I sent Michigan's Senator Carl Levin a letter discussing
the Michigan court system. In response I received a very
patronizing letter that can be found at:
www.angelfire.com/planet/iron-river/levin.pdf
It is clear to me that Senator Levin did not have any
concern for the problems in his home state. This is
NOT what we want from our elected representatives.
If he can't get something this simple right, what can
we expect of him when it comes to the bigger issues?
Bill Vajk
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Rule of Men v. Rule of Law
Today is the anniversary of D Day, of 1944 when the
Allies stormed on to the Normandy beaches starting
the major offensive that ended World War II.
I was a child of 4 at the time. We didn't hear about
it because the Germans had forced the surrender of
all radio equipment capable of picking up allied
broadcasts. The Germans maintained complete control
over what news the people living under their rule
could receive. But the events of that day reshaped
the future, all our futures.
When the World War II ended, my mother did the
paperwork and got us, her three children, transported
to the USA by military transport. First to Paris
aboard a military version of the DC3 airplane, and
subsequently to New York abord the M.S. Gripsholm on
her final journey as a confiscated (from the Swedish-
American lines) troop carrier and a war bride transport
after the war.
With the outbreak of war in Europe in September of 1939,
a mere 3 months before I was born, such rule of law as
existed instantly converted to the rule of men for the
duration of the war, and for much of Europe, for a
period totaling 50 years under various regimes controlling
the different regions.
It was this rule of men that my mother escaped fairly
quickly, though my father, who was not yet an American
citizen, followed as soon as he was able to acquire
sufficient funds to bribe the Russian officer charged
with determining who could leave the country, and who
could not.
If the rule of men had not existed, he never could have
escaped what ensued. But then, if it hadn't been a rule
of men, none of us would have needed to escape in the
first place.
When my dad arrived many months after we did, he was
fortunate enough to be well educated and have saleable
skills that resulted in him picking up right where he
left off, in the petroleum business as an exploration
geophysicist for EXXON (in those days, ESSO.)
So we escaped the rule of men by coming to the USA where
the rule of law guides our lives.
Or does it?
It seems to me that the rule of law is in control of most
of the United States of America.
However I have become aware that once I moved into Iron
County Michigan, the rule of men that I had escaped in
1945 by moving to the USA, has found me again. And just
as my parents found it intolerable in 1945, I now find
it intolerable inside the USA, specifically in Iron County,
in 2009.
Beginning some time next week I will have a new web page
dedicated to discussing how the rule of men stands in
opposition to the rule of law here in Iron County, Michigan,
as a prelude to building the legal complaints that will
be brought against various government entities in Iron
County before the federal courts since it is impossible
to achieve rule of law court verdicts in the present
circumstances in Iron County, Michigan.
Before I undertook my FOIA lawsuit against John Archocosky
in Michigan's 41st Judicial Circuit I provided ample warning to
Archocosky and the city mayor Zanon. They ignored my
warnings just as Judge C. Joseph Schwedler in Iron County
has chosen to do. I also advised Mike Cox, the Michigan
Attorney General, Judge Celello of Iron Mountain, Governor
Jennifer Grandholm (Michigan) as well as the Michigan
Supreme Court. Nobody is paying attention.
For their part, the Supreme Court has removed some of the
evidence against them from the internet, a document called
"ADM File No. 2007-01" but no matter, others besides
myself have seen it before it was removed and copies are
extant.
So this is a combined disclosure about my past as well
as a promise of some of what the future holds for
those personally invested in imposing the rule of
men on this community, and on me.
Bill Vajk
Allies stormed on to the Normandy beaches starting
the major offensive that ended World War II.
I was a child of 4 at the time. We didn't hear about
it because the Germans had forced the surrender of
all radio equipment capable of picking up allied
broadcasts. The Germans maintained complete control
over what news the people living under their rule
could receive. But the events of that day reshaped
the future, all our futures.
When the World War II ended, my mother did the
paperwork and got us, her three children, transported
to the USA by military transport. First to Paris
aboard a military version of the DC3 airplane, and
subsequently to New York abord the M.S. Gripsholm on
her final journey as a confiscated (from the Swedish-
American lines) troop carrier and a war bride transport
after the war.
With the outbreak of war in Europe in September of 1939,
a mere 3 months before I was born, such rule of law as
existed instantly converted to the rule of men for the
duration of the war, and for much of Europe, for a
period totaling 50 years under various regimes controlling
the different regions.
It was this rule of men that my mother escaped fairly
quickly, though my father, who was not yet an American
citizen, followed as soon as he was able to acquire
sufficient funds to bribe the Russian officer charged
with determining who could leave the country, and who
could not.
If the rule of men had not existed, he never could have
escaped what ensued. But then, if it hadn't been a rule
of men, none of us would have needed to escape in the
first place.
When my dad arrived many months after we did, he was
fortunate enough to be well educated and have saleable
skills that resulted in him picking up right where he
left off, in the petroleum business as an exploration
geophysicist for EXXON (in those days, ESSO.)
So we escaped the rule of men by coming to the USA where
the rule of law guides our lives.
Or does it?
It seems to me that the rule of law is in control of most
of the United States of America.
However I have become aware that once I moved into Iron
County Michigan, the rule of men that I had escaped in
1945 by moving to the USA, has found me again. And just
as my parents found it intolerable in 1945, I now find
it intolerable inside the USA, specifically in Iron County,
in 2009.
Beginning some time next week I will have a new web page
dedicated to discussing how the rule of men stands in
opposition to the rule of law here in Iron County, Michigan,
as a prelude to building the legal complaints that will
be brought against various government entities in Iron
County before the federal courts since it is impossible
to achieve rule of law court verdicts in the present
circumstances in Iron County, Michigan.
Before I undertook my FOIA lawsuit against John Archocosky
in Michigan's 41st Judicial Circuit I provided ample warning to
Archocosky and the city mayor Zanon. They ignored my
warnings just as Judge C. Joseph Schwedler in Iron County
has chosen to do. I also advised Mike Cox, the Michigan
Attorney General, Judge Celello of Iron Mountain, Governor
Jennifer Grandholm (Michigan) as well as the Michigan
Supreme Court. Nobody is paying attention.
For their part, the Supreme Court has removed some of the
evidence against them from the internet, a document called
"ADM File No. 2007-01" but no matter, others besides
myself have seen it before it was removed and copies are
extant.
So this is a combined disclosure about my past as well
as a promise of some of what the future holds for
those personally invested in imposing the rule of
men on this community, and on me.
Bill Vajk
Local Prison to Close.
6 June 2009:
The State of Michigan has decided to close all their
minimum security prisons, including the one in Iron
River Township.
Bill Vajk
The State of Michigan has decided to close all their
minimum security prisons, including the one in Iron
River Township.
