It's Your Money

Who is the Michigan Municipal League (MML)
working for with your money?

Michigan Statute MCL 247.64(2) used to say:

“A village or city, or a township having a population
of more than 5,000, may, whether or not provided in
its charter, provide by ordinance enacted for the
purpose of controlling and eradicating noxious weeds
in subdivided land that if the owner, agent, or occupant
of subdivided land in a subdivision in which buildings
have been erected on 60% of the lots, or the owner,
agent, or occupant of a lot along an improved street
in common usage, has failed, after 10 days' notice as
provided in this section, to destroy the weeds, for a
depth of 10 rods or the depth of the lot, whichever is
less, then an agent authorized by the governing body
of the township, village, or city may enter upon the
lot and destroy noxious weeds by cutting.”

In 2010, under pressure from the Michigan Municipal
League, that law was changed and now reads:

“A village, city, or township may, whether or not provided
in its charter, provide by ordinance enacted for the purpose
of controlling and eradicating noxious weeds in subdivided
land that if the owner, agent, or occupant of subdivided
land in a subdivision in which buildings have been erected
on 60% of the lots, or the owner, agent, or occupant of a
lot along an improved street in common usage, has failed,
after 10 days' notice as provided in this section, to destroy
the weeds, for a depth of 10 rods or the depth of the lot,
whichever is less, then an agent authorized by the
governing body of the township, village, or city may enter
upon the lot and destroy noxious weeds by cutting.”

Then in MCL 247.63a they do away with the notice requirement.

Is this what the MML means when they say their purpose is to
“make better cities?” It looks more as though they're all for
acquiring more power and control over “free citizens” than
anything else. Little by little the cities impinge on freedoms
we've come to take for granted. They have time, after all,
they've already been around for 110 years. Initially the
purpose was to assist undereducated elected officials.
Any more they're really about power grabs, because nobody
is watching and they've gotten themselves exempt from FOIA.

There will be more on this topic in the months to come.

Bill Vajk

Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Field Hearing

On Monday, 20 June 2011, our Congressman Dr. Dan
Benishek and Congresswoman Ann Marie Buerkle
held a hearing in Iron Mountain related to the
accessibility and quality of healthcare for veterans
residing in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Our reporter Ben Smith attended in his official capacity
as well as because of his personal interests.

Ben delivered a note from me to Dr. Benishek's people
containing information as follows:

------------------------------------------------------

Dear Dr. Benishek:

As much as is possible, please try to get the following
changes passed by the federal government.


1) Remove ethanol from gasoline in order to reduce
food prices and federal subsidies.

2) Change the regulations that mandate more than
one blend of gasoline for the continental US.

3) Change the "cost of living index" (COL) used to
determine Social Security increases to reflect the
realities that seniors living in the US today face.
It appears that the COL presently used eliminates
cost of fuel and food, thus for the past 2 years our
SS payments have effectively declined while the
gross amount has remained constant and Medicare
deductions have increased. That SS is a problem
isn't the fault of the recipients, but of bad planning
by those who have been in charge of administering
the system for the past several decades. It needs
to be made right for everyone.


Thank you for your attention.

Bill Vajk

Publisher of Ironcountydoings.blogspot.com
a publication registered with the Library of Congress

Bill Vajk

One Year Ago

Today marks a full year since we filed the complaint
with the Federal District Court at Marquette, MI.,
against the ordinances and practices of the City of
Iron River, Iron County, and the Michigan Municipal
League.

By an large we have avoided publishing documents as
the case progressed through the District Court and into
the Federal Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit at
Cincinnati, Ohio. There were, before today, two
exceptions. The first was the original complaint which
we published. The second document had to do with the
dirty pool being played by the City of Iron River.

Today, the anniversary date for this litigation, I am
publishing the principal brief in the appeal. To conserve
some space I dropped it to single spacing. You will need
a word processor of some sort to read it properly. The
footnotes are critical to understanding the contents.

The file containing the brief may be found at:

www.angelfire.com/planet/iron-river/shrink-brief.doc

Bill Vajk

Who Knew?

