From Apathy to Dependence

Some text about "The Fall of the Athenian Republic,"
that is often attributed to Professor Alexander Tyler
of the University of Edinburgh was written about
the time of our Revolutionary War, and states:

"A democracy is always temporary in nature; it
simply cannot exist as a permanent form of
government. A democracy will continue to exist
up until the time that voters discover that
they can vote themselves generous gifts from
the public treasury. From that moment on, the
majority always votes for the candidates who
promise the most benefits from the public
treasury, with the result that every democracy
will finally collapse due to loose fiscal
policy, which is always followed by a
dictatorship."

As a nation we seem to have arrived at this stage

"The average age of the worlds greatest
civilizations from the beginning of
history, has been about 200 years.
During those 200 years, these nations
always progressed through the following
sequence:

From Bondage to spiritual faith;
From spiritual faith to great courage;
From courage to liberty;
From liberty to abundance;
From abundance to complacency;
From complacency to apathy;
From apathy to dependence;
From dependence back into bondage."

Iron County seems to have missed out on the
earliest stages of this sequence because the
US, as a nation, progressed before this region
was settled with any significance.

The paradigm isn't absolutely fixed. It can, and
in the past, has been altered by the mere will
of the people. We are in the apathy to dependence
stage right now. John Archocosky and the Iron
River City Council determined that any program
of economic advance in must be self-sustaining
before being undertaken despite the fact that
literally nothing else in this county (and most
of the state, for that matter) is or has been for
some time. The simple fact is that anything worth
doing has a period of initial growth that needs care
and nurturing during the initial stages. There is no
project that shows profit on day 1.

Look at us. Our communities are unable to buy
so much as an occasional dogcatcher's van without
an outside grant of some sort. Grant seeking has
itself become a favorite local enterprise.

The challenge is to find leadership that keeps the
final transition "dependence back into bondage"
from working in a community with an aging and
collapsing population. One of the presumptions
for economic progress is growth in population.
And that's achieved by providing opportunities,
by keeping home grown talent here, and bringing
in additional talent as needed.

Do we need to actively import leadership as well?

If we do, then perhaps we should be working on
that as a community. The sad fact, however, is
that at present we don't seem to have enough
leadership within the community to seek strong
leadership for the community.

Or do we?

Bill Vajk

For the source of the quotations above please see:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/ballot/athenian.asp

The Other Web Page

http://www.so-crooked.com

Thanksgiving

More Small County Political Games

Yesterday, November 20, 2009, I went to the Iron
County Sheriff's office to request copies of some
police reports that I need to complete a story I
am doing for this publication.

I was told that I had to make an FOIA request for
all police reports at the prosecutor's office.

Each entity, the sheriff and the prosecutor, are
independently elected. Their offices and budgets
are separate and independent. The sheriff is
responsible for his own FOIA requests. Shifting
the responsibility to the prosecutor's office
is a small county political game that we, the
public, have to put up with in Iron County. In
addition, in most jurisdictions I've been in
in other states, a simple verbal request is all
that is required in order to get police reports.

What makes Iron County so special?

Bill Vajk

Correction

This is just an update from a recent posting.

It was reported by IrobCountyDoings that Iron
County commissioners had adopted a resolution
to sell a piece of real property in Goegebic
County, and authorize ANY member of the EDC
to execute the conveyance on behalf of Iron
County.

(Editor's Note: Ben Smith's earlier report
stated, "The commissioners did select EDC
director Julie Melchoiri to sign the
documents." In as much as this seems to
be in error, IronCountyDoings hereby
corrects that statement herein and offers
appropriate apologies for any errors.
Additionally it appears Mr. Smith misspelled
the name.)

This reporter was accosted by the director
of the Iron County EDC during The Iron River
City council meeting. Claiming she received
NO such authority and that Michigan State
University (MSU, who pays her salary) would
not allow her to do such a thing. According
to the county minutes of THAT meeting
commissioner George Brunswick moved,
supported by Carl Lind "Authorizing Sale
and Execution of sale documents" of a piece
of real property in Bessemer, Mi, and
authorizes any member of the Iron County
EDC to execute the conveyance.