Bill Vajk
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Iron River Twp. Town Hall Meeting
I attended the "old fashioned Town Hall Meeting"
last night at the I.R. Twp. Hall. The purpose
was to solicit support of the people for keeping
the local state prison, Camp Ottawa, open during
this period of cutbacks.
A very thorough discussion about the prison and
what that facility means to the township and the
county was presented by several people.
Officials in attendance were:
Gov. Grandholm's U.P. Rep.
State Representative - Mike Lahti
Lobbyist - Ron Basso
Supervisor - Mark Polley
Twp. Treasurer - Clements
The only Township official not introduced was
a Mr. Piwaraski,
Commander Shovald of the MSP.
Sheriff - Mark Valesano
City Mgr. Caspian - Richard Frighetto
Mayor of Iron River - Roger Zanon
Iron River City Councilman - Ray Coates
Iron River City Manager - John Archocosky
Former City Manager (Stambaugh) - Silven
Iron County Edc=A0Director - Julie Melchori
Iron County Commissioner - Rosalie King
Chamber of Commerce & EDC - Bill Leonoff
Township Attorney - Steve Polich
The Warden from Marinisco Prison Camp,
that oversees Camp Ottawa.
Notable by his absence was George Brunswick, the
district representative on the Iron County Board
of Commissioners. Four reporters from various
information media were also in attendance.
If your humble reporter has inadvertently omitted
anyone who was present, please phone Ben Smith.
The number is listed.
These (20) twenty listed above, there as a natural
business matter, comprised almost 50% of the forty-
three people I counted in attendance.
An unnamed City of Iron River official could not
confirm or deny that they were being paid for
attending. The Township Supervisor confirmed that
all Township officials attended gratis.
Ben Smith
==================================================
According to the 2000 census, Iron River Township
had 1585 people. We can safely assume that there
has not been a major change in that number. If all
43 people in attendance had been township residents
(and only about 1/2 of them were) we had a
representation of 2.7% of the total population
showing support by caring enough to attend a meeting.
That's not a very large showing and in my opinion
not very convincing of local support for the prison.
Bill Vajk
last night at the I.R. Twp. Hall. The purpose
was to solicit support of the people for keeping
the local state prison, Camp Ottawa, open during
this period of cutbacks.
A very thorough discussion about the prison and
what that facility means to the township and the
county was presented by several people.
Officials in attendance were:
Gov. Grandholm's U.P. Rep.
State Representative - Mike Lahti
Lobbyist - Ron Basso
Supervisor - Mark Polley
Twp. Treasurer - Clements
The only Township official not introduced was
a Mr. Piwaraski,
Commander Shovald of the MSP.
Sheriff - Mark Valesano
City Mgr. Caspian - Richard Frighetto
Mayor of Iron River - Roger Zanon
Iron River City Councilman - Ray Coates
Iron River City Manager - John Archocosky
Former City Manager (Stambaugh) - Silven
Iron County Edc=A0Director - Julie Melchori
Iron County Commissioner - Rosalie King
Chamber of Commerce & EDC - Bill Leonoff
Township Attorney - Steve Polich
The Warden from Marinisco Prison Camp,
that oversees Camp Ottawa.
Notable by his absence was George Brunswick, the
district representative on the Iron County Board
of Commissioners. Four reporters from various
information media were also in attendance.
If your humble reporter has inadvertently omitted
anyone who was present, please phone Ben Smith.
The number is listed.
These (20) twenty listed above, there as a natural
business matter, comprised almost 50% of the forty-
three people I counted in attendance.
An unnamed City of Iron River official could not
confirm or deny that they were being paid for
attending. The Township Supervisor confirmed that
all Township officials attended gratis.
Ben Smith
==================================================
According to the 2000 census, Iron River Township
had 1585 people. We can safely assume that there
has not been a major change in that number. If all
43 people in attendance had been township residents
(and only about 1/2 of them were) we had a
representation of 2.7% of the total population
showing support by caring enough to attend a meeting.
That's not a very large showing and in my opinion
not very convincing of local support for the prison.
Bill Vajk
Friday, May 29, 2009
Faccin's Fit of Pique
John Faccin has been working for some time now as chairman
of Iron County Parks and Recreation in order to move the
presently free boat landing into Pentoga Park, install a
boatwash, and charge a launching fee. This has been a makework
project for John who was hired to fill a position on a new
political entity made necessary by the County Board's desire
to sell of some recreational property. John's group was to
meet once or twice a year and essentially be nothing more
than a silent window dressing as a political expedient. Instead
John grabbed the bit between his teeth and has been running
hard in an attempt to gain some political clout.
As recently reported in the Iron Mountain Daily News, Faccin
laid out his plans at a recent County Board of Commissioners
meeting, but the plans were inadequate. The Board decided to
seek engineering proposals, a move that displeased Faccin.
Later in the meeting, with the agenda item he under which he
had made his presentation already exhausted, he returned
during the "public comment" period to state his displeasure
at the board's decision. Some of the newspaper text on this
aspect follows"
"During the public comment section, Faccin expressed his
disappointment at the board's decision. 'We do have the
funds for this,' he said. 'We need to get started on
construction, or this will not get finished this year.'
"He pointed out that the $10,000 estimate for the boat
wash construction was likely an over estimate, and that
the extra money could be put toward other parts of the
project."
How much longer will it be before Faccin wears out his welcome?
Faccin has no project planning or management experience that
we know of, but he's insisting that the County Board give him
a free hand to run a project he apparently little understands.
Thank heavens the County Board got this one right.
Bill Vajk
of Iron County Parks and Recreation in order to move the
presently free boat landing into Pentoga Park, install a
boatwash, and charge a launching fee. This has been a makework
project for John who was hired to fill a position on a new
political entity made necessary by the County Board's desire
to sell of some recreational property. John's group was to
meet once or twice a year and essentially be nothing more
than a silent window dressing as a political expedient. Instead
John grabbed the bit between his teeth and has been running
hard in an attempt to gain some political clout.
As recently reported in the Iron Mountain Daily News, Faccin
laid out his plans at a recent County Board of Commissioners
meeting, but the plans were inadequate. The Board decided to
seek engineering proposals, a move that displeased Faccin.
Later in the meeting, with the agenda item he under which he
had made his presentation already exhausted, he returned
during the "public comment" period to state his displeasure
at the board's decision. Some of the newspaper text on this
aspect follows"
"During the public comment section, Faccin expressed his
disappointment at the board's decision. 'We do have the
funds for this,' he said. 'We need to get started on
construction, or this will not get finished this year.'
"He pointed out that the $10,000 estimate for the boat
wash construction was likely an over estimate, and that
the extra money could be put toward other parts of the
project."
How much longer will it be before Faccin wears out his welcome?
