Bricks and Boondoggles

My local town purchased an old building to become a new "civic center".  There are only about 6,000 residents in our town, and the majority of those people do not own their homes.  They are property renters, which means that they vote but do not directly pay property taxes to the municipality.  Our town sometimes falls prey to the idea that because something is a nice idea that we must spend taxpayer money on it.  I highly differ.
When it comes to this civic center, it was a boondoggle from the beginning.  It was an old building owned by the American Legion.  Well, the leader of that post is now on our town council.  The woman who was leading the charge to purchase the building and renovate it is also now on the town council.  At least the building was purchased by the town prior to her being elected.
The problem is that we already have a civic center building for public use.  We also have an unused Lion's Club building in town.
The idea was to get private donations to renovate the building.  The building cost the town $60,000 and the renovation to make it usable was going to be $300,000.  Private donations were never going to cover the cost.  So what do fundraising leaders do?  They look to handouts from government grants, of course.  What does an empty building in a rural town have to do with the USDA?  Why are our federal tax dollars funding a civic center in Podunk, NC?  What business is it of taxpayers in Arkansas or California to help fund a boondoggle project in Selma?  The only positive side to this is that it was not a loan, so we are not being taxed on the front end to supply the funding by the federal government and taxed locally on the back end to repay the loan.
Well, the fundraising is not quite over yet.  The town is still taking donations/purchases of bricks to fund the project further.  I have purchased a brick to pave a veterans' memorial before, and they were about one fourth the cost of what the town is asking.  But, IF the town is willing to take my $100 to engrave the brick I want to purchase with the message I want, I am willing to buy one before the upcoming deadline.

My little town providing free public internet?

There are a few issues that I have with the idea that the Town of Selma will be providing free public wi-fi.  First, there is no reason why we have to hire a "consultant" to do this for the town when there are high-speed network providers that can do the job right here already.  Furthermore, one of these same providers already does networks like this, and I use their services regularly to connect to computers and networks hundreds of miles away.  I have my company computer on this very desk connected 24/7 to do the very thing that the town is spending almost $60k to do.  This can be done for far less money.  Next, I have a problem with providing wifi hotspots at public expense, especially "the public would be able to have free Wi-Fi service up to two blocks away from all 10 public buildings".  Some of these buildings are near residential housing and businesses. That means that I will be subsidizing tenants, homeowners, and business owners with free internet while my neighbors have to pay full price for theirs.  With internet providers abound and mobile data plans in plentiful supply at reasonable prices (even free if you know where to look), why are we taxpayers funding internet for private citizens and businesses?  It is one thing if private businesses wish to provide free wifi as a way to attract, keep, and placate customers.  Different data carriers even provide free hotspots around the country for their own customers.  But a town government should not be giving away that for which we who fund the town have to pay.

A letter to the editor of The Selma News

I don't know if this will get published or not, but I sent this letter to the editor of The Selma News just a bit ago.  The newspaper rarely publishes their news articles online except for a few here or there, so the article to which I refer is not available to share online or I would do so.
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Just five days before our election last week, Donald Trump came to Johnston County to speak locally at The Farm for a campaign rally.  This rally drew approximately 17, 500 people according to Sheriff Steve Bizzell.  I am not personally a fan of Mr. Trump, but considering that it was being held only three miles up the road and I wanted my son to experience the political process, I took him and my wife to the event.  I still remember back to my youth when I went to a Ted Kennedy speech in my home town back in 1980 when he ran for President.  I carry that memory thirty-six years later.

While at the event, we noticed emergency services presence from different towns, most notably the Four Oaks Fire Department supplied a ladder truck that bore the American flag.  We saw other departments that had staff and equipment on site, but did not notice any from Selma.  Considering that the event was in our backyard, so to speak, I expected to see our town's presence if emergency responders were going to be on hand.  I can tell you that EMS workers were kept busy from people fainting after being on their feet all day and not eating any meals all day long.  Between old age, health conditions, and diabetes, we saw three people just in our immediate area that needed assistance.

I mentioned that we noticed the Four Oaks ladder truck being there prominently displayed.  I obtained some insight on my own after the rally and read some confirmation of what I learned in “The Selma News” article last week about our town manager vetoing the presence of our fire department at the rally for fear of showing favor to one political party over the other.  If only the candidate from one party decided to come to our town, how is that showing any favoritism?  This politically correct myopic fear wears thin on the patience of many people, as evidenced by the outcome of the election.

Look, Hillary Clinton could have had a rally locally if she wanted but she ignored little old Johnston County, and probably for good reason.  She could probably have filled the local theater with supporters and had some room to spare.  Personally, she would have had to get John Bon Jovi to perform here in Selma to get me to come see her rally.  I wasn’t willing to travel just as far as Raleigh to see Bon Jovi at a Clinton event, even if I did grow up listening to his music, still own some of his CDs, and still like his iconic tunes.

But if it was Clinton having a rally in town, I would not allow my disdain for her as a person and candidate veto our town's visibility in our American process or at a local event.  As I said, I am no fan of Donald Trump myself.  He was never my candidate from the beginning, I vehemently disagree with some of his positions, and I am embarrassed as an American by some of his statements.  But, I am even more embarrassed as a US citizen by what Mrs. Clinton has actually done.  Still, I would not let that stand in the way of our town being represented at a local event that she was holding.

Our little town missed an opportunity for visibility and good public relations with this event.

Troy LaPlante
Selma, NC

Voting irregularity found today in Selma, NC

I shared this on Facebook earlier.  Yeah, I know that I have not been blogging like I should be, but I actually do share a whole lot of stuff on Facebook, instead.  It is a lot easier to just share there.