The EDC director claimed this reporter
lied and threatened LEGAL Action. Years
ago this reporter had been accosted by
the county chair with a similar charge and
with the same effect.

Ben Smith has the documents and will gladly
share them with any interested citizen.

Ben Smith

(Editor's Note: Strangely enough, at the time
of this posting, I have not received any emails
of protest or request for correction from
Mrs. Julie Melchiori. Had she done so, the
nasty scene at Iron River City Hall could
easily have been avoided had she wished.
Obviously she has either read the previous
report or has had someone provide her with
its contents. Mrs. Melchioiri has multiple
email addresses and physical street addresses
for the editor.)

Bill Vajk

New Trailer

Iron River Township has some ordinances about
signs, so I have placed a trailer near the
highway in front of my house (US2.)

It will be illuminated during the early hours
of the night and will have political messages
and seasonal wishes displayed as suits me.



Bill Vajk

Help with Medicines

November 10, 2009

The people of Iron County are being denied
the opportunity to participate in a National
Association of Counties (NCAO) discount drug
program. The county commissioners delayed
adopting the program, which would allow
the people of the county to join a drug
discount program. Commissioner Bob Black
has introduced the option over the course
of five (5) years according to commissioner
Geo. Brunswick at today's meeting.

The counties civil attorney Steven Tinti
presented the commissioners with HIS
opinion that joining would put the county
at risk of expenses emanating from the
guidelines of the program. This position
is being taken despite the fact that ten (10)
other counties in Michigan, including two
of the most populated and wealthiest, namely
Oakland and Macomb are members.

In other matters Tinti pointed out that he
was the county commissioners civil attorney
and not the attorney for the chair, when it
was pointed out that Trusts as executed on
real property managed by the chair, are not
eligible to receive PRE, Principal Residence
Exemptions.

There will be more coming later on these matters.

Ben Smith, Iron County Doings

Yet Another Secret Transaction?

Ben Smith has filed the following story:

Iron County disposed of a piece of real
property in Geogebic County,Mi. The
property was sold through the Silver
Company that is located in Geogebic
County , Mi.

No evidence was found that the Iron County
Chair had sought bids from local realtors.

The motion to sell was made at a county
commissioners meeting on Oct.27,2009 with
NO discussion as to bids or price!
The commissioners did select EDC director
Julie Melchoiri to sign the documents.

(Editor comment: It all sounds illegal. Has
the commission selected Julie as the fall
guy in the event there are eventual legal
problems with this transaction?)

The selling price WAS NOT disclosed at the
commissioners meeting, however the your
reporter has learned that the sale generated
$19,000.00 gross, less of course commissions
etc.

More will be reported on this matter as we
investigate and uncover the reasons for all
the secrecy.

Bill Vajk

Is Afghanistan Politically Ahead of Iron River?

Afghanistan had a recent presidential election.
neither of the two leading candidates got over
50% of the total. A run-off election was
ordered that did not happen because one of the
candidates publicly withdrew just before the
scheduled date.

In this feature, is Afghanistan politically
ahead of Iron River?

Consider the recent election in Iron River's
3rd district with the prize being a city
councilman's seat. Tom King got 7 votes out
of 18 that yields about 38% of the actual
voters. The other two candidates achieved a
total of 13 votes, far more than King and
amounting to roughly 62% of the vote.

Iron River is willing to put a man in office
who was voted against by nearly 2/3 of the
voters.

Is that any way for government to do business?

Afghanistan doesn't think so. Ordinary
democratic principals don't think so. And
I sure don't think so either. How do you
feel about it? If you don't like it,
why not do something to get this changed?