So there's a senior voucher system in place here
in Michigan funded by the Federal Government and
the State of Michigan with some spotty
participation by townships and counties.

Who knew?

I made the acquaintance of Michelle, the owner of
Strong's Restaurant on US 45 in Watersmeet. I
signed up for the senior voucher program and had
tonight's dinner there at the standard reduced price
of $3.75.

Here's their voucher program menu:



I had #7. It was a good feed.

Ordinarily I don't advertize for places of business,
but the senior voucher program is something I'd never
heard about and wouldn't have known about were it not
for the entrepreneurial spirit demonstrated by this
restaurant. The question arises "Why don't any of the
restaurants in Iron County participate?"

I asked Michelle how much paperwork was involved, and
she said it wasn't nothing, but was not extensive or
difficult. I can immediately think of a handful of
restaurants here in Iron County that, given our rapidly
aging population, could do very well with a program
like this, and in my opinion SHOULD be participating.

I can't think of any reason why participation has fallen
to zero in Iron County!

Let's spread the word and start applying pressure on
our local restauranteurs to get this program working
for us in Iron County. I'm thrilled that Strong's
Restaurant is busily doing it and wish the ownership
every success. But an even greater success could be had
if the program had more participants and our local
townships promoted and participated in the program.

Bill Vajk

Northstar (Iron River) Hospital Report

The first quarter Northstar Hospital
report is out.

The Hospital shows a financial
improvement over last year with an
advance to an income from operations
of some $182,000. Huge positive jumps
like bear close scrutiny.

For example, the total operating
expenses have dropped, on a pro
rata basis, some $964,000 compared to
2010. Interest expense has dropped by
some $141,000 pro rated when compared
to 2010.

All the numbers are looking much better
than last year, so something is being
done differently. We are hopeful that
this level of progress can be sustained
indefinitely.

Bill Vajk

Iron County Doings is generally
opposed to most expansion of the
local economy that is at the public
expense primarily to benefit private
individuals. The proposed expansion
of the ICMF is one of those things
that is a positive response to the
growing needs of the community that
is facing a rapidly aging population
and the needs that grow out of our
demographic profile.

Whether you are for or against this
expansion, it is important that you
attend the meeting if you can, and
voice your opinion while you're
there.

Communication from Basso & Basso
follows.

----------------------------------------

Tomorrow, WEDNESDAY JUNE 1, 2011,
there is a critically important
public hearing concerning county
support for the expansion of the
Iron County Medical Care Facility.
The hearing will be held in the
CRYSTAL FALLS County Commissioner
meeting room at 5PM.

The hearing concerns whether the
County will support bonding for
the addition of a wing at the
Iron County Medical Care Facility
(the ICMCF) in order to handle
the increased pressures of
rehabilitation needs of our
citizens.

The ICMCF is a bright light in
our community and we need to
support their efforts. This
hearing is an opportunity to
gain information and/or to
ask questions regarding the
proposed addition to the
facility.

Please attend the hearing if
at all possible.

Ron & Sara Basso

-------------------------------

Bill Vajk

Zebra Mussels

I received the following in an email from
Sara Jane Basso:

=================================
The Iron County Watershed Coalition meeting
will be held on Monday, June 6, at 1:00 p.m.
at the West Iron District Library community
room. Speaker for the meeting will be Dean
Premo on the topic “Zebra Mussels in the
Menominee River Watershed” In fall of 2010,
Zebra Mussels were discovered by a
recreational diver in Keyes Lake (Florence
County, Wisconsin) adding to a growing list of
water bodies in the Menominee River
watershed that zebra mussels have invaded.

Some of these are in Iron County. Dean Premo
of White Water Associates will tell the story of
how the Florence County aquatic invasive
species coordinator, the lake specialist from the
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
(WDNR), private citizens and others responded.

Over the course of a few weeks a proposal was
developed and submitted to the WDNR. Funding
was received in March of 2011. Dr. Premo will
describe the resulting project that ranges in scale
from a single lake to the entire Menominee River
watershed and has research, education, and
management components.

