An Odor in the Air

When I left Monticello Road the other day I detected an odor in the air.

It was a very bothersome odor. Ironically I could not determine what the source was, nor what it actually smelled like. I do know that it had something to do with the proposed changes to Monticello Rd. These changes will apparently cause two families to completely lose their homes and many others to lose parts of their properties.

Admittedly, I am not very knowledgable about zoning laws, eminent domain, capital improvement planning or any of the myriad procedures to develop a city. What I do feel I have though, is a reasonable amount of common sense.

With that in mind, there is an item in the 8/6/07 minutes of the Shawnee Planning Commission that caught my eye:

"The City contracted for a traffic study for the Hodgdon property late in 2006, and the recommendations were presented to the Governing Body in February, 2007. The area included in the study is generally located between I-435 and Ogg Road and between Johnson Drive and Shawnee Mission Parkway. The study makes recommendations for street improvements in the area to handle the commercial and office designations on the Land Use Guide.Modified location of the 71st Street and Monticello Road intersection from approved plans for the project.

Modified location of the Midland Drive and Monticello Road intersection as development occurs south of the current Midland Drive and Monticello Road intersection.

LAND USE GUIDE:

As requested during review of the Shawnee Mission School District Softball Complex, the location of schools and school related properties will be identified in a different shade of blue than the current public/quasi-public designation.

Review of the west side of Pflumm Road in the 6100 and 6200 blocks (north of the AT&T service center) to include the potential for some office/retail development.

Review of a wedge created by the new alignment of Monticello Road between 75th Street and the 7900 block of the existing Monticello Road to include office and retail development"

I was always under the impression that it would be developers that would pay for road improvements that created commercial zones. Maybe I'm wrong.

Anyway, I now have some questions:

1. Why is the city paying for this road expansion and not the developers that would benefit from the office/retail development?

2. Who owns the "wedge" ?

3. Is the owner of the "wedge" going to be doing the developing or has the owner made arrangements to partner with, sell or otherwise transfer the property to another party?

4. Why is this residential area being chopped up for commercial reasons?

5. Will the folks developing the retail/office space reimburse the city for any of the road improvements?

6. What is the cost of this road work? (I have heard anything from $10 million to $20 million)

7. Who benefits from this?

It is my understanding that the property owners affected were wondering why Monticello Rd couldn't be upgraded to only a two lane road. Similar to Mission Rd, complete with the curves to follow the exisiting line of travel.

A Reader Responds....

A reader has emailed me a response to "Not Thomas Jefferson's Monticello", the previous blog entry.

I'll admit.........I had to read it twice to get its full effect. Great response. Loved it.




I read your article about Monticello Road and couldn't believe my eyes. What are you from "New York City" or something?

You said the area is “Pretty“. Didn't you see all those darn trees lining the street? Don't you know those things provide shade and oxygen? I am sure you felt lost because all the houses don’t look alike. And those over sized lots are just pure wasteful. We could probably fit twenty town homes on just one of those lots.

You said you weren’t sure but you thought saw acreage. Don't you realize some of that "acreage" has never even had a bulldozer ran over it yet? Don't you realize that all those trees and grass are a perfect habitat for bugs, horses, and wildlife? And all the diseases they carry.
Just the other day, I saw wildflowers out in a field along Monticello Road. I hope you understand that there is like 10% of our city that doesn't get sprayed with pesticides. Can you believe that? People out here don't even dump poison on their yards? All that unpaved ground could cause the rain water to soak in and provide clean ground water. Don't you care about our planet at all??

The safety of our citizens is of course the most important thing. In the past ten years there have been two accidents on this two mile stretch of road. If we don't do something, some one else might crash here by the year 2012.

The convenience that development will bring. Do you realize that now that my doctors office, grocery store, convenience store and McDonalds are almost a mile away? Thank goodness we are getting another Wal-Mart, the old one was five miles away. Can you imagine, five miles to get to Wal-Mart? It actually takes longer to drive there than it does to walk across the parking lot.

Thank goodness our city council has the wisdom to see the need for a 4 lane road to handle 2,000 cars per day. It's just too bad they weren't around 150 years ago. Those folks that traveled the California Road, that went through Monticello could have used a 64 foot wide strip of asphalt. How did those folks get along without another strip mall?

We need this road to spur development. This is such a blighted area. I don’t know when the last new thing was built in Western Shawnee. We must provide some of them good old boys with tax breaks so we can at least have ONE new thing.

And as for this being a rural area, this is the "CITY of Shawnee". Cities have asphalt like Overland Park. I'm sure you have heard of them. They are our idol.

Who really cares about people losing their homes? We need more asphalt. We need more strip malls. We need more banks. We need more housing. You can hardly find a house for sale in Western Shawnee.

About those folks that are loosing their homesteads. Who cares if their families lived in Monticello before the Pfricks came to America? Who cares if they built their house themselves before Pfrack went bankrupt in Nevada? We need to get rid of all that green. We want Overland Park beige.

I'm not Bill
But I live
on the hill.

