TUESDAY
As I start this post for Wednesday, it's early Tuesday morning, the polls just opened. I'm less interested in the results, as I am in the process. Those of us who thought that this would be an inexpensive election were mistaken. Yesterday provided another stream of mailers, including the bizarre specimen above. Talk about a fall from grace, Pawlowski went from endorsing in the primaries, to personifying corruption in less than six months, and he hasn't yet been accused of a crime. Although i'm no fan of Pawlowski, this mailer is particularly offensive. In addition to a mailbox of mailers, the phone rang with a slew of robo-calls. Vic Mazziotti's voice reminded me that the Results Team passed another tax cut. He didn't mention that the old folks at Cedarbrook are still dragging themselves down the hall to a communal bathroom, from 1940, thanks to his refusal to approve any renovation at the nursing home. Tuesday's newspaper headline story tells us that a former Olympic athlete is available for county commissioner, as if that is any sort of relevant qualification.
WEDNESDAY
It was announced in the recent entertainment news that a Walking Dead movie would be filmed in Allentown. I commented on facebook that it would be cast by Allentown voters. Apparently, some of these zombies stopped to vote on the way to the audition. Although the Democrats tried to cast Roger MacLean as part of their candidate slate, he is an outsider. Roger was formerly a Republican, who realized that the party has become essentially unelectable in Allentown. As top voter-getter yesterday, I have some optimism for Allentown. He would make a great candidate for mayor when Pawlowski starts his sentence.
Although Nothstein's election to the county board of commissioners is testimony to the voter's lack of sophistication, with Hartzell elected and Vic Mazziotti gone, that board can only be better. Mazziotti was disingenuous about Cedarbrook, which may now receive some reconsideration.
A-Town voters made the right call on Scott Armstrong.
ReplyDeleteNow we see if Nothstein is a work horse or a show horse.
ReplyDelete@7:26, the voter's certainly made the wrong choice about armstrong. he provided some concept of check and balance, sorely missing from this town.
ReplyDeleteWhat's done is done. Honestly I am glad CeCe won.
ReplyDeleteMr. Armstrong was unappreciated and frankly I think he is glad to be rid of the burden of the seat.
It's getting difficult to understand Allentown citizens. They seem very content with everything going on around them. Must not understand where government dollars actually come from.
ReplyDeleteFred Windish
Mike,
ReplyDeleteYes I am happy to be out of the ring. I never wanted to be there in the first place, I was basically hoodwinked into running 4 years ago. That said, those who think I was a problem better get ready for the real problems to begin. Last June the board voted to restore 30 positions and not raise taxes. They did this by spending down the reserve fund. This next budget will contain the 30 new positions, higher PSER's(again) and must include the new additional costs of the the teacher contract currently under negoitiations. Trust me, that will be significant.
That budget will be tough to balance, and with the new board there is little mystery on who will bear the brunt of that burden.
Scott Armstrong
Scott:
ReplyDeleteThanks for your service. While your time on the board is coming to an end, I hope you will use some of your newfound free time to be vocal about ASD matters.
Allentown can still benefit from someone with your knowledge, experience, and worldview "translating" complicated ASD issues for us laypeople.
Canary,
ReplyDeleteI will be happy to.
Scott Armstrong
As much as I hate to say it, I think the big winner yesterday was Ed Pawlowski.
ReplyDeleteDespite much talk about the need to clean up government, voters found a way to rationalize - whether for love of the democrat party, or for the love of school children, or for the love of a government nursing home - and vote for the candidates Pawlowski supported.
Sad, but the Walking Dead comparison is accurate.
But that was yesterday's news. Today I would be concerned with how the Mayor and his crony council are planning to violate Section 807 (B) of the Home Rule Charter by raising the EIT tax.
In addition to violating the charter, raising the earned income tax is just plain stupid. Supposedly, the city has been trying to entice those high-earners commuting to the NIZ into becoming city residents. This proposal certainly won't help that effort, and might push current wage earning residents OUT of the city.
More taxes might work when you're NYC and it's a long commute to escape the city's high taxes. Higher taxes aren't so good when someone can drive 10 minutes away to avoid the higher tax, and be in a better school district.
Aren't Pawlowski and the Democrats supposed to protect the working man? I guess this won't affect Reilly and other contributors who derive their money from RENTAL (not earned) income. How convenient that working families will be paying, while Pawlowski's millionaire contributors get a free pass.
Short-sighted and self-serving as usual from Pawlowski, but what outcry (if any) will it receive when it's proposed tonight? I'm predicting the last crickets of autumn will be heard tonight at City Hall.
Why does ASD have so many directors?
ReplyDelete12:43 said:
ReplyDelete"Why does ASD have so many directors?"
My first reaction was that the number of directors isn't a problem, especially since they don't get paid. But then I thought 12:43 might have a point.
After all, if voters are going to vote straight party so they all think alike, and the trend is for the candidates to be funded by the Mayor anyway, why not get rid of all the directors and just let the Mayor make all the decisions?
The only thing that slows down out-of-control spending is OPPOSITION. As we are seeing at the national level, when you essentially have a single-party government (because the Republicans now in charge are useless)spending takes off. Why economize now when the bill won't come due until sometime in the distant future?
ReplyDeleteScott Armstrong served an essential role in ASD government. He worked hard to control expense, and openly challenged those who refused to realize 'SOMEONE' will need to pay. The debt doesn't just go away. It is covered by taxes!
Scott has been more than responsible in answering any questions I had. He was willing to listen to my views even though I no longer pay ASD taxes. I didn't agree with Scott's assessment of certain problems facing the district, but the man never hid, nor deceived.
Here was the PERFECT taxpayer representative. But, in their curious wisdom, Allentown voters turned him away. Their loss. The road ahead in ASD is not good.
Thank you, Scott. Enjoy watching from the sidelines. Unfortunately, you won't be enjoying your future school tax bills. Find a nice rental in a multi-family building someplace!
Fred Windish
Fred,
ReplyDeleteNo good deed goes unpunished and these days, the last thing many people want to hear is someone speaking the truth. That can be "upsetting" and "divisive". The thinking now is that agreement and agree-ability are the new virtues of good government.There is also a growing consensus that those who refuse to be agreeable are not part of the team and therefore are a threat to "progress". This new thinking facilitates the ugliness of today's politics, where disagreement is no longer appreciated and respected but viewed as a menace that must be eliminated by whatever means necessary.
Gone are the days when when consensus held that; well informed and intelligent people can disagree on any subject and do so with respect.
Scott Armstrong
I used to work at the ASD IT department for a number of years until I was laid off a few years back... There's a lot of good people there, but mostly everyone I worked with felt Mayo and the Administrators were incompetent, overpaid, and overstaffed making the district top heavy. I haven't really followed School district politics since I left in 2013.So I don't have much to add, but I do feel there are just too many administrators there make Near or above $100k a year + benefits. Just isn't right in my opinion.
ReplyDelete