Bill Vajk

Iron County Niceness

While there are incessant complaints
on these pages, I want the readers to
realize that there are good things
about Iron County. If you want to know
some of them, please read the Iron
Mountain Daily news

www.ironmountaindailynews.com

or the Iron County Reporter.

www.ironcountyreporter.com

Neither paper delves into any of the
corruption or "dirt" in the area for
fear of losing advertising revenue
but they're really good at putting
the positive spin about our region
out there for public consumption.

I should probably repeat this posting
every month.

Bill Vajk

2009 Iron River election

The voters of Iron River have seen fit to
elect Tom King to the third district. It
seems that Rosalie King found 6 friends in
the 3rd District to vote for her son.

You, the electors of Iron River, deserve
who you got.

Bill Vajk

Followers

I was "warned" not to cross John Faccin because,
according to those warning me, "he's quite
bright."

In his latest defense of Iron County Board of
Commissioners chair Rosalie King, Faccin wrote
on his IronCountyIndependent Yahoo discussion
group,

"Like I said in the posting I found it on the
Internet in a couple of minutes. Plus I even
posted the Homestead Tax Credit information
for you, the document and the affidavit."

Having read that information, I averr that
Mr. Faccin obviously has a reading and
comprehension problem, not a signal of
brilliance. I have never ever met a follower,
as John is following close to everyone in
positions of power in Iron County (another
oxymoron -- power in Iron County, ha ha ha)
who was bright. Indeed, followers are more
often dimwits than not.

Ayn Rand put it very well:

"Throughout the centuries there were men
who took first steps down new roads armed
with nothing but their own vision."

John Faccin is following in footsteps
designed to elevate the weak minded. He
hasn't an original thought of his own. That
doesn't mean he's not able to do damage to
others. The saddest part, however, is that
he'll forever be relegated to being a foot
soldier in the service of those who do
wield local power, such as it is. They do
it by making people like Faccin feel
important. That works soooooo well here
in Iron County.

It turns out that Rosalie King, in her
own right, is a follower too.

And so it goes (kudos to Linda Ellerbee.)

Bill Vajk

About Obama

On the national and local front I urge readers to
take a look at one of my other web pages, reading,
in particular, the latest offering there.

http://world-discussion.blogspot.com/2009/10/obamas-campaign-promises.html

Bill Vajk

County Commission Mtg 10/27/2009 & disrespect

There will be more news of this meeting coming!

But this reporter wanted to get it on the record,
that when asked the county commissioners refused
to instruct their administrator to provide the
media with the background material to accurately
report why and how they voted on the issues that
come before them.!

Further this reporter was berated by the county
civil attorney for asking about the county chair's
PRE situation.

(Editor's note: Please see earlier articles about
the county chairman's cheating the children out
of their due in property taxes by claiming
exemptions on two properties when only 1 is
allowed by law.)

Stating that if I read the law I would find the
explanation for all the rumors that have
circulated for years.

(Editor's note: Mr. Smith and I have both
carefully read the law, and no exemption of
the sort claimed by County Attorney Tinti
exists.)

When I got to write this report I found a letter
from an information officer from the State of
Michigan treasury Department that cast more doubt
on Atty.Tinti's position.

Evidently from the little bit that went on at
the meeting today, the county is going to offer
an extension of contract to their administrator.
I hope it does not continue the sweetheart
conditions of the last one that lasted for
almost nine years.

Ben Smith

Out of Town

Going out of town for a couple of days serves
as a great reminder of how the rest of the
world lives.

Much of the real world lives buying things
on sale. Wednesday, Oct 21, 2009 Green Bay
paper has sales (in one section) of:

Oil change

Brake Work

potted trees

Amish furniture

Oneida National Museum

psychic readings (does Monica know you
have a coupon before you walk in?)

more furniture

groceries (yes, we do see this in Iron County)

women's fitness

credit union loans



Bill Vajk

Candidates for Iron River City Councilman

Fair use doctrine has us incorporating an
"IronCountyIndependent" posting as newsworthy
though one doubts the validity of anything
coming from an anonymously concealed member
of that group.

