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Seattle Streetcar Ten Million Dollar Plan

After the shock and disappointment of the election, I thought I would try to make a fresh start in my thinking and try to accept the fact that i just don’t fit into the way most Washington voters think. I thought I might just sort of give up and go with the flow, then the Times runs this big article that Mayor McGinn and the City Council are going to spend ten million dollars planning where some new street cars would go. This is just planning, and they don’t really have a clear cut idea of what they are planning so for sure they will run out of money fast. They say the city is broke. Had to re-do the bus routes and cut service to thousands of people. Georgetown had 3 buses and now we don’t have one bus along the highway or 4th ave. We have to either walk a half mile or so to get to the only bus stop in Georgetown that will get us to town without transferring. We have a little community of residents that the 131 got us downtown and to Burien for years but now it comes from Burien over the 1st Ave Bridge and the only stop at what they call their new and improved service for Georgetown is at Keep Reading

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Nurse Family Partnership Program In Seattle

The Seattle Council approved an increase into the Nurse Family Partnership Program.  The budget for the program was $1,017,816 and it was increased 61% now to $1,641,672.  I was curious what this program does exactly so I did some investigating into it.  I had some concerns obviously since that is a huge increase.  The City Of Seattle continues to claim poverty for many of it’s programs and issues so increasing the amount for a nursing program raised a few red flags for me.
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Marjiuana Taxes In King County

Now that we all can smoke marijuana (I don’t smoke), where will all this tax revenue in King County be used?  I truly hope they use it to fix many of the issues we have in the City Of Seattle such as our public schools. What my biggest concern obviously is it being wasted and put in a program, system, or project where the marijuana tax revenue is supporting it completely.  To bad we don’t have more clarity on that.  Ideally, i would like it to not be used in the general fund but I don’t think that is going to happen.  The general fund should be able to support all the things of the City now.  Introducing money just gets wasted into new projects or programs.  We need better ways to protect our tax money so it’s not all spent on wasteful efforts and then becoming bad debt.  If that happens we’re in the same boat we’re in now where raising taxes, fines, or whatever is the solution to fixing their wasteful efforts.

Having talked to many people over the new found freedom of smoking marijuana, they feel that Keep Reading

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Obama May Negatively Impact Your Job

In a recent article for the Emerald City Journal, we spoke how voting for Obama may negatively impact your job and/or future job salary opportunities (lower offers).  We spoke about David Siegel the CEO of Westgate Resorts and the email he wrote to his employees (thousands of them).  Today more CEO’s are stepping forward with the same warnings that your job maybe on the line if you support Obama.  This time the email is from Saddle Creek President Cliff Otto.  In the email he expresses many things but it comes down to Romney’s positions on energy and taxes align with the company better.

I do think it’s fair that employees know what is coming to them.  Most voters just look at the benefits (hey! free health care everyone) yet don’t understand the consequences that their employer will need to make adjustments in the company to make the numbers work and that means the possibility of cutting staff.  It’s a smooth move by Romney.  He expressed it on a conference call with the National Federation of Independent Business.  Unfortunately, I don’t think it has really hit the voters yet or they simply don’t realize that businesses can’t just write off Obama Care they have to balance their budgets.  You can’t spend money you don’t have.  Companies with 100 employees would need to come up with an extra 100K per year at least for the Obama Care program and that doesn’t just grow on the money tree in the backyard.

Another email from a car part manufacturer in Michigan (Lacks Enterprises) is expressing the same consequences.  It basically says that if you don’t for Romney, it could result in higher taxes and lower pay.  He earges his employees to for “less government”.

Lastly, you probably have heard of Steve Wynn (Wynn Resorts).  They are the third largest casino operator in America.  Mr. Wynn went a step further and mailed a 60+ page packet to his 12,000 employees.  Steve Wynn has stated, “It would be a complete disaster if Obama wins, which is why I’m urging my employees to vote for Romney.”  It will cost Steve Wynn millions of dollars per year if Obama is elected.

Unlike David Siegel the CEO of Westgate Resorts who doesn’t come out and say it (don’t vote for Obama) more and more companies are getting stronger in their statements and making it quite clear that your vote for Obama may put your job on the line.