Faccin has no project planning or management experience that
we know of, but he's insisting that the County Board give him
a free hand to run a project he apparently little understands.
Thank heavens the County Board got this one right.
Bill Vajk
Prison and Thanks to the Road Commission
Because of previous commitments I had only a brief
time to devote to the Friday (May 29th) Iron River
Township Town Hall Meeting in support of retaining
the state prison. Thanks to Mark Polley and Ron Basso
who allowed me to collar them for a brief hallway
meeting that allowed me to present the outline of
a proposal I had to make to them about the prison.
I had previously never heard that there is sawmill
training operation at the prison till this prison
closing discussion brought the information into the
wider public sphere. I think it is a shame that a
state owned facility like that is only available
to prisoners when industrial training is invaluable
to people living in this region. So I have urged
Messrs. Polley and Basso to work quickly to field
a plan, perhaps in concert with Michigan Works, to
improve the utilization of the sawmill as a trade
school for the region in addition to training
prisoners. Improved utilization of the state owned
facility might be what it takes to keep the prison
open.
While I have your attention, I want to thank and
congratulate the members of the new Iron County
Road Commission (elected last November.) For the
first time in several years, after the spring
grading of Kallio Road, it was not only a super
good job but it also has the crown it is
supposed to have and doesn't have water retaining
berms at the road edges. I believe the situation
with our Iron County roads is looking up.
Bill Vajk
time to devote to the Friday (May 29th) Iron River
Township Town Hall Meeting in support of retaining
the state prison. Thanks to Mark Polley and Ron Basso
who allowed me to collar them for a brief hallway
meeting that allowed me to present the outline of
a proposal I had to make to them about the prison.
I had previously never heard that there is sawmill
training operation at the prison till this prison
closing discussion brought the information into the
wider public sphere. I think it is a shame that a
state owned facility like that is only available
to prisoners when industrial training is invaluable
to people living in this region. So I have urged
Messrs. Polley and Basso to work quickly to field
a plan, perhaps in concert with Michigan Works, to
improve the utilization of the sawmill as a trade
school for the region in addition to training
prisoners. Improved utilization of the state owned
facility might be what it takes to keep the prison
open.
While I have your attention, I want to thank and
congratulate the members of the new Iron County
Road Commission (elected last November.) For the
first time in several years, after the spring
grading of Kallio Road, it was not only a super
good job but it also has the crown it is
supposed to have and doesn't have water retaining
berms at the road edges. I believe the situation
with our Iron County roads is looking up.
Bill Vajk
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
About Our Lobbyist
So we have a lobbyist in our midst. This brings to mind the
elementary question, how does he fit into the scheme of
things? Even more basic is the question, "Who does
Ron Basso work for?"
Well Ron works for himself. His income derives from work that he
does, so in order to generate a better income he has to sell himself
and the benefits of his work. Then he runs to Lansing, and attempts
to sell whatever his client wants to achieve.
If there aren't enough projects about to make ends meet, Ron is
forced to invent some. Is that what we want?
What did this community do before Ron and his wife came "home"
to Iron River? Are we better off having Ron intercede on our
behalf? And how does anyone measure the results? Are the people
who hire Ron incapable of achieving the same results with a bit
of work on their own part? If not, are they the right people for the
job they're in?
Bill Vajk
elementary question, how does he fit into the scheme of
things? Even more basic is the question, "Who does
Ron Basso work for?"
Well Ron works for himself. His income derives from work that he
does, so in order to generate a better income he has to sell himself
and the benefits of his work. Then he runs to Lansing, and attempts
to sell whatever his client wants to achieve.
If there aren't enough projects about to make ends meet, Ron is
forced to invent some. Is that what we want?
What did this community do before Ron and his wife came "home"
to Iron River? Are we better off having Ron intercede on our
behalf? And how does anyone measure the results? Are the people
who hire Ron incapable of achieving the same results with a bit
of work on their own part? If not, are they the right people for the
job they're in?
Bill Vajk
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Irrational Hatred has an underlying cause
Some years ago while bopping about in the Government Printing
Office Bookstore in Chicago I happened on a book called "Drug
Abuse and Drug Abuse Research. The Third Triennial Report to
Congress from the Secretary, Department of Health and Human
Services." This book has proved to be such a treasure trove
of information that the Department of HEW simply reissued the
same book when the next two editions were due to be published.
And now, fortunately, it is available on line for free.
You can find a description and a hot link to download the
entire book at click here
The PDF version of the book is some 20 megabytes so a high
speed broadband connection is desirable.
The reason I recommend this book is because, among other
things, it describes the prevalence of mental illness among
substance abusers, from alcohol through the really hard
stuff. The book also points out that for the most part,
those who abuse substances had an underlying mental illness
before they added the burden of substance abuse to their
problems. Not only that, but that there is a statistical
correlation between the type of substance of choice, and
the specifics of the related mental illness.
What the book doesn't cover, but I have found in a
limited number of cases I've personally observed, is that
deep seated long term irrational hatred is invariably
comorbid with a dual diagnosis of substance abuse and
mental illness. The saddest part, in my opinion, is that
such hatred only manifests in high functioning individuals.
And since this is an opinion of mine, I'll go so far as
to say that such hatred is quite simply a redirected
self-loathing that allows the individual with the problems
to function as well as they do.
I could easily name a handfull or two of such individuals
I've encountered in my lifetime, but to do so would be of
no benefit to anyone. I mention this matter here because
I've seen it in Iron County in a higher proportion than I
have in other places I've lived. I suspect this is because
there is less of an opportunity for success in this
economically depressed region.
Bill Vajk
Office Bookstore in Chicago I happened on a book called "Drug
Abuse and Drug Abuse Research. The Third Triennial Report to
Congress from the Secretary, Department of Health and Human
Services." This book has proved to be such a treasure trove
of information that the Department of HEW simply reissued the
same book when the next two editions were due to be published.
And now, fortunately, it is available on line for free.
You can find a description and a hot link to download the
entire book at click here
The PDF version of the book is some 20 megabytes so a high
speed broadband connection is desirable.
The reason I recommend this book is because, among other
things, it describes the prevalence of mental illness among
substance abusers, from alcohol through the really hard
stuff. The book also points out that for the most part,
those who abuse substances had an underlying mental illness
before they added the burden of substance abuse to their
problems. Not only that, but that there is a statistical
correlation between the type of substance of choice, and
the specifics of the related mental illness.
What the book doesn't cover, but I have found in a
limited number of cases I've personally observed, is that
deep seated long term irrational hatred is invariably
comorbid with a dual diagnosis of substance abuse and
mental illness. The saddest part, in my opinion, is that
such hatred only manifests in high functioning individuals.
