Mike Thompson for State Senate & Angela Stiens for State Rep

 With everything going on it makes sense to have these two returned to their respective state offices.

The true threats to democracy, at all levels, in this country, are the left wing liberals.  They come up with flowery comments in the hopes that you'll fall for them.  They want total control of all aspects of your life.

Mike Thompson has served admirably as a state senator.  In the short time that Angela Stiens has been a state rep, she too has shown that she, like Mike, is truly for the people.  To show you how disgusting the liberal left, and their media cohorts are, follow this:  Owen Donohoe retired from his state rep seat and Angela was chosen according to law to fill the remainder of his term.  Yet the left leaning Johnson County Post never announced the change.  

If you want to maintain constitutional integrity at the state level, ya need to return these two to their state offices.

JoCo DA & Sheriff Election

 I have gotten behind on my posts.  Sorry.

Let's talk about the election for Johnson County District Attorney & Sheriff.

A few weeks ago I had the honor and privilege of attending a meeting at which both Steve Howe, our currently serving District Attorney and Doug Bedford, candidate for sheriff spoke., 

Steve Howe has been, IMHO a great District Attorney.  Since he has been in office crime in JoCo has decreased.  Now let's just look at one very important factor.  JoCo is bordered by two high crime counties.  We have Wyandotte on our northern border here in Kansas and to our east we have Jackson in Missouri.

So, why haven't we experienced crime bleed into JoCo?  The answer is really very simple. Criminals know that the JoCo DA will not tolerate crime and will prosecute to the fullest.  Steve Howe, a Republican, is not like the "woke" democrat-liberals that have become DAs in other jurisdictions.  We cannot afford to have a "woke" DA, more interested in making nice-nice with criminals to become the JoCo DA.  We need Steve Howe to continue to work to keep our county on the right track.

Doug Bedford, a former Under Sheriff and US Navy Seal would compliment Steve Howe.  His background is indicative of an individual who can lead our Sheriff's Office in performing to a high level of performance.  Keeping crime rates low starts with law enforcement. Doug Bedford would lead the SO in the manner that we would want.  Again, we do not need democrat-liberal woke attitudes in the leadership of the SO.

Liar Liar, Pants on Fire (Part 1)

 WARNING:  Some folks might get real upset with what I have to say.  And, some folks might get real upset with how I say it, and the terms that I use.  If this offends you, and you continue to read this post..    ........as they say in German.........das tut mir leid "sorry about that" ....so suck it up!!!!!  Or don't continue to read this post.

Whose pants are on fire?  The current Vice-President of the United States, Kamala Harris.

Right now we are going to focus on one item in particular (might throw some others in for the heck of it), but primarily concentrating on one particular item.

Remember when the not so illustrious White House press secretary said that comments and videos of Joe Biden in a declining cognitive state were cheap fakes?  Remember how the Cackling One said that Biden was OK?  And all of the other pieces of lying trash agreed? 

Then what happened?  Biden gets into a public debate with Donald Trump, his decline is so obvious that Harris and other senior members of the Democratic party take part in a non-violent coup d'état.  Talk about the real threat do democracy, as they proceed to anoint Horrible Harris as their party's candidate.  Yepper.....no open convention, no real voice of the  people.  Even leadership of the Black Lives Matter organization decried this process.

Now, I am not a medical professional.  But, I do have some common sense, and the ability to read.  Cognitive decline does not occur overnight.  How could those closest to him, politically associated, government associated and most importantly family, not have noticed his decline.  Why did he not have a full cabinet meeting for over 10 months?  

His true condition was being covered up putting our country at grave risk.  Who has been really running the country?  Who has their finger on the "button".  And now after the coup d'état, what are our enemies thinking? Horrible Harris had an obligation under the 25th Amendment to take appropriate legal action and failed to do so.  She is a liar by being complicit in covering up Biden's condition.

Horrible Harris and her cronies are the real threat to our democracy.

When Donald Trump started to build the wall on the southern border he was accused of being a racist and xenophobic.  Harris was against it.  Now she says we need it.  What a lying bimbo.  Are her Democratic cronies going to call her a racist and xenophobic? Over 11,000,000 illegal aliens creeping into our country.  And, what is really scary is the information from the CBP about the number of single, no family, military age men, from countries that are adversaries if ours coming in.  That is a threat to democracy.

And.......she is trying to steal Trump's point about no taxes on tips.  Totally opposite of what she has voted for.  

Businesses Hurting in the Midland Entertainment District

As a result of the bridge repairs being done at I-435 and Midland Drive the businesses in that area are really getting beat up.

So, here's the email I sent today to the president of the chamber, the mayor, the governing body, the city manager, and the city's communications director.  Hate to say it but I doubt if anything will come of it since I am not a member of the "inner sanctum", or somebody will co-opt the ideas and claim them as their own.  LMFAO.

Good evening,

Had lunch with a friend today at Paulo & Bill’s.  Great food and great service as usual.

Now, let’s talk about the Midland Entertainment District.   Whoopee, we gave the area a name.  Hot dog.  What the hell is that going to do?

Where is the creativity among the businesses, the chamber and anybody else associated with that area to bring folks in while the construction is ongoing?

 I saw an item on Next Door where a gentleman was complaining about the situation.  Responded to him in a way that those involved, including KDOT should respond.  Told him the choice was to either repair/replace the bridge because it needed it or not do anything, let it collapse and kill some folks.  Which would he choose?

 Now, let’s get to the creativity.

 Here are some suggestions.  Some may be good, some may be bad, but hopefully it will get folks thinking about doing things to bring folks into the “Midland Entertainment District”.

 

1.  Create a “435 Happy Hour” with specials starting at 4:35 (not just drinks but food and maybe other items).
2. Create a “435” menu with many items priced as “435”  i.e. $4.35, $14.35, $24.35 etc.
3. Give customers a separate “gas receipt coupon” at all venues that they can turn in to the two gas stations for a discount.  For every $4.35 they spend at one venue they get 10¢/gal cash refund, or something that would be economically feasible, for all.  Let the “experts” calculate the appropriate amount.
4. Have a neighborhood block party.  Big parking lot in front of the Hampton Inn and another nice sized one in that strip shopping center where Minsky’s is.  Have music, dancing and special prices on food, drinks and other items.  Gee, maybe a special $4.35 movie ticket day or night or something.
5. Combine some promos……$4.35 movie ticket gets ya a $4.35 slice of pizza and a cold drink…………again, let the experts calculate what is feasible.  Sometimes, taking a smaller profit margin is better than taking -0-.  Have the different businesses play off of each other.

 I could go on and on but I won’t.  Let’s see some damned creativity out there.  One of the current members of the city council once referred to me as an angry old man.  Well, he was right.  I am angry at what I perceive to be a lack of creativity………..and IMHO, that needs to come from the Chamber and the businesses affected.

 If you have trouble reading this email you can view it on my blog.

 Ray

Shawnee's Budget Open House

 People are always asking:  "Where does the city spend its money?' "How does the city get its money to spend?'  "Why was money spent on (fill in)?"  "Why wasn't money spent on (fill in)?"

On 7/30/24 starting at 6:00PM the City of Shawnee held a Budget Open House at the Town Hall of Shawnee Town 1929.  The city's Communications Department did a heck of a job in:

1. Giving notice about the open house over various forms of media outreach, numerous times.

2. Preparing informative visual aids to explain the proposed 2025 budget.  

 The city manager, the assistant city manager and all department heads were there to answer questions, 

So, how many of Shawnee's citizens showed up?  Wanna take a guess?  C'mon now, give it a shot, take a guess.

Scroll down for the answer.

Keep scrolling.