VOTING IRREGULARITY: I was voter #73 in my precinct this morning. My wife voted about an hour or 90 minutes before I did. She said that the person in front of her to place their ballot in the voting machine had their ballot show an error upon scanning. The same happened to her when she put her ballot in the machine. When I got to vote and went to put my ballot in the machine it was rejected not once but twice. I was told that they would have to hand count the ballot after two rejections and my ballot had to be put in a separate bin. If we have at least three different errors out of 73 as of the time I voted, something is definitely amiss.

ADDENDUM:
Here are some comments that were left on my Facebook post.  I have blurred out the names and some of the profile pictures since I don't have permission to share that info.

FURTHER ADDENDUM:

I watched the election results come in last night.  My wife and I checked both the local county races and some more state wide races.  We were on the county web site and sites from some local media outlets watching the results trickle in.  I finally saw our local precinct results post.  It is possible that my ballot was indeed counted.  

YET ANOTHER ADDENDUM:

Someone I know was a precinct official and was present when I tried to cast my ballot.  He was the one that registered me in the system in order to vote upon arrival.  He is also a friend on Facebook, saw my post, and commented the following:

From my friends at ALIPAC

Just as certain hot spots in the nation became critical battlegrounds in the national fight against illegal immigration, such as Waukegan, Illinois, Farmers Branch, Texas, Hazleton, Pennsylvania, Prince William County, VA, and many others, now Chatham County, NC is a focal point.

While the 287(g) program, which saves innocent American lives from criminal illegal aliens, is sweeping the state of North Carolina thanks in part to your efforts!

Unfortunately, the pro-illegal alien groups are trying to set a precedent to reverse or stall our progress. They got the Chatham County Commissioners to vote to block all local police in the country from working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. What is worse is that they did it in secret by voting on the measure as the second to last item in a planning meeting.

So while the NC media and taxpayers had no idea this measure would be voted on, the illegal alien supporters did and many of their leaders spoke in favor of the practice.

We need your help!

Please review the following materials and then craft your own call, e-mail, and letter to the Chatham County Commissioners.

Here is our main message...

"We call on the Chatham County Commission to reconsider this issue, reconsider their vote, and to do so with proper notification and public comment!"

Please take the following steps.

1. Please review these videos. We hope that the messages and tactics found in these videos will be of assistance to you in your efforts to get 287(g) in your community. If you approve of these videos, please send them to others in your network, vote them 5 stars, Favorite them, and make supportive comments.

Chatham County Illegal Immigration Debate: William Gheen Speech pt. 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tq16_qgVRJE

Chatham County Illegal Immigration Debate: William Gheen Speech 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Vp3cCAcyyU&feature=channel_page

Chatham County Illegal Immigration Debate: William Gheen Speech 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EPocaL2d5U&feature=channel_page

2. Review our press release and the article about this issue.

Chatham Co. Residents Call on Commissioners to Reconsider Immigration Vote
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-144491.html

N.C.: Chatham County not involved with ICE program
http://www.alipac.us/article-3922-thread-1-0.html

ALIPAC's Open Letter to the Chatham County Commission
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-144366.html


3. Craft your own message and call, call, call these commissioners with your message! Then follow up with and e-mail and/or letter.

Here is the contact information you should use. With George Lucier leading the way, all five voted to block local police from working with I.C.E.

Chatham County, North Carolina
12 East Street
P.O. Box 1809
Pittsboro, NC 27312
TEL (919) 542-8200
FAX (919) 542-8272
http://www.chathamnc.org

Commissioners:

George Lucier, Chair (District 3)
628 Redbud
Pittsboro NC 27312
919-542-4629
glucier@earthlink.net


Sally Kost, Vice Chair (District 1)
1101 New Hope Church Road
Apex, NC 27523
(919) 367-0727 (home)
(919) 696-7840 (cell)
SallyKost@gmail.com

Allen Michael "Mike" Cross (District 2)
388 Cross Point Road
P.O. Box 173
Moncure, NC 27559
(919) 774-3309
duckdogcross@aol.com


Carl E. Thompson, Commissioner (District 5)
67 Robert Thompson Road
Bear Creek, NC 27207
(919) 837-2407
cethompson@embarqmail.com


Tom Vanderbeck, Commissioner (District 4)
8180 Old Graham Road
Pittsboro, N.C. 27312
919-545-2160
Tom@Vanderbeck4chatham.org


We are told that Chatham County Sheriff Richard Webster may be open to joining with Immigration and Customs Enforcement if the County Commissioners will stop blocking him.

Here is his contact info:

Chatham County, North Carolina
Sheriff's Office
295 West Street
P.O. Box 429
Pittsboro, NC 27312
TEL (919) 542-2811
FAX (919) 542-8272

http://www.chathamnc.org/Index.aspx?page=978


To email Sheriff Webster
richard.webster@chathamsheriff.com


The ALIPAC Team
www.alipac.us

And my email to all of the above:

I am writing to you all to express my dismay at your decision to prohibit participation in the 287(g) program by your county law enforcement agency. As protectors of the public, I find it beyond comprehension that you would decide to make Chatham County, in effect, a sanctuary for illegal immigrants, especially those with criminal backgrounds. It is bad enough that our federal government has abrogated their responsibilities in securing our borders, but for a county government to encourage such immigration and attract those who ought not be in this country to begin with and offer safe haven for known criminals is a violation of the public trust.

