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Playing the Game
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| Joined: | Wed Jan 30th, 2008 |
| Location: | Delaware USA |
| Posts: | 5408 |
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Posted: Sat Jul 4th, 2009 10:51 pm |
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| The only problem is that in this glorious state if you do not join a party, you cannot vote in primaries. Survival of the corruptest.
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Toledo Tom
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| Joined: | Thu Jun 25th, 2009 |
| Location: | Dover, Delaware USA |
| Posts: | 86 |
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Posted: Sat Jul 4th, 2009 10:06 pm |
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HB - Thank you for the enlightenment, I need it! I'm an independant in Kent County. In DE I think I've seen the worst of the Blues and Reds. Maybe as an independant I chose right when opting for Kent County's Purple. Egad, I live and still learn!
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Hartlyboy
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Posted: Sat Jul 4th, 2009 07:02 pm |
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| Well, you are catching on. This is a multi-hued state with the bluest part in NC county and the reddest in Sussex. Poor ole Kent where you live is kinda purple but trending blue with all the NJ and PA who came here, as you did , to escape taxes , but can't resist grabbing that D lever at the polls so they'll be back in the soup in a few more years like they were before they moved.
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Toledo Tom
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| Joined: | Thu Jun 25th, 2009 |
| Location: | Dover, Delaware USA |
| Posts: | 86 |
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Posted: Sat Jul 4th, 2009 01:37 pm |
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| You are right I am new, here. It has taken me 5 years to get around to understanding (at least better understanding) what is going on in Delaware. Unaccountable and closed legislature, a school board accountable only to itself, desk drawer vetoes, a child judiciary which is supposedly looking out for the citizen and the children, in fact is a kangaroo court looking out for itself, schools of higher education which teach black people how to discriminate against whites, a press which is totally liberal and performing NONE of the "watchful eye" duties which caused the first amendment, candidates who routinely prevaricate, in office politicians completely ignoring citizen input, blatant conflict of interest and nepotism, a large illegal alien population sucking the treasury dry, on and on and on. I came here from Virginia because of lower taxes, I have no one to blame but myself when I failed to look at organization, structure and so on; I assumed things were like every other state I had ever been in. The "First State" would seem to have become the last state. Yet as long as I live here I will continue to attempt to right these many, many, serious wrongs! That's citizenship.
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Toledo Tom
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| Joined: | Thu Jun 25th, 2009 |
| Location: | Dover, Delaware USA |
| Posts: | 86 |
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Posted: Sat Jul 4th, 2009 01:21 pm |
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| By who - do you know if this was tested in the courts. In most states and at national level the laying of taxes, levies, duties and so on rests solely with the legislature. Are you saying independant school boards are an "adjunct" legislature. If so, then no wonder DE education is so costly and in such bad shape. Honestly, it reaches the point where no one is responsible for anything. Egad, it is a union and legislatures dream and a nightmare of the taxpayer!!!!
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Hartlyboy
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Posted: Fri Jul 3rd, 2009 10:27 pm |
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Geez, Toledo, you are a newbie to our fair state or you would have known that the education business here is a joint state and local rock 'em , sock 'em deal. the local school boards hit you for local property taxes for some of their capital and operational needs , including salary supplements and the State legislators come along after them and give them the bulk of their building funds and teacher salaries. I mean it takes a team effort to have one of the highest cost per pupil, least effective education businesses in the country.
You better darn well pay attention to local referendums and what the school board in your district does. They have one of the shortest and quickest routes to your wallet of any government entity.
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Playing the Game
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| Joined: | Wed Jan 30th, 2008 |
| Location: | Delaware USA |
| Posts: | 5408 |
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Posted: Fri Jul 3rd, 2009 09:50 pm |
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| In Delaware it is. School Boards are independent of each other and have been given the power of taxation and referendum.
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Toledo Tom
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| Joined: | Thu Jun 25th, 2009 |
| Location: | Dover, Delaware USA |
| Posts: | 86 |
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Posted: Fri Jul 3rd, 2009 07:24 pm |
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| Either way, it is NOT a legislative body!