One more time.

The answer is four.  Yepper, four, and that number includes me.  So, of over 63,000 citizens in our city, only four of us went to this event.

All I have to say is that sucks!!!!!!  But go ahead, complain, gripe and question what the city does with your money (yepper, no government entity has its own money, it comes from the citizens).  Very disappointing.  

The public hearing for the budget will be on Monday 8/26/24.  Wonder how many folks will show up for that?

My Choices - Republican Primary August 6, 2024

The election is Tuesday, August 6th, 2024.

I just sent in my mail ballot.  These are my choices and I hope that other folks will agree with me.  IMHO that these are the folks we need in these positions.

FOR DISTRICT ATTORNEY-JOHNSON COUNTY

STEVE HOWE-This man has faithfully served the residents of Johnson County and has been a prime mover in reducing the crime rate in our county.  The way a DA reduces the crime rate is to have successful prosecutions of criminals.  That opens the eyes of other criminals that we are not soft on crime here and they go elsewhere.  Check his web site https://www.stevehoweforda.com/

FOR SHERIFF - JOHNSON COUNTY

CAL HAYDEN-Probably one of the most dedicated law enforcement professionals I have ever met.  His accomplishments are too numerous to mention here, but among them was his ability to be able to create a department that could deploy 200 LEOs within 2 hours of a major emergency, be it a natural catastrophe or something as fierce as a riot.  One of the reasons why other agencies in the metro know they can look to him and his department for assistance.  Check his web site https://www.calvinhaydenforsheriff.com/

FOR CONGRESS - 3RD CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

KAREN CRNKOVICH-A skilled trades business owner she knows what it means to get your hands dirty and really work. We need a strong voice in Congress for someone who really understands what problems this country is currently facing in immigration, the economy, and what has been a downward spiral in the moral backbone of our country.  We need her to represent us to defeat the Biden sycophant Sharice Davids.  Visit her web site https://kcforkansas.com/

Did Mickey Sandifer Lie to Voters While Campaigning

 

Remember previous posts of mine how Sandifer has a habit of telling people what they want to hear.  Well, here’s one to figure out.

When campaigning for office, most candidates get lists of voters in their districts.  With Sandifer running for mayor that would have been a list of all voters in Shawnee.  These lists show the voters’ names, addresses, party affiliation and whether or not they voted in recent elections.

Now here’s the catch regarding the headline question.  Sandifer is a registered Republican.  No problem there.  Would be willing to bet that when he went to a residence where the voter was also a registered Republican that he touted his party affiliation.  Would almost be stupid not to.  It would create a sort of kinship.

So, if Sandifer was pushing his party affiliation to other registered Republicans why is he supporting a Democrat for Kansas State Senate?  Now he is entitled to support whoever he wants, but if he pushed his Republican ties to other Republicans, was he lying to them about how he stood on various subjects. 

Anyway, Sandifer recently attended a fundraiser for Andrew Mall the Democratic challenger to State Senator Mike Thompson.  Heck Mickey, quit telling people you’re a Republican and then you support Democrats.  Don’t believe me?  Check this link https://www.instagram.com/p/C8nLaQhPuoO/?igsh=MXcyZXhmZHRlY3Vjbg==    That was to a fund raiser for Andrew Mall which was attended by many local Democrats including Gov. Kelly.  And then the icing on the cake is he apparently is also supporting another Democrat, this for  Vanessa Vaugn West for state rep.  Don’t believe me about that?  Check this out https://www.vanessaforkansas.com/community 

So Mickey Sandifer, in true Mickey BS mode, touts his Republican affiliation and then supports Democrats for public office.  At least the right thing to do would be for him to change his party affiliation.

Happy 248th Birthday USA

 July 4th, 2024, and the USA is 248 years old.

Happy Birthday to our country and to those who have kept us free.  Over the 248 years hundreds of millions have worked in industry, on the farms, as first responders, and others, to keep our country free. the steadfast wall that has protected that freedom for 248 years has, and will remain being so, is our military.

ALL GAVE SOME, SOME GAVE ALL

NEVER FORGET

More Hypocrisy From The Liberal Left Is Sickening

 The individuals who consider themselves liberal left are not only hypocritical, they, for many of them, are out and out liars.

For years now many on the right side of the political spectrum have been saying that Joe Biden does not have the mental capabilities to be POTUS.  There have been TV ads with clips showing his diminished mental capabilities.

So, what did the liberal left do.  They claimed that the ads were phoney.  They claimed that every time a Republican questioned Biden's mental state that that was wrong.

So, now, what has happened?  After last Thursday's debate showing Biden's severely diminished state, the folks that had been protecting him are now calling for him to drop out of the race.  Not only the everyday man and woman in the street, but many elected officials from his party, media personalities like those idiots on the View who kept defending him.  What about the NY Times, CNN, MSNBC?  Ad infinitum.

So, now comes some big questions:

1.  Who has really been running the country for the past three and a half years?  Who would really be running it if he did get reelected?  He can't even put in a full day of work.  Reports out of DC indicate that he can't start his day before 10AM nor go past 4PM.

2.  Who is the real threat to our democracy?  It is Joe Biden and the rest of the liberal left.  They are destroying our country with their open door policy on the border.  Killing our economy with all the benefits being given to illegal migrants, at the expense of US citizens who need them.  Who wants the census bureau to count illegal aliens for the purpose of congressional apportionment which also affects the electoral college?  Who is responsible for the rise in crime in major population centers and the closing of America's backbones (small businesses).  Who wants the VA to provide medical care for illegal immigrants?  Who suffers from that idea?  America's veterans who have fought for and/or stood the watch for our country.

3.  Did Joe Biden really have the chutzpah to say that no American military personnel have lost their lives on his watch?  He's a liar, and we all know it.  Yes, I'm a veteran.  Yes, I served in Vietnam, and carry a 70% disability because of my service.  Who abandoned allies and literally billions of dollars of equipment for our enemies to use?

4.  Who is "The Big Guy" that Hunter Biden wanted to make sure got his 10% cut of his ill gotten funds?

5.  And please, when it comes to Donald Trump who was railroaded by a weaponized prosecution remember one thing.  Alan Dershowitz, Professor Emeritus at Harvard Law, who many consider to be the foremost Constitutional legal scholar, who sat in the courtroom, has said that the conviction will not be upheld on appeal.  So many things were done wrong including a violation of Trump's 6th Amendment rights.

6.  And last, but definitely not least, the drugs, especially fentanyl, that are coming across the southern border and killing our friends, relatives, neighbors.

Sharice Davids Supports Illegal Aliens Over Law Enforcement

This is easy.  There was a bill in Congress (HR 7343) to "Detain and Deport Illegal Aliens Who Assault Cops Act".

54 Democrats joined 211 Republicans to vote in favor of this bill.  Sharice Davids was one of 148 Democrats who voted against it.  Fortunately the bill passed the House of Representatives.

It's simple, it's bad enough that there are illegal aliens in this country, but when they assault members of law enforcement, well, then it's time to boot them out and send them back to their country of origin.  They have already violated the law here by the way they came here.  Now, folks like Davids want to also give them a pass when they assault members of law enforcement.This is IMHO wrong.

It's time we boot this Biden supporter out of Congress.  The election is only 6 months away.  She has to go.

Anybody wanna bet that the "illustrious" Johnson County Post doesn't even mention this?

Johnson County Post Fails to Report Important News

 I wrote about this awhile back.  Shawnee City Council Rep Angela Stiens has replaced retired State Rep Owen Donahoo as State Rep in the 39th District.

The Johnson County Post that likes to tout itself as the only source of real news in the area, has still not mentioned this item.