All are welcome to attend the 30 minute
presentation. Feel free to invite any people you
think would be interested in this talk.
==================================

Bill Vajk

Michigan and Passenger Rail Service

Michigan awoke again, realizing the effectiveness
of rail service but only after most of the tracks in
Iron County and the region were removed.

The state has been giving the possibility of rail
expansion a lot of thought.

http://tinyurl.com/3eneef3

A while back there was a conference looking at
the economy for the UP and bordering Wisconsin
counties. The summary report can be found:

http://tinyurl.com/3exqlou

That report, released in September 2009, closes
with:

"Toward that end, many people also noted issues
with transportation infrastructure, noting that
with an improved highway system, passenger
rail service, or mass transit options, they could
more easily seek the missing services elsewhere
while maintaining their place of residence."

This is the consequence of focus group and
questionnaire participation by the general public
in the region. It should be noted that the public
in the US is used to solving its own problems. So
that by the time these sorts of opinions have risen
to the point where they're reported as part of a
study of the sort undertaken by economic
developers and those who are in the front lines,
some harsh realities of circumstance have played
heavily on the respondents.

Now all we have to achieve is to have MDOT and
the people with transportation needs get together
in the same room to hammer out some solutions.

The only naysayers in the crowd are the very same
people who cannot figure out how to get a resting
bench placed along the Apple Blossom Trail in
Iron River. I know of one individual who has been
asking the City of Iron River for such a bench for
years, and still no results!

Heck, a boy scout is doing it for the Caspian end of
that same trail! Perhaps we should get rid of the
naysayers and replace them with boy scouts who
know how to get things done?

Remember, "impossible" is only one of many options.

It appears to me that Iron River has been stuck
with the "impossible" option for far too long.

Bill Vajk

What to do in Iron County!

This time of year IronCountyDoings traditionally
receives searches seeking things to do in Iron
County and Iron River.

Once you're already here, make contact with the
Chamber of Commerce that's got all the information
for the county.

Chamber of Commerce
50 East Genesee St.
Iron River, MI 49935
Fax: (906) 265-5605
(906)265-3822 or info@iron.org

Around town, almost every merchant has
copies of a free tabloid sized newspaper called

Summer Fun

Just pick one up and read it.

And don't forget that making your selected
Iron County destination the central point for
day trips to the surrounding region can
expand your experience, and your pleasant
memories of Iron County!

Bill Vajk

King's "education" as dogcatcher revealed

We now have the documentation that was
provided by the Michigan Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development regarding
the qualifications of Mr. Tom King's alleged
compliance with the state requirements.

As a matter of opinion, we do not believe
the documentation provided to the State by
then undersheriff Brezek to be credible. There
is no certification of any of the records and the
records themselves are incomplete.

Here are some points of contention:

"3. One day spent with prosecuting attorney,
preparing complainants and case writing,
preparing and giving testimony, court protocol,
and public relations. 8 Hours. 23 Aug 02."

There appears to be no letter from the
prosecutor from that time, Joe Sartorelli, who
is no longer able to provide verification of the
alleged event

"4. One clay spent with local authority, discussing
local policies and procedures. 8 Hours. 19 Nov O1."

This lacks identification of the "local authority"
who allegedly provided training. Absence of the
name precludes approval which was unjustifiably
granted by the state. Please see:

http://tinyurl.com/3sog627

"6. Accompany state or federal livestock inspector
for two days and discuss laws and regulations,
inspection of shops, dog pounds, and animal
shelters. 16 Hours. 8-9 Feb 02."

Once again, no identification of the livestock
inspector fails to meet the state's requirements.

"7. One day spent in large city with humane
society shelter, observing entire operation along
with record keeping and method of euthanasia.
8 hours 16 Feb 02."

Here we go again, no documentation as to what
city shelter was involved.

It appears to us that Brezek took the sample that
is published by the state at:

http://tinyurl.com/3oyfe5o

and copied it while interspersing dates and other
"pertinent" information wherever such information
could be made to reach the descriptions.

Apparently Tom King was a jail guard, "Local
Corrections Officer," at the time. The qualifications
for that position changed on April 1, 2004. If Mr.
King qualifies to return to his former position, one
must wonder why such accommodation hasn't
been undertaken by Iron County.