And since this is an opinion of mine, I'll go so far as
to say that such hatred is quite simply a redirected
self-loathing that allows the individual with the problems
to function as well as they do.
I could easily name a handfull or two of such individuals
I've encountered in my lifetime, but to do so would be of
no benefit to anyone. I mention this matter here because
I've seen it in Iron County in a higher proportion than I
have in other places I've lived. I suspect this is because
there is less of an opportunity for success in this
economically depressed region.
Bill Vajk
Saturday, April 25, 2009
slowed down a bit
I apologize to the readers of this publication that the postings
have slowed down a bit of late. I've had a busy April with my
FOIA lawsuit against John Archocosky in the Iron County
Circuit Court.
The present flap has to do with whether or not the Honorable
C. Joseph Schwedler sits on the Circuit Court Bench legally or
not. I have moved to disqualify him from that judicial position
because he has been elected Probate Judge for Iron County,
and his appointment falls outside the methods permitted by
the Michigan Constitution.
For obvious reasons, I will not get into the details, but
there is a public record available to anyone at the Iron
County Courthouse. Since the information there is a part
the public record, I have put that document, asking that
Judge Schwedler be disqualified, on a publicily accessible
web page at:
click_here
Other articles will finally wind their way through the
process here at IronCountyDoings and should appear
next week.
Thanks for your patience.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
have slowed down a bit of late. I've had a busy April with my
FOIA lawsuit against John Archocosky in the Iron County
Circuit Court.
The present flap has to do with whether or not the Honorable
C. Joseph Schwedler sits on the Circuit Court Bench legally or
not. I have moved to disqualify him from that judicial position
because he has been elected Probate Judge for Iron County,
and his appointment falls outside the methods permitted by
the Michigan Constitution.
For obvious reasons, I will not get into the details, but
there is a public record available to anyone at the Iron
County Courthouse. Since the information there is a part
the public record, I have put that document, asking that
Judge Schwedler be disqualified, on a publicily accessible
web page at:
click_here
Other articles will finally wind their way through the
process here at IronCountyDoings and should appear
next week.
Thanks for your patience.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Anonymous Comments
I got another anonymous diatribe last night, on
Friday evening, April 17th, from someone who
apparently has nothing better to do with a
Friday evening. It was a local politico
sock-puppet expounding all the great things
achieved by our illustrious Economic Development
Corporation. I can see where some people might
be convinced that all is marvelous in Iron
County, Michigan, but those folks are easily
misled.
One of my complaints about the Iron County EDC
has been the mission statement.
"To implement strategies that will increase job
opportunity, tax base and quality of life within
the county of Iron."
If the mission statement stuck to "increasing job
opportunities for our residents" I'd be a whole
lot happier. An analysis of the other segments of
the existing mission statement yields some not-so-
very-nice stuff.
First we need to recognize that the Iron County
EDC is 100% government funded, so whatever the EDC
does is the county government doing it. Looking at
what they do to increase the tax base, what we see
is programs that take state money and spend it
locally in order to increase property values in
order to collect more in property taxes. When a
business person improves the facade on their
building, does that improve their sales and profit
pictures? Not when nothing else happens! In fact
a nice looking up to date building is less apt to
draw tourist dollars than a somewhat run down one.
Tourists generally live in regions where all the
buildings they see daily are attractive and up to date.
Why would they come to Iron County to experience the
same things they already have at home? What do we have
that's unique enough to be worth visiting?
The last part of the mission statement is strictly
none of the government's business in the first place.
Where does Iron County get off improving the quality
of life anyway? That's never an appropriate expenditure
of our tax dollars.
Iron County needs only one thing that will accomplish
the entire mission statement, and that is good paying
jobs. Not minimum wage stuff and part time work like
the Call Center, but real, productive jobs paying at
least $50,000 a year with the usual (for the rest of
the USA) fringe benefits. Increased property values
and an improved quality of life will follow naturally.
And contrary to the opinion of our local Economic
Developer, those jobs don't even need to be inside
Iron County! Anywhere that our residents are willing
to commute to a job works just fine. After Niagara
Mill closed it was discovered that about half the
employees live in Dickinson County, and some live
in Florence County. Mrs. Melchiori's stated view
that our economy isn't regional is severely myopic.
As I read down the list that the Julie Melchiori
sock-puppet typed in as an anonymous comment, all
I see is the repetition of the same old story about
all the busy work that the Iron County EDC has
engaged in, while there's no mention of even a
single job that's been created in recent times.
Remember the "Where's the Beef?" commercials on TV
a few years back? I see EDC spending its budget on
all sorts of things, but:
Where's the jobs?
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Friday evening, April 17th, from someone who
apparently has nothing better to do with a
Friday evening. It was a local politico
sock-puppet expounding all the great things
achieved by our illustrious Economic Development
Corporation. I can see where some people might
be convinced that all is marvelous in Iron
County, Michigan, but those folks are easily
misled.
One of my complaints about the Iron County EDC
has been the mission statement.
"To implement strategies that will increase job
opportunity, tax base and quality of life within
the county of Iron."
If the mission statement stuck to "increasing job
opportunities for our residents" I'd be a whole
lot happier. An analysis of the other segments of
the existing mission statement yields some not-so-
very-nice stuff.
First we need to recognize that the Iron County
EDC is 100% government funded, so whatever the EDC
does is the county government doing it. Looking at
what they do to increase the tax base, what we see
is programs that take state money and spend it
locally in order to increase property values in
order to collect more in property taxes. When a
business person improves the facade on their
building, does that improve their sales and profit
pictures? Not when nothing else happens! In fact
a nice looking up to date building is less apt to
draw tourist dollars than a somewhat run down one.
Tourists generally live in regions where all the
buildings they see daily are attractive and up to date.
Why would they come to Iron County to experience the
same things they already have at home? What do we have
that's unique enough to be worth visiting?
The last part of the mission statement is strictly
none of the government's business in the first place.
Where does Iron County get off improving the quality
of life anyway? That's never an appropriate expenditure
of our tax dollars.
Iron County needs only one thing that will accomplish
the entire mission statement, and that is good paying
jobs. Not minimum wage stuff and part time work like
the Call Center, but real, productive jobs paying at
least $50,000 a year with the usual (for the rest of
the USA) fringe benefits. Increased property values
and an improved quality of life will follow naturally.
And contrary to the opinion of our local Economic
Developer, those jobs don't even need to be inside
Iron County! Anywhere that our residents are willing
to commute to a job works just fine. After Niagara
Mill closed it was discovered that about half the
employees live in Dickinson County, and some live
in Florence County. Mrs. Melchiori's stated view
that our economy isn't regional is severely myopic.
As I read down the list that the Julie Melchiori
sock-puppet typed in as an anonymous comment, all
I see is the repetition of the same old story about
all the busy work that the Iron County EDC has
engaged in, while there's no mention of even a
single job that's been created in recent times.