When there is a change in the state representation that affects approximately 1/3 of the population of Shawnee wouldn't the average person consider that to be newsworthy?

Hmmmm, maybe I should print out some of their articles, go to a pet store, buy a canary, and use the printed pages as bird cage liner.  That's a thought!!

I Cancelled My Membership at Planet Fitness

You bet I did.  On Thursday I walked into the facility on Shawnee Mission Parkway and cancelled my membership.  When I was asked why I said it had to do with what they did to the lady who complained about a biological male shaving in the women's restroom.

In case you haven't heard here's info on that.

This garbage of allowing biological males to use female restrooms/showers because they "identify" as female is getting to be a bunch of BS.  And, IMHO, the opposite is also true, females who "identify" as male using the male restrooms/showers.

There have been reported instances of biological males who supposedly identified as female, using female restrooms, and having their male genitalia in an excited state.  

This nonsense, along with transgender males participating in female sports has got to stop.

Question, will the new CEO of Planet Fitness take a shower in the female showers of one of her facilities with a biological male in the same shower who has identified as female?  Anybody want to ask her that question?

Did Mayor Mickey Sandifer & Council Members Jeanie Murphy and Laurel Burchfield Abuse City Funding?

 OK, here goes.  On Monday, 4/8/24 I addressed the Shawnee City Council regarding the recent trip that the three individuals named above took to Washington, DC for the National League of Cities Conference.

I pointed out, that based on information received from the city's finance department via a KORA request that these three spent very, very, very, little time attending meetings.  That based on that information, it appeared that most of the 6 days spent in Washington were used for activities not a part of that conference.

Rather than repeat it all here, you can hear the presentation, and actually see the info on the power point presentation by going to this page on the city's website.  Move the timeline control to the 15:40 mark.

Out of over $17,000 spent it would appear that maybe half, if not more, was wasted.  I trust that these members of the governing body (and their spouses) enjoyed themselves.

It should also be noted that in that presentation I made mention of an email I had sent them which they refused to answer.  That was also posted on this blog at this link.  Why didn't they answer it?  Was it because they felt they did not have to respond to a citizen inquiry?  Or was it because they did not want to tell the truth about apparently wasting a bunch of money?

Sidebar 1:  It was brought to my attention that an individual by the name of Alex Welch Blattner posted an item about the presentation on another web site.  I read it and I laughed.  First she says that after coming back from DC they gave a full presentation at a previous council meeting.  A three minute quickie about what they did does not a full presentation make, and they said very little about how they spent the six days.  But apparently Ms. Blattner would like to denigrate my conclusions even though I had the info from the city's records, again, via a KORA (Kansas Open Records Act) request.  This individual has blinders on and does not want to face facts.  As they say in German, Das tut mir leid (sorry about that).

Sidebar 2:  Back in January when the item about rejoining the NLC came up, former councilmembers Lisa Larson-Bunnell (via an email) and Jeff Vaught (live at the meeting) voiced how they thought rejoining NLC was a good idea.  Would either of them care to reimburse the city for the funds that these three apparently wasted.

Hypocrisy of Mayor Mickey Sandifer & Councilmembers Jeanie Murphy & Laurel Burchfield

On Sunday, March 24th, I sent the following email to Mayor Mickey Sandifer and Councilmembers Murphy & Burchfield, with regards to the recent trip they took to the National League of Cities in Washington, DC:

Good morning,

 Would you be kind enough to provide the following information with regards to the March 2024 NLC meeting that you recently attended.

1. Did you bring a guest or guests with you?

2. Specifically, which meetings, seminars, lectures, classes, events did you attend?

 Thank you,

 Ray Erlichman

Suffice it to say, none of these individuals has responded.

Why do I say that their lack of response is hypocrisy?  Gee, what about their election campaigns?  With calls for unity, open government, etc.

Let's look at them individually.

SANDIFER:  Knowing Mickey for many years I again figured he wouldn't respond.  First, he doesn't like me.  Second, he appears to have an aversion to committing himself to written responses to questions.  Let's now look at his recent State of the City address as noted in the Johnson County Post

“While I do stand here as today as Shawnee’s 24th mayor, I stand here with the entire community, east and west of 435, north and south of Shawnee Mission Parkway,” he said. “Every resident, every business, every soul in our community has a reason for calling Shawnee home.”

Using his speech as a call for unity, Sandifer asked for people to stand together to get work done in the city.

“Today we put our divisions behind us,” he said. “Today we look for what will drive Shawnee forward, what will bring the next generation to Shawnee, what will define our city’s future.”

Nice words Mickey.  LOL, if you've ever heard him speak at council he can't put more than four words together in a cohesive manner.  Must have been somebody else who wrote that speech.  In house or was an outside source used?  Also, since he stumbles over reading from the agenda at meetings he was fortunate to have what appeared to be a teleprompter on stage.  Anyway, he needs to realize that he does have a responsibility to respond to citizen inquiries, all citizens.

MURPHY:  Even though I don't reside in her ward, when she is on the council she is representing the entire city, not just Ward 2.  Strange attitude coming from an individual with many years as an ordained minister.

BURCHFIELD:  Another individual who apparently feels she can ignore requests from citizens.  And in this case, a request from a resident of Ward 4, her ward.  Not a good move by this young lady.  Wonder who is advising her to ignore citizen requests.

Congrats to Angela Stiens - New State Rep in Dist 39 - JoCo Post Misses The Story

 I waited two weeks because I wanted to see if the "illustrious" JoCo Post did anything with the story.

State Rep Owen Donohoe has retired.  We wish him well in his retirement and thank him for his many years of service in Topeka on behalf of the citizens of Shawnee.

When a state rep does not finish their term, the precinct committeemen/women from that party elect the replacement who serves until the next election.  Hopefully, Angela will choose to run for a full term as she would be a great advocate for the people of Shawnee.

As for the JoCo Post not covering this, yours truly approached their reporter last night after the city council meeting.  Basically I was informed that their editor thought she might be running in the next election to replace Owen.  Apparently they don't understand the system here in Kansas or they did not perform proper research.  Or they don't like saying nice things about folks with a conservative philosophy.

Oh, they have just announced another rate increase for monthly subscribers....wheeeeee.

The Real Threat to Democracy

 Regardless of the various talking points by Joe Biden and his allies have mentioned, Donald Trump is not the real threat to democracy.

I will for now just touch base on a few items.

First, the border crisis.  Since taking office, Joe Biden has in effect created open borders.  Unless you are blind, we are talking about millions of illegal migrants crossing the border.  We are talking about unusually high numbers of unaccompanied, military aged men, from countries that we are not friendly with, crossing the border.  Biden wants the VA to provide health care for these illegals.  That is a slap in the face to every veteran who has served our country and who needs that health care.  The care provided to illegals will create wait times that are unimaginable for our veterans  to obtain that care.  The VA is stretched as it is now.  Crimes committed by these illegals ar mounting, and the "woke" prosecutors are letting many of them walk.  Their presence has stretched the budgets of the "sanctuary" cities and states who touted their sanctuary status until they have now gotten hit with putting their money where their mouths are.  Police departments are, in many cases unable to perform their duties as needed, because of these woke policies, including the stupid BS of defunding the police. Trump was controlling the border situation.

Second, voting rights.  The US Attorney General (fortunately he was stopped from becoming a member of the SCOTUS) Merrick Garland has publicly announced that he will fight any state that pushes for voter ID laws.  What?  Unbelievable.  We're not talking about voter taxes, or literacy tests.  We are talking about proof of eligibility to vote (usually a driver's license or state issued ID card).  How is that discriminatory?  Go ahead, try getting on a plane without an ID.  Try opening a bank accout without an ID.  Try cashing a check without an ID.  And so many other things, but my favorite (because MLB cancelled the All Star game in Atlanta) try getting into MLB's Hqs without a voter ID or picking up tickets at a will call window for  major sporting event.