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Advisory Vote No. 2 (Substitute House Bill 2590)

This is on the table and I do support it.  It’s a tax break, however, I do think it’s justified.  We all know our tax system is messed up and more complicated than a 10,000 piece puzzle.  That is why I have to pay people to manage it for me quarterly and yearly.  I shouldn’t have to do that!  I think measures used to less complicated things should be installed and that means less measures complicating the system.  I understand we are not lose some money here for taxes, however, the tax was unfair as it was.  I don’t believe some people or business owners should pay more for what they do or who they are.  That includes the taxing the rich which I don’t support.

Even Though this should have gone to a public vote and not just eliminated without anyone knowing, I do support the expiration of the tax.

 

Advisory Vote No. 2 (Substitute House Bill 2590)

“The legislature extended, without a vote of the people, expiration of a tax on possession of petroleum products and reduced the tax rate, costing $24,000,000 in its first ten years, for government spending.”

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Initiative Measure No. 502 (Marijuana – Supported)

Law

I support Initiative Measure No. 502 concerning making marijuana more legal.  I hate the fact that the only real reason the measure is even on the ballot is because tax revenue will be generated off of it similar to liquor.  If it were a free resource, then it would not even be considered or presented to the people.  The state is only ok with certain initiatives if they are getting their “fair share”.  Same reason why prostitution will never be legal (unless it’s highly taxed and regulated).  That is another topic, obviously. Seattle’s poor leadership is always on the wrong side of history. They will support this measure as long as the tax revenue is collected.

As I do support the initiative, I also don’t like the 21 and over legal requirement.  If you can legally smoke at 18 now, then it should be the same with marijuana. There is no real argument around this age except it is a bargaining chip for lawmakers to get their tax money.

Another reason why I support the law is because we’ve spent billions of our tax dollars trying to fight it.  The courts are filled, lawyers are greedy, and it’s a bad situation overall.  Our city waste so much tax money on efforts that don’t matter. For the record, I don’t smoke.

I would have liked to have seen how this tax revenue would be spent.  I would feel better knowing it would all support the schools, education, and safety.  My fear, history, and experience tells me it will be another wasted revenue stream abused. If they started to collect millions and millions of dollars, Seattle will continue to claim poverty and force more taxes from the people.

I think supporting Initiative Measure No. 502 is a movement in the right direction.

What is Initiative Measure No. 502?

Initiative Measure No. 502 is not specific to Seattle but is a measure that was approved by voters statewide in Washington State in 2012. This initiative legalized the possession and private use of marijuana for adults aged 21 and over. Here is a summary of its provisions:

1. Legalization of Marijuana:

  • Adults 21 and over can legally possess up to one ounce of marijuana, 16 ounces of solid marijuana-infused products, or 72 ounces of liquid marijuana-infused products.

2. Regulation and Licensing:

  • The initiative authorized the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (previously Washington State Liquor Control Board) to regulate and license marijuana producers, processors, and retailers.
  • It established a system of state-licensed marijuana growers, processors, and retail stores where adults could purchase marijuana.

3. Taxation:

  • I-502 imposed a 25% tax at each transaction level: producer to processor, processor to retailer, and retailer to customer.
  • Tax revenues were designated for specific purposes such as substance-abuse prevention, research, education, and healthcare.

4. DUI Standards:

  • The initiative established legal intoxication standards for driving under the influence of marijuana, similar to blood alcohol levels for alcohol.

5. Decriminalization and Law Enforcement:

  • The measure aimed to allow law enforcement to focus on other crimes by reducing the time and resources spent on enforcing marijuana-related offenses.
  • However, public use of marijuana remained a civil infraction.

6. Federal Law Consideration:

  • Despite the state law change, marijuana possession and distribution remained illegal under federal law. However, in practice, the enforcement of federal marijuana laws became a lower priority in states where marijuana had been legalized and regulated.

I-502 was significant as it represented a shift in drug policy and had considerable implications for criminal justice, public health, and the economy in Washington State. The legalization of recreational marijuana in Washington has also been part of a broader trend towards marijuana legalization in the United States.

 
 
 

Update: Voters approved I-502 legalizing marijuana in Washington State.

Initiative 502 was prevailing at 55 to 45 percent, garnering backing from over half of Washington’s counties, both rural and urban.

This voting outcome positioned Washington and Colorado to the left of the Netherlands regarding marijuana legislation, establishing them as the focal points of a novel societal experiment with unpredictable outcomes. Media from across the nation and around the globe observed as the vote totals were announced at I-502’s election-night celebration in Seattle, sparking waves of ecstatic cheers.