When I originally inquired about filing the FOIA
request for this information with the Iron County
Sheriff's Office, I was advised the the FOIA officer
for the Sheriff's Department was the Iron County
Prosecutor. And Melissa A. Powell was cc'd on the
reply the Mrs. Clisch, the actual FOIA officer for
the county, provided, along with a cc to Tom King.

We also find it very odd that Tom King failed to raise
any issues about his compliance with state law in
being employed as county dogcatcher. until after
his termination from that position. Could that be
because the documentation facially fails to provide
what it claims to do? The legal term used by the
courts to describe such things is "specious."

In any case, the county itself failed to comply with
the state statutes by not formalizing the formal
requirements for that position. And finally, the
state law provides more than adequate regulation
of dogs in the state. We've never discovered any
need for Iron County, Michigan, to regulate animals
and to unnecessarily spend money for a dogcatcher
while state requirements provide this function
adequately.

IronCountyDoings, and therefore its editor, are
satisfied that Iron County possesses no documents
about Mr. King's compliance with the statutes
regulating the position of dogcatcher. The answer
provided by Mrs. Clisch was, in our opinion, sadly
correct.

Bill Vajk

The Dog Catcher Stories continue

We began our investigation regarding Tom King's
qualifications for the office he held, that is, Iron
County's dog catcher. In keeping with Michigan
statutes, we requested two documents in a
FOIA to Iron County:

1) The County's policy regarding physical,
educational, mental, and moral fitness for the
job.

2) Mr. King's qualification based successful
completion of a required course of study
as prescribed by the Michigan Department
of Agriculture.

In an office visit to encourage compliance by
answering the FOIA I noted that Mrs. Clisch,
the FOIA officer for Iron County, had a copy
of the state statute MCL 287.289b as part
of her file on the matter. I had not mentioned
the statute in my request, but someone
(perhaps the prosecuting attorney) was
sharp and had found the basis for my question.

On June 15, 2010, Mrs. Clisch answered the
FOIA request stating that none of the documents
requested exist. We've discussed this before.

A few days ago, a letter was handed to
associate editor Ben Smith, from Steven
L Halstead, program manager for the
Department of Agriculture, dated Sept 24,
2003, stating that based on information
sent to him by J. L. Brezak (then the
Undersheriff) that Tom King "has satisfied
the training requirements" for the position
of dog catcher.

This is not the end of the investigatory trail,
but rather a new beginning. Those results
will be reported here.

We have reason to believe that Iron County's
typical flim-flam was used to "qualify" Mr,
King as a political expedient. So whatever
comes out in this matter will be fairly
reported.

In the meantime, the County, for years,
violated the state statute which says:


287.289b County animal control
officers; employment standards.

Sec. 29b.

(1) The board of county commissioners

shall adopt minimum employment standards

relative to the recruitment, selection and

appointment of animal control officers. The

minimum standards shall include:

(a) Requirements for physical, educational,

mental and moral fitness.

(b) A minimum course of study of not less

than 100 instructional hours as prescribed

by the department of agriculture.

(2) Subdivision (b) shall not apply if the

animal control officer is a police officer or

has served at least 3 years as an animal

control officer.

It is clear that Iron County violated section
1 of the statute. What remains to be discovered
is how they claim that Tom King fulfilled the
educational requirements. If Undersheriff
Brezek claimed that Tom King had been a
police officer because he had been a jail guard
at the Iron County jail, we'll be looking for his
certification as a Michigan Police Officer.

Sometimes digging resolves issues. And
sometimes when you scratch something
it festers. We are eager to resolve this set
of questions and with hold judgment till
all the facts are in


Bill Vajk

more wool over the taxpayers' eyes

A presentation was made on May 10, 2011 by
the Iron County Economic Development
Corporation related to the rail spur in
Hematite Township at the meeting advertised
the week before in the Iron County Reporter.

The rail used by the EDC project sawmill is
worn out and needs to be replaced. This fact
must have been known when the sawmill
was funded using a county underwritten
bond, but kept quiet because the net effect
is the addition of yet another contract
amount to replace rails costing taxpayers
a base investment of $176,850 with the
possibility of significant additional charges
to replace unsuitable fill under the tracks.