Nest up, census counts.  Biden wants the Census Bureau to start counting illegals so that it can affect the figures for congressional apportionment and the electoral college.  Whoa, that is outrageous.  Now correlate that to his open border actions.

Let's look at red flag laws.  Proponents of this including Biden and Kamala (she who can't put together an intelligent statement) Harris are really treading on citizen's rights.  They make these things sound good, but those who don't look into them do not realize how controlling by the government and/or certain individuals this will become.  Basically, any person who feels that any other person is a threat can petition the courts to have that individual's weapons confiscated (without a hearing).  Then the person so designated has to prove that they are not a threat (guilty until proven innocent).  So, if you are having a dispute with your neighbor, let's say over a tree hanging into your yard, an dyou know that person owns guns you could claim action under a red flag order.  The potential for abuse is outrageous.  We see it every day now in other areas.  The nasty divorce when one of the spouses claims that the other sexually abused their children when they did not do so.  Then the battle to keep parental rights. Not to tke away from those cases ehere it does happen, but the false claims just to "get even" can ruin many lives.  The same with false applications for protective orders.  They take away from those who do have claims.  Again, the potential for abuse is high and happens.

What about the states that attempted to have Trump's name removed from the ballot.  The SCOTUS quashed that.  In a 9-0 ruling.  Wow.  The most egregious IMHO was Maine, where it was the secretary of state that tried it.  The attempts at using the 14th Amendment were a definite threat to democracy.  Why?  Because their made up basis that Trump led an insurrection has been shown to be baseless.  He has never been charged with that, by any of the various investigations and/or special counsels.  Let alone convicted.  So, these self appointed judges and juries have in some cases taken it upon themselves to do that.  Wrongo.  As a matter of fact it is now coming out that the Nancy Pelosi appointed committee to investigate the Jan 6th situation has been holding back info.  Specifically, that days prior to it Trump offered to send in 10,000 members of the National Guard to prevent problems and guess who tuned that down?  Nancy Pelosi.

We will touch on other items as the election gets closer.  Those who don't like Trump because he is loud mouthed, belligerent, obnoxious, vulgar, narcissistic, misogynistic, too bad.  If you continue to support Joe Biden I don't want to hear you crying about inflation, resources that are needed for our citizens going to illegals, rising crime, reduced police protection, government control of our lives or a myriad of other things, or our country being shut down for two year and its effects on education.

The real threat to democracy....Joe Biden, Kamala Harris and any of their like minded followers.

No Surprise, Mickey "The Mouse" Sandifer Did NOT Respond to My Email

 

Earlier this month I sent our not so illustrious mayor an email and published it here on this blog.

You can view it by clicking here

Now, why hasn't "The Mouse" responded?  I can only guess at the reason(s).

1.  As stated in my original post, he doesn't like me.  Too bad Mr. Mayor.  I am a citizen of Shawnee.  You work for me.  All you are doing is showing an arrogance that you feel you are above responding to citizen inquiries. Or are selective in who you respond to.  String pullers??

2.  He was presented with three possible scenarios and he quite likely didn't want to commit in writing to any of them being the factual response.  Maybe he didn't want to get caught lying.

3.  If I were to attempt a guess at which answer was the correct one, I'd guess number three.  Answer number one would be outrageous IMHO, and answer number two would be laughable.

Maybe some folks who voted for him and swallowed his BS during the campaign will eventually see him for what he is.

 

Will Sandifer Answer to What Took Place at a Previous NLC Conference?

 My email to Mickey "The Mouse" Sandifer sent this evening.  It speaks for itself.  

"Mr. Mayor,

Years ago you went on one of your many junkets to a National League of Cities conference in Washington, DC you took your granddaughter with you.

Nothing wrong with that.  You apparently personally covered all of her expenses.  No problem there.

She was at the time a very young girl.  So, here’s what I would like to know.

You were there to learn about things that could help the City of Shawnee.  Your rationale for getting us back involved with the NLC.  So, what did you do with your granddaughter?

Did you:

1. Go to the meetings and leave that little girl in the hotel room in Washington DC?
2. Go to the meetings and take her to them with you?  Oh, and how often would a child like that ask “Are we ready to leave now grandpa?”  Bored silly.  Expected.
3. Go to the meeting rooms, sign in as if you were attending, then go back upstairs and take her sightseeing?

I know you don’t like me, and history has shown that you don’t respond to my emails.  Let me clue you in.  I am a citizen of Shawnee and I have a right to question your actions.  You have an obligation to respond.  Or are you selective in who you respond to?  Like only to folks who agree with you?

Ray Erlichman"

What is Mickey "The Mouse" Sandifer Afraid Of?

 Here's the situation.  "The Mouse" has directed staff to cancel the March 11, 2024 city council meeting.

Why?  Because three members of the governing body will be going to the National League of  Cities conference in Washington, DC.

That doesn't make sense.  That still leaves six members of the governing body in Shawnee including the council president who can chair a council meeting in the mayor' absence.  Six members is more than enough to constitute a quorum.

What is "The Mouse" afraid of?  Does he feel the council will stage a mutiny without him here?  Does he feel that he is such an all knowing (LOL) leader that meetings cannot proceed without him?  Heck, he has already displayed his dictatorial tendencies.  Or did he want to protect his investment?  Yepper, he provided over $19,000 in financing out of his pocket for the election.  Figures are available at the JoCo election web site.

Johnson County Post Disrespects President's Day

This is an easy post to write.  A couple of weeks ago I wrote the editor of the local left leaning rag sheet and asked if they were closing down for President's Day.  Just like they did for Martin Luther King Day.

Apparently they did not close down.  Also, he never responded to my inquiry.  Gee, what a rude dude.  First, I am a resident of the area that they are supposedly covering, and also a monthly subscriber.   The editor's PR skills leave a lot to be desired.  Not the first time he has ignored an email from me.

Oh well.............................we understand the attitude of elitists....................

Yesss!!!! Yesss!!!! Yesss!!!!

Giving Patrick Mahomes and the KC Chiefs the ball with less than two minutes to play, when they are behind, has proven many, many times to be a prescription for a Chiefs victory.  They did it again last night.  Using Kelce as a decoy and throwing to Hardman.  Absolute genius.

Congratulations to them.  Can they threepeat?  Strong possibility.  Remember all of the experts last year who said they would not even make the playoffs (especially with the loss of Tyreek Hill)?  Wow, did they fool the experts.  Then this year, halfway through the season the same naysayers were saying it again.  Two underdog victories, on the road to get to the Super Bowl and an underdog victory at the Super Bowl.

Wanna see that play again:

And an appropriate final commentary:

Mickey "The Mouse" Sandifer Wants to Waste the City's Money

 Well guess what happened at the city council meeting of January 22, 2024?  Four members of the council and our not so illustrious mayor voted to waste city (taxpayer's) money on what, IMHO are unnecessary junkets.

OK, here's what they did.  First they voted to rejoin the National League of Cities.  The current membership fee for a city of our size is $5,999.  Now that gives us the opportunity to send a delegation to two of their meetings.  One is held in March and is always in Washington, DC.  The other meeting is rotated around the country in November.  The November 2024 meeting will be in Tampa Bay.

When Mickey "The Mouse" Sandifer was a council member he went to all of the meetings.  He also spent more time there than anybody else, and as such his expenses for attendance at these taxpayer paid vacations were usually the highest.