Remember the "Where's the Beef?" commercials on TV
a few years back? I see EDC spending its budget on
all sorts of things, but:
Where's the jobs?
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Friday, April 10, 2009
Meeting April 14, 2009 at Bay College West
The Upper Menominee River Entrepreneurs and Inventors
Club is an organization supported by the economic
development organs of three counties, Dickinson in
Michigan, and Florence and Marinette in Wisconsin. I
am pleased to support their endeavors in trying to improve
the economic situation in this part of the world.
Their next meeting is in Iron Mountain on April 14, 2009.
I've scanned in their most current blurb and posted it at:
http://www.angelfire.com/planet/iron-river/e_igrp004.pdf
I am convinced that economics are regional, not local.
Unfortunately for those of us living in Iron County, our
Economic Developer, Julie Melchiori, believes that our
economy stops at the county border and said as much
in a public meeting I was running last summer. It might
be helpful if the local news media played to what Julie
and the Iron County Economic Development
Corporation actually achieved in the last six months
rather than replaying the old story of the Amasa
sawmill that took too long to bring on line and
repeating how wonderful the mostly minimum wage/no
fringe benefits "Call Center" has been for the community.
Aggrandizing the people in various county offices doesn't
do anything to help the situation. It would be far better
for all of us if our other media (that means besides this
publication you're reading right now) were critical of the
continuing failures instead of grasping on to every minor
straw of success that floats by and republishing those
stories again and again.
In the end it is up to us, individually. All that is really
available is self-help and the only idea machine in the
region seems to be, in my opinion, outside of
Iron County in the group I'm referring the reader to
in this article.
For some time I've been an advocate of an exploratory
discussion group that would discover how to go about
recognizing business opportunities that are available to
us without a major capital investment. I'm going to work
towards organizing something like that in the near future.
In the meantime, please attend the April 14th meeting at
6PM at Bay College West in Iron Mountain. Perhaps some of
your hopes and dreams of success can get a jump-start there.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Club is an organization supported by the economic
development organs of three counties, Dickinson in
Michigan, and Florence and Marinette in Wisconsin. I
am pleased to support their endeavors in trying to improve
the economic situation in this part of the world.
Their next meeting is in Iron Mountain on April 14, 2009.
I've scanned in their most current blurb and posted it at:
http://www.angelfire.com/planet/iron-river/e_igrp004.pdf
I am convinced that economics are regional, not local.
Unfortunately for those of us living in Iron County, our
Economic Developer, Julie Melchiori, believes that our
economy stops at the county border and said as much
in a public meeting I was running last summer. It might
be helpful if the local news media played to what Julie
and the Iron County Economic Development
Corporation actually achieved in the last six months
rather than replaying the old story of the Amasa
sawmill that took too long to bring on line and
repeating how wonderful the mostly minimum wage/no
fringe benefits "Call Center" has been for the community.
Aggrandizing the people in various county offices doesn't
do anything to help the situation. It would be far better
for all of us if our other media (that means besides this
publication you're reading right now) were critical of the
continuing failures instead of grasping on to every minor
straw of success that floats by and republishing those
stories again and again.
In the end it is up to us, individually. All that is really
available is self-help and the only idea machine in the
region seems to be, in my opinion, outside of
Iron County in the group I'm referring the reader to
in this article.
For some time I've been an advocate of an exploratory
discussion group that would discover how to go about
recognizing business opportunities that are available to
us without a major capital investment. I'm going to work
towards organizing something like that in the near future.
In the meantime, please attend the April 14th meeting at
6PM at Bay College West in Iron Mountain. Perhaps some of
your hopes and dreams of success can get a jump-start there.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Teaser? Not Really.
In the next few weeks this blog will reveal, with direct
evidence, illegal acts of some public officials. While we
have several ready to go, it will take a bit of time to
write them up and have the evidence in hand in a
publishable format.
Please welcome Ben Smith of Iron River as an associate
editor on this web site. The first report on the illegal
doings will come from Ben.
We also welcome reports of illegal activities by pubic
officials from the public. Your name can be part of the
story, or not, as you wish. But clear evidence of the
wrongdoing must be available and you must provide
proof along with the story before it can be published
here. All stories will be verified by us before
publication for the obvious reason that false accusation
could result in being the defendant in a lawsuit.
In between, we will continue with our regular genre.
The first of those has to do with Orwell's 1984 and
our increasingly rapid advance to the point that such
a life becomes very easily possible. Contributions to
and ideas relevant to that story are welcome. Please
feel free to send email to bill.vajk@gmail.com on
the matters discussed here, and any other stories you
think relevant to this venue.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
evidence, illegal acts of some public officials. While we
have several ready to go, it will take a bit of time to
write them up and have the evidence in hand in a
publishable format.
Please welcome Ben Smith of Iron River as an associate
editor on this web site. The first report on the illegal
doings will come from Ben.
We also welcome reports of illegal activities by pubic
officials from the public. Your name can be part of the
story, or not, as you wish. But clear evidence of the
wrongdoing must be available and you must provide
proof along with the story before it can be published
here. All stories will be verified by us before
publication for the obvious reason that false accusation
could result in being the defendant in a lawsuit.
In between, we will continue with our regular genre.
The first of those has to do with Orwell's 1984 and
our increasingly rapid advance to the point that such
a life becomes very easily possible. Contributions to
and ideas relevant to that story are welcome. Please
feel free to send email to bill.vajk@gmail.com on
the matters discussed here, and any other stories you
think relevant to this venue.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Now a Registered Serial Publication
This web site, IronCountyDoings received its
National Serials Data Program registration
as a serial publication. The registration
number will become a permanent fixture on
the web page. That number is ISSN 1947-1475
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
National Serials Data Program registration
as a serial publication. The registration
number will become a permanent fixture on
the web page. That number is ISSN 1947-1475
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Sunday, March 22, 2009
City of Iron River Management Commentary
I decided to memorialize the January 21, 2009,
comments issued by the City of Iron River
City Manager without further comment until
the lawsuit is finally settled. They are
posted here as a matter of record.
The following text is publicly available on
the City of Iron River' web page at this time.
================================================
On December 29th, I was served personally at my home,
with a Summons and Complaint from the Circuit Court
for the County of Iron. Plaintiff, Mr. William J. Vajk,
filed a Freedom of Information request on December 1st
with the City Clerk, requesting 5 different pieces of
information relative to City ordinances, along with
substantial supporting documentation. Following the
City’s FOIA Policy, the staff estimated the costs of
researching, locating, and copying the information
requested. As required in the FOIA Policy, we advised
Mr. Vajk that we believed the information he requested
would cost approximately $60 to try to locate, and
then produce copies. Mr. Vajk responded by complaining
the costs were too high. Much of the supporting
information he was requesting however, required that
it be located and retrieved from the City’s document
storage area, which had been packed away during the
consolidation of the three communities back in 2000.