One of the few positive things that a government can do is actively protect its citizenry. There are some county Sheriffs that are attempting to secure such for their jurisdictions, such as Sheriff Steve Bizzel over in Johnston County. Instead of capitulating to politically correct twaddle, he actually gets support from his county commissioners to work towards securing that county from undue criminal influence.

I urge you to reconsider your breach of responsibility in your recent decision to fail to allow your county servants to participate in one of the few programs that makes sense any more in this country, the 287(g) program for dealing with immigration authorities, policies, and immigrants. Should you fail to do so, the future of your county safety and financial stability will be in serious jeopardy. You are going to attract the criminal element to your county as well as those who drain economic resources.

Please do the right thing for Chatham County and the entire State of North Carolina and reconsider your faulty decision, do so in a public spotlight rather than stealthily as you took your original decision.

Sincerely,

Troy M. LaPlante
A citizen that is very uneasy about your decision taking and reasoning abilities

Tax hike alert!

Johnston County property owners are about to take it on the chin again. I have no frickin' idea how construction costs can suddenly go up by 50%, but I do believe we are getting hosed. Now we are going to pay for it. Thanks, Johnston County. My taxes are about to go up yet again. I just got an increase in property taxes two years in a row from Selma. My electricity bill just went up 11% or so. My trash collection just went up another $2 a month. Now our property taxes for the county are about to go up because of a school being built with 50% cost over runs. Thanks. From WTSB's news page:

$30 Million Loan Will Pay For New Cleveland High School
Johnston County Commissioners have agreed to borrow $30 million to pay for a new Cleveland High School. However, in borrowing the money, the county can’t rule out a possible property tax increase to cover the debt. Higher costs for steel and petroleum products have pushed prices way up for proposed high schools in Cleveland and Corinth Holders. Voters had approved $60 million in a 2007 school bond referendum to pay for both schools at a price tag of $30 million each. However, construction cost estimates have risen to about $45 million for each school. By shifting most of the money from the bond to the Corinth Holders project and borrowing $30 million for the Cleveland High, both schools can be built and opened by the fall of 2011. But it could come with as much as a three cents tax increase. “Certain financial models show the possibility of that,” County Manager Rick Hester told WTSB, “but in the past we have been fortunate enough to absorb that, and we hope to do that this time.” The County will borrow $30 million from First Citizens Bank at 4.14 percent and repay the note over a 19-year period. Commissioners hope to use lottery funds to make the annual payments, however the county’s proceeds from the state lottery vary each year. Commissioners unanimously approved the loan with Commissioner Jeff Carver recusing himself due to being a board member of First Citizens Bank.

Will a humongo new shopping center be coming to Selma?

I have heard for almost two years about a possible new large shopping center coming to town at exit 97 and Hwy 70 near JR's. Originally, the story was that a Home Depot and maybe a Target were coming. Recently, I have heard more rumors. Now there is a formal news story on the subject in The Selma News. The developer presented before the Selma Town Council on Wednesday. By the way, I am not so much in favor of constant special meetings of the town council as a matter of public policy, but that is beside the point.

The developer mentioned possible tenants as Target, Bass Pro Shop, Cabellas, JC Penney, and IKEA, along with up-scale restaurants and motels. Keep in mind that these are just suggested POSSIBILITIES. I am all for such a development, so don't get me wrong. However, keep in mind at this point, the developer is selling the idea and soliciting getting $15 million or so in reimbursements from the town for infrastructure improvements. I am not for corporate welfare programs. I am, however, for the town paying for bringing needed utilities to customers and helping with roads that benefit the town, not just the developer.

Personally, I am dubious over the claim of a Cabella's. I would LOVE to have a Cabella's. However, one already was proposed for Four Oaks and that project crashed and burned. Cabella's announced that they were going to put one in to Richmond, VA and figured that one here would be too close. I find that claim fallacious, but whatever. Just look at the map of their existing locations on their web site (the link I gave). I am not going to drive three hours to go to a Cabella's. If they reconsider because of a better location, highway access, and other development, then hallelujah. I would be thrilled with a Bass Pro Shops, as well.

Anyway, this development would certainly be good for the town for several reasons. First, the developer wants to be voluntarily annexed. Great. They would bring a lot of revenue for electricity and water, if they were to become Selma utility customers. The tax revenue would be wonderful. Other development would certainly come as a result, as well as possible residents.

It will certainly be interesting to see what "develops" in this situation. I am all for development of fallow ground and expanding this area. I am dubious as to the claims that "as much as $500 million in sales tax is leaving the county each year to go to Wake, Wayne, Wilson and Nash counties." That sounds like an excessively high estimate. It is part of the sales pitch.

I do agree with this quote, though.

Dougherty added that Selma is unique in the county in that it is ideally situated to host such a regional complex. He cited I-95 and US 70 and major thoroughfares. He said Exit 98 is excellent for such a complex because it has great access. "There’s no other city right on the an interchange like this," said the developer, who has had an office in Selma for the past two years.

Troy's note: Exit 98 must be a typo, since 98 is the next exit up the interstate and is not the JR's exit. That is exit 97. Access on and off 98 sucks and is difficult, and it could not support the heavy traffic that would come from such a complex. Exit 97 could. If it is not a typo and a direct quote, then it must have been a faux pas.

Either way, I am looking forward to seeing the addition to the town.

Since Shearon Harris is in Wake County, Orange County Commissioners can go pound sand

When Berkley East, otherwise known as Orange County, NC annexes Wake County, then they can have a say in what goes on in Wake County. Until then, the Orange County Board of Commissioners needs to STFU.

From WRAL:

Progress Energy might build two more nuclear reactors at its Shearon Harris facility in Wake County. However, the company first has to get approval to do it.

