TKC EXCLUSIVE AND THE SATURDAY NIGHT PLAYLIST!!! IS IT TIME FOR KANSAS CITY TO TELL CITY HALL TO STOP OVERSPENDING?!?
The campaign to hand over EVEN MORE Kansas City Taxpayer cash is underway with the usual whimper and quiet acceptance offered to every local tax increase.
This tax isn't being pushed forth as choice but more of a requirement.
The typical assortment of Kansas City's elite and power brokers have gathered yet again to engage in a bit of group think and push forth the idea that anything less than submission to even more taxes is an assault to the greater good.
As always we expect The Star to pretend to give the topic careful consideration and then tout yet another local levy while they drive home to The Golden Ghetto.
And of course there's the threat that a failure to comply will result in even more financial harm. For the record, loan sharks use the same argument.
Like it or not . . . The same logic that argues that Kansas City should unquestioningly vote for more taxes without much explanation, any real guarantees or insight into the process is EXACTLY the same cycle of FAIL that has led this city into a tragic state of disrepair.
AND LET'S NOT FORGET THAT PROPONENTS OF THIS TAX ARE BEING DISINGENUOUS WHEN THEY FAIL TO NOTE THAT THERE'S YET ANOTHER BIG ASK COMING TO THE TUNE OF MORE THAN HALF A BILLION IN APRIL 2013!!!
And while I hate to cast stereotypes . . .
The political elite in Kansas City are worse than crack addicts when it comes to asking for more taxpayer cash.
Over and over they say, "This time it'll be different."
They cry: "WE NEED IT, WE CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT IT!!!"
The cries for approval for more cash to feed their habit are desperate, angry, bitter and urgent.
However . . .
SAYING NO TO KANSAS CITY POLITICOS ON THIS CURRENT TAX IS THE ONLY WAY TO SEND A MESSAGE WHEN IT COMES TO THE RAMPANT OVERSPENDING THAT CITY HALL HAS UNDERTAKEN WITHOUT ANY INPUT FROM VOTERS!!!
Say yes to this taxing scheme and you're saying yes to:
* Toy Trains
* The Downtown Hotel
* Luxurious City Hall Pension Schemes
* Tax Breaks For Cordish
With only a year in office Mayor Sly's leadership HAS grown arrogant and he's pursuing so many tax schemes as if they're an entitlement.
But if KC is so desperate for cash then why is so much of it wasted on the folly and pet projects of our Mayor and City Council?
It's a question of priorities.
Only by cutting the purse strings of Mayor Sly and his rubber stamp City Council can the people of Kansas City GIVE A MOMENT OF PAUSE to a vapid and disconnected brand of leadership that has abandoned neighborhoods in service to no one but special interests and the suburban corporate elite.
I don't have much faith in this cowtown and barely anyone but gullible Senior Citizens vote in these minor league elections. Sadly, I expect Mayor Sly and company to win this tax increase battle over water levies BUT continue to lose the longstanding quality of life war with the suburbs as residents stream out of KC Proper City Limits over the long run.
And all of this has inspired tonight's playlist.
As always, thank you for reading and have a safe and fun weekend.
signs on the public thoroughfare? Isn't that illegal now? What about the all-star effort to clean up?
ReplyDeleteAll Star more tax payer money fail.
ReplyDeleteThat was quite a rant!
ReplyDeletelets vote these losers out to make room for the next ones, after all in KC, history is proving to repeat itself election after election.. so as far as any change in this shit town goes apply for the fire department, after all thats who really runs this city, they suck at saving the citizens yet masters at winning grand theft auto lol
ReplyDeleteNobody plays gta anymore. You must be some divorced 50 something who fancies himself as "hip." Gta is so 2006.
DeleteEveryone hoped that Sly would get in the locomotive and take the train down a different track, but instead he settled into the dining car with a nice Scotch and the whole thing kept right on benefitting the usual insider crowd.
ReplyDeleteNow the same old consultant crowd is running the same old campaign the same old way to sell yet another issue to the ever-decreasing number of voters who are still not disgusted enough with the whole charade to just quit voting.
And money keeps being poured into downtown, and the east side keeps emptying out, and violence is as bad as ever, and the residents who actually live in the city can continue to expect nothing when it comes to even the most basic services like public safety.