Here's a question that someone might want to dig into.  If these meetings (and I'll concentrate right now on the one in DC) are so beneficial how come they've been cut back from four days to two days?  On many occasions "The Mouse" would go out the night before and come back the day after.  Other folks from Shawnee did not stay as long.

For the record, besides voting to break the 4-4 tie on rejoining this organization, "The Mouse" had the backing of the following council members:  Ward 1 - Sierra Whitted, Ward 2 - Jeanie Murphy, Ward 3 - Kurt Knappen & Ward 4 - Laurel Burchfield.

Sidebar #1:  While the discussion was going on Knappen made a comment to the extent that he did not feel "book reports" were necessary.  Don't think that came up in the meeting. But it did come up in a phone discussion he and I had.  I explained to him that at one time a suggestion had been made by a council member that those who attended these conferences should file reports as to what transpired.  The purpose of the reports was supposed to be for the benefit of those who did not attend.  Think I might push for that.

Sidebar #2:  Unless I missed it, I can't figure out why the city attorney did not politely correct "The Mouse" on a procedural error.  The council was supposed to go into an executive session and "The Mouse" kept saying they were going to "reconvene to an executive session".  Heck, you recess to an executive session and then reconvene to the council meeting.  I bring this up for two reasons.  First, "The Mouse" touts his 16 years previously on the council and his "knowledge" of government.  And second, because it is in the agenda.

Recommendation: Recess to Executive Session for the purpose of discussion of a personnel matter involving a non-elected official in accordance with K.S.A. 75-4319(b)(1), for the purpose of protecting the confidentiality of those communications and protecting the privacy interests of such personnel.  At the conclusion of the Executive Session, the meeting will reconvene in the Council Chambers.

 

 

Recommendation: Conclude the Executive Session and Reconvene the meeting.

Kinda reminds me of what Leslie Winkle (played by Sara Gilbert) used to call Sheldon Cooper (played by Jim Parsons) on "The Big Bang Theory"........she used to call him.......'dumba$$'  Heck, "The Mouse" can't even read the agenda..........does he suffer from BCD?  Biden Cognitive Disorder.

Chiefs vs Bills Sunday 1/21/24 - My Predictions

 OK, here goes my predictions for tomorrow's game.

Let's talk defense first.  Steve Spagnuolo will have his "D" all fired up.  My guess is that we might even see some new defensive looks during this game.  Things that are not on any tapes.  On this subject my prediction is that the Bills score 13 points ( 1 TD, 1 PAT, 2 FGs) and that Josh Allen gets sacked three times.  And there will be a Chiefs pick 6.

Now, let's look at the Chiefs offense.  Andy Reid will have at least 6 new plays, never before seen, drawn up, and will use at least four of them.  The offense will score five times, all TDs......Pacheco 2, Rice 2 and Kelce 1.  Kelce will have some great plays, lots of yards, setting up his teammates. 

So, 5 offensive TDs, 1 pick 6 and Butker going 6 for 6 on PATs and the final score will be 42-13 as the Chiefs move on up the ladder.

Sidebar:  Mahomes throws for 350+ yards, and no interceptions.

Short Term Rentals & JoCo Post Reporting

 At a recent (1/8/24) meeting of the Council Committee I spoke on a few things regarding short term rentals.

One suggestion I made was that if the ownership of a short term rental was located more than 150 miles from the property that an agent be appointed who could accept service of citations, NTAs, subpoenas, etc. Some on the committee thought that might be viable and one member (Tony Gillette) even suggested that the mileage be even closer, 100 miles,

So, now we have a pretty good idea/suggestion, IMHO.

Well, guess what?  In their reporting of that subject the Johnson County Post (formerly known as the Shawnee Mission Post) failed to include that item.  Hmmm, could it be because they don't like me?  Could it be because they don't like good ideas submitted by non-left leaning persons in general?

Here's the kicker.  In the packet for the 1/22/24 council meeting the city attorney included that idea as a possibility for inclusion in the rewrite of the chapter of the municipal code.  Ain't that a kick in the butt.

Let's take it to another item.  When the JoCo Post stated on their web site that they would be closed for MLK Day I sent an email to their editor asking if they ever closed for Memorial Day, Veteran's Day or even President's Day.  Needless to say I never received a response. I can only guess as to why not.  My guess would be that the southpaw swinging staff does not like to admit that it is because of those who have served their country that rag sheets like theirs can exist.  Yes folks, it is because of veterans defending freedom of speech and freedom of the press that the JoCo Post and bloggers are able to post their commentary.  Not to take away from MLK and what  he did for the civil rights movement, southpaws don't usually like giving credit to the military, IMHO.

I'm reminded of a long item that has been around for many years, and has been quoted here.  A portion of which says:

"It is the Veteran, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the Veteran, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the Veteran, not the campus organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate. It is the Veteran, who salutes the flag, Who serves beneath the flag, and Whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag." 

Let's see if the lefties at the JCP close next year for Memorial Day and Veteran's Day.

How To Waste $3,882.96

Well, we can kiss that money good bye.  What am I talking about?  That's what the cost was for former Mayor Distler's bye bye reception.

The breakdown was $3,525.59 paid for by the city and $357.37 paid for by the Sister City Committee.

The breakdown of the city's share is shown in the below image of the document I received in response to a KORA request.  I was wondering if in the video (total cost $2,300...$2,000 for the video itself and $300 for scripting) made mention of her accomplishment as being the only Shawnee mayor to be arrested for a felony.  I wouldn't know since I did not attend the event.

The breakdown by the city indicates that the cost of the beverages was donated by the Sister City Committee.  I sent them a request for the info and an attorney replied with the amount of $357.37 and indicated that that was for alcoholic beverages only.  BTW, a separate KORA request to the city returned the info that last year (2023) we gave the Sister City Committee $7,500 (those are taxpayer dollars) for the city's annual sponsorship of that organization.  Oh yes, did I mention they are a 501(c)3 charity organization.

Ditler still hasn't apologized to the citizens of Shawnee.  Sure would be nice if she reimbursed the city and the Sister City Committee for their expenditures.  Kinda like a delayed addendum to the diversion agreement she got..

Oh well, maybe it was worth it to finally be rid of her from city government.

Here's the breakdown that the city sent:

Who Has Trained Mickey "The Mouse" Sandifer?

 I've always wondered who trained him and who pulls his strings.

Looks like the answer is out there.

Actually, I think these little ones might be more intelligent than our newly elected dictator, I mean mayor, excuse me.  A Freudian slip.

What is Special About December 13th?

 Everyday of the year is special to someone, somewhere.  I am sure that there may be thousands of folks who can claim a special meaning for December 13th.  I will touch on four of them.

December 13th of the year just past (2023) was the second anniversary of my heart attack, which resulted in my needing a quadruple bypass.  I learned a few things.  First, a quadruple bypass is annotated in one's medical records as CABG x4 (spoken as cabbage times 4).  No it's not something that goes in salad.  Coronary artery bypass graft times 4.  Also, I would have to change my dietary regimen.  I've lost a person (110 lbs) and weigh just 5 lbs more than the day I went into the army, 29 Oct 64, and feel great.  Actually, some folks I've known for years have walked past me, not recognizing me, until I spoke.....apparently I have a distinctive voice......LOL

Many folks were born on December 13th.  Two of them have a local connection.  One is Taylor Swift, soon to be known as Mrs. Travis Kelce (my prediction, engaged by summer 2024 and married within two years of now).  The other one is our very own Dr. Mike Kemmling, currently a councilmember in Ward II here is Shawnee.  Happy belated birthday Dr. Mike.

