False ‘Your View’ statement
In the “Your View” section of a recent Sonoran News issue the following appeared: “Absolutely nothing can be passed into law with regard to a property tax without a vote of the Carefree registered voters.” That statement is false. If it were true, there would have been no point in my collecting almost 300 signatures on an initiative now designated Prop. 423 that is scheduled to appear on the March 8 mail-in ballot to be distributed in February.
Arizona is unique in that it uses two types of property values for taxing purposes: (1) Primary (limited) values and (2) Secondary (full cash) values. Neither the Arizona Constitution nor any state law offers any protection from Carefree council establishing a secondary (full cash) values property tax. The secondary property tax would very likely be tied to a bond that could be sold just as council did with the 7 percent water company bonds.
The “Your View” comment goes on to allege, “The propositions are flawed and will need to be corrected.” There is no “flaw” in either Prop. 422 (2/3 vote of Carefree Council to refer a property tax to voters) or Prop. 423 (public vote on any property tax or tax increase).
I challenge anyone to specify in a Letter to the Editor any alleged “flaw” in either Prop. 422 or Prop. 423 and how the alleged “flaw” would need to be corrected. I only ask that the person(s) identify themselves and not anonymously hide submitting false and scurrilous allegations.
Jim Peirce | Carefree
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A big Wild West thank you
The Committee Chairs of Wild West Days 2010, and the Cave Creek Chamber of Commerce are so grateful to all of our sponsors, volunteers, merchants and citizens who turned out to support and enjoy Cave Creek’s celebration of our strong western heritage.
We would also like to express our sincere thanks to Mayor Vincent Francia, Town Council members, and the Town of Cave Creek for their participation in this year’s event. And if you missed Mayor Francia’s welcome speech during the Wild West Days Parade, we are proud to share with all of you, that the Mayor read the official statement issued by Governor Jan Brewer making a Proclamation recognizing Wild West Days as a state event!
Our town experienced record foot traffic throughout the past weekend, and we succeeded in our goal of bringing exposure and notoriety to our unique community.
Many merchants and vendors reported record sales numbers during Wild West Days. Every TV channel covered many of the events, including the bath tub races, the trick riding and horse clinic hosted up at TC’s arena, horse soccer, the Southwest Legends Cowboy Gunfighters, the parade, the Walk for 100, the Trainer’s Challenge and the pig races.
And from the funds raised, we were able to give back to our benefit organizations – the Desert Foothills Community Association, which puts on Fiesta Days Rodeo and the Wayne Wilson Children’s Charity Rodeo; The Luv Shack Horse Rescue, a non-profit organization which does so much for our equine companions; and The 100 Club, the charitable organization which cares for the families of the servicemen and women who have fallen or become disabled in the line of duty.
We thank each and every one of you. We have created a community that is proud, independent, prosperous and unique. On to the next great event coming to Cave Creek this weekend!
Happy Trails,
Johnny Ringo | Jean Glass | Karin Johnson | Ken Bacher
Your Wild West Days Committee Chairs
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Obama’s foreign policy: Two years later
During his campaign, President Obama made it clear that he wanted to change the course of U.S. foreign policy.
“We all know that these are not the best of times for America’s reputation in the world,” he said in 2007, adding that his foreign policy wouldn’t be predicated on “a belief that tough talk can replace real strength and vision.” The vision was messianic: If we joined then-Senator Obama, we could “begin the world anew.”
The President has now had two years to usher in his vision of an America more attuned to the “sensitivities” of the world. Some highlights:
In a meeting with the president of Kazakhstan, “President Obama reminded his Kazakh counterpart that we, too, are working to improve our democracy,” as one of his National Security Council staffers put it.
President Obama pledged to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay within a year of his taking office, a task that has proved easier campaigned on than done. The closure would purportedly show that America is “living our values.”
Assistant Secretary of State Michael Posner told the press that the U.S. brought up Arizona’s immigration law “early and often” in a meeting with Chinese officials on human rights. “It was mentioned in the first session and as a troubling trend in our society, and an indication that we have to deal with issues of discrimination or potential discrimination,” he said.
The Obama administration joined the United Nations Human Rights Council, a forum where some of the world’s worst human rights violators can preen and pontificate, and completed a Universal Periodic Review report on human rights conditions in the U.S. Recently, the U.S. sat in judgment before the group and was on the receiving end of harsh criticism from the likes of Venezuela, Iran, North Korea, and Sudan.
And the President seems unwilling to ever take no for an answer from the Iranian government.
Despite the President’s overtures of appeasement, the world remains just as dangerous – if not more dangerous – as it was on January 19, 2008. Iran, for example, continues its development of nuclear weapons apace, and terrorists continue to threaten our homeland.