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Playing the Game
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| Joined: | Wed Jan 30th, 2008 |
| Location: | Delaware USA |
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Posted: Fri Jul 3rd, 2009 05:48 pm |
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| The Capitol District is the Dover School District, it is not a Statewide body.
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Toledo Tom
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| Joined: | Thu Jun 25th, 2009 |
| Location: | Dover, Delaware USA |
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Posted: Fri Jul 3rd, 2009 11:31 am |
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Know what, I just learned that neither the county or the state has anything to say about education. I'm told that this is all left to something called the Capitol (or some such named body) District. You may know this, but I didn't! I would have worked much, much harder to put their referendums in the refusal bin. Here's why. I first have to wonder about the legality of a non-legislative body collecting taxes, calling referendums, setting tax rates, and spending taxpaid funds. I believe this entire structure to be illegal. If this was allowed by the legislature, then the legislature has abrogated their responsibility to the citizen. If this continues, whomever is responsible should be impeached for mal and mis feasance in office, if it is not legal then it is criminal. Also, I'm told that not only does this body do all the taxes, they also set the educational agenda. I admit, I don't know who appoints principals and administrators but if it is this body, this presents a clear conflict. Most places in the country leaves tax matters in the hands of the legislature and school administration to an elected education only body. Also, Delaware continually falls at the low spectrum of success in education and yet these boards continue to ask for more and more money, yet nothing but salaries increase while educational improvement is nill. It is not entirely the fault of these boards. The unions have a strangle hold on school administration. This must stop else, well, look at what happened to the automakers who had enormous union help - help out the business door, that is. Meanwhile the name of the game is - no one is responsible for anything - give us more tax money and stop asking questions. I admit I'm fairly new to DE and have only come across this structure is the past several days. The citizenry is being screwed - dear County and State legislators - are you listening?
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tspong
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| Joined: | Fri Aug 24th, 2007 |
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Posted: Mon Jun 29th, 2009 05:46 pm |
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What do you think?
From the Delaware State News:
Committee backs education projects
Bond Bill panel devotes majority of available funds to schools
By Leah Burcat
Delaware State News
DOVER — Keeping with the legislature’s budgetary focus so far this session, the Joint Bond Bill Committee met on Sunday in an effort to finagle available resources to cover capital infrastructure and transportation projects.
Although the group approved cuts to many roadway and building projects, the members tried to keep the scissors away from public education as much as possible. In all, more than 66 percent of funds in the Bond Bill were committed to maintenance, improvements and new construction within public education.
"Public education is a significant part of this bond bill," said state budget director Ann Visalli.
And it wasn’t just public education that the 12-member group fought to preserve — infrastructure projects within higher education and the Community Transportation Fund also made their list.
Some legislators worried that three of the state’s institutions of higher education — University of Delaware, Delaware State University and Delaware Technical & Community College — were going to take an especially hard hit.
Former Gov. Ruth Ann Minner had proposed cutting funds to each of the schools for capital improvement to $3 million each. On Sunday, when the Markell administration brought its proposal to the committee, funding for the higher education improvement projects had been wiped to zero.
After some discussion and the moving of funds, the group decided to allocate $1 million to each of the institutions.
In order to recoup the money, funds were cut from programs meant to provide minor capital improvement and equipment to multiple agencies and from the Economic Development Office’s strategic fund, among others.
In addition to fighting for higher education, lawmakers also fought for the continuance of the Community Transportation Fund, the program by which legislators can allocate money to fix small transportation-related problems within their districts.
In past years, each legislator had been given $250,000 for such projects.
When the Markell administration proposed their ideas on Sunday, cutting the program in its entirety for fiscal year 2010 was one of the ideas. It would save about $18 million.
Some members of the committee were concerned about the proposal, though. They said it was the only way small problems were addressed.
"This is the only means by which we can fix streets in subdivisions," said Rep. William A. Oberle, R-Beecher’s Lot.
The group eventually decided to reinstate half of the funds, so that each legislator would be given $125,000 for the fiscal year beginning on July 1. Carolann Wicks, DelDOT secretary, said the $9 million would need to be recouped from other transportation projects. A proposal on how that would be done is expected to come out today.
Staff writer Leah Burcat can be reached at 741-8250 or lburcat@newszap.com.
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