So try to get aboard the train and get a piece of the action, watch as it roars by, or move to some city that actually has a municipal government.
A city that works.
Just not for you.
All I hear is whine whine whine. Whining that works, except to accomplish anything. Have you ever done anything in life except whine and cry?
DeleteSo broke that the Local 500 employees get another pay increase.
ReplyDeleteExcept for the pink haired wonder T's rants as a rule are right on page with the issues and not what I call whining as much as keeping those who read this informed.
ReplyDeleteBesides you don't think the Star doesn't whine?
Jeez Tony. If you'd get out of your Mom's fucking basement you'd see how much stuff is in decrepit state. Hand over cash? WTF?? Unless you mean, hand it to people who will fix the broken shit in KC. Wake the fuck up if you're going to responsibly report on issues. Christ, what a dope!
ReplyDeletePoints to consider and questions to ask:
ReplyDelete*What "folly" of the City Council has actually cost taxpayers.
*Have you considered what taxes and fees are being eliminated for citizens if the new tax is out into place?
*The funds for street repairs and maintenance are crucial to this city. New simply don't have the tax base to fix all of the roads within a city of approx. 220 sq. miles.
*The funds from this tax cannot be used for downtown, the streetcar project, or any of the other proposed projects to lambaste on this site.
*Citizens repeatedly report that good city streets are something they want.
*When discussing this issue, please remember what in the general fund is actually fluid and can be used for things like street repair and water bonds, and what funds cannot be used. You would be surprised by the low amount of discretionary dollars in the general fund.
Have a discussion about the ballot initiatives, but have an intelligent discussion. Our city's infrastructure needs help; it needs funds. We are under an EPA mandate to fix our sewers, some of which are over 100 years old. It's not a choice, the job has to get done and we have to pay for it. Do you want water rates to go out 135%, or do you want to pay less and use bonds? Do you want our Parks Department to have stable funding while losing the motor vehicle license fee and other taxes, or do you want to close community centers and further cut back services?
One of the things that makes KC nice...room to spread out, lots of neighborhoods, etc., is also the thing that makes it so hard to maintain. We simply don't have enough people paying enough taxes to maintain. Our infrastructure. Unfortunate, but factual.
Not telling anyone how to vote, but just suggesting that before you do cast your ballot, consider the facts and consider the ramifications if the tax does not pass. One way or another we have to pay for these basic services. At least we have a choice as to how we do that.
God bless America for that choice.
*What "folly" of the City Council has actually cost taxpayers.
ReplyDeleteDo you think all of those studies for the Downtown Streetcar were free?
The City paid almost a million dollars for that folly.
*Have you considered what taxes and fees are being eliminated for citizens if the new tax is out into place?
Increasing sales taxes and taxes for water hurt the poorest people in this city. Mayor James is passing regressive taxes.
As for your other misguided points. I think your missing the point that if the city didn't spend so much on big ticket items like Power & Light they wouldn't need so much more money for essential services.
You are absolving the City for years of misappropriation and misconduct.
What "folly"?? Let's see where do we begin. KCP&L District. Union Station. A couple of city blocks for a police station. A park in the middle of nowhere, where the race track was. TIF TIF TIF TIF TIF TIF TIF TIF TIF TIF TIF. Huge increases in Fire salaries. Train studies, Airport studies, Hotel studies. All of this is shit we don't need. These things, with the exception of the studies, are continually costing the tax payers of this city, of which there are far too few.
ReplyDeleteLet us not forget about the promised permenant tenant at the Sprint Center and Kemper Arena.
ReplyDeleteFolks, if you think studies are not worthwhile, then you're stupid. I'd much rather the city spend money on feasibility studies and learn to do or not to do something and the way to do it than just charging ahead.
ReplyDelete4:42, you are wrong on the amount of the streetcar study by at least half. If not sales taxes, then what? Property taxes? What would you increase 4:42? Because something has got to increase.
P&L was Kay's folly, not this current Mayor's. We are still paying for it because Kay let her buddy/lover Herb Kohn negotiate a deal and he got his ass kicked by the
Cordish folks. We are still paying for an agreement that was negotiated two mayors ago.
4:42, the points in the comment you criticized were right on. Quit blaming the current mayor and council for past mistakes (except for Glover who never goes away). And if you're going to criticize a tax increase when the dollars are needed, suggest an alternative.