The recent mail bomb plot demonstrates that terrorists are continuing to hunt for ways to exploit weaknesses in our security. And they will continue trying, regardless of whether the United States joins the U.N. Human Rights Council or closes the terrorist detention facility at Guantanamo Bay.
Militant Islamist terrorists seek to destroy Western culture and governments. They may have grievances with certain policies of our government, but those policies don’t, by themselves, motivate their violence. As we have seen, the terrorists will try to attack us no matter the President and no matter the policies.
It’s not just the United States that is threatened by the militant Islamist ideology, but all Western societies. Our country can best demonstrate its leadership in the world by pursuing the terrorists and preventing them from launching terrorist attacks. That is the proper course in dealing with those who wish to do us harm.
Sen. Jon Kyl
Senate Republican Whip, serving on the Senate Finance and Judiciary committees
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Supervisors must give up law firm
Once again, judges have told the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors that it has to give up its private law firm.
And this time, the judges – the Arizona Court of Appeals - have cited the same uncomplicated rationale as the Superior Court judge who weighed in before them: The presence of the supervisors' mortal enemy, Andrew Thomas, as their county attorney was a good reason for hiring their own set of lawyers from the private sector.
Now that Thomas is gone, the judges conclude, the Arizona Constitution prevails and the private guys must go.
The supervisors are resisting. No doubt on advice of private, well-paid counsel.
Eventually, though, the reality of the changing political dynamics in Maricopa County must dawn on the supervisors. Cozy though their existing arrangement may be, the law provides that the county attorney should represent them in their civil matters unless a conflict exists. Which, to repeat, one now does not.
County Attorney-elect Bill Montgomery could not possibly be sending out more accommodating signals. Prior to his election this month, Montgomery stated repeatedly his intent to repair the relationship of his office with the supervisors.
Montgomery has treaded lightly, issuing no demands. The conflicts of interest from the Thomas era – the sole justification for the supervisors creating their own law firm – have evaporated.
The supervisors still have a conflict – with the Arizona Constitution.
American Post-Gazette
Distributed by COMMON SENSE, in Arizona
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Trash issue is global issue
To the Residents of Fountain Hills and All Citizens: This Town Residents Alert affects ALL people and will help all citizens to understand some of the REAL issues behind a single hauler of trash. It’s NOT just a simple law. Our Town is forcing us to use a single trash hauler – our choices are gone, but what’s worse are the many various fines and/or imprisonment (up to six months) that our government can now easily impose on us. This is a global act by our local representatives and Mayor.
Keep in mind that this type of law is the driving force of a North American Union (as in the EU) where there are so many global standardized rules, laws, regulations that the poor, senior citizens, unemployed and some of our children can’t afford to pay and continue to pay with the government WATCH DOGS. They are simply imprisoned because they do not have the money and will their only choice of service stop? It’s time for citizens to wake up.
Fountain Hills residents are fighting back and have started a petition to fight Ordinance 10-08 and to push for a public vote BY THE PEOPLE. THE DEADLINE IS DEC. 3. We need 600+ signatures.
If you live in Fountain Hills and are a registered voter, please email at [email protected] to sign the petition, or better yet, help me to get signatures. If you know someone who lives in Fountain Hills, let them know.
The Fountain Hills Citizens for Responsive Government is hosting a TOWN HALL:
To learn more, please come to a Panel Discussion at an Informative Town Hall Meeting featuring Council Members, Town Manager and other Speakers, 6:30pm on Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2010 at the Fountain Hills High School, District Learning Center, Corner of Palisades and Golden Eagle Blvd.
Dina Rose | Scottsdale
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Russell Pearce rolls up sleeves for jobs
Job growth is job one - challenges AZ Chamber of Commerce to do the same
Nobody says it better: "Deport an illegal alien today; hire an American tomorrow!" It is the precise clarity and simplicity of Senator Russell Pearce's common sense approach to the issues confronting us that drives the left mad.
Unlike the convoluted, always expensive and counterproductive "solutions" promoted by so called progressives, Pearce presents us with options that we know actually work, which is consistent with his desire to promote Arizona as job friendly, family friendly, and bad guy unfriendly to ensure safe neighborhoods.
Pearce is now President Elect of the Arizona Senate, and has made it very clear he intends to get government off the backs of business and families once and for all. Pearce promises to make Job creation the #1 issue, and now has the clout to do it. It might be nice if the Arizona Chamber of Commerce would do the same instead of protecting employers who hire illegals in place of citizens and legal residents. Arizonans are struggling under the weight of a 26 year high in unemployment, but the Chamber still protects employers of illegals to the detriment of honest employers and the American worker.