P.S. To the families being evicted. Maybe the council would change their mind if you would just paint your house beige

Not Thomas Jefferson's Monticello

No matter what the size of the city. Be it Gardner, KS or the Big Apple itself, no one person can ever be aware of everything that is happening.

That is why I am upset with myself for not getting involved earlier with the situation regarding the widening of Monticello Rd in western Shawnee.

How do I explain it? I went there today.........it's pretty. Actually, it's like being in a different world. Like being in a truly rural area. I'd bet that is why most if not all of the homeowners there chose to live there. It also has some history to it. A quaint old cemetery, a home once lived in by Wild Bill Hickock, an historic settler's well, and other items.

Anyway, the current plans call for widening this pristine country road into a four lane arterial complete with turn lanes, etc etc. This is going to involve some folks losing parts of their property and in two cases (already enacted) folks actually losing their homes.

Why? That area is basically a "rural" area. Most lots are oversized, and some appear to my untrained eyes to be acreage. I spoke with a couple of the residents. Some of them seem to think that once the road project is complete that there may be attempts to get the area rezoned to commercial property. Eventhough there is nothing right now that could confirm that, it is, in my opinion, a possibity. The folks living in that area do not need a monster 4 lane road complete with turn lanes. A commercial development would. And possibly, a residential sub-division that would have multiple homes on smaller lots. And, if that is the case, who would actually end up paying for this road project? The developers? Nahhhh, this would be going in up front. Seems to me, it would be all of the other Shawnee residents paying for it now.

It would be interesting to find out if any developers, (commercial or residentil sub-division) have made any offers to any of the property owners along Monticello Road.

Is it too late to get the area added to one of those national or state historical lists?

Live From Shawnee...It's Monday Night (again)

What's better than a TV sitcom? Going to a City Council meeting and listening to the Dumbonic Duo (AKA Pfrick & Pfrack) and a whiner who wants his way now without regard for a process that is in place.

Tony Lang got up to give a report about his group "Clean Air for Shawnee Campaign Committee" and its progress regarding a petition to force a ballot initiative for a smoking ban. So far, his group has been working with an informal petition, but he is now stating he is going to make it a formal petition, with all of its ramifications.

He didn't seem to care that the council authorized the mayor to appoint a task force. That the task force has met 3 times already, starting in June (he erroneously claimed the first meeting was July). That on 8/15 there was a public hearing and the task force is scheduled to meet again on 9/11, prepare their recommendations for the council and have that info submitted at the council meeting 9/24.

He wants action now. Basically, in subtle and not so subtle threats he would like to see the process that is in place get thrown out, and a variation of the Overland Park ordinance adopted. Last night preferably. Huh????? If not, his committee was going to go forward with a formal petition which could result in a special election at a substantial cost to Shawnee (estimates are $20,000 to $50,000). Ironically, if he would wait for the task force to complete their activities and the council to perform their function, a special election might not be necessary. And, if at that time he and his committee still didn't like the outcome, they could still go for a ballot petition. The difference is, it would be closer to a regularly scheduled election and eliminate the need and cost of a special election. But remember, he cares about Shawnee. He reminds me of the kid at the school yard, who because he wasn't picked to be the pitcher, wanted to grab his glove, bat and ball and go home, leaving the other boys without the ability to play. Wants his way, and wants it now.

There were some comments from the council indicated that folks may have signed the informal petition without realizing what some of the provisions of the OP ordinance were. Did people really sign the informal petition without taking the time to read it? Thinking it was just to stop smoking?

Now enter the Dumbonic Duo. This was painful. It would take a novella to describe what happened. Suffice it to say that Pfrack now makes a motion to approve the OP ordinance. When challenged about certain items (public burning, etc) he modified his motion to include some changes. Then basically Pfrick moves to second it. Now, realize what these two are doing. They are trying to get an ordinance passed, that has not had all of its provisions formally laid out, as in written out, and without input from the city attorney. Pfrack basically was making pen changes to a copy of the OP ordinance. Huh??? Additionally, if this was to succeed it would also circumvent the process that was put into place by this same council. What is scary is that rumor has it that one of these individuals wants to be mayor. A mayor who would circumvent the process? Another little boy who has to have his way now? Real scary.

Anyway, let's now look at what the other members of the council did. First it appears that they were not happy with the threats. They did not appear to be happy with the possibility of not allowing the task force and subsequently the council itself to complete the process. Pfrack's motion to approve the OP ordinance (with handwritten changes) went down 5-2. It should be noted that most of the 5 indicated that they were not necessarily against a smoking ordinance, but they wanted the process to come to fruition and not have another city's ordinance jammed down their throats. Makes sense to me.

Neal Sawyer brought out an interesting and valid point. He made reference to what happened in Lenexa. The council there brought their ordinance for a vote on Juy 3rd, the night before a holiday. With virtually no input from the citizens. At least Shawnee is making an attempt to gather citizen input. Isn't this the way things are supposed to be?