Before company officials make up their minds, some local elected officials are moving forward with plans to oppose it.

The company is in the midst of public hearings with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a requirement to build new reactors.

Progress Energy officials said a growing customer base and a higher demand for power justify the expansion. The company expects to add 500,000 customers in the next 20 years.

The approval process could take years, but Orange County isn't wasting any time. The Board of Commissioners called a special meeting for Thursday night to consider a resolution to oppose Progress Energy's permit to expand Shearon Harris.

The resolution says Orange County is concerned about the potential for spontaneous combustion of spent nuclear fuel rods during low water conditions. It also says expansion of the plant would enhance the attraction of the facility for terrorist attacks.

Wake County leaders are on record in support of the plan. The school district approves.

Oddly enough, the liberals in Orange County must be in support of burning more fossil fuels to run power plants and therefore, in their eyes, pollute the environment and contribute to (non-existent) global warming. The need for more electricity production is there, but leave it to whining liberals to try to stop progress. (Ha, ha, Progress Energy...get it?)

This is just wrong. Charged for protecting your property?

When your dog is being attacked by another dog, one should have the right to exercise lethal force to protect one's own property and friend. If I am walking my dog or I have my dog in my back yard and a vicious dog attacks either myself or my dog, I am going to use whatever force is necessary to protect my dog. If that means shooting the attacking dog, so be it. In protecting my own dog by shooting the attacker, there is no way under all fairness and common sense that I should be charged with animal cruelty. Allowing the attack on my dog would be animal cruelty, not defending my canine companion and property. This would be a JUSTIFIED use of a firearm in the judgment of any rational, fair minded individual.

The following news story was on WTSB's news page today. It is just wrong to charge this man with discharging a firearm in the city limits (which is a BS ordinance to begin with) and animal cruelty. This is NOT justice. It is just plain wrong.

Owner, Neighbor Charged Following Dog's Death
Two Selma neighbors are in trouble with authorities following the shooting death of a canine. It happened Monday night on Godwin Street. Selma Police reported William Lynn Godwin, 32, shot and killed his neighbor’s dog, reportedly while trying to defend his own animal. Godwin was charged with cruelty to animals and discharging a firearm within town limits. The dog’s owner, Kevin Campbell, was cited for violating a town ordinance of allowing his dog to run at large.

Louisiana had it right, SCOTUS had it wrong, NC getting there

I served on a jury for a trial of a prisoner accused of beating a chomo. Chomos are scum. He got what he deserved, in my opinion, but the assault was also illegal and we had to judge the case as such.

In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court of the United States recently struck down a Louisiana law that allows capital punishment for people convicted of raping children. First of all, capital punishment is neither cruel nor unusual, but that was the court's ruling as it is applied to rape cases. They said that the punishment was unfit for the crime. Personally, I find it entirely appropriate.

Here in North Carolina, the governor just signed a bill into law making child rape and molestation offenses carry stiffer punishment. Personally, I think like Louisiana did and believe in the swift, efficient use of the death penalty for chomos. I wish we could do so.

From the WTSB news page:

Governor Signs Jessica Lunsford Act Into Law
On Monday, Gov. Mike Easley signed into law The Jessica Lunsford Act. The law means sexual predators convicted in North Carolina will face stiffer punishment for rape or sexual offenses against children. In certain criminal offenses the minimum sentence will be 25 years in prison followed by lifetime satellite-based monitoring, or the possibility of life imprisonment without parole. The law also increases the criminal penalties for sexual exploitation of a minor and promoting prostitution of a minor, and makes the sex offender registration requirements more stringent. The Act creates a new criminal offense making it unlawful for a sex offender to be on certain premises such as schools, playgrounds and child care centers. Sex offender registries must now be checked, by local school districts, of all school contractual personnel before allowing them to have direct interaction with students. "Today we send a message that North Carolina will protect our children from vicious predators," Easley said. "We will make sure they spend more time in prison and we will track them 24-7 to make sure they never abuse children again." Easley signed the bill in Gaston County, where Jessica Lunsford, the 9-year-old for whom the bill is named, was born and lived until she moved to Florida in 2004. In February 2005 she was raped and murdered by a sex offender. The offender, John Couey, was convicted of her murder and has been sentenced to death. Police had lost track of Couey, who was staying with his sister in the same neighborhood as Jessica. Appearing with the governor at the bill signing was Mark Lunsford, father of Jessica, who has lobbied legislatures around the nation, including North Carolina, for tougher child predator laws. The bill passed the House by a vote of 109-1, and the Senate by a vote of 46-0. The new law goes into effect December 1.

Water conservation and reclamation hurts American families?

Water reclamation is not a bad idea. I am all for recycling used water, often called "gray water" for purposes of irrigation, construction, and other non-potable purposes. If the water is just going to waste anyway, then I say it is a great move to do so. However, I have a slight problem with the US government paying for a small town like Benson to build a pipeline to reclaim said water. Why should people in Arkansas be contributing to the project here in North Carolina?

Projects like this are what I consider to be pork barrel spending. Sure, some people may benefit. However, it is not the job of the federal government to act like an unending pool of money to be siphoned off for special or experimental projects.

When building or expanding the town's water supply is the time to innovate and include the gray water reclamation lines. I remember that the proposed ethanol plant in Selma was planning on using gray water for its plant. However, there was no such line existing anywhere. One would have to be built from way out in Smithfield all the way in to Selma's fringes. That of course would have been funded by tax dollars in one form or another.