Keep in mind that at the time of consolidation, the
files from all three communities were simply placed
in unmarked boxes, delivered to 2nd level of the
former City Fire Hall and stacked on the floor.
There were literally thousands of documents deposited
in this fashion to the storage area. Mr. Vajk
apparently believed the City was being unreasonable
in estimating the cost of retrieving the information,
and filed a law suit against me personally. This
matter has now been turned over to Attorney Susan
MacGregor from Marquette who will be representing
the City of Iron River in this litigation.
Apparently Mr. Vajk, who is a land owner but not
a resident of the City, claims this is the first
of “many” such demands and suits he plans against
the City. It is unfortunate that the FOIA law,
that was intended to provide access to our
government, is often abused by some individuals
and ends up costing taxpayers both time and
dollars to satisfy the whims of one or two
individuals who simply have an “axe to grind”.
Hopefully the legal matter will be satisfied
without excessive expenses to our City residents.
====================================================
Posted by Bill Vajk on March 22, 2009
--
--
--
comments issued by the City of Iron River
City Manager without further comment until
the lawsuit is finally settled. They are
posted here as a matter of record.
The following text is publicly available on
the City of Iron River' web page at this time.
================================================
On December 29th, I was served personally at my home,
with a Summons and Complaint from the Circuit Court
for the County of Iron. Plaintiff, Mr. William J. Vajk,
filed a Freedom of Information request on December 1st
with the City Clerk, requesting 5 different pieces of
information relative to City ordinances, along with
substantial supporting documentation. Following the
City’s FOIA Policy, the staff estimated the costs of
researching, locating, and copying the information
requested. As required in the FOIA Policy, we advised
Mr. Vajk that we believed the information he requested
would cost approximately $60 to try to locate, and
then produce copies. Mr. Vajk responded by complaining
the costs were too high. Much of the supporting
information he was requesting however, required that
it be located and retrieved from the City’s document
storage area, which had been packed away during the
consolidation of the three communities back in 2000.
Keep in mind that at the time of consolidation, the
files from all three communities were simply placed
in unmarked boxes, delivered to 2nd level of the
former City Fire Hall and stacked on the floor.
There were literally thousands of documents deposited
in this fashion to the storage area. Mr. Vajk
apparently believed the City was being unreasonable
in estimating the cost of retrieving the information,
and filed a law suit against me personally. This
matter has now been turned over to Attorney Susan
MacGregor from Marquette who will be representing
the City of Iron River in this litigation.
Apparently Mr. Vajk, who is a land owner but not
a resident of the City, claims this is the first
of “many” such demands and suits he plans against
the City. It is unfortunate that the FOIA law,
that was intended to provide access to our
government, is often abused by some individuals
and ends up costing taxpayers both time and
dollars to satisfy the whims of one or two
individuals who simply have an “axe to grind”.
Hopefully the legal matter will be satisfied
without excessive expenses to our City residents.
====================================================
Posted by Bill Vajk on March 22, 2009
--
--
--
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
The Death of Yahoo's IronCountyWatch group
It seems that the Iron County Watch discussion group
has finished its run. It existed for about 5 years. I
quit the group some time back in November of 2007
because it was, for me, a waste of time better spent
in other ways. The best responses ever mustered there
were based in what I considered to be ignorant dissent,
the worse were truly vacant hate pieces.
I looked in on the group the only way a non-member could,
at the top page that gives the mission statement, the
size of the membership, and the number of posts by month.
The final record I have was from March 3, 2009 when there
were 182 members (down from a long term stable membership
of 183). By March 9th there were 27 postings for the month
which is slightly over 3 per day. The group, unless I was
a member and posting there, never did very well with the
usual level of participation resulting between 2 and 3
posts a day with a national election cycle peak of more
than 8 per day during September of 2008. I guess it is
possible to excite a few folks in Iron County after all.
The good news is that I saved an older posting I was
directed to while I was still a member. It was posted
on November 28, 2005 by the alias
"gustlehtin".
It was signed at the bottom by "Poor Richard."
"Poor Richard's Almanac" was published in colonial
America by Ben Franklin.
I was told that the original of this piece, that has
an date of February 1996, was distributed around the
region by someone slipping copies into mailboxes in
Iron County. The main villain in the piece is
John Archocosky, currently the City Manager of
Iron River.
It was a tad on the offensive side, that is to
say--it was a severely critical piece, so I hesitate
to post it to a public page in my name. I would put
it on an angelfire web page, but the difficulty
there is that at the first "terms of service"
complaint from anyone, Lycos/angelfire kills the
web page. I am not going to sacrifice any of
those pages I've had up for several years now.
If you'd like this Poor Richard piece I'll be
glad to email it on request. I will ignore random
unidetifiable email addresses. I'll have to know
who you are before I'll send it to you as an HTML
file.
As far as the death of IronCountyWatch goes, it
was poorly managed and I am told that someone
posted a bunch of naked porn pictures there,
causing the owners to pull the plug on it.
Please note that the long term membership had
been stable for at least a couple of years so
far as I could tell looking at the stats page.
So it seems likely to me that someone who took
exception to the contents of the group wrecked
it on purpose. One of the issues that caused it
to almost be killed off a few years back was an
explicit discussion about homosexuality. In fact
the mission statement was modified at that time
to include the following statement:
"You will notice the yahoo chat icon...use it for
issues that don't really belong here, to talk to
other members, those issues being the
"homosexuality issue" as one of them."
What became the IronCountyIndependent was spun
off at at that time as a place where all discussions
were permitted. So it seems very strange to me that
that web page became a bastion of fundamental
Christian discussions.
These events lend validity to my decision to keep
a greater degree of control over the several blogs
I offer to the community. It doesn't take many
warped minds to wreck a good thing, and heaven
knows we have our share of them in the county,
with a goodly representation of them in political
offices in Iron County.
Well written emailed articles will find a home
here. I'll post them even if I disagree with them,
but I reserve the right to reply.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
has finished its run. It existed for about 5 years. I
quit the group some time back in November of 2007
because it was, for me, a waste of time better spent
in other ways. The best responses ever mustered there
were based in what I considered to be ignorant dissent,
the worse were truly vacant hate pieces.
I looked in on the group the only way a non-member could,
at the top page that gives the mission statement, the
size of the membership, and the number of posts by month.
The final record I have was from March 3, 2009 when there
were 182 members (down from a long term stable membership
of 183). By March 9th there were 27 postings for the month
which is slightly over 3 per day. The group, unless I was
a member and posting there, never did very well with the
usual level of participation resulting between 2 and 3
posts a day with a national election cycle peak of more
than 8 per day during September of 2008. I guess it is
possible to excite a few folks in Iron County after all.