One thing that bothers me. Lang and the Dumbonic Duo showing concern to have a smoke free workplace for the health of the employees. This has come up before. They keep saying it's for the employees. As I've pointed out in the past, that argument borders on the bogus (but it sounds good). Virtually all non-eating/drinking businesses in Shawnee are smoke free. Either because of the existing ordinance or the policies of the various businesses.Now, when it comes to eating/drinking establishments.......over 55% already are smoke free. Of the remaining 45% what percentage of their employees are smokers themselves? The smoking ban folks have some valid arguments, but to say that they are doing it for the benefit of the employees is pure bovine scatology.

James Madison Quotes

Following are three quotes attributed to James Madison, our 4th President and considered to be the "Father of the Constitution"............methinks they are pretty interesting:

In Republics, the great danger is, that the majority may not sufficiently respect the rights of the minority.

I believe there are more instances of the abridgement of freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments by those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations.

If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy.

"Imported" and "Hired" Guns

These are not the kind that fire bullets. At least not the kind that are capable of physically hurting folks. These are the "outsiders" that are brought into a local issue to assist one side or the other.

What are we referring to here? We are referring to last Wednesday's public hearing about a smoking ordinance for Shawnee.

Let's define the two terms first:

Imported Guns: These would be folks like the Director of the Johnson County Health Dept AND one of his subordinates. A Kansas State Rep, from Lenexa, and others.

Hired Guns: These would be representatives of various organizations, and in this case that would be the American Cancer Society, Clean Air Kansas, and others

The reason why I bring this up is very simple. When one totals up the speakers, one gets a figure that indicates substantially more folks spoke in favor of a smoking ban.

Now, take the Imported & Hired Guns out of the equation, and the equation does a flip flop.

So, the smoking ban proponents could honestly say that more people spoke in favor of a ban. But, that would mean conveniently leaving out the info that many of them were NOT Shawnee residents or business folks.

London & NYC Fighting Pollution and Gridlock

Some of you might remember that back in May I brought up an issue at a city council meeting.
Info is here http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2007/05/pfrick-pfrack-just-dont-get-it.html

At that time, I said that if Pfrick and Pfrack were really concerned about the health of people in Shawnee they would do something about vehicle emissions. I mentioned a user fee for for SUVs and trucks. Needless to say, I was ridiculed for that suggestion. I expected that.

Anyway, I don't know if he reads this blog or not (actually I doubt it) but the mayor of London, England is proposing a daily user fee for SUVs etc, which would amount to $50 a day.
Info about that can be found at
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chichelsea_hundleyaug11,0,4583427.story

Also, from the article, the following already exists "....anyone driving into the city's 6.5-square-mile "congestion zone" between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. must pay a daily fee of $16. Car owners living inside the zone get a 90 percent discount."

And, are ya ready? New York City is getting ready to do the same thing. To reduce gridlock/congestion and to reduce pollutants. See info at http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN1446288020070814?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews&rpc=22&sp=true

My yearly proposal looks like a bargain compared to either NY or London. :-) :-)

Smokescreen or Smokescream

The Smoking Task Force for Shawnee had a public hearing last night at city hall. Here is one man's opinions, mine.

Let's start with the folks that are so concerned about employee's health. First, when it comes to non-eating/drinking businesses, virtually all are smoke free either because of the current ordinance or because the companies themselves have their own policies. Now, let's look at eating/drinking establishments. Currently in Shawnee over 55% of such establishments are smoke free on their own volition. As for the other 45% the question begs to be answered: How many of their emplyees are smokers? Methinks the "concern" for the employees is a questionable one....but it sounds good.

The previously mentioned figures also indicate that non-smokers have plenty of places to go. And, there is always the strong possibility, that if these folks let the "cash registers do the talking" others would go smoke free on their own.

We have in Shawnee neighborhood type bars that are mostly populated by smokers (as customers and employees) Should we drive them out of business? As the co-owner of Foobars said, she didn't remember ever seeing any of the smoking ban folks patronizing her establishment. My opinion: I doubt if they ever would. I doubt if they would ever patronize any of the older neighborhood type bars.

Stephanie Sharp, the 17th District State Rep (from Lenexa) was a trip and a half. This sanctimonious snit had me laughing inside. She stated that on her drives south on I-435 she had a choice of stopping at Barley's (Shawnee) or Tanner's (Lenexa) since she lived equally between them. Guess it'll be Tanner's now that Lenexa is smoke free. Why do I question the veracity of her statement about what she would do? Easy......because she didn't keep the "big promise" to her constituents. She ran for office, they elected her, and now she has resigned. Her successor takes over January 2008. If she couldn't handle the position she shouldn't have run for it to begin with. My opinon...........

The speaker that really caught my attention was the lady who claimed that her son and his wife moved to Denver because Colorado is smoke free. She also claimed that Shawnee is losing young peole because of that. I see, so smoke free communities nearby (Olathe, Lenexa, Overland Park, etc) do not fill her son's requirements? I could swear that I heard her say "money" before she corrected herself to mention "smoke free" as the reason for her son's moving.
If Shawnee is losing folks, I wish somebody could show me the figures. Our population is like a certain TV bunny.....it keeps on growing, and growing and growing.