Government grants are TAX DOLLARS. Never forget that fact. Whenever some town applies for a grant to revitalize its downtown, for people to renovate their homes, or whatever, we are talking about tax dollars. Multiply those local expenditures times the tens of thousands of other communities in this nation and you can see why we have such a huge budget in our federal government.

Government loans are probably even worse than grants. Why do I say that? Because the federal government taxes us citizens to get the capital. Then they turn around and lend it to municipalities like Selma or Benson, as is the case in this instance. Then the town has to pay back borrowed tax dollars with funds it derives from...yup, you guessed it, tax dollars. In essence, we are being taxed twice for the same funding.

The federal government has no business being in the lending industry. It has no business redistributing the wealth of its citizens. People wonder why I am passionate about such waste, why I decry it so. It is because it truly impacts each and every tax payer in this nation. There are some who pay no taxes. Even people who pay very little taxes often get back more money than they paid the government by nature of the earned income tax credit and the recent tax rebate incentive package.

In the 1950's, women were primarily stay at home mothers and wives. The man of the house went to work in the morning and came home in the evening. They usually lived comfortably on one salary. Nowadays, that is virtually impossible for many Americans. It means that more and more families can not survive on a single income so now both parents have to work. It means that children are placed in day care so that a stranger can raise the children instead of their own parents. It means that there is a lot more economic pressure that stresses out couples and fractures their marriages. It means that women have lost the sense of femininity and compete with men in the work place instead of glorying in the role of a mother that they were created to perform. It means that the high taxation rates have short changed our youth instead of helping them. It means that welfare queens can have more babies and get more money instead of marrying a man and settling down. It undermines the family. Yes, building a gray water reclamation pipeline in Benson helps undermine its own citizenry.

Here is the news item from the WTSB news page.

Benson Receives Federal Loan To Fund $3M Reclaimed Wastewater Project
Benson is one step closer to start construction of a nearly eight-mile pipeline to take treated wastewater and deliver it to CPC Wholesale Nursery on Benson Hardee Road where it will be used for irrigation. The town has accepted a low-interest loan for $886,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help fund the $3 million project. Reclaimed wastewater can be used to irrigate decorative plants and other crops not intended for human consumption. Commercial-scale grass growing operations, including pasture land, golf courses and turf farms, are common beneficiaries of reclaimed wastewater. While no other area businesses or farmers have expressed an interest in tying their irrigation systems into the pipeline, officials maintain it’s an excellent incentive to prospective agribusiness owners. Benson Town Manager Keith Langdon said the nursery was chosen as the initial recipient of the water because of the amount of water they use for irrigation: between 300,000 to 350,000 gallons per day. The pipeline is part of a water reclamation project that would capture an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 gallons per day of water that would otherwise be dumped back into Hannah Creek. The town is currently restricted to treating and discharging no more than 1.97 million gallons per day. While the reclaimed water project will reduce the amount of treated wastewater being released, it will not increase the capacity of the water treatment plant, according to Martin Morris, the plant supervisor. Water reclamation is not entirely new to Benson. For the past two years, effluent from the wastewater treatment plant has been routed to South Johnston High School - about a mile from the plant - to be used for irrigation. Mr. Morris said the school uses about 24,000 gallons per day.

Congratulations on the story, Lewis. You deserve it. Finally, someone recognizes your efforts.

From The Selma News:

Local man uses hobbies to promote Selma
By Kelly Lake, News Editor 17.JUL.08

While his career brought Lewis Mullen to Selma, it was a love of the place that kept him here. Since his retirement, he’s made hobbies of photography and web design and uses them daily to promote the town he calls home.

Mullen relocated to Selma 41 years ago when Sylvania opened in Smithfield. He had previously worked with GE Communications in Lynchburg, VA, where he lived with his wife Marian. He spent many years with Sylvania as an engineer, designing test equipment to be used to test television sets before they were sold.

During that time Mullen and his wife had two children, Teresa and Robert. When the company looked at moving to Tennessee, Mullen took his family for a visit. He was told that in order to keep his job he would have to relocate along with the company.

“He took a vote and decided to stay in Selma and take our chance,” said Mullen. “When we moved here, I figured it was just another move, but once we got here, it was hard to leave. It’s home to me. I love my hometown.”

Mullen has made it his business, his passion even, to promote Selma in any way he can. At age 74, Mullen maintains countless web sites promoting the Selma community, business district, antique dealers, and civic groups, along with his own photography. Many of his photos are taken in a around Selma.

He got his first camera in Korea in 1953, where he was stationed in an aviation engineering group as a member of the United States Army and attached to the Air Force. The group helped to build an air strip there. Mullen used his “pull” with the group of pilots to fly over Korea and snap numerous photos. Many were lost when a bag containing most of pictures and negatives was stolen as he returned home.

Today, he promotes Selma everyday through his photographs. He bought a book of web design and designed a site so he could showcase his photography. He has more than 60,000 photographs archived on CD, about 10,000 of those from Selma. The photos were given to The Heritage Center in Smithfield for public use, said Mullen. Now he posts photos of the area on Selma Daily Photo. There are about 300 towns showcased on the site worldwide. “It’s a good way of promoting Selma, one of the smallest towns on the site,” said Mullen. “I get comment from around the world on my photographs.” Once he set up his own site, Mullen decided to offer his services to others, nearly free of charge. Most of the people he has designed sites for pay a small monthly hosting fee. Mullen’s time and efforts are free. He maintains a site to promote Selma Railroad Days, the Selma Car Classic, and Selma’s East Coast Antique Show.