The fourth event that I want to touch on just happened on December 13th, 2023, nineteen days ago.  The city held a reception for former mayor Michelle Distler.  I have submitted a KORA request to ascertain how much the reception cost the city.  Actually, it doesn't cost the city anything.  The city has no money.  The money comes from us, the taxpayers.  We all know the story.  Distler was arrested and charged with felony perjury.  She eventually was given diversion.  What is diversion?  It's a court approved plan where an individual performs various acts of what can best be described as punishment, and if completed successfully charges are dropped.  Or, as some would say, do the time and then forget about the crime.  Two things about the reception really bother me.  First, she never publicly apologized to the person whose name she used when performing the falsification that caused her to be charged with the felony perjury.  Me!!!  But more importantly she never apologized to the citizens of Shawnee.  She has said many times how much she cares about Shawnee and it's people.  Actually, she kept saying how much she loves the city and its people.  She's a damned liar.  If she cared about the people she would have apologized to them, especially to those who voted for her, twice, to be mayor. And, if you are really interested in how much of a liar she is, ya need to read the DA investigator's affidavit for her arrest warrant and see how many different stories she told the investigator. 

So, that's my take on December 13th.

Sandifer Fails to Respond

 Check my posting of 12/21/23 to read the email I sent to Mayor Mickey "The Mouse" Sandifer.

As of today no response has been received.  Actually, that does not surprise me.  Even though "The Mouse" claimed to want to interact with the citizens of Shawnee he forgot to add that that would only be for those who agree with him.  The other reason why he hasn't responded is because he lacks the intestinal fortitude to admit that I was right and he was wrong.  

It won't be long before Shawnee will become aware of how incompetent he really is and those who voted for him will wonder if they were part of the illustrious 330 voters who put him over the top.

Hidden camera recording of Mickey and friends at play:

Email Sent To Mickey "The Mouse" Sandifer

 When I was  in the army and we were presented with a task that was downright dumb we referred to it as a "Mickey Mouse" detail.  Hence the title of this post  Proceed and you will read an email I sent to Mayor Mickey Sandifer:

Mr. Mayor,

I am writing to you concerning your actions at the city council meeting of 12/11/23.  Please be advised that a copy of this email will be published on my blog.  Should you desire to respond just email me and I will post your response, in its entirety (unedited).

Let’s start with the beginning.  You made it a point to advise all present that the meeting would be conducted in a civil manner.  After I spoke regarding the lack of transparency concerning two appointments that you wanted to make your conduct towards the members of the council who apparently were wanting more transparency was anything but civil.  Listening to the audio and reading the minutes (once they are published) will confirm my analysis.  The Shawnee Mission Post, unfortunately gave you a pass on this one.

You kept stating that the appointments were “mayoral appointments”, as if the council had no say in the manner.  It is amazing that with all your years on the council you didn’t learn anything. Yet you used those years as a selling point in your campaign.  Why do I say you didn’t learn anything? The following is from the agenda of the meeting:

Consider the Mayor's selection of two councilmembers to participate in a joint work group with Planning Commissioners to review potential amendments to the Achieve Shawnee Comprehensive Plan.

The City's Comprehensive Plan is revisited and reviewed regularly to ensure the Plan remains relevant over time.  City staff has identified some portions of the plan that may need to be revisited for minor modifications.

Recommendation: Approve the Mayor's selection of two councilmembers to participate in a joint work group with Planning Commissioners to review potential amendments to the Achieve Shawnee Comprehensive Plan.

You will note that the mayor may make the selection, but the council has to approve the action.  Your dictatorial attitude and childish tantrum needs to be held in check.  Again, listening to the audio and/or reviewing the minutes will bear this out.  And again, the Shawnee Mission Post gave you a pass and apparently did not research that what you were attempting to do was not proper.  Or do you expect the council to be a “rubber stamp” council like the one you served on? 

When a member of the council suggested putting the item in front of the Council Committee prior to resubmitting it to the Council you basically went ballistic.  And, you showed that you did not understand your position, as you said that that was not right since you were not a member of the Council Committee.  Again, even after all your years on the council you failed to learn anything about our city government.  The following is an excerpt from Section Eight of Charter Ordinance 45:

The Mayor shall serve as an ex officio member of all Standing Committees but shall not have any voting rights on said Committees.

What that means Mr. Mayor is that you can sit in on the Council Committee meeting.  You can even voice your opinion and attempt to convince others of your position on an issue.  You just can’t vote on items presented to it.  Don’t believe me?  Check with the city attorney.  Maybe you need a refresher course in Shawnee 101.  And again, the Shawnee Mission Post gave you a pass on this one.  Did they ever research Charter Ordinance 45 to show that you were not accurate in your statement? 

You may have won the election, but you did not receive a mandate.  A difference of 330 votes when 14,544 votes were cast translates to the fact that almost half of those voting did not want you in that position and that they will be closely monitoring how you perform.  Just in case you don’t understand what a mandate is……..” When a politician wins an election by a wide margin, that's a mandate to implement their ideas.”

Ray Erlichman

Correspondence With Councilmember Burchfield

 Recently I emailed Councilmember Burchfield concerning the city council meeting of 12/11/23.  A copy of the email is listed below.  In keeping with a desire to maintain transparency her reply email, unedited, is also listed below.  Readers can judge for themselves what they think about each email.  They might also want to listen to the audio of the 12/11/23 meeting.

My email:

Councilmember Burchfield,

 At this past Monday’s council meeting after I made my comments about the lack of transparency regarding the possible appointment of two council members to a joint study group you commented to the effect that even though you were one of the designated individuals you had no problem with delaying action until Jan 8, 2024.

 When it came time to vote on moving the item to January you voted against it, as reported in the Shawnee Mission Post.

 Would you mind clarifying the contradictory action on your part?

 So that there are no misunderstandings regarding transparency, this email will be posted to my blog along with an unedited copy of your response.

 Thank you

 Ray Erlichman

Her reply:

Hello Ray,

Thank you for your email and the opportunity to clarify.

 I don’t believe my actions were contradictory. I spoke that I was open to a discussion on the appointments at the January meeting so that the public had enough time to be informed participants in the conversation. After further comments from city staff, other council members, and the mayor I voted no on the motion because I didn’t believe the Council Committee meeting was the correct place for the discussion, I did not think the Mayor intended to make appointments, and I didn’t believe the city staff were ready to move forward with the workgroup.

 Thank you,

 Laurel

Sandifer's First Night As Mayor - Hail Caesar & Tantrum Throwing

 Last night (12/11/23) was Mickey Sandifer's first night as mayor.  If ya wanna see an example of tantrum throwing and a dictatorial attitude just go to the audio of the meeting by clicking here. Then to save yourself some time go to the 1:54:01 mark.

Here's the background.  There was an item on the agenda about appointing two members of the council to a study group.  The agenda and its accompanying memo did not indicate who they were.  Yours truly contacted staff as to why there were no names listed.  The response was that with the change over the new mayor had not had time to make the selection before the agenda went public.  I found that strange since on a previous item his selection for the Planning Commission was listed.  I considered this to be a lack of transparency and signed up to speak on it.

Well, now comes the meeting and the item comes up.  After the planning director gave his info on the background of the study group, Mickey "Julius Caesar" Sandifer proceeded to go forward with ignoring asking if anyone had signed up to speak.  Yes, I had to shout it out from the audience, "what about those who signed up?" (Was he hoping to push the item and not allow me to speak?) He then asked if anybody had signed up.  I had NO  comments about the two appointees who were mentioned a few minutes earlier.  It was procedure.  Since "Julius Caesar" (hail dictator) had campaigned on transparency it was felt by yours truly that the item should be tabled until January 8th so that the public could be informed who the two appointees were and then comment on them if they thought it was warranted.