Leon Vinci, the Johnson County Health Department Director had an interesting comment. He touted the JoCo ordinance that banned smoking in unincorporated JoCo. When pressed as to how many drinking and eating establishments did that affect, he said the total businesses were 14. He was asked again for the number of eating/drinking establishments and said less than 14, but he didn't have tha statistics available. Seems to me the figure was 3 of those and the other 11 businesses were doing something on their own anyway. Didn't the local media, and smoking ban advocates criticize the JoCo Commissioners for wimping out with their ordinance?

When an individual from the floor asked how many establishments the Kansas Restaurant and Hospitality Assoc represented, nobody had the answer....including the rep from Clean Air KC.
Good question though, because the two have "partnered" on a suggestion for a strict ordinance.

Some folks know that I personally quit smoking 18 months ago, after 45 years. What most don't know is that my late mother passed away because of lung cancer, from smoking. And yet, I am against a smoking ban. Yes, because a business owner should be allowed to choose how to run his/her business. Customers by their patronage or lack of will tell a business owner what to do.
Nanny government does not belong in our society.

But then, as the Shawnee Convention and Visitor's Bureau points out on their web site, Village West and the Legends are only eight minutes away. :-) :-)

Hot Summer Night

Fortunately the A/C was working last night in the City Council chambers.

Two items drew some extended discussion. One had to do with box culvert/pedestrian bridge replaement on a private street. The champion of unilateral contract changes, Dan Pflumm was upset that St Joseph's was going to pay for the replacement.........eventhough it was something they agreed to years ago. 'Nuff said.

Moving on.................the special use permit for the Peanut to have an outdoor concert came up for a vote. Quite a bit of discussion here. Many conditions were put in for the SUP to be granted. Aparently, after some situations last year, the conditions seemed to be appropriate.

One of the owners of a business that is located in the same shopping center expressed concern that he los business last year and would lose business again this year. Mr Compassion, Dan Pflumm tried to waive that concern off with an"it's only one day's worth" type of comment. Ironically the same business owner had to correct Pflumm on one of his statements which made it obvious that he (Pflumm) did not read the packet for the meeting. Not the first time that this has happened. On previous occasions other council members have had to do the same thing.

Fashion alert: Kevin Straub has now joined Dan Pflumm in the "shorts are appropriate" school of fashion. He showed up last night in shorts and open sandals. I realize that I am no poster boy for GQ, but I am old fashioned and expect council members to dress appropriately for council meetings.

Goin' Roundabout

Gotta admit, sometimes government meetings can be fun.

Last Tuesday's (8/7/07) Finance & Admin Committee had some levity to it.

There was a discussion about the roundabout that will be going in at Johnson Drive and K-7 when that intersection will be reconfigured.

Some of the ideas were quite novel:

A buffalo, sort of a companion piece to the oxen at the other side of town

Plantings in the interior of the roundabout of native prairie grasses (good idea, low maintenance and natural)

Other possible statues in the center (examples were shown of a flock of birds and of a gigantic eagle)

One idea that was requested NOT to be considered was a fountain. Seems kids like to vandalize fountains by pouring soap products in them. They like the bubbling effects. Gee, vandalism in that part of town? Impossible.

One idea that wasn't brought up might be a dedication to the council. Or maybe to my two "favorite" members, Pfrick and Pfrack. We could erect large statues of them in the center of the roundabout. The plantings could be artificial tulips (so they are there all year long). Since these two are in agreement so much of the time, maybe they could be depicted as walking arm in arm or holding hands. Wait a minute, not walking, but tip toeing. Yes, tip toeing through the tulips. Then we could also include a low volume rendition of Tiny Tim's song of that name being broadcast from the roundabout.

Truth be known, I think that a depiction of the original indigenous inhabitants would be appropriate. It was their land first.

More of Too Much Too Soon

For background you can read my original post at
http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2007/04/presidential-politics-too-much-too-soon.html

Now, South Carolina wants to have their Presidential primary in January which could make New Hampshire change their primary to earlier in January, and which could have Iowa holding their caucus in December 2007.

This is getting out of hand. The nominating conventions are about a year away, and these folks have been camaigning for almost 6 months already.

Give us a break. This pissing contest as to who can have the first primary and who can have the first caucus is extremely aggravating. This Presidential campaigning almost two years before the election is ridiculous.

The Senators and Congressmen that are involved are AWOL from the jobs that they are getting paid to do. Again, I call for a federal law that any Congressman or Senator who is involved in a Presidential campaign needs to be removed from office and someone willing to work for their constituents take their places. Until such a law is passed I am calling on these folks to resign their positions. C'mon Brownback, Clinton, Obama, McCain etc............if you're not going to serve your constituents give up the job. You are taking paychecks on false pretenses.

Think about it this way. Joe Citizen works for a company. He spends 3 days a week going around to other companies looking for a new job, while drawing his paycheck. How long would his company keep him around and on the payroll?

States need to pass similar laws regarding their governors and other elected officials within their state.

