-ground on all infrastructures easement approaches. So. ” Before”, the new improved pavement or sidewalks and ally passages cover them. Some planning to address that hidden under ground fopah’s with some real affect for the plan should have already taken place in Jacobsville’s North main project conceptualization’s. Has it? { Expected, predictable} Per age, and statistically apparent static conditions.

      (“Maximum mess around for the money”)

      Avoids repeat easement destruction for repairs with newly applied future S/W infrastructure upgrades. Such as the presently failing mandated, archaic water/sewer lines to and from private and commercial revenue applications along the proposed improved throughput transportation feature. (Bike path)
      We always thought one could ride a bike there, anyway.

      • News Flash…..SBOA position regarding signature stamps…RE: DUCKY….if any public official signature stamp is utilized on any public document, the official is held RESPONSIBLE…why this SBOA position…should any public funds be lost due to embezzlement, that public officer MUST make personal restitution….regardless if lost fund or lost public trust, Ducky will be in the cross-hairs….just the facts!!!!

      • Doing it right the first time is anathema to these folks. The constant redos, the churning, is a magnficent thing to watch. It hasn’t changed much over the years. The faces are different while still ugly, and the technology has improved, but the principle remains the same. Contractors/donors and
        politicians/donees march to their own peculiar calculus to decide when it’s time to dig up a street. Occasionally a car eating sinkhole or federal mandate forces them into early action. They then publicly grouse about it while feathering their lair, awarding themselves a little extra for the unscheduled intrusion into their world.

        • Indeed we agree, balanced “first in application” is an accursed concept to certain cadre’s, with differing assigned values per the levels of some cadre’s groupings.

          BTW: Philae went exploring on its own, not so good, like the dilemma in with Evansville’s infrastructure it defines having a secured base is always a better start point in any venture.
          They had planned for that with the anchor deployment, something either malfunctioned or didn’t stick down due to surface availability.
          One must consider the time and distance involved and the ten year old launch window. Texting on a flip phone “so too speak” our friends involved especially the Woman I spoke of and her inputs with that large team effort, are busy. She’s in quantum mechanics, element densities for storage timing. So. The profile to available energy for operational timing could be the work right now.
          We’re just speculating from what the news releases are, right now. We take it they’re busy working to solve and retrieve as much as they can with what they have presently. Might have to think about nap timing for that kid, Philae.

          Anchored base infrastructures. Something sorely needed in the redevelopment focuses in the old Evansville project focus. In the Jacobsville application the north main thing could be toned down some, more actual focus needs to be sported to where the standing revenue action is. Operational pandemic resilience is a major there. Berry’s site, Deaconess’s multiple footprint complex, and all the operational medical structuring around that. One’s that really stick out are those Vision and Eye care facilities using the downtown walnut street, and Jacobsville infrastructures. They are in sore need of some more operational utility balancing per resilient base availabilities. The old Wellborn complex is a wipe down the way it stands today per its sewer and water structuring.
          By the numbers applied, those locations, medical, and manufacturing are where the action is. Logistical value is a serious defined issue per pathway throughput development, as well.
          Evansville needs a plan that resets the anchor as well so to speak. Starts on landing anywhere one applies it.
          That’s the focus on image one sees Linda Whites present positioning to sport the most “real affect” to actually create working or structured balance. Concerning the well being issues as presented by published polls looking in, or down from any aspect range.

          http://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/comet-update-whats-next-philae-lander-n247731

          http://www.esa.int/spaceinvideos/esalive

        • Left you something, its either in local political, or copyright moderation, what ever the try was sported sorry for the delays.

          • Last I checked on Philae this morning it looked like they were pretty optimistic that the telemetry was working properly and they’d get quite a bit of useful data back even if she keeps doing the Comet Bop. Shame those harpoons didn’t fire, it’d be almost a perfect mission if they would have. Hope for good news tomorrow. Whatever, it is a amazing feat.

  10. To paraphrase Obama’s favorite preacher, the Johnson Control’s chickens have come home to roost.

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