How many more secrets are there about
this sawmill project that the EDC promoted
heavily not all that long ago? How much
more is that project going to cost the
taxpayers that we haven't been told about?

It was bad enough that roadway was
replaced at EDC/taxpayer expense, but at
least that was public property. Now the
EDC is involved in the replacement of
privately owned property with the only
available recovery being revolving loan
repayments by two firms using the rail
spur, and those firms "guarantee" a
certain number of railcars moving over
the spur till the loans are repaid. That,
of course, assumes the continuing viability
of the sawmail and Sappi Paper for at
least 5 years after this new project is
funded.

The fact that the rail spur isn't going to
become public property is, in this editor's
opinion, incompetence on the part of our
EDC officials. And the way the current
project is being handled pretty much
precludes extension of the rail spur
down to the Crystal Falls Industrial
Park that would have significantly
improved the growth potential there.

Since the trackage is worn out and must
be replaced, and the Railroad Company
has stated that they do not intend to
continue service on the spur in its present
condition, this means that the entire spur
is ripe for abandonment except for
intervention by the EDC, the County, and
the State of Michigan.

Abandonment means that it is available
at a minimum cost to anyone who is willing
to purchase it. That "anyone" should have
been the County of Iron. Then
improvements to the rail could have been
made by the Michigan Economic
Development Corp. (MEDC) because it
would have meant improvements related to
public property used for economic advantage
of the region, and a future extension to the
Crystal Falls Industrial Park would have been
a likelihood instead of one more page in a wish
book. Not only that, but the Amasa Depot
has had a lot of inquiry as a site for business
that's not going to be available so long as the
rail spur remains in private hands.

The bid for rail work was submitted by
Holubar Construction Co. on November 8,
2010. So the project has been in the works
at least since that time, and the recipient of
the bid was Pine River Lumber Co.

IronCountyDoings editor has been immersed
in another project and has been unable to
pay attention to the business of the EDC, but
it appears at this moment that this project
was more or less kept under wraps, and
trotted out in the May 4th issue of the Iron
County Reporter, approved by the EDC the
following week on May 10, and approved by
the County Board the same day.

Can you say, "pull the wool over the taxpayers'
eyes" and "rushed through" with no chance for
dissemination by the press and the expected
public discussion?

As is to be expected in Iron County, Tinti
Law and GEI engineering have their pieces
of the action.

According to the unapproved minutes from
the EDC meeting of March 10, the following
members of the EDC Board of Directors were
present and responsible for approving the
project:

Leonoff, Archocosky, Yusla, Ferguson,
Syrjanen, King, Lind, and Quayle. Absent
from the meeting were members Anderson,
Alexa, Lesandrini, and J. Melchiori.

Bill Vajk

The Pre-Budget Budget Meeting

The city of Iron River held a special
pre-budget meeting last Wednesday,
May 4, 2011. Various categories and
departments were discussed. It was
announced that a public pre-budget
meeting would be held sometime
later in May to explain the aims of
the budget to the public.

During the public comment segment
of the meeting an Iron River citizen
asked if any consideration had been
given to taking advantage of the New
Government Affordable Health care
Law (Obamacare) to provide the health
coverage for the city employees that are
covered under union contract.

As of now no information has been made
available either to the city nor any
employees.

Later during council comments a
mention was made by several members
of the concern of citizens about
the condition of the street pavements in
the city. It was pointed out by the
administration that most of the road
funding the city receives has
traditionally been used primarily for
winter snow removal which leaves very
little for routine maintenance.

And since revenue sharing is expected
to shrink dramatically not much hope
was expressed about future maintenance
of the streets in the city.

Ben Smith

--------------------------------------------------------

Editor's comments:

The "Ethic of Reciprocity" is also known in
the predominantly Christian west as "The
Golden Rule." A goodly number of
variations in the wording have been around
since at least the Middle Kingdom of Egypt
that began about 2040 BC. However, of
particular interest to today's discussion
is the variation stated by a Jewish Elder,
sometimes referred to a Rabbi named Hillel,
who was a contemporary of Christ. Hillel
taught, "If I am not for myself, then who
will be for me? And if I am only for myself,
then what am I? And if not now, when?"