Now ya gotta listen to the audio.  Even the two prospective appointees agreed for transparency that the public should be able to comment and were not given that chance.   Listening to the audio you will hear how Sandifer loses it and throws a mini tantrum, especially taking the stand that the mayor appoints.  Yepper, the mayor appoints (actually recommends appointments) but the council has to approve.  It got to the point where "mini me mayor" indicated maybe he wouldn't make appointments.

Cutting to the chase, just listen to the audio.  BTW, the item did get tabled until January 8th, 2024 with all council members voting in favor of that.  

Hmmmm, wonder how the left leaning Shawnee Mission Post will cover Caesar's actions last night.

A word of advice to Caesar............ya better stop trying to be a mini me dictator or you'll lose the support even of your fellow lefties on the council.

Is The Shawnee Mission Post Moving?

 Curious!  Is the Shawnee Mission Post moving their offices?  Rumor on the street is that they are moving into a very beautiful Romanesque styled building.  Here's a picture of the building.  It is very beautiful. Only problem is that it has a slight bent leaning to the left.  It is located at Piazza del Duomo 56126 Pisa Pl, Italy,

Also, what is with their pleas for funding and getting more subscribers?

After each story the reporter who wrote it has a mini bio and a plea for more subscribers.  They want your money.  I remember when a monthly subscription was $5.99 now it's going to be $8.50.  Oh well, thank you Bidenomics.  Hey that's an idea.  Get the king of the lefties to pay (out of how own pocket with no funds from China) for every member of his staff.

What about their advertisers?  They run their ads to look like news stories but they do mark them as "sponsored".  They're not lying, it's just a little deceptive, but isn't that how left leaning media operations function?

December 13th, 2023 Shawnee to Celebrate & Condone Criminal Activity

 If you don't believe the title of this blog post this is what you need to do:

On December 13th, 2023 show up at the Shawnee Town Hall at 11600 Johnson Drive (at Shawnee Town 1929) between 3:30PM to 6:00PM.  There will be a presentation at 4:30PM

What is the occasion?  It's a reception for what will be Shawnee's former mayor, Michelle Distler as her term will end on December 11, 2023.

Fact: Michelle Distler is the first woman to be elected mayor of Shawnee.

Fact: Michelle Distler is the first mayor to be arrested and charged with a felony while serving in office.

Fact: Michelle Distler is the first mayor to enter into a diversion agreement so that the charges would be dropped.  Neat, do the punishment and not get convicted.  IMHO innocent people don't take diversion.

Fact:  Michelle Distler never publicly apologized to the citizens of Shawnee nor to the person whose name she fraudulently used when filing a government document using that person's name.  I should know, I'm still waiting for that apology.  Fat chance of that happening.  Somebody the other night referred to her as the "girl with heart" in reference to the city's new slogan.  Hah....how about the girl with no moral conscience?

Originally I was going to show up at the reception with a going away present for her.  Framed copies of the affidavit for the arrest warrant and of the diversion agreement.  Decided she wasn't worth the cost of the frames (98¢ each at Walmart).

Sidebar:  One good thing about December 13th........Taylor Swift's birthday......go for it Travis!!!!

Former Mayor Jim Allen and Current Mayor Michelle Distler - Clown College Graduates??

 Let's start with former mayor Jim Allen.  This clown has stated publicly that the situation with Shawnee's city manager is the biggest blackeye for Shawnee and he blames the council for it.  What a clown.  Was Distler's arrest for felony perjury not a blackeye for the city?  And what about her getting diversion?  That's where you do the punishment in exchange for getting the charges dropped.  Who takes punishment if they haven't done the crime?  Aha, and. what about former councilmember Justin Adrian?  We remember him don't we?  The former Olathe teacher who spent jail time for "dipsy doodling" with a male student in a classroom.  Guess Jim Allen doesn't consider that a blackeye for the city.  Anything to advance wacko left wing liberal agendas.

And now, what about her not so Honor Mayor.  She claims that there were red flags about the city manager before he was hired.  Is that the whole story?  Did the recruiting company that did the investigation(s) ever come up with anything credible about the supposed red flags?  I wouldn't trust a damned thing her not so Honor Mayor says anymore.  Just read the affidavit for her arrest warrant and see how many different stories she gave the .investigator.  

Final thoughts.........has anybody given any thought to the possibility that the city manager might be a victim in this case?  

Veteran's Day 2023

 To my fellow veterans:  If you served during a time of hostility, "welcome home brother".  If you served during peacetime, thank you for "standing the watch" and being willing to serve.

.

Take a couple of minutes please.  Watch this video, and if you have any young ones with you ask them to join you.  

Mickey Sandifer Does NOT Believe in Transparency

 Ahhh yes, Sandifer, the King of "I'll Tell Them What They Want to Hear".

Remember when the subject came up about a proposed community center?  Well Sandifer was very much in favor of it, and did not care what the cost would be to the citizens.  

Anyway, he and the other Ward 4 council rep at the time (Lindsey Constance) held a town hall meeting at the civic centre to go over the proposed project.  But neither one wanted to hear the negatives, concerning increased taxes, exorbitant fees, and operational income projected to run negatively for many years.

Well when a citizen of the community wanted to challenge these two council members, Sandifer tried to shut him down.  That was when he (Sandifer) made the comment "this is not a town hall, it's our show".

Don't believe me?  Click below and hear him say it for yourself,  Yep, when Sandifer speaks y'all wanna be wearing hip waders.

Laurel Burchfield, Sierra Whitted & Jeani Murphy----Bad News for Shawnee

 My opinions and I'm entitled to them.

These three ladies, would be really bad news for Shawnee if they were to get elected to the city council.

Burchfield is running in Ward 4, Whitted in Ward 1 and Murphy in Ward 2.

Burchfield and Whitted appear to me to be the closest thing to carpet baggers since the civil war.  They are still too new to living in Shawnee to really have a good grasp on things.  Murphy has been around a long time, but all three have been trying to pull a snow job on the citizens.

I've touched on this before in other posts here.  First, they are trying to put the blame on the city council for staff leaving.  I published the numbers.  the numbers have been pretty much the same (percentage wise) for many years.  There is always turnover.  Then, they try to put the blame on the council for certain senior members of the staff leaving.  Disgruntle city employees who were used to getting their way without previous councils doing what they were supposed to do.......question and ndot rubber stamp.

These three say that the council hasn't been listening to the "experts" on city staff.  City staff has many fine, capable, intelligent folks.  They are also human.  It is the council's responsibility to question and if the council feels something needs to be adjusted it is staff's responsibility to carry that forward.  The new city manager and the two new assistants understand the proper chain.  Under this council city staff has grown, appropriate adjustments were made to the salary structures for PD & FD, and this has been accomplished with reductions in the mill levy.

Proper review of city projects has resulted in many projects getting done, for less money.  And the city has been able to get its reserves to 57% (27% over industry accepted standards).

This council is not anti-development.  They want the right development in the right areas, without giving up the farm, the way previous councils did.  

If you want to see Shawnee grow and prosper, then you don't want to vote for these three, or MIckey Sandifer for mayor.

The right choices for this election would be, IMHO, Megan Warner in Ward 4, Tammy Thomas in Ward 1 and Eric Jenkins in Ward 2, and Dr. Mike Kemmling for mayor.  Unlike Sandifer, Mike is not beholden to the "old boy network" and nobody is pulling his strings.  Ahhh, Sandifer, the sweet talking bovine scatalogical artist who will say anything to you to get your vote, even if it is completely opposite of what he said to your neighbor.......