The good news is that I saved an older posting I was
directed to while I was still a member. It was posted
on November 28, 2005 by the alias
"gustlehtin"
It was signed at the bottom by "Poor Richard."
"Poor Richard's Almanac" was published in colonial
America by Ben Franklin.
I was told that the original of this piece, that has
an date of February 1996, was distributed around the
region by someone slipping copies into mailboxes in
Iron County. The main villain in the piece is
John Archocosky, currently the City Manager of
Iron River.
It was a tad on the offensive side, that is to
say--it was a severely critical piece, so I hesitate
to post it to a public page in my name. I would put
it on an angelfire web page, but the difficulty
there is that at the first "terms of service"
complaint from anyone, Lycos/angelfire kills the
web page. I am not going to sacrifice any of
those pages I've had up for several years now.
If you'd like this Poor Richard piece I'll be
glad to email it on request. I will ignore random
unidetifiable email addresses. I'll have to know
who you are before I'll send it to you as an HTML
file.
As far as the death of IronCountyWatch goes, it
was poorly managed and I am told that someone
posted a bunch of naked porn pictures there,
causing the owners to pull the plug on it.
Please note that the long term membership had
been stable for at least a couple of years so
far as I could tell looking at the stats page.
So it seems likely to me that someone who took
exception to the contents of the group wrecked
it on purpose. One of the issues that caused it
to almost be killed off a few years back was an
explicit discussion about homosexuality. In fact
the mission statement was modified at that time
to include the following statement:
"You will notice the yahoo chat icon...use it for
issues that don't really belong here, to talk to
other members, those issues being the
"homosexuality issue" as one of them."
What became the IronCountyIndependent was spun
off at at that time as a place where all discussions
were permitted. So it seems very strange to me that
that web page became a bastion of fundamental
Christian discussions.
These events lend validity to my decision to keep
a greater degree of control over the several blogs
I offer to the community. It doesn't take many
warped minds to wreck a good thing, and heaven
knows we have our share of them in the county,
with a goodly representation of them in political
offices in Iron County.
Well written emailed articles will find a home
here. I'll post them even if I disagree with them,
but I reserve the right to reply.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Friday, March 13, 2009
About Patriotism
I've had a number of concerns about WLUC TV6's
management of the public blog they've created
to allow people to voice their opinions. Here
are "the rules" at the top of their page:
"Below, you will find letters to TV6. They could be
anything from a story written by you which we were
unable to cover, to comment or complaint about a
story TV6 has done.
"Readers will also have the option to comment on
the letters that are posted.
"We will not post any letters written under an
anonymous name. Also, the letters should contain
no profanity or personal attacks."
They can make up any rules they want to. And they
have, but there's some sort of other agenda they
play with that isn't state or obvious. Here's an
example of what I mean. Take a look at:
http://www.uppermichiganssource.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=272355
That's a story by a Vietnam era veteran, wheelchair
bound from his service to our country. He went to
some local athletic events and the team disrespected
the national anthem and the salute to the flag. He
objected to their coach, and he's objecting in writing
on their web page.
WLUC posted personal attacks and dissent, but nothing
supporting the veteran's viewpoint. I sent something
supportive but otherwise neutral, and it was rejected.
Their statement that "Readers will also have the option
to comment on the letters that are posted" is not true.
Readers who write what WLUC thinks should be the story
will have the option to comment. Not very clever at all.
When Iron County had a recall effort against several
members of the County Board because of the poor treatment
that board afforded veterans here, WLUC came out against
the recall.
I have no further use for WLUC. They could never survive
as a commercial entity in any situation where they had
to compete with other TV stations. I've offered other
things in the past that were rejected for no real reason
other than what I wrote didn't meet their agenda.
We have a similar problem with our local newspaper. Both
these "media outlets" are as much in the business of
making local news as they are in the business of creating
and slanting it to fit some arbitrary paradigm of their
choosing.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
management of the public blog they've created
to allow people to voice their opinions. Here
are "the rules" at the top of their page:
"Below, you will find letters to TV6. They could be
anything from a story written by you which we were
unable to cover, to comment or complaint about a
story TV6 has done.
"Readers will also have the option to comment on
the letters that are posted.
"We will not post any letters written under an
anonymous name. Also, the letters should contain
no profanity or personal attacks."
They can make up any rules they want to. And they
have, but there's some sort of other agenda they
play with that isn't state or obvious. Here's an
example of what I mean. Take a look at:
http://www.uppermichiganssource.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=272355
That's a story by a Vietnam era veteran, wheelchair
bound from his service to our country. He went to
some local athletic events and the team disrespected
the national anthem and the salute to the flag. He
objected to their coach, and he's objecting in writing
on their web page.
WLUC posted personal attacks and dissent, but nothing
supporting the veteran's viewpoint. I sent something
supportive but otherwise neutral, and it was rejected.
Their statement that "Readers will also have the option
to comment on the letters that are posted" is not true.
Readers who write what WLUC thinks should be the story
will have the option to comment. Not very clever at all.
When Iron County had a recall effort against several
members of the County Board because of the poor treatment
that board afforded veterans here, WLUC came out against
the recall.
I have no further use for WLUC. They could never survive
as a commercial entity in any situation where they had
to compete with other TV stations. I've offered other
things in the past that were rejected for no real reason
other than what I wrote didn't meet their agenda.
We have a similar problem with our local newspaper. Both
these "media outlets" are as much in the business of
making local news as they are in the business of creating
and slanting it to fit some arbitrary paradigm of their
choosing.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Monday, March 2, 2009
Help Get That Rumor Started! (modified Mar 3, 2009)
A funny thing happened the other day. I heard a rumor about
myself. "Bill Vajk is out to destroy Iron River," it said. I
confess to a few things I do want to destroy.
A good starting point is to destroy a city government
A good starting point is to destroy a city government
mentality that has city crews out mowing grass they decide
is "unsightly" instead of concerning themselves with child safety.
Why aren't the sidewalks up and down US2 from the Middle
School cleared of snow? Will it take a child slipping down
one of the snowbanks and being killed or maimed before
city government decides to prioritize child safety?
I also want to destroy the mindset that has the city charging
I also want to destroy the mindset that has the city charging
10% late charge, compounding to 314% per year, to the
poor soul that loses his job and suddenly can't pay his
monthly water/trash bill. And when someone doesn't pay
it because they're suddenly out of work, not only does the
city shut off your water, but they keep charging $25 a
month for water you're not using, right along with the
mounting late fees. It doesn't take long for the city to
totally wreck a homeowner's finances, and for what? To
make sure they have the money to mow your grass if
it gets a little high while not 50 feet away the weeds
grow 6 feet tall on city property?