As a member of the Selma Development Partnership (SDP), he created the web site selmanc.info. The SDP sponsors the site and Mullen maintains it. Through this site, which provides an abundance of information about Selma, Mullen offers links to business people who are also members of the SDP. “If they don’t have a web page to link, I’ll create one for them,” said Mullen. “Over the past five years, I’ve built web sites for our antique dealers. I still maintain two for Railroad Street Antiques and TWM’s Antique Mall.” He created the web site antiquesselma.com for the Selma Antique Dealers Association and continues to maintain it. “It is a way to promote antiques in Selma and the site gets a lot of hits,” said Mullen. He said his hobbies give him something to do – he “hates” retirement. “To be honest, I don’t know if I do it for Selma or for myself,” said Mullen.

Just before the All-American Festival in Selma to celebrate July Fourth, Mullen posted a fireworks photo from last year on selmanc.info. For several weeks it was the top fireworks photo displayed when people search Google for fireworks. The site received about 7,000 hits a day. “Those people now know something about Selma for having visited the web site,” said Mullen. Mullen also designed and maintains a web site for the Keep Johnston County Beautiful Festival of Trees. He donated numerous prints to the SDP this year to be sold to raise funds for the non-profit organization.

As a member of Selma’s Appearance Commission, Mullen helped choose recipients of the residential and commercial appearance awards. He took photos of each winner and provided them to the local newspaper for publication. He still can be found at nearly all events in town, snapping photos to preserve the moment. While on the Appearance Commission, Mullen came up with the idea to provide planter, complete with flowers, for each storefront in the uptown area. He personally planted flowers in each. Although some no longer contain flowers, the planter can still be seen on Selma streets.

Mullen more recently has posted several videos on YouTube and other various sites that promote Selma in a positive way. He frowns on those who would post video showing Selma in a negative light. “There is a lot on YouTube that people, especially children, shouldn’t see, but the site has a lot of potential,” said Mullen. “I believe technology should be used in a positive way, not in a negative one.” Mullen also has videos on Time Warner Cable’s public access channel 1233, which promote Selma.

“Selma has gotten a lot of positive worldwide exposure with its fireworks this year,” said Mullen. “I sent three to CNN ad three made it on television. The fireworks photos made it into our local paper and were featured on several web sites.” Mullen said he enjoys doing what he does and hopes that the town benefits from it. “I love taking pictures and showing them off,” said Mullen. “And, I love Selma and enjoy doing whatever I can to show it in a positive light.”

It took a while for the local radio station to report it, but here it is

I have written a few times about Selma's tax rate going up. Here is what WTSB reported today.

Selma Tax Rate Jumps 4 Cents
Selma residents will be paying higher property taxes under a budget approved by the town council last week. The $15.4 million spending plan includes a 4 cents property tax increase from 49 to 53 cents per $100 valuation. This means, for a resident with a $100,000 house, they will be paying about $40 more a year in property taxes. Residents will likely be faced with an increase in electrical rates during the next year. Town employees will see a five percent pay increase.

Thoughts on property tax rate hikes

I have been in touch with my elected town officials regarding the proposed budget for Selma. The vote on the budget is today. I highly recommend all citizens getting active enough in their community to take part in their town, as well as county, state, and federal governments. Contact your elected representatives when you have concerns, questions, and comments. It is how you learn and make your voice heard.

I am going to give credit where credit is due. I have always had great interaction with Eric Sellers, who was appointed to fill an open slot on the town council and then beat me last election for that seat. My personal opinions aside as to how he was appointed to the position in his first, partial term, I must say that overall, I have been pleased with how he approaches his job as a council member. Eric has always been pleasant and responsive in my dealings and communications with him. Thank you, Eric, your efforts are appreciated by me if not by anyone else.

I am not going to share my entire conversation with him here, but I did share what I had written previously on this very blog. What I do want to share is some research I did. I have written previously about my best frame of reference, the town where I grew up. I was fairly involved for a teenager in town affairs. I was a stringer reporter for the local radio station, I was involved with youth government programs every year in school, I knew the town manager, and I was in the fire department's youth program. If you search my archives, you may see that I reference Franklin, New Hampshire from time to time. That is my point of reference, since the town is almost comparable to Selma.

I called and spoke to Franklin's town assessor's office after reading the tax rate on their web site. I inquired as to what the tax rate included, and she clued me in that this was the total property tax burden on real estate for all state, county, and town taxation. I ran some numbers. I emailed the following to my town council member.

I wanted to share a bit of info with you regarding tax rates. I grew up in a town about the size of Selma in population. They are now not far off from us, about 8,000 people now. I was researching the tax rate in the town. That town has a property tax rate of $18.04 per thousand valuation. That includes the share for the state and the county as well as the town. I was crunching some numbers. Assuming that my house was suddenly transplanted into that town and had the same tax value of $80,840 (according to the Johnston County appraisal card available online on the county web site), my taxes in NH would be $1458.35 per year. Here in Selma, the taxes are $1.27 per hundred valuation. The equates to $1026.67. You may think that hey, the Selma taxes are a lot less, $431.68 per year less. However, once you take into consideration the fact that in my example, NH has NO state income and NO state sales tax, you can see the disparity in effective tax rates. Do I pay more than $431 in income and sales tax each year? You better believe it. Sure, my home would be higher in appraised tax value in NH, but for the sake of comparison, I am comparing dollar value to same dollar value. That is the inherent evil in property taxation (the ethics of property taxation is a whole discussion for a whole other time). In raising 4 cents, my property taxes would only go up $32.33 per year for Selma. I personally will never miss that money. I spend that on two people at Edelweiss for dinner. However, it is the principle of the thing. When does it stop?