For this discussion, the last part is critical.

If the City of Iron River has been unable to
maintain the street pavement over the past
few decades, and has no money for it now,
then when?

It appears that no one has taken the
residents' long term needs into
consideration. The City Manager is,
relatively speaking, a short timer, who
will be retiring before any of the city
streets become impassible. The
members of the City Council are elected
for one cycle at a time. The office staff
has no responsibility for infrastructure.

This publication discussed this very issue
quite recently, on April 29th. What good is
money in the bank while infrastructure is
collapsing around us?

The bad part is that it doesn't appear that
the City of Iron River has any plans at all
for making necessary repairs or replacement
of pavement. The powers that are responsible
appear to be turning a blind eye to the
problems.

And unfortunately, some finger pointing
solves the problem for them by saying that
Bill Vajk is just "out to destroy Iron River,
so don't listen to him, there are more
important things to do."

Really?

Bill Vajk

Money In The Bank?

OK, so Iron River has some money in the bank,
and did well on the government audit deciding
whether or not it is in fiscal trouble. The score
of 0 we mentioned a few days ago has Iron River
politicos breaking their arms patting themselves
on the back.

But there's a downside. There almost always
is. Today I'll show an obvious one. Unfortunately
at the moment I don't have the time to do a
deeper investigation to find some of the other
pitfalls that are hovering just below the surface.

If you don't properly maintain your infrastructure
it hardly matters how much money you have in
the bank.

As a citizen, what would you rather have? Lousy
streets and buildings that are left wanting of
repairs for years on end and a nice bank balance,
or would you rather have a government always
on the edge of needing a bailout and good roads?

Here's a photo of the alley behind my property
at 413 Plum Street.



This alley was paved. Since 2005 it has
deteriorated and not been repaired, but
has been covered with gravel instead.

Because it is a hillside, as many streets
and alleys are in Iron River, graveling
over the paves street doesn't work very
well, and the City knows that, but this
is their idea of "good enough for the
residents." Is it good enough for you?

Washington Street on the hilltop is
actually one of the better paved streets
in Iron River, and they're going to tear
it all up to put a median in. Still there
are plenty of flaws, like this one at the
corner of Washington and Diamond, right
in the path of most traffic going around
that corner.


And speaking of Diamond, that street is riddled
with potholes over its entire length!


So these are where people live and drive. What
about the parts that the public who come on
vacation see?

The City of Iron River has a pumping station
next door to the Riverside Mall. The roof
has been in the state shown in the next
picture for years. Literally, for years!!!!



This is the face we show the world. But
you must feel good, because the City has
money in the bank!

Other people have pretty strong horror
stories abut the City, and most readers
will know several unique ones.

City "fathers", fix the city up, and don't
feel so good about having a strong reserve.
None of the other communities do, and all
that "fail" will be bailed out, so why in
the heck are you doing this? I wouldn't
want to guess. Your mission is to serve
the public. It is past time you start doing
that.

Bill Vajk

A Non-negative Economic Look at Iron River

For a change, the news about the City of Iron
River is not bad. Ben Smith, our Associate Editor,
acquired the information that the City has been
found by the Michigan Treasury to be in a
sufficiently sound state that a close watch is not
necessary.

The scale of numbers starts with zero, the best
score, and moves upwards, to depict the level
of alarm that each municipality engenders.

Iron River achieved a zero score. The full table,
as well as a tabulation of several earlier years,
can be found at:

http://tinyurl.com/3fzkq2m

I look forward to the day that the City of Iron
River volunteers the auditor's report as well as
the budget for scrutiny and public comment. If
the City is actually proud of their achievements
perhaps they'll put a copy in the mail to me, they
already have my address. As far as I know, those
are public documents and they should be available
on request. I have to wonder why such records
aren't routinely put up for public view on their
web page. The business of the city is our business,
not the City Council's alone.

