Your View | November 18 - 24, 2009
The last item on the November Carefree Council agenda addressed the issue of ensuring Carefree voters receive their mail-in ballots in time for them to be returned and counted. In the May 2009 election a number of voters did not have their votes recorded due to the late mailing date. Mayor Schwan opposed having a vote on the matter, insisting more research was needed. However, Councilman Stavoe made a motion, seconded by Councilman Coady, that ballots should be mailed 33 days in advance of the election date, the maximum allowed by law, giving voters the greatest chance for their votes to count. Again apparently trying to distance herself from the sinking good-old-boy ship, Councilwoman Vanik voted to support the motion. Learning her vote, Councilman Gemmill quickly reversed his earlier position and also voted for the motion that passed 5-2. Only the mayor and his loyal sidekick, Vice Mayor Miller, voted against timely mailing of ballots.
Mayor David Schwan's temper flared during the November council meeting. He demanded an audience member stop interrupting the proceedings, but stopped short of ordering the town marshal to remove the offender. The man had raised a point of order about an agenda item and later asked if public comment was going to be permitted on an agenda item. During the final agenda item the mayor acknowledged that a recall election "may" occur against him, apparently hoping that over half the signatures gathered will be disqualified.
To promote Schwan's freedom of speech during Call to the Public, someone should get up and sing "I'm a little teapot, short and stout," for 3 minutes. It would certainly be more educational than the usual Hayward rant.
Being small of stature does not mean one must be small minded too. Unfortunately, our Mayor Schwan is both. Denying expenses to an elected official for promoting Carefree is both petty and an abuse of power. What a sad commentary for Carefree.
The November Carefree Council meeting was another gem, providing a stage for losers preaching to their own choir. Weak leadership becomes more apparent each month. It was quite clear that Gary Hayward’s seething hatred of your paper was not sufficient to overcome his irresistible urge to read it. It gave him the opportunity to rant at a town meeting regarding a subject over which the Council has no control – free speech. Schwan is incapable of bringing focus to meetings or leadership to town government.
Why would any councilman in their right mind deny residents an adequate timeframe in which to cast their mail-in election ballots, something especially important for out-of-town voters? Schwan, Miller, and Gemmill found a way to argue against it. Gemmill stumbled to the other side when he saw the vote going in favor of restoring the timeframe from 15 to 33 days. BTW, one term mayor Hugh Stevens forced the change from 33 to 15 days during his tarnished reign, but it didn’t help him.
People afraid of open debate always seek rules to protect them from deserved criticism. Vanik’s attempt to get the Carefree council to adopt her ‘Cultural Contract’ was a sophomoric effort to gag honest debate. This is not your old Girl Scout troop. It is a government body struggling to openly discuss real problems at a time when leadership is blind to those problems.
Wow ... it is so sad to see where the "Cave Creek voters" priorities are at: Voting "no" to helping improve our childrens' early education with the K-3 override BUT voting "yes" for a Walmart so they can save a few pennies on items that Target already sells (and which is much better quality I must add). Very, very sad.
Vanik should develop a Code of Ethics for her Kiwanis organization and clean out the contemptible members before she lectures the town council on how to conduct discussions. Implementing a Code of Ethics for the paid town staff would be a refreshing next step.
Somebody please explain to Glenn Miller that he has a responsibility to understand simple agenda items before he attends meetings and utters something incredibly stupid. If he can’t find Arizona Election Statutes online he should ask someone to print them out. Of course reading and comprehending would be his next challenge.
Interesting article on Hitchon. Maybe she does keep some of those illegal drugs; it would explain her bizarre behavior.
To the person who is tired of seeing pink and says there is no awareness for prostrate cancer. There is awareness. Check online. And congrats to you on your survivorship. I am a 23 year breast cancer survivor. I celebrate for all of those who have survived cancer, any type. I have a relative who has survived Hodgkin’s and she isn't whining about not seeing awareness. Volunteer, spread the word. QUIT YOUR WHINING. Make it known to get checked out. You are alive. That’s what counts. You can make a difference. Too bad you don't see it.
A recent report on Carefree Water Co. showed the business lost $345,870 in the year ended June 30, 2009. I thought recent water rate increases were supposed to bring revenues more in line with costs. I just found another reason to vote the mayor out of office.