KC Star---Missing Info

Did anybody read the Saturday 7/28/07 hard copy of the Shawnee/Lenexa edition of the KC Star? If not, the article I am going to be referring to is on line at http://www.kansascity.com/318/story/206600.html

The article starts off about a Shawnee citizen who is exercising his rights to obtain a petition to ban smoking in Shawnee. That is that citizen’s right.

What bothers me is the “drift” that the reporter takes. He goes into quite a bit of detail about Shawnee Council Member Dan Pflumm’s attempt to get a smoking ban passed at the April 23rd city council meeting. Mr. Pflumm’s attempt was defeated. What the reporter in the Star article did not explain was how that all came about.

Mr. Pflumm literally pulled the Overland Park ordinance out of his pocket and wanted the council to copy it, as is, right then and there. Note, this item was NOT on the agenda for that night. Therefore, citizens who would want to speak (pro or con) were not given that opportunity. Note, the city attorney had not had the info submitted to him for review. Note, the other council members had NOT been given a chance to review it either. Mr Pflumm was attempting to grandstand and circumvent procedure. That is why the council voted his proposal down

Ironically, the smoking task force, that the council had previously, unanimously authorized was being formed. The purpose of the task force: to obtain input from the citizens of Shawnee and to make recommendations to the council.

Surely, there are some members of the community who probably wish that Mr Pflumm’s proposal had been approved. The question I asked in my original posting still stands. Would these same folks want the city council to circumvent procedure on something they may be against?

I explained it right here on this blog at http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2007/04/pflumm-pforgets-his-place.html

And if you as the reader would like corroboration of my comments, they can be found at the City of Shawnee’s web site record of the minutes of that meeting at http://cosweb.cityofshawnee.org/web/minutes.nsf/77ca4e133207a5fc8625726c006a521d/abd4fd8e2b26d20c862572dd0080e15c?OpenDocument Did the reporter check the minutes before writing his article?

Another item that appeared in the Star article was a comment by Mr Pflumm that a recent Johnson County survey showed over 70% of the county opposed smoking. Mr Pflumm must be reading a different survey than I did. Did the reporter read the survey before publishing that comment? It is located on the web at http://bocc.jocogov.org/dist4/documents/JoCo%20Smoking%20Survey%20Final%20Report%20April%2010.pdf

What the survey says is that over 70% of those surveyed requested non-smoking when being seated in restaurants. There was NO question on the survey as to whether or not one was opposed to smoking. To infer that requesting non-smoking seating and being opposed to smoking are one and the same is wrong. Many folks request non-smoking but are NOT opposed to other folks smoking. They just don’t want to sit in the same area as the smokers.

Why do I feel that there was a lack of research on the part of the reporter? Why do I feel that the article was slanted? I do know one thing, that is a fact: the reporter’s editor has come out publicly in support of a smoking ban.

Reporting? Or editorializing disguised as reporting? Read the City Council minutes and the Johnson County survey and then decide for yourself.

Brownback Part II

Some folks added some comments to the below post of mine.

Great, and I responded.

Just thought I'd mention part of one of my responses, "up here".

Besides missing votes (another one this week). How much time has Mr Brownback missed on the Senate floor? How much time has he missed in committee and sub-committee hearings?

Would a civilian employer tolerate that much lost time?

Ya wanna run for President Mr Brownback? Go for it. Just resign and let someone else do the job that you are getting paid to do.

Sen Brownback Please Resign

Last weekend the KC Star had an article about how many floor votes various senators who were also Presidential candidates had missed. See info at http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics/story/199738.html
Sam Brownback was up to 104 votes missed.

Ironically, on 4/13 I posted an item here,
http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2007/04/presidential-politics-too-much-too-soon.html
because I felt that too much time was being spent too early on the next election. It is almost as bad as seeing Christmas decorations going on sale on Labor Day.

Anyway, in my item I suggested that sitting Congressmen and/or Senators who choose to run for their party's nomination need to resign. I even proposed a federal law about that.

Mr Brownback's actions are, in my opinion, unacceptable. He is not working at the job that he is being paid to do. To add insult to injury, his chances of getting the nomination are, again, in my opinion, lower than slim.

Sam Brownback................do what you were elected to do or resign.......please.

The Mill Levy Question

Attending last night's Shawnee City Council meeting was like many others.

I knew I could count on either Pfrick or Pfrack to provide some entertainment.

Well, one of them didn't let me down.

When the time came to vote on the new budget Dan Pflumm said something that really made me open my eyes. He made a comment that he would vote for this budget but intimated that he would not vote to approve any future budgets unless "....the mill levy was taken back to what it was." To what it was..............when??????????

Now folks (read that as taxpayers) love to hear elected officials talk about reducing taxes.
In this case though, I was wondering how far back he wanted to go. Last year? Two years ago?
Five years ago? Ten years ago? What amount would he like to see the mill levy cut back to? I don't think he mentioned a number.

Let's say the mill levy gets rolled back (with one of those Wal-Mart smiley face posters). What comes out of the budget? What services get reduced or eliminated? Sometimes folks don't like to hear about city services being reduced.

Anyway his initial comment makes for a great political sound byte. Kind of like someone who is running for office (mayor 2008 maybe??).