===================================================
From: shadow_man4243
Subject: [ironcountyindependent] UPCOMING ELECTIONS
To: ironcountyindependent@yahoogroups.com
Date: Friday, October 23, 2009, 7:41 AM

Scuttlebutt has it that Iron County Doings cub
reporter Ben Smith is running as a write in for
Iron River City Council from the 3rd district.
He is hoping to get more votes than Tom King
who the only one who filed for the position.
HHHMMM one can only wonder why Ben decided
to run on slips rather than file?

shadow
=====================================================

Who can say for sure what is in any other human
being's head? I don't know if Ben is running in
order to keep the election honest, or because
he is doing this on a lark. The reason doesn't
matter. Rather what matters is that this way,
Tom King isn't elected with a single vote, his
own.

Two matters of concern surface immediately.

There is the matter of conflict of interest. The
URL above is a discussion about conflicts
regarding a position on a school board and
being some other public official in the state
of Michigan. It is not significantly different
from the situation we're discussing.

Tom King is the Iron County dogcatcher. I would
be among the first to challenge Tom's status
as a city councilman. If Iron River actually
seated him, I would be among the first to give
a clear demonstration of the conflict of the
positions during a City Council public meeting.

And how is Mr. King going to find the time
during his busy schedule as dogcatcher to attend
the city council meetings? Is the Iron County
Sheriff's Department going to cover his position
during the times that King is in sessions, and
perhaps on downstate or out-of-state missions
for the City Council? Who is going to pay for
the Sheriff's department covering for King
during such periods?

Please see http://tinyurl.com/ykvjsh4

The second concern is of electing an individual
who is, in fact, homeless. Tom King lives in a
house that is provided for him by his mother. He
has no home of his own. Is the city of Iron River
going to follow the Iron River Township example
of having a homeless elected official making
decisions on behalf of an electorate when the
candidate himself is obviously incapable of
maintaining his own person and home well enough
to provide for himself?

The only legitimate means Tom King has to refute
the financial claim is to provide a financial
statement showing how he looks after himself.

Also consider this. This county has elected
Rosalie King to the County Board of Commissioners.
She has not been elected to the Iron River City
Council. If Tom King were his own man and weren't
dependent on his Mommy, there would be no question
that he might vote his conscience rather than
what ever way Mommy told him to vote.

I disagree with Ben Smith about a lot of things.
I'm conservative and Ben is a mostly liberal
Democrat though sometimes he surprises me. The
main thing you'd find about Ben on Iron River
City Council is that he would vote legitimately,
keeping faith with those who elected him, even
if that went against his personal ideologies.

Bill Vajk

Net Neutrality?

The promise of "Net Neutrality" under FCC regulation,
while promising the usual idealism, sounds far too
much like the standard government doublespeak we've
come to recognize as standard fare. Even if the
initial goals are as stated by various members of
the administration, it is clear that once government
asserts any control over the internet, government
will not be able to keep from making the internet
its private propaganda arm as the Obama campaign
used it during the last national elections.

The internet was founded and grew into its current
state without government intervention. It should
be allowed to continue, precisely as it has, until
or unless it starts to harm people.

Keep government out of the internet, except as a
user on equal footing with everyone else. Please
write to the FCC and your congressional
representatives. This is both a local and a
national issue.

Bill Vajk

Are They Really Acting Responsibly?

Nearly a year ago the West Iron School District
followed the procedures necessary to terminate
(fire) the Superintendent. In the past week
the Coty of Crystal Falls began their proceedings
to terminate the City Manager. Both of these
actions appear on the surface to be responsible
and could easily be taken as such.

The eventual outcome for the School District has,
to date, been disastrous because, in the opinion
of Iron County Doings, the School Board has not
acted responsibly. The correct next step has not
been taken. The School Board should have searched
for and found a strong administrator to take over
the position of Superintendent.