“I’m prepared to deliver my victory speech now. Post this, I can sit down and halt the trembling,” proclaimed Alison Holcomb, the campaign manager and main architect of I-502.

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Initiative Measure No. 1185 – Supported

I’m tired of the constant and steady (and sneaky) raises in my taxes.  It’s always the same story each time and it goes a little like this “we’re broke” or “the recession is hurting us” or perhaps “they keep cutting our funding”.  It’s troubling especially with all the revenue being generated from every sector.  The revenue being generated is at it’s highest!  I believe the problem is with the spending and management and it each department needs to become completely transparent with line item spending.  Until that happens I will never be for raising taxes.

I believe most people would support raising taxes if they knew where each dollar was going.  They wouldn’t have a problem supporting their schools or the local fire department, however, without honesty and complete transparency, the public will not support it because they know it’s due to wasteful spending internally.

Initiative Measure No. 1185

Initiative Measure No. 1185 is already the law but will be expiring soon.  Your vote supporting it renews the law making it more difficult to raise taxes on all of us.  Your vote for Initiative Measure No. 1185 “would restate existing statutory requirements that legislative actions raising taxes must be approved by two-thirds legislative majorities or receive voter approval, and that new or increased fees require majority legislative approval.”

Just two years ago, 64% of voters approved this measure.  I stand with them to re-instate this measure for many years to come.  Don’t raise my taxes unless you come to me with a plan and full transparency (line item spending) for your department/program.  We then can make a decision if its useful or useless.

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Better Finish Up Those Taxes….Seattle.

If you haven’t done your taxes by now, you’re late. Not only do you lose about 28% per paycheck received working for the man – you also lose 10% in sales taxes for the stuff you buy. It’s the cycle of life I guess. If that wasn’t enough the man sticks it the retailers you just paid a 35% rate of that revenue! I won’t bother you with the property taxes, lotto taxes, death taxes, tolls, license fees, or gas taxes… it’s endless. So the question is how much are your really paying and are you getting what you’re paying for. Would you feel differently if you actually had to write a check out inside of it being integrated into your life seamlessly? This system isn’t new by any means. It has been in place for many Presidents but surely our tax system is one of the most complicated and messed up systems.

This statement was released by Ron Paul today:

Knowing that every penny the average American has earned from January 1st until today has gone to pay federal, state, or local taxes is a frightening reminder of how much liberty modern Americans have lost. Unfortunately, even after Tax Freedom Day, Americans will still suffer from the Federal Reserve’s regressive and hidden inflation tax, which erodes their purchasing power for the benefit of big banks and big-spending politicians.

As a Congressman, I have never voted to raise taxes or increase spending, which is why I have consistently been named one of the top ‘Taxpayers’ Best Friends’ in Congress by the non-partisan National Taxpayers Union. As President, I will work to reduce the burden of taxes and spending on the American people by passing my ‘Plan to Restore America.’

This Plan not only cuts $1 trillion in the first year of my administration and balances the budget by the third year, but it provides much-needed tax relief to the American people. It does this by permanently extending the Bush-era tax rates, lowering the corporate tax rate to 15 percent, allowing American companies to repatriate capital without paying additional taxes, abolishing the death tax, and ending all taxes on personal savings.

My ‘Plan to Restore America’ also begins to free the American people from the inflation tax by conducting a full audit of the Federal Reserve and legalizing competing currencies. These simple steps will allow the American people to at last learn the truth about how the Fed is working to prop up big banks at the expense of average Americans’ standard of living and then to take the appropriate actions to protect themselves and their families.

My ultimate goal remains to repeal the 16th Amendment and end the tyranny of the IRS once and for all. Of the four men seeking the presidential nomination of one of the major parties – President Obama, Governor Romney, Speaker Gingrich, and myself – I am the only one who has consistently opposed increases in taxes and spending. I am also the only one who has consistently fought the Federal Reserve’s assault on the middle class’ standard of living. My campaign to Restore America Now is the clear choice for any American concerned about rolling back taxes, cutting spending, and curbing inflation.

….. Yet people will continue to vote for Mitt Romney or Obama.  Can’t really fault them as the media continues to push these two “front runners” like nobody else is running.