Let's forget the sound byte though. Give us a number and what would need to be adjusted to accomodate the lower number.

What Happened?

Some folks have asked me what happened that prompted my apology to the folks that held the reception for the new Shawnee Magazine.

So, here is what happened. I was having a conversation with Sate Sen Jordan and Straub was standing there. Another member of the council came over and wanted Sen Jordan to visit with some other folks. So far so good.

Straub turns to me and says something to the effect that it was terrible what the Lenexa City Council did two weeks earlier. Sarcastic little twit. I asked him how he could say that? When that is exactly what he and his buddy Pflumm tried to do a month or so ago. They tried to slip a smoking ban in at a meeting. The Lenexa Council was almost as bad. They gave the public one day's notice and then it was brought before the council on July 3d, the night before a holiday.

Moving on he asks me if I really feel that Americans would give up their cars. Huh? He was referring to my proposal that if he and his buddy were really concerned about people's health they would support a usage fee for high polluting vehicles (SUVs, pick-ups etc). He says they already pay more (more gas=more taxes, higher registration fees etc). But, they do not pay anything towards a "health fund" which is what I proposed. He just doesn't get it. He doesn't believe that vehicle emissions are a health problem. Hundreds of millions of tons of pollutants being pushed into the atmosphere daily. He just wants to blame everything on smoking. The hypocrisy of his ways.

Then he says to me that I'm in favor of bans on perfumes and after shaves. I said no, that that is not what I said. I said that there are cities that have passed ordinances restricting the use of these items. I never proposed them, I mentioned them as examples of the "what next ?" theory. What will be next on the governmental control list? Again, he just doesn't get it.

Straub constantly would ask a question, then attempt to answer it for me, and then attempt to put words in my mouth. Anyway, that was when I blew, got loud and made some personal vulgar comments about him. And that is why I felt I owed the folks who held the reception, and their other guests an apology. But no apology to Straub.

As a side note, most folks are aware that recently the voters of the De Soto School District voted intelligently and did not give him a seat on the schoold board in the last election. Maybe the Ward III voters will also see the light and make sure he is a one term council member.

Star vs Dispatch

Recently I've been critical of some of the editorial comments that appeared in both the Shawnee Dispatch and the Shawnee/Lenexa section of the KC Star.

One thing I'd like to say is that at least Loren Stanton truly has the courage of his convictions. When he writes an opinion piece for the KC Star his byline and picture accompanies it (at least on line). Believe that the print copy just has his byline. Personally, I respect that.

On the other hand, John Beal "hides" who he is. Hey John, it's a small community paper. Be really involved. Tell ya what.......the next time ya take a shower, reach down and see if those certain special items are still there. If they are, start taking credit for your "editorial opinions". The byline would be nice......we don't necessarily need the picture.

I've Been Blacklisted

Gotta laugh.

I send out an email to the Shawnee City Council and some other folks when there is an update to this blog.

Well, one of the council members has blacklisted my emails. That is his prerogative. Guess he doesn't want to know when someone has an opinion that differs from his.

Whooops, maybe I should clarify the above statements. By using the pronoun "his" that eliminates the three female council reps. To his credit, Straub hasn't blacklisted me..... yet.

So, that leaves only four council members to choose from. We won't say which one, we'll just leave that to the readers' imagination.

Child Safety Restraints

Ahhhhh, child safety seats and restraints.

What I find amazing is that smoking ban advocates use the fact that there are laws on the books mandating the use of these items. Government protecting the health and welfare of our children (in my case grandchildren).

I remember when my sons were young enough to be in car seats. We did not have the ones that are currently being used. They were not designed yet. What did we have? They were clip on seats that hung on the back of the front passenger seat (they couldn't even be used in the back).
Many of these had trays for cookies and drinks and even play dashboards. They had little steering wheels, horns that tooted, an ignition key that made funny noises and other assorted doo dads designed to entertain the child.

Then as time went on, better designed, and more protective seats were built and sold. New concepts were promulgated (like for certain early years the child should be backwards in the rear seat). All of these were the result of scientific analysis, studies, etc etc. All of them striving to protect the lives of our young uns..............

Personally, I am happy that these items were developed. Granted, they came after my sons were old enough to sit normally, but they are great for the children that came after them.
Now, we have government mandates requiring these items. Why? For the health and welfare of the children.

Wow, then the parents of these children have to be:
a. Irresponsible
b. Dumb
c. Have no common sense

Maybe there is another answer? Maybe these folks want the government to assume total control of their lives? They don't want to make these decisions concerning their children. They want to abrogate their parental responsibility. If you need the government to tell you to put that child in a safety seat you are a lousy parent.

So, if you are a smoking ban advocate and you have used the child safety seats as justification for governmental control you are taking one step closer to government control of other lifestyle items.

You can read that as one step closer to communism.

Just like children riding bicycles, using roller blades or other such items, need to be wearing helmets. Right? But the parents need to take control of that, NOT the government.

Oh, BTW, one last thought. How come school buses are exempt from safety belt laws? I smell some hypocrisy here.