The old Russian adage "trust but verify" comes
to mind. Reagan, and others similarly clever,
took that caveat to be a rule of living, as we all
should where governments are concerned.

Bill Vajk

Rearranging The Deck Chairs?

Sarah Palin's recent speech admonishing the
newly elected Republicans in Congress
for "rearranging the deck chairs on a sinking
Titanic" was on target.

This news source generally doesn't comment
on national news unless there's a significant
impact on Iron County, Michigan. This is one
of those occasions.

Standard and Poors has warned the US
Government that we're not matching other
AAA rated sovereigns, and that we have a
negative long term outlook by comparison:

"We have affirmed our 'AAA/A-1+' sovereign
credit ratings on the United States of America."

"...we have revised our outlook on the long
term rating to negative from stable."

http://www.standardandpoors.com/ratings/articles/en/us/?assetID=1245302886884

This is a prelude to loss of the AAA ratings we
presently experience. A change of as little as
1/10th of 1 percent in interest on the 14 trillion
dollars of national debt that we presently owe
increases monthly payments on that debt by
more than most of us can possibly earn in a
lifetime, even considering the sorts of inflation
we've experienced since the 1929 depression.
That small increase in an interest rate comes to
more than 1.5 million dollar increase (not the
payment, just the increase) per month. That's
roughly $14 million a year for each 1/10 of 1%
increase in interest. Who among us thinks for
an instant that the interest will increase by
only 1/10 of 1%?

How does that affect us here in Iron County,
you ask?

This county lives on grants. No more
infrastructure improvements, new police,
township, or county vehicles would be
available! The "deep pockets" that local
governments have come to rely on for
many of our needs on will be empty. More
paved roads will be graveled over.

The difficulty is, of course, that we depend
on political decisions to solve economic
problems that would be best solved by
knowledgeable hard-nosed non-political
economists whose only interest is in
stabilizing the economy.

The time has come for a new question to
be asked of the politicians in Washington.

"Ask not how much you can gift the folks
who vote for you. Ask, instead, what you
can do to improve this nation!"

Redistribution doesn't work!

Bill Vajk

BOC Meeting 4-12- 2011

Iron County Board of Commissioners
Meeting April 12, 2011

Commissioner Camp reported that the Iron
County Health Department had achieved a
99% compliance award by the Michigan
Department of Community Health as the
result of a recent audit. The Board considered
this real achievement and the board was
happy to receive the news

They also received the Equalization
Department Report from Director Mussatto.

In other business Iron County received an
allowed increase of twenty cents per month
in the surcharge on telephone lines in order to
finance the 911 system. The board indicated that
they would like more information regarding a
VOIP (Internet telephone) proposal from Merit
a not for profit agency. The MERIT Network has
been in existence since 1966. Their original
mission was to design and implement a computer
network between public universities in Michigan

Merit is in the process of installing a distribution
system near Forest Park School Campus. It is a
program originally installed through University
of Michigan and through a grant has been
encouraged to spread statewide. This reporter
thinks they are offering to provide VOIP telephone
service to Iron County although it was not spelled
out at the meeting because many of the
commissioners were not familiar with the process.
They requested more information.

In other action the board authorized Prosecuting
Attorney Melissa Powell Weston to defend the
County in Federal Appeals Court in the lawsuit
filed by residents William and Gloria Vajk against
the County, the City of Iron River, and the Michigan
Municipal League.

Ben Smith

Casperson and Huuki

Senator Tom Casperson and Representative
Matt Huuki appeared at townhall style
gathering at "The Station" restaurant in
Iron River, tonight April 9, 2011. They spoke
for approximately two hours to an audience
comprised of local residents.

The audience asked questions ranging from
their positions on the proposal to tax
pensions, to nuclear energy and emergency
financial executives to replace elected office
holders and voiding collectively bargained
contracts.

Both officials said they didn't think the
Item Pricing Bill was designed to create
jobs.

This reporter was not able to ask the follow-
up question,"How many jobs would be lost
due to it's implementation?"

The audience was generally polite and
heard the two officeholders both express
support for nuclear energy and the mining
being done in Marquette County.