The Arizona Chamber should listen to the people.
When Proposition 200 was passed overwhelmingly by the citizens of Arizona in 2004, the Chamber, along with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund(MALDEF) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), sued Arizona to stop it from requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote, and to prevent authorities from requiring proof of eligibility to get free stuff from the taxpayer, otherwise known as welfare.
The Arizona Chamber also sued over The Employer Sanctions Law (Legal Arizona Workers Act). That law was supported by 80% of the public, but the Chamber sued to protect employers that hire illegals, take jobs from Americans and pay under the table, while we, the taxpayers, spend $2.7 billion each year to educate, medicate and incarcerate the illegal aliens. Our reward has been violent crime, identity theft, drug trafficking, human smuggling, child molestation, rape, beheadings, contract murder, the killing and maiming of 12 Phoenix, and the murder of rancher Rob Krentz, which occurred even as the debate over SB1070 raged on. Illegal aliens have heaped this abuse on us, and more, in addition to stealing our jobs. What does it take for the Chamber to care? How do you walk away from that? We are tired of those who benefit from the invasion of illegal aliens, while Americans painfully pay the price in blood and treasure.
There is a light in this tunnel not cast by an oncoming train. We are fortunate to have Senator Pearce, as Senate President, now in a position to move forward as never before to make these issues our priorities. Most jobs are created by small business, and what business needs to succeed is an environment conducive to profit.
Pearce is targeting this challenge with an agenda to lower taxes and reduce the regulatory burden on businesses. If the Legislature follows his lead, it is almost axiomatic that job opportunities will expand in Arizona as the economy rebounds.
American Post-Gazette
Distributed by COMMON SENSE, in Arizona
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Arizona small business owners go to the polls
Nov. 2 wasn’t the last big election, NFIB members are voting their other ballots now
All the big political issues weren’t decided on Nov. 2. Right now, Arizona small business owners are marking their ballots on five questions that will serve as the official lobbying position of their leading representative group in the State Capitol, the National Federation of Independent Business.
NFIB is one of the few associations that bases its state legislative and congressional advocacy on what its members tell it are the major concerns about the survivability of their enterprises. Each year, NFIB sends out a state and federal ballot to its members asking their opinion on issues expected to surface in the next session. On this year’s Arizona member ballot, NFIB is asking small business owners five questions:
• Business Personal Property Tax Exemption – Should Arizona’s business personal property tax exemption increase to an amount closer to $1 million from the current $66,440 amount?
• Business Real Property Taxes – Should Arizona lower the relative level of taxation on business real property to one that is closer to the level of taxation on residential real property?
• Uniform Statewide Transaction Privilege (Sales) Tax Base – Should Arizona adopt a uniform TPT (sales tax) base to replace the current system that allows cities to add items not taxed by the state into their local TPT base?
• Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund Solvency – Should Arizona redirect the job training surcharge on employers’ unemployment insurance taxes to offset higher unemployment insurance rates and help return the unemployment insurance trust fund to solvency?
• Public Employee Pension Reform – Should Arizona public employee pension systems transition to defined contribution plans from the current defined benefit plans?
Small business is the indisputable engine of economies worldly, nationally, and locally. What policymakers, however, consistently forget to grasp is that small businesses aren’t smaller versions of bigger businesses but instead have different difficulties in remaining solvent.
Results from the NFIB-member state ballots help lawmakers realize this and are considered by many legislators to be the true voice of Main Street businesses.
“It’s important for lawmakers to know that our evaluations of them are based upon solid results from our 7,500 small business members from across the state,” said Farrell Quinlan, Arizona state director for NFIB. “The issues of most concern to small business owners impact their right to own, operate and grow their businesses. Our ballot results give legislators guideposts to follow and give us a start on grading their performance.”
National Federation of Independent Business
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Arizona Prop 200
The recent election has led to a rogue court stating that Arizonas' Prop 200 is in violation of the US Constitution. I offer that the 14th, 15th, 19th, 24th, and 26th Amendments to the Constitution all State that CITIZENS of these United States will be allowed to vote.
Article I section 4 states "The Times, Places and Manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time BY LAW make or alter such Regulations.
No where could I find a proclamation indicating that the Courts could arbitrarily change the Regulations prescribed by the State Legislature.
Therefore, the Court in question exceeded its authority and has no standing to conclude anything concerning Arizonas' Prop 200. It stands to reason that the States have the Constitutional authority to determine who is a citizen and who isn't.
An American for Sovereignty
Frank Middleton | Sanders
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Ear mark spending
Why not commit all ear mark spending to Social Security and Medicare ???????????
Sincerely,
Tony Newbill | Wickenburg
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