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Mayor Mike McGinn’s Secret NBA Arena Contract

Taxpayer’s get ready to be jumping though the hoops again paying fees, taxes, fines, levy’s or whatever else the city might decide they want to take away from you to build a new Basketball Arena. We lost the Sonics because we the people would not pay for another stadium for them. Of course we the people voted against the other two stadiums but they got built anyway. I thought we had made it clear that we were not interested in building a bunch of millionaires a sports facility so a bunch of millionaire players could earn them some more money. Tickets are out of reach of the ordinary person.

When Mayor McGinn talks about the city slashing, cutting, laying off police and fireman and no money to fix streets. No money for the homeless. Man he says the city is broke. What most of us don’t know about is the fund he has that allows him to spend up to $250,000 without even telling the city council what he is spending it on. To the city that is just pennies, but it had to be taken away from workers to create that fund. In secret he has had a contract with Carl Hersh, a sports- facility consultant. He has been paying him $19,500 a month since July. The Mayor says he is examining the “opportunity” to bring an NBA Team to Seattle. He didn’t even bother to tell the city Council about this. Something is really wrong here.

There was an opportunity to keep the Sonics here but we could not afford to build a playpen for Bennett so he took the team to Oklahoma. The economy has not improved. We can’t afford a stadium anymore now than when Bennett said Key Arena was not good enough but the Mayor is blowing almost $20,000 on this consultant. This is the same consultant that worked for Howard Schultz on how to make the Key Arena profitable. Maybe we need Dr Phil to ask the Mayor, “hows that workin’ for ya”. We were still paying on the mortgage on of king dome when they blew it up to build a bigger, better more expensive arena THAT THE VOTERS VOTED DOWN.

Let the investors hire their consultant, let the investors buy up property, then let the investors apply for permits, pay for everything including the building. Then let them pay their taxes and the city might make some money but not if we are in the business of buildings stadiums and then being made hostage by the millionaires that bought the team wanting more remodeling, more luxury seats. Let all of that be THEIR problem. Not the taxpayers problem. How many more secret things are we paying for that never see the light of day. Why is this such a secret. Is the Mayor wheeling and dealing and by the time we hear about it and say we don’t want it he can say the contracts are signed, we cant back out now like the stupid tunnel that we cant afford. I say whoa nellie. Stop spending money on consultants and lawyers looking at the initiative that taxpayers signed that says the city has to make money from the stadiums. Let the millionaire players build their stadium like the millionaires have to build their own swimming pools etc. No taxpayer money should be used, especially while the Mayor is talking about how broke the city is. Shame on him. If he thought the people would be excited over it why keep it a secret?

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Olympia Representatives – Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire

The liars are on the loose again.  State lawmakers passed a plan to pay for a new Mariners stadium in 1995. It was controversial then but passed because it would end when the bonds expire this year. They promised the restaurant and rental car tax would end.  The time is almost hear and they just cant let that source of money slip away even if it means making themselves look like liars. Well if you look like a duck ………. They do not want us to really know what they will use it for or if it will ever end. We taxpayers know we have to pay some taxes to pay to run the government but this is turning into a PORK BUFFETT. I can almost picture the lawmakers like those poker playing dogs that are in an old picture, only this time they are trading votes not cards or chips. They have no qualms about not keeping their word that when we paid for the stadium the taxes would end. Remember the voters did not want the stadium built.

HB1997 wants to expand the Convention Center but to get enough votes it has to set aside money for other causes. Some are: 3 million a year for affordable housing(they don’t call it low cost anymore). A million a year would go to a Seattle-public development Authority (did you ever hear of it?) didnt think so. It is focused on Pioneer Square and the Chinatown International District.

SB 5834 would deal with the arts, without money for affordable housing or the convention. They say they would have money set aside for other purposes.(think dogs playing poker again here)

I say let the taxes expire. Keep your word Olympia representatives. We cant afford expansions and all your goodies in these hard times. If you need more money and taxpayers will vote for it I can’t argue that. But you need to put on the ballot exactly what it is funding and when whatever it is will be paid for. It cant go on forever, no questions asked. Democracy does not make everyone happy, but its the best we have. I dont feel its fair fon non property owners to vote to raise my property tax. I feel its a little like two lions and a sheep voting on what to have for lunch.  Quit telling lies. Regain some trust.

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