Yes, I confess to having some amount of desire for
Yes, I confess to having some amount of desire for
destruction in my heart, probably the very same things
you want to see destroyed, while keeping the good
things we have. The trouble is that if my concern about
these things spilled over and people started voicing their
concerns in City Council meetings, the next rumor would
be, "Bill Vajk is inciting a riot."
Please, please, help get that rumor started!
====================================
Please, please, help get that rumor started!
====================================
The above was submited to the Iron County Reporter
and the Iron Mountain Daily News newspapers. On
Saturday, February 27, 2008, the Daily News published
my letter with a minor omission. The cut out the part about
6 foot weeds growing withn 50 feet on City property.
We'll know tomorrow how the Iron County Reporter felt
about it the letter.
Bill Vajk
Modification - March 3, 2009
Not too long after I arrived in Iron River I had a
discussion with Allyce Westphal, now the editor
of the Iron County Reporter. She told me she's
always looking for a well written piece.
While the Iron Mountain Daily News published
the above as an opinion letter, it was decided
"not fit to print" by the Iron County Reporter.
Well that came as no surprise. The Reporter
seems to be just as sensitive about criticism
of local governments as the elected officials
who are misbhaving.
The press needs to be independent to be
effective as one prong in the balance of
power between the people and the
government. Instead, it seems to me that
the local paper merely wants to be
profitable. That's par for the course in
Iron County, Michigan.
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
World Discussion Blog
I've undertaken a new blog called World Discussion.
That space is designed to discuss national and
international issues about social, political,
and economic considerations and to advance
relevant theory. Personal attacks and naughty
topics will not be tolerated. Please stay on
topic although drift will be tolerated as ideas
grow from one realm to another.
It isn't an Iron County Michigan oriented blog.
The new blog can be found at:
http://www.world-discussion.blogspot.com
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
That space is designed to discuss national and
international issues about social, political,
and economic considerations and to advance
relevant theory. Personal attacks and naughty
topics will not be tolerated. Please stay on
topic although drift will be tolerated as ideas
grow from one realm to another.
It isn't an Iron County Michigan oriented blog.
The new blog can be found at:
http://www.world-discussion.blogspot.com
Bill Vajk
--
--
--
Friday, February 13, 2009
What's the point of being a silent victim?
Ben Smith proposed the following idea to the two Iron County
Michigan Yahoo sponsored discussion groups. I think it a good
idea as well. - Bill Vajk
===============================================
Many if not most of you spend time, wallowing " The Iron County Open Government Group" If any of you think it's a worthwhile effort, let me know and |
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
City of Iron River garbage collection (modified)
The proposed Iron River solid waste disposal
ordinance modifications, with a public hearing
scheduled for February 18th, will result in
penalties without rising to meet State of
Michigan and US constitutional requirements
for due process.
Further, the language of the ordinance is
constitutionally vague. Will six 15 gallon
tall kitchen garbage bags be viewed as equal
to three 33 gallon garbage bags? Other
combinations? Who will make the judgment call,
a contractor's employee?
In my opinion, the City of Iron River should
not be in the garbage business at all. The
past practice as well as the proposed
ordinance places all the financial risk on
the City. The City, in turn, is prohibited
by the Michigan Constitution from making any
profit whatever. If we were doing things the
American way, all risks would be assumed by
the organization that makes the profit. The
City also becomes the collection agent. Even
for as simple a function as billing, for
profit organizations invariably get the job
done at a lower cost to the customer.
There are arrangements other than the offer
on the table that do a much better job of
providing the necessary solid waste disposal
services, and do so without the depth of
municipal involvement being discussed and
unnecessarily repeated.
In other parts of the country where garbage
collection is not included in the property
taxes, the municipality takes bids for
garbage disposal and grants a franchise for
residential services to the lowest bidder.
The franchisee provides the service
contracted for and bills the homeowner
directly. In my last experience before
moving to Iron County, Waste Management
billed me quarterly. That business model
has been tested and proven efficient and
effective. The municipality may be entitled
to some small franchise fee in exchange for
such oversight as is provided.
New Text is in bold italics
I have been told of some movement to
ordinance modifications, with a public hearing
scheduled for February 18th, will result in
penalties without rising to meet State of
Michigan and US constitutional requirements
for due process.
Further, the language of the ordinance is
constitutionally vague. Will six 15 gallon
tall kitchen garbage bags be viewed as equal
to three 33 gallon garbage bags? Other
combinations? Who will make the judgment call,
a contractor's employee?
In my opinion, the City of Iron River should
not be in the garbage business at all. The
past practice as well as the proposed
ordinance places all the financial risk on
the City. The City, in turn, is prohibited
by the Michigan Constitution from making any
profit whatever. If we were doing things the
American way, all risks would be assumed by
the organization that makes the profit. The
City also becomes the collection agent. Even
for as simple a function as billing, for
profit organizations invariably get the job
done at a lower cost to the customer.
There are arrangements other than the offer
on the table that do a much better job of
providing the necessary solid waste disposal
services, and do so without the depth of
municipal involvement being discussed and
unnecessarily repeated.
In other parts of the country where garbage
collection is not included in the property
taxes, the municipality takes bids for
garbage disposal and grants a franchise for
residential services to the lowest bidder.
The franchisee provides the service
contracted for and bills the homeowner
directly. In my last experience before
moving to Iron County, Waste Management
billed me quarterly. That business model
has been tested and proven efficient and
effective. The municipality may be entitled
to some small franchise fee in exchange for
such oversight as is provided.
New Text is in bold italics
I have been told of some movement to
introduce a prepaid bag/tag system where
the garbage collector would only pick up
garbage in containers that have a prepaid
status. Four problems immediately surface.
The first is that this scheme removes the
responsibility from the property owner and
transfers it to tennents at rental properties.
If you've ever been a landlord you understand
what this could mean to your property.
The second has to do with the contractor
accepting all the profits from such a
business while assuming absolutely no
business/financial risk.
The third is that prepayment is taken for
services not yet rendered.
Fourth: Should the contractor decide to
impose an increase in fees, they have only
to issue a new design of bag or tag leaving
those who have a supply of the old style
simply stuck with having spent the money
for nothing. ( I have personally experienced
this event with Waste Management being
the service provider for yard waste!)
Would the City of Iron River sue on behalf
of the citizens to enforce the contract?
What do you think?
I urge the City of Iron River to completely
rethink how solid waste disposal is being
managed. I object to the proposed ordinance
modifications.
Bill Vajk
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I urge the City of Iron River to completely
rethink how solid waste disposal is being
managed. I object to the proposed ordinance
modifications.
Bill Vajk
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