KC Star - Shawnee/Lenexa Section

In a recent opinion piece in the Shawnee/Lenexa edition of the Kansas City Star, available at:
http://www.kansascity.com/318/story/193918.html
Loren Stanton had various comments about a smoking ban in Shawnee. One thing that was interesting is the extract below:

"A ban tramples on people’s rights: Shawnee council member Michelle Distler is among those who oppose a ban mainly for this reason. She stated in a commentary in this newspaper that our rights "are being eroded daily with a variety of seemingly small encroachments, such as the smoking ban.
Yeah, and evil government forces have taken away our right to use lead-based paints that cause brain damage. And they have destroyed the right to drive ourselves and our young children around without safety belts and safety seats. We could go on and on.
Smoking isn’t a right, it’s an addiction. This isn’t a freedom issue, it’s a public health issue."

I think if he read the item he is referring to, the rights Ms Distler was referring to were the rights of the business owner, to be allowed to run their business. Not the rights of the smoker. Ironically, Ms Distler is correct......our rights are being eroded on a daily basis.........creeping "nanny government" is getting to be more pervasive.

Oh, Mr Stanton, regarding safety belts for children: How come school buses are exempt? Are you going to push for this increased safety feature? How about it? A simple yes or no would do.

An Apology

I feel like I owe a bunch of people an apology.

Set the scene: The folks who will be publishing the new Shawnee Magazine had a reception. I was lucky enough to get an invite.

While talking with State Sen Nick Jordan, Kevin Straub walked over. When Sen Jordan left to talk to other folks, Straub and I got into it. The arrogant snit that he is, would ask a question, not allow it to be answered and then attempt to put words in my mouth. Besides that, he is one of the most condescending jerks I have ever met.

Well now............why an apology? Well, not to Straub. Seems like I lost my cool and used a few choice words directed to Straub in a loud voice. My apology would be to the folks from the Shawnee Magazine, the Journal World and any of the other invited guests who may have heard my vulgar comments. That I let this individual get to me like that was wrong. I should have just walked away from him.

So again, to the folks that organized this event, and their guests, you have my apology.

Dispatch Just Doesn't Get It

Well, the Shawnee Dispatch has done it again.

In a recent editorial, available at http://www2.shawneedispatch.com/news/2007/jul/10/opinion_time_get_dime/
they again take up the smoking ban cause.

Ironically, and unfortunately, many Americans are falling for much of this rhetoric.
Where do I start? They cite the government studies regarding second-hand smoke. They really don't want to consider the studies that contradict the government. Ironically, over the years the number of smokers has decreased. Yet more folks are coming down with illnesses that are being attributed to second-hand smoke. Golly gee, is it at all possible that these pulmonary and cardio vascular problems can be traced to the increase in the number of vehicles being driven and the junk that is being tossed into the air? Nahhhh, we don't want to take on the auto industry.

Now, let's look at another aspect for a second. There are restaurants in Shawnee that have, voluntarily gone smoke free. I applaud them. Why do the others need a "level playing field"? If there are so many folks who would go out more often (as stated in various behavioral studies) then these restaurant owners would be making the changes on their own. It would be in their financial interests to do it. All of those non-smokers would be flocking to their establishments, more often, making up for the lost business from smokers.

What I take offense to in that editorial is the santimonious drivel when the author says:

"Presumably no one would quibble with laws that restrict businesses’ ability to add harmful substances to our food; why should our air be any different?"

And the author also says: "In its deliberations, the task force needs to consider one overriding factor: public health."

Would the author of that piece support sanctions against SUVs, trucks etc for belching emissions into the air? Maybe by a special pollution permit? How much trash does the average citizen inhale because of auto emissions? How many people have developed health problems because of air pollution that are erroneously attributed to second-hand smoke?

Last but not least. Most folks are not aware of how much money is paid to the state via excise taxes on cigarettes. We won't even talk about sales taxes. As the number of smokers keeps declining, the excise taxes have to go down. Then what happens? Well, those taxes could be raised (again) to increase revenue. But, eventually, the goose that lays the golden egg will be cooked. So, what happens next? Raise other taxes? Tax items not previously taxed? Reduce government services? From 2000 to 2002 excise tax collections dropped. In 2003 the State of Kansas tripled the excise tax rate. Collections spiked, but are again declining because of a substantial decrease in the number of packs sold. In effect, the number of packs from 2000 to 2006 has been dropping each year, to the point where the difference from 2000 to 2006 is over 50 million packs. We are talking about tens of millions of dollars in lost revenue that has to be made up.

As stated previously we won't even touch on the lost sales tax revenues.

Agendas & Special Interests

Ahhhh, politics and public issues.

It never ceases to amaze me how people just throw out the terms "agenda" and "special interests".

Joe Blow does xyz because he has an agenda. Susie Hopscotch is in favor of abc because she is supported by special interests.

OK folks..........I won't be PC here. Cut out the bullshit. Everybody has an agenda. But some folks throw that out like it's a negative. If people didn't have agendas they wouldn't get involved in politics or civic affairs. Whether an agenda is good or bad depends on whether one agrees with it. Folks just have to stop clouding the issues by accusing others of having agendas, when they themselves also have them.

