IS IT TRUE November 9, 2012
IS IT TRUE that a group of independent non-partisans are talking about approaching 5th Ward City Councilman John Friend about starting an exploratory committee to see if he should consider running for Mayor of Evansville? … that there is a grass roots movement to oust the Vanderburgh County Democratic Party Chairman because it is widely consider that he has failed to lead the party? …many others have concluded that the Republican Party has won several local elections including the one for Mayor of Evansville only due to the efforts of the present and previous Democrat Party Chairmen? …the Democrat Party in Vanderburgh County may have lots of members but the leadership is ineffective and the membership is fractured?
IS IT TRUE that another member of the Evansville City Council has also had her name bantered about as a very good future Mayor? …3rd Ward City Councilwoman Stephanie Brinkerhoff-Riley is beginning to be seen as a smart and tough as nails alternative that actually does not mind working hard for the people she was elected to serve? …that Brinkerhoff-Riley is known to have some very good ideas to add some sanity to the public investment in attracting companies to come to Evansville bringing jobs with them?…one good idea that has been floated about is to establish some pool of money in the neighborhood of $5 Million for that purpose and to couple that money with an equal amount from local Angel Investors? …that would make a $10 Million attraction/investment fund available? …the third leg of that stool would be to hire outside advisors from the investment world to manage this entire fund as though it were a job seeking and return on investment seeking mutual fund with local concentration? …prior to 2009 GAGE was on a path to do exactly this and had the public part of the money committed?…then Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel and Tom Barnett took all of that money to build the Front Door Pride houses many of which still sit there unsold at prices that are half of what they cost to build?…Councilwoman Riley understands the value of mixing public and private money in the same investments and even supports investing to attract when the investment passes a sanity test?
IS IT TRUE that the CCO supports this idea but expects that in the halls of Evansville politics that anything that makes sense and removes control of the purse strings from career politicians will not be seriously considered? …that an old Israeli boss once told this writer “there are two kinds of people when it comes to money. The first turns crap into money and the second turns money into crapâ€? …that seems to be true and in a world of $700 hammers, $2 Million ball fields, $8 Million dog parks, and a looming fiscal cliff we can safely put Mayors and Presidents in the category of those who turn money into crap?
IS IT TRUE that Vanderburgh County Sheriff Eric Williams played a key role in helping to defeat Rick Davis re-election bid for Treasurer? …that because of this and similar political activities, Mr. Williams future political star is now very dim?…many political careers have seen their stock drop worse than the Dow Jones and the Dollar have due to their support of the overwhelmingly rejected “reorganization†referendum? …Mayor Lloyd Winnecke who laid it all on the line to try to pass former Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel’s half baked consolidation plan along with Marsha Abell, Joe Kiefer, and a host of others will have to answer for this every time they stick their toes into the future political Burgoo? …if this election cycle had been an Olympic event it would have been the backstroke or the dog paddle and gold medals would be hanging like albatrosses around the necks of the cast of clowns that have been running the City of Evansville in the last decade or so?
IS IT TRUE on the federal level that the so called “fiscal cliff†is looking our lame duck congress and our 50.3% of the vote President elect straight in the eye? …one of the items set to change from a tax perspective is that tax on dividends? …they really need to take this off of the table or even revamp this taxation to be more investor
friendly? …for those who ask why the answer is INFRASTRUCTURE? …dividend paying stocks like utilities, energy companies, and big conglomerates are the creators of INFRASTRUCTURE and that creation depends on access to capital? …raising the tax on dividends will lower the price of existing stocks and force these companies to raise their dividends to attract future capital? …in the long run this will raise the price of energy which will hit everyday citizens at the gas pump, the grocery store, the monthly utility bill, and in everything we buy or sell? …the real travesty is if our government fails we may see no new INFRASTRUCTURE projects at all?…the federal government proved with the stimulus that they cannot make infrastructure happen so this one has to come from the private world?
IS IT TRUE the war on fossil fuels also needs to stop? …the people on the east coast have not been lining up and fighting over a can of solar or wind power? …the immediate needs of these people can only be met with gasoline, fuel oil, or coal and that these are our only feasible bridge to the future when it comes to energy? …if we have not learned this by now, the 94 Million people who did not vote at all may have been the only ones who cast an intelligent vote for “none of the aboveâ€?
The City of Evansville will hold a VOICE visioning session from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, November 14, in Carter Hall in the University Center.
With generous support from the Efroymson Family Fund, a fund of the Central Indiana Community Foundation, the University of Evansville is pleased to welcome Thomas Dang Vu, a Vietnamese-American artist and New York City resident, as the first speaker in the new Emerging Contemporary Artists Lecture Series.