Parks & Pipes and Pavement Taxes - Vote Yes

 On, the ballot on Nov. 7th will be two questions which ask voters to say whether or not they want to approve continuing these two taxes.  These are not new taxes.  They both expire in 2025 after the last time that they were approved.

IMHO, it would be to Shawnee's benefit if the voters approved the extensions.  I'm not a fan of taxes, but these two items have proven to be very beneficial for our city over the years.  

The Parks & Pipes tax is 1/8th of a penny and the Pavement tax is 3/8ths of a penny.

If you'd like more info on these items you can click here. Also, if you are looking for specific information on how these funds have been used you can contact the following individuals:

City Manager Doug Gerber dgerber@cityofshawnee.org

Parks & Recreation Director Tonya Lecuru parksandrec@cityofshawnee.org

Public Works Director Doug Whitacre publicworks@cityofshawnee.org

Does Mickey Sandifer Suffer From BCD?

 This man would be an absolute abomination if he were to be elected mayor of Shawnee.

At the recent forum held by the Shawnee Mission Post you won't believe what Sandifer said.

First, in his opening remarks he said he would not enter the office with an agenda.  Huh.  That's plain BS. 

Would you vote for any candidate if they truly did not have an agenda?  I wouldn't.  I want to know what they would do.

Maybe I'd agree with it or disagree with it, but I would want to know what it is?  Actually, he probably has one, but does not want folks to know what it is.  Not a leader as he purports to be.  A puppet and a follower.  Remember how he wimped out voting on the non-discrimination ordinance.  He didn't want to anger certain religious groups by voting for it and he did not want to incur the wrath of the LGBQT+ community by voting against it.  Not a leader, but a puppet on a string.

The forum can be seen here

Also you will be able to see how he is unable to coherently answer and explain things.  

Or, he just makes things up.  At the end of the forum he mentions how the PD & FD budgets make up 3/4ths of the city's budget?  Which side of his feeble braindid he get that info from.  Combined, the two department's budgets are 32% of the city's, slightly less than 1/3.  That info is on the city's web site viewable here

Hmmmmm, did the left leaning Shawnee Mission Post do a fact check on that one?

Or how about this, from Mickey's campaign web site

"I have serious concerns about the City council’s vote to decrease the mill levy tax, against the judgement of the previous city manager and other Shawnee staff. 

We must protect against a revenue shortfall down the road."  First he is one of those who believes that the council should just rubber stamp anything and everythingstaff brings forth.  But let's talk numbers first.  The city sits with 57% in reserves, almost twice (30%) the recommended amount.  This council has reduced the mill levy three times.  By reducing it, as home values go up , the city will still get enough to run itself and still have a healthy reserve.  Mickey just loves raising taxes, he voted for that when he sat on the council and was a strong proponent of the Community Center project which would have saddled Shawnee citizens with an unnecessary tax burden and 72% of the voters shot that idea down at the polls.

Mickey just likes to make things up or embellish various items.  Oh, what is BCD?  Biden Cognitive Disorder.....just like 46 you can't trust anything that comes out of his mouth.  When he speaks, grab your hip waders.

Do we even want to discuss how he and certain members of the previous council received a scathing rebuke from the JoCo DA regarding a KOMA violation for voting for the former Mayor's uncle by marriage to fill an unexpired council term?  Not a leader, just a dancing puppet on a string.

I hate to say this, because I have always been an Elvis fan, but he must have been very prescient, as maybe this song was a peek into the future about Mickey Sandifer.

Mickey Sandifer - Would Be Terrible for Shawnee

 Former city councilmember Mickey Sandifer is running for mayor.  It would be, IMHO, catastrophic if he were to succeed.

Now this might be a little longer read than what I usually post here, but please read it and not just skim thru it.

Mickey comes across as warm and fuzzy and very sincere and believable in what he says.  Talk to him about an item affecting the city that you are in favor of.   Then have a friend, relative, neighbor (not living too close to you and definitely without the same last name) talk to him about the same item, but their opinion is opposite of yours.  Then compare notes with them.  A double whopper with cheese and bacon says he will agree with both folks.  Take it a step further, email him and ask him where he stands on a particular item.  He will contact you and attempt to discuss the item with you over the phone or in person.  Another double whopper with double cheese and double bacon says he won't respond via email.  Believe it has something to do with the written word being a way to be held accountable.

He says he believes in transparency.  That's a laugh.  Many years ago we had a member of the council from Ward 3 who would use the "Miscellaneous Council Items" at a council meeting to literally attack members of the public.  Whether that person had spoken at the meeting earlier that evening, or not.  In those days that section  of the meeting was "reserved" for council comments.  So what happened?  One evening yours truly got up in business from the floor and suggested that Policy Statement 7 be amended to allow for citizen comments in the miscellaneous council items portion.  Eventually staff brought forth the proposed changes to PS-7 for the council to review and act.  Sandifer stated at the meeting he saw no need to allow citizens to address councilmember's comments during that portion of the meeting.  The changes passed anyway.

Now let's talk about Mickey taking three (3) vacations a year paid for with your tax dollars.  The National League of Cities (which we don't belong to any more) holds two meetings a year and the Kansas League of Municipalities holds one.  What Mickey would do is go out the day before the meetings started, stay thru the last hail and farewell morning meeting and then come back the following day.  The result:  two extra hotel nights and the corresponding per diem. Most of the other council members who would go, they had a one or two night stay, Mickey would have a 4 or 5 night stay.  I didn't pull them all, but I have posted some of the expense reports on this blog.  Mickey was always the biggest spender except for one meeting.

One of his most egregious acts with regards to these out of town excursions happened the year he did not run for reelection.  By not filing in June to run again he knew he was off the council at the end of the year.  Yet he signed up for and went to the NLC meeting which was held just weeks before the end of his council term.  Talk about a lame duck. In more ways than one, pretty lame.

Another time on one of the NLC trips to Washington, DC he took his very young granddaughter with him.  I have NO problem with that.  The problem I have is which of the three choices listed did Mickey choose:

1.  Attend the meetings that he was supposed to go to and bring her with him?  Sure and have this youngster sit very quietly and attentively during these sessions?  Yeah, right.

2.  Leave her in the room while he attended the meetings?  Hmmmm, not a good idea, at least in my book.

3.  Go to the meeting session, sign in to indicate he showed up, then immediately leave and take the grandchild sightseeing?

A triple whopper with cheese and bacon says it was probably number three.  I could be wrong, but I doubt it.  Numbers one and two don't make sense.

When Mickey was on the council he was, IMHO part of the group that abrogated their responsibility as elected reps of the people and just rubber stamped anything and everything that was brought before them.

And last but not least.  Remember when the former council passed the non-discrimination ordinance?  Mickey was conveniently absent from the meeting and therefore did not cast a vote for or against the item.  Mr. Two Face was in a pickle.  If he had voted for it he would have alienated a majority of those folks who share the same religious background as him.  If he voted against it he would have been accused of being homophobic by the LGBQT+ community and their supporters.  So, how did Mr. Two Face handle it?  He came up with some bovine scatalogical excuse for not showing at the meeting.  And he says he is a leader.  That's a laugh.  If he were elected mayor, who would be pulling his puppet strings?

Dr. Mike Kemmling has worked diligently as a member of the council to get three years of mill levy reductions passed, to review projects in a manner that staff would then reanalyze them and get them done at a lower cost to the citizens.  Dr. Mike tells it like it is.  Sandifer tells you whatever you want to hear.

IMHO, Kemmling for mayor. Knowledge, experience and a new generational approach to move the city forward.