I have known for a long time that we in NC were getting hosed on taxes.

At the rally today

I took today off from work to attend the ALIPAC rally in downtown Raleigh. I was helping provide the internet audio feed so that people could listen live to the rally via the web. I was asked to be there at 8 AM. I did not comprehend why I would have to be there at 8 for an 11 AM rally, but OK. I left early, found where I was going, and got a parking space. It turned out that I was being asked to be a lobbyist today and help knock on the doors of state legislators and senators. I had no idea that I would be expected to do that today. If I did understand that, I would have dressed more business like. I wore some old jeans, sneakers, and a short sleeve button shirt. I thought I was just going to be a guy in the background that was running the podcast audio.

I got to see how some things run at the state level. I have been asked in the past to go and do this sort of thing with a gun rights group. Now that I know what to expect, I may just agree more readily.

I got to meet a few people that I had talked to on the phone, either through one of my podcast shows or in conversation. I also got to meet people who are legislators from all over NC, from SC, and from various anti-illegal immigration groups. Among them was someone I have seen on TV and read about.

Chris Simcox is co-founder of The Minuteman Project. For quite sometime, I have been wanting to go to the southern border and join the Minutemen for a tour. I have often though of spending my vacation doing just that. I got the chance to talk to him a little bit. He personally went on a lobbying tour with some of ALIPAC's leaders, as well. Here is Chris's project web site. I got his contact information and may work with him for an interview when I start my podcasting again.

The picture is one I took of Chris Simcox with my tiny digital camera that is disguised as a cigarette lighter. He was right next to me at the time. I thanked him during the rally told him that I appreciated the work he has done, regardless of what Penn & Teller had to say about him. He chuckled and said that he actually had fun filming that episode with their crew. By the way, Simcox is not to be confused with Jim Gilchrist.

You can even catch me in a shot or two of the news coverage on News 14's web site. I find it amusing that Ms. Chen gave more face time to an opponent of the speakers at the rally than anyone speaker there and used extraneous, useless file video footage. But of course there is no bias in reporting nowadays...yeah, right. I just caught WRAL's news footage, but it is not on their web site yet. I did see myself in the background on WRAL, too. Doggone, I am not exactly beautiful.

Yeah, sure, like it is all about race...

When two black men commit a crime such as breaking and entering or larceny and one of them gets accidentally killed by the victim of the crime, you can count on the NAACP crying racism. Let the homeowner that accidentally killed the criminal get off light in the court system (instead of being applauded as he should be, in my opinion) and you can count on the NAACP protesting. People like Timothy Hodges is nothing but a race pimp. He exploits his own people for his personal agenda and power. People like him spoke at the town council meeting in Selma when Mayor Charles Hester made a comment about a lynching that had NOTHING to do with a black individual. Yet, the NAACP took the opportunity to exploit the situation as a racist remark. Hester deserved the negative attention as far as I am concerned, but racist it was not. Hodges was just looking for an opportunity to pimp his victimhood message.

John Reid did what he SHOULD have done to protect his livelihood and his home. Of course you will not hear from people like Timothy Hodges that people like Cornelius Brown and his partner should never have been performing criminal acts in the first place. That would not show victim status to the black race. When the perpetrator got caught and killed, then it is to the advantage of a race pimp to exploit the situation. On top of that, when Reid was not indicted, that added fuel to the race pimp's fire. Hey, Timothy Hodges and the NAACP, it is NOT all about race! It is about right and wrong. If you REALLY want to help, educate your own people to avoid being stereotypical in their behavior! Even Barack Obama got that one right yesterday. Why can't YOU?

I wonder if we will ever see this concept again in Selma

I am a firm believer in the idea that with any budget much larger than the average household, there is wasteful spending. I find areas that I could trim in my own spending. When it comes to government, I find it especially true. I have seen wasteful spending in corporate America as well as in government.

What I find interesting is how budgets are handled in different locations. I found a news article about the town where my mother resides, Bow, NH. The town had a meeting and they actually trimmed the town budget by $400,000. Bow is about the same size as Selma. There is about a $50,000 median income difference between the two towns, however.

Anyway, here is an excerpt from the article.

Bow finally took care of business last night, as residents gathered to finish voting on the annual town meeting warrant. Last night's meeting was a continuation from two weeks ago, when long debate over the annual budget delayed action on the rest of the warrant.

At that meeting, residents voted to trim the proposed budget by about $400,000, from $8.3 million to $7.9 million. Last night's meeting held little such drama, with the votes moving along efficiently and swiftly.

In Bow, the town residents are much more involved in the town decision taking than here in Selma. Perhaps that is why they were able to cut the budget so much. Food for thought.

The town where I live

They may be "grants", but still our tax dollars.

From the WTSB web site:

$850,000 Grant Will Help Rehabilitate Selma Homes, Streets
Selma town officials learned Thursday they were the recipients of a $850,000 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG). Selma was one of 18 communities across the state Governor Mike Easley said would share more than $13.7 million for community revitalization, infrastructure improvements and the construction of affordable housing. In Selma, Town Manager Stan Farmer said their funds would be used for rehabilitation of housing and paving on South Sharpe and South Webb Streets. Work in the area should be completed in no more than 30 months, Farmer said. Other grants went to the cities of Oxford, Lumberton, Tabor City, Lexington, Rockingham, Raeford, Washington, and Conover. CDBG funding is allocated to the state from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The N.C. Department of Commerce’s Division of Community Assistance administers the program for the state.

