Referendum plan flawed
We believe the proposed Clemmons bond referendum is ill-timed, ill-conceived, ill-planned and possibly deceptive.
First, authorizing borrowing $6 million at 5.5 percent interest, translating to a debt of $6 million plus $3 million in interest, violates the pay-as-you-go principles of the original charter of Clemmons.
Second, once the bonds have been issued and $2 million has been repaid, the Clemmons Village Council can reissue an additional $2 million without any further citizen approval. This is another way for the council to circumvent the 15-cent tax cap placed on them by the Clemmons Charter of Incorporation.
Third, there are obvious flaws in the plan for re-routing traffic. The narrow passage between the Westwood Shopping Center and the Tractor Supply building would create a tremendous safety problem for both foot and vehicular traffic. Stadium Drive would be near the side door of Little Richard's BBQ, creating a death trap for anyone exiting Little Richard's onto Stadium Drive. Of course, the village can condemn Little Richard's or move the building to make room for a safer Stadium Drive, but at what expense?
The Council has spent $600,000 in traffic studies, $100,000 for a survey of Clemmons Citizens (700 responses), $200,000 to get the bond referendum on the ballot, and $100,000 for a firm to promote the bond referendum. This money could have been put to much better use to improve Clemmons.
We must vote "no" on this referendum. Stop this now, otherwise we don't know where it will all lead us fiscally.
ALFRED M. DILLON
FORMER CLEMMONS VILLAGE MANAGER
O. NAT SWANSON
FORMER CLEMMONS MAYOR
Clemmons
Time for sacrifice
We agree with and refer to the letter "Time to get serious" (Oct. 3). Many statements have been made of late concerning the direction in which our country is traveling; specific ideas from letter writers have not been expressed as strongly as the words "wrong direction" have. The proposals of the writer are specific, and obviously he was given a good dose of common sense and offers a balanced view of these possibilities.
We need a public debate by our military and civilian leaders concerning these debilitating and expensive wars. Term limits would help resolve many questions of political leadership vs. egomania. We were reared to believe in and practice compromise without giving away the store. Our tax code has long needed updating to meet current demands surrounding manufacturing, personal services and the stewardship of foreign and domestic revenue policies. All the loopholes need closing. Tax revenue management needs reform.
If saving the U.S. Postal Service means giving up Saturday deliveries, paying a reasonable fee for house deliveries or closing some offices and shifting service locations to other businesses, this could at least be tried. The longer the delay, the higher the cost — as with all necessary changes.
Everybody in the U.S. must sacrifice something if these problems are to be resolved.
JOHN H. AND FAY S. DEANS
Advance
We believe the proposed Clemmons bond referendum is ill-timed, ill-conceived, ill-planned and possibly deceptive.
First, authorizing borrowing $6 million at 5.5 percent interest, translating to a debt of $6 million plus $3 million in interest, violates the pay-as-you-go principles of the original charter of Clemmons.
Second, once the bonds have been issued and $2 million has been repaid, the Clemmons Village Council can reissue an additional $2 million without any further citizen approval. This is another way for the council to circumvent the 15-cent tax cap placed on them by the Clemmons Charter of Incorporation.
Third, there are obvious flaws in the plan for re-routing traffic. The narrow passage between the Westwood Shopping Center and the Tractor Supply building would create a tremendous safety problem for both foot and vehicular traffic. Stadium Drive would be near the side door of Little Richard's BBQ, creating a death trap for anyone exiting Little Richard's onto Stadium Drive. Of course, the village can condemn Little Richard's or move the building to make room for a safer Stadium Drive, but at what expense?
The Council has spent $600,000 in traffic studies, $100,000 for a survey of Clemmons Citizens (700 responses), $200,000 to get the bond referendum on the ballot, and $100,000 for a firm to promote the bond referendum. This money could have been put to much better use to improve Clemmons.
We must vote "no" on this referendum. Stop this now, otherwise we don't know where it will all lead us fiscally.