The previously unidentified sponsor for
the event was later identified as Eric
Koenig of Iron County.

Ben Smith

Notice

The Notice of Appeal for the federal lawsuit in which
I am suing the City of Iron River, Iron County, and
various officials of both entities, was filed this
afternoon at the Federal District Court in Marquette.

This will move the next phase of the case to a three
judge panel in the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals at
Cincinnati, Ohio.

Bill Vajk

Eternal Vigilance?

A letter to the editor was published in the March
30, 2011, edition of the Iron County Reporter. The
letter concerns itself with the streetscape plan
for Washington Street - Lay Avenue that's been
in the works since at least 2006.

Someone finally woke up.

Consider the Cool Cities Blueprint report:

"In addition, serious consideration should be given
to creating a landscaped median down the center
of Washington. Doing so would not only beautify
the area, but would greatly enhance The Hilltop's
pedestrian-orientation."

You can find a copy of this report posted on the
internet at:

http://www.ironriver.org/downloads/forms/Cool%20Cities%20Blueprint.pdf

The Cool Cities Blueprint prepared for the city by
Hyatt Palma in 2006 after several public meetings
at City Hall about the topic cost the taxpayers over
$100,000. In essence the report is a clearinghouse
of a wish list prepared predominantly of items on
the wish lists of some of the "shakers and movers"
in our region. In addition the report plays hardball
in giving kudos to those same shakers and movers.
That sort of thing makes it ever so much easier to
sell the authors next cool cities, or any similar urban
planning project.

The letter to the editor is well founded, but more
than a little late. Streetscape plans have been
created at public expense. This project has been
in the works, one way or another, for some 5
years.

Where has the public outcry against this project
been hiding for the past 5 years?

The following appears on the Jefferson
Memorial:

"I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal
hostility against every form of tyranny over
the mind of man."

This is often taken as the basis for our American
creed that the price of liberty is eternal vigilance.
Jefferson was a clever man, and we should be
heeding his advice. It is not enough to take
exception to what the government is doing when
the facts are pushed in our face. In order to
prevent projects like the planned streetscape
at Iron River's Hilltop, the objections should have
been made in 2006 rather than 2011.

The local watchers of government are too few
here in Iron County, Michigan, and the retaliation
taken by our local power brokers has been too
effective. It takes a degree of bravery to stand
up to the onslaught extended by local government
administrations.

Please see:

http://ironcountydoings.blogspot.com/2010/11/non-legal-retribution.html

for an example.

If we have no personal care about the Hilltop we
still have a strong interest in how and where our
money is being spent. Grants from the state or
the federal government still come out of our pockets.

I wonder if the author of the letter to the editor
has been paying attention to other local government
initiatives that run counter to taxpayer interests?

a new airport of Iron County

Windsor Center

Michigan Townships Association model ordinance:
http://ironcountydoings.blogspot.com/2011/03/here-we-go-again.html

City of Iron River authorization of a $23,150,000
municipal bond for Northstar Healthcare (hospital)
improvements with a shrinking population and a
resulting loss of over $2 million for the calendar year
2010. In fact, the last break-even year for the
hospital was 2007.

http://ironcountydoings.blogspot.com/2011/03/northstar-hospital-report-2010q4.html

I'll stop here, the complete list is far more extensive.

The planned Hilltop streetscape is Iron River's
"bridge to nowhere," just like the jutting out
sidewalks on Genesee Street were a very bad
idea not clearly thought through considering
the snow clearing we must do all winter every
winter.

Please take some time to read the Cool Cities
Blueprint report. Please become more involved
in throwing reins on local government whenever
it is appropriate.

Idle hands are the devil's workshop. For variants
please see:

http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/21/messages/17.html

The problem is that our local governments are
designed to be caretakers, not activists. And the
elected politicians haven't gotten that message,
they appear to think that they're supposed to be
activists, and the voters are supposed to follow
their lead.

In reality, the situation is exactly the opposite
of what we are experiencing in Iron County. It
is the taxpaying electorate that's supposed to be
leading.

How about it?

Bill Vajk