Look at the consequences. The School District decided
to close the "Middle School," a building completed and
dedicated February 22, 1928. In several acts, the
City of Iron River bullied the School District into
participating with a combination of participating
townships and the City in keeping the building open
and functioning. This is an additional financial
burden on the School District and all the participating
municipal governments.

This happened because the School Board appointed
a teacher, part time, to fill the position of
Superintendent. It is clear that the school district
has several other options regarding rthe Miffle School,
including simply closing the school, and minimizing
the costs to the community by means other than those
currently being bullied by the City of Iron River
and Iron River's elected and appointed officials.

If the City of Iron River wants to take over the
building, then the School District should insist
that the City purchase the property. It is
completely irratinal and ireresponsible for the
School District to remain responsible for the
Middle School once they decided they no longer
have any use for it.

The question that remains open for the City of
Crystal Falls is whether or not they will follow
in the West Iron School District's footsteps, thus
weakening their position. If they do, perhaps
Iron River will steal back the County Seat status
since the city has become so adept at bullying.

Bill Vajk

Respect Is An Important Aspect of Etiquette

Respect Is An Important Aspect of Etiquette.

A face I haven't seen in a while because the
satellite doesn't provide America's mainstream
networks is Deborah Norville, anchor on Inside
Edition. She has a new book, just out called
The Power of Respect.

From her web page: http://www.dnorville.com/

"As anchor of Inside Edition, I am on the front
lines of the events of the world and increasingly,
it seemed to me that so much of what we report
has its roots in disrespectful behavior. Often,
I find myself thinking, 'If people would just
'do' the right thing, we wouldn't have all the
problems.' But only on rare occasion does one
find people doing the right thing …because it's
right.

"But –– human nature being what it is, people
WILL act when they see 'what's in it for them.'
So – using the same formula I employed in Thank
You Power, I delved into the academic research
to see if anyone had found quantifiable benefits
from treating others with respect – or when one
received respect. I was stunned not only by what
I found, but by the breadth of respect's impact."

One thing Iron County politicians can claim a
lead in is disrespectful behavior. This sun
doesn't rise and set on elected politicians
alone, it extends to all those "rising stars"
who are presently in volunteer or appointed
positions. I needn't name names, you already
know who they are. Heaven forbid anyone hold
an opinion different from theirs, they lash
out like high school children, sometimes
openly, sometimes with whispering behind
your back.

On the other hand, Deborah Norville has
always carried herself well, and has always
provided better than the rest. She has no
difficulty achieving a universal admiration,
and respect. She would be an excellent model
for all to follow. She quotes George Elliot
as her inspiration:

"It’s never too late to become what you might
have been."

Please read her web page. All of it.

Bill Vajk

Not Uncommon

Iron County, Michigan, is not uncommon. It
is like many other small communities around
the world where the many permit the few
aggressive individuals to rule.

I wanted to do a piece on the Nobel Prizes
given what's happened this year with the
Peace Prize. The sensible commentaries are
everywhere already and I feel duplication
of those is unnecessary. Obama has come
clean about this one thing and said that
he didn't deserve the prize, leaving nothing
unspoken given the absurdity of that
situation.

But I thought to look at the rest of this
year's awards, and noticed the following in
the Literature award for this year:

"Müller made her debut with the collection
of short stories Niederungen (1982), which
was censored in Romania. Two years later,
she published the uncensored version in
Germany and, in the same year, Drückender
Tango in Romania. In these two works,
Müller depicts life in a small, German-
speaking village and the corruption,
intolerance and repression to be found
there."

http://tinyurl.com/yer4e7d

2009 literature award is made to Herta Müller.

The problem in Romania was fixed by the
overthrow of the totalitarian regime. What
will fix similar problems in Iron County?
Do we need to replace our entire political
structures and fill the positions with
people who have the community's interests
as their guide? Shouldn't we be doing that
anyway?

Bill Vajk