Here is my commentary. First, perhaps we would have more ability to do things locally if the federal and state governments did not siphon off so much money into Washington, DC. Second, even though these are "grants", they are still coming from tax dollars. Furthermore, the purpose of the grants are to be for "rehabilitation of housing" and the construction of "affordable housing". The term affordable is subjective. The idea of my tax dollars being taken from me, a man who works a full time, skilled labor job, on the threat of force if I do not comply voluntarily to dole out my hard earned money, and having those dollars inefficiently laundered through the world's largest bureaucracy only to be filtered down to another bureaucracy, then to another, then to private citizens for them to pay minimal money for housing or to renovate their existing homes is just plain repugnant. It is insulting. It is unfair. It is a disincentive to succeed. It is anti-Biblical. It is communistic and evil.

The article from WTSB listed a few other towns that also got grants. Multiply this times hundreds or thousands of towns across the country and you can see how our tax dollars are being wasted on programs that are not even supposed to exist. Take this program and multiply it by the countless such programs that some communistic or ignorant fools have pushed through Congress, and some well meaning but selfish President who wants to get re-elected and play politics with our tax money have passed, and the amount of money is mind boggling.

I just got this in an email today. It puts things into perspective. Government waste like this costs us billions of dollars every year.

This is too true to be very funny.

The next time you hear a politician use the word 'billion' in a casual manner, think about whether you want the politicians spending YOUR tax money. A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, but one advertising agency did a good job of putting that figure into some perspective in one of its releases.

A. A billion seconds ago it was 1959.

B. A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.

C. A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, at the rate our government is spending it.

While this thought is still fresh in our brain, let's take a look at New Orleans. It's amazing what you can learn with some simple division...

Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu (D), is presently asking the
Congress for $250 BILLION to rebuild New Orleans.

Interesting number. What does it mean?

A. Well, if you are one of 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman, child), you each get $516,528.

B. Or, if you have one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans, your home gets $1,329,787 for repairs.

C. Or, if you are a family of four, your family gets $2,066,012.

Washington , D.C .. HELLO!!! ... Are all your calculators broken??

Tax his land,
Tax his wage,
Tax his bed in which he lays.
Tax his tractor,
Tax his mule,
Teach him taxes is the rule.
Tax his cow,
Tax his goat,
Tax his pants,
Tax his coat.
Tax his ties,
Tax his shirts,
Tax his work,
Tax his dirt.
Tax his tobacco,
Tax his drink,
Tax him if he tries to think.
Tax his booze,
Tax his beers,
If he cries,
Tax his tears.
Tax his bills,
Tax his gas,
Tax his notes,
Tax his cash.
Tax him good and let him know
That after taxes, he has no dough.
If he hollers,
Tax him more,
Tax him until he's good and sore.
Tax his coffin,
Tax his grave,
Tax the sod in which he lays.
Put these words upon his tomb,
'Taxes drove me to my doom!'
And when he's gone,
We won't relax,
We'll still be after the inheritance TAX!!

We have:
Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL License Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Perm it Tax
Gasoline Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax)
IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Tax
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service charge taxes
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax (Truckers)
Sales Taxes
Recreational Vehicle Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Tax
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax
Telephone State and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Tax
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax

STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?

Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, and our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids. What happened? Can you spell "politicians!" And I still have to 'press 1' for English.

How about this one, from the same day's news, the same source:

Pine Level Fire Department Receives $38,000 From FEMA
The US Department of Homeland Security announced Friday that the Pine Level Fire Department will receive $38,000 for operations and safety. The Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG), administered through FEMA, funds local fire departments and emergency medical service organizations. The Dunn and Henderson Fire Departments were awarded $261,250 each for vehicle acquisition.

Like I said, multiply the dollar figures found here times thousands of towns across the nation. Can you see where we as a nation are over taxing, wasting, then over spending?

I just had this conversation with someone today via email. We were discussing this picture. My female friend said:

My point is that was 1955 & this is 2008. A lot of things have changed since then, like women don’t do things like that now.

I said:

In 1955, most women did stay at home and take care of the kids and do the house work. Unfortunately, our tax burden increased substantially necessitating a dual income family. Also, the women's liberation movement only hurt the family structure. The 1960's forward really hurt with the hedonism, atheistic, and hyper libertine agendas. That led to a decline in the family unit, an emphasis on self reliance instead of family reliance, a rise in births out of wedlock, single parent families, divorce, and the need for women to work outside the home.

I value women highly, contrary to the accusations of my critics. I value them so highly, in fact, that I desire for them to do exactly what they were created and given the instinct to do. That is their high calling in the Kingdom. And nothing is more sexy or lovely to see than a woman doing exactly what she was created to do.

Holy Crap! Troy agrees with the ACLU on something!

It is hard to argue with the sentiment expressed by the ACLU. With all the corruption we have seen in NC government and the fact that government is supposed to be open to the public, I am in full agreement with the ACLU on this one. No, Hell has not frozen over. Every once in a great while, the ACLU gets something right. It is a rarity, but common sense is common sense.

From The N&O:

The Rev. William Barber II is calling for legislative committees to be televised.

The head of the state's NAACP said Wednesday that too much of his group's agenda died last year in committee meetings that were not readily available to the public.

"We need to know what's happening in the committee meetings," he said. "If they can do it for the federal government on C-SPAN, we ought to be doing it in North Carolina.

"Bottom line: Open up this government."

The call comes two weeks after Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Graham called for webcams to broadcast the legislature online.

North Carolina provides live audio for sessions in both chambers, press conferences and all meetings in the Appropriations and Finance Committee rooms, but no video footage is available.

Barber said he would also like to see streaming audio of all of the committees.