ALFRED M. DILLON
FORMER CLEMMONS VILLAGE MANAGER
O. NAT SWANSON
FORMER CLEMMONS MAYOR
Clemmons
Time for sacrifice
We agree with and refer to the letter "Time to get serious" (Oct. 3). Many statements have been made of late concerning the direction in which our country is traveling; specific ideas from letter writers have not been expressed as strongly as the words "wrong direction" have. The proposals of the writer are specific, and obviously he was given a good dose of common sense and offers a balanced view of these possibilities.
We need a public debate by our military and civilian leaders concerning these debilitating and expensive wars. Term limits would help resolve many questions of political leadership vs. egomania. We were reared to believe in and practice compromise without giving away the store. Our tax code has long needed updating to meet current demands surrounding manufacturing, personal services and the stewardship of foreign and domestic revenue policies. All the loopholes need closing. Tax revenue management needs reform.
If saving the U.S. Postal Service means giving up Saturday deliveries, paying a reasonable fee for house deliveries or closing some offices and shifting service locations to other businesses, this could at least be tried. The longer the delay, the higher the cost — as with all necessary changes.
Everybody in the U.S. must sacrifice something if these problems are to be resolved.
JOHN H. AND FAY S. DEANS
Advance
Lte 2...we are an eleventh hour people who will punish any politician who forces us to be a tenth hour people. We as a nation have not been hit nearly as hard as we are going to be. This event will cause mass retirement from Congress because the "easy" times are over.
ReplyDeletePoor Harold....this is still October and he wants a "do over".
ReplyDeleteWW.....I take it you know Mr. Deans. Liberals seem to think that if they write into the Journal often enough, everybody will suddenly lose their minds, and begin to adopt their nutty ideas.
ReplyDeleteI think it's actually hurting their desires, because people are finding out how psychotic they are.
Good afternoon folks! This has to be the slowest week I can remember for LTE's. 3 days in a row now. Come on, writers! Give us something to comment on!
ReplyDeleteLTE 1: Don't live in Clemmons, don't go there often and can't vote on the referendum, so it doesn't matter to me if it passes or fails.
LTE 2: I always get amused whenever someone brings up term limits. Term limits to me says "Please stop me from putting the same idiots in office every freaking election!". If you don't want the same people in office, vote for someone else! It isn't that difficult to punch the slot for the opposition. A better solution would be to eliminate gerry mandered districts. There is a consensus that the tax code needs revamping. While replacing the income tax with a consumption tax isn't feasible, adding a small consumption tax (1%) while reducing corp and income taxes would be a better solution.
Bucky..no I don't know the Deans. But their wrong track point is true and has been for a long time. "Government is the great fiction through which everybody endeavors to live at the expense of everybody else" (FB) is no longer sustainable.
ReplyDeletePeople who throw the terms "liberal" and "conservative" around merely reveal their ignorance. Political scientists use the terms because they have developed reasonably clear definitions of what the terms mean.
ReplyDeletePeople who use the terms on this forum are clearly NOT political scientists and are simply using the terms in relation to whatever their own political stance is. To Hitler, Dick Cheney would be a left winger. To Stalin, Ted Kennedy would be a right winger.
Buckbottom and his sort use the terms as ways of avoiding actual thinking. Rush/Beck/Fox/fruitcake websites tell them that something is liberal, so it must be bad, and they just parrot what they hear. Useless as tits on a boar.
On Oct. 22, 1986, President Ronald Reagan signed a tax cutting bill into law. The bill ushered in one of the longest economic growth periods in U.S. history.
ReplyDeleteDon't look for the liberal Democrat President Barack Obama to do that. At every turn, he's itching to raise taxes.
Man...., it took a bunch of liberal idiots to vote him in, it'll take a bunch of smart people to vote him out.
I sure wish we had Ronald Reagan back.
Steve Jobs told Obama he was going to be a one term president if he wasn't more business friendly.
ReplyDeleteNow, that was a man with a high IQ in my book.
If you think the Libyans are happy. Wait til Obama is voted out.
ReplyDeleteBucky needs one of those anal sphincter implants they're developing at WFUSM - implanted in this mouth. Maybe that would stop his daily dribble of crap ...
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more. He reminds me of a guy I grew up with who when he wasn't sleeping or eating was constantly running his mouth, spewing out an endless stream of nonsense. We called him "Motormouth".
ReplyDelete