Now, what about the accusations that fly that a person is supported by special interests? The same thing applies here. It is only negative if these special interests aren't the same as yours.

Let's use a hot potato here. Abortion. If a person supports choice they are accused of being backed by special interests. If a person supports right to life, they too are accused of being backed by special interests. Guess what? All sides of a debate have special interests.

Problem is, folks are still going to be tossing out those terms like they are criminal acts.........what a shame.........what bullshit.

Lenexa Succumbs

On Friday I returned from a wonderful vacation to Sault Ste Marie, Michigan where I spent time with my sons and grandsons. What a great time.

Then I come home and find out that the city council of Lenexa voted to go smoke free. Wow, how much notice did they give the community that this was going to be on the agenda? Or did someone on the council pull a Pfrick and Pfrack like some Shawnee councilmen tried?

Anyway, according to this article:
http://www.kansascity.com/318/story/178716.html the vote was 7-1. It appears that the one negative vote was from a councilman who actually favored the ordinance but wanted an exemption for private businesses. Apparently he didn't get it.

Nanny government at its worst.

If these folks were so concerned about people's health they would have embraced an idea that I presented to the Shawnee City Council regarding pollution from trucks and SUVs.

Apparently a person by the name of Joyce Morrison from Clean Air Kansas was ecstatic. But a question for Ms Morrison: What about it lady? Are you going to go after SUVs and trucks? Are you going to push for Air Pollution Permits for folks that drive these emission spewing monstrosities? How many people have died from the garbage that is in the air? How many folks have contracted pulmonary diseases and/or cardiovascular problems because of air pollution?

Of course these hypocrites won't do anything like that. They don't want to take on the auto industry or change their own personal lifestyles.

Shawnee - Lenexa Dumb

Whoops, my bad. The title should be Shawnee-Lenexa Sun. Yes, that local newspaper.

Check out this editorial:
http://www.kccommunitynews.com/articles/2007/06/28/shawnee_-_lenexa_sun/opinion/c-all-opi-second.editorial.txt

Well, since the writer of that editorial/opinion piece called the City Councils of Shawnee and Lenexa timid, I'll bounce it back to the paper. The writer of that piece is a gutless coward. The council members are known individuals. Even this blog says who I am. The writer of that piece hides behind a cloak of anonymity. That's OK.

I'll keep my comments brief:

1. This constant reliance on the Surgeon Gebneral's various reports and studies. Mos t of those are theoretical in nature. Give me facts. Give me 3 death cetificates of the supposed 50,000 who died from secondhand smoke, and verify that that was the cause?

2. But what is amazing is how the writer of that editorial, and various other "champions of health" fail to take on other issues. Such as how many people have developed cardiovascular problems and died because of vehicle emissions? How many people who supposedly suffer because of secondhand smoke really suffer because of vehicle emissions? Vehicle emissions that we are all exposed to.

3. If these "me too" hypocrites really cared about health they would embrace a proposal I tossed out at a Shawnee City Council meeting. A special city use permit for high emission belching vehicles like SUVs, trucks etc etc. This permit would increase in cost as the vehicle got older.

Quiet.........maybe

Last night's Shawnee City Council meeting was basically uneventful.

No yelling, no ranting, no raving.....................a peaceful meeting.

But, I can always count on Dan Pflumm to provide something interesting to write about.

This is wild.

Various commission members were up for reappointment. Now it is my understanding that ALL of them have served in these non-paying positions faithfully and with the best interests of the city high on their priority lists.

Now, keep in mind that in a small community like Shawnee there will be friends and family involved in various aspects of city business. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

What happened? Apparently one of the reappoinments is an individual related to Dan Pflumm.
Nothing wrong with that. Normally, in most cities though, when something like this occurs, the councilperson would usually abstain from any discussion and/or vote on a reappointment that involved a family member.

What did Dan do? He actually was the council member who made the motion to approve the reappoinment. Just not cool................oh well, such is life.

It was nice to hear that the City's finance department received high marks on a recent annual audit. Good job.

Nanny Government Getting Closer

Well, looky here.........the Kansas Supreme Court has upheld the City of Lawrence's smoking ban.

See the article by Laura Bauer in the KC Star or on line at http://www.kansascity.com/115/story/161923.html

I do have a problem with Ms Bauer's article. In it she refers to the Shawnee City Council's recent defeat of a smoking ban by a vote of 5-2. What she is probably referring to is Dan Pflumm's recent attempt (supported by Kevin Straub) to jam Overland Park's ordinance down Shawnee's throat. She fails to mention that. And she fails to mention that the mayor of Shawnee had appointed a task force to review and gather info on this subject. The task force was set up prior to Mr Pflumm's "jamming" attempt.

Also, it is interesting to note that of all the Shawnee City Councilpersons she quotes only Kevin Straub (one of the "2" in the 5-2 vote). Why doesn't she quote any of the other councilpersons?
Does it have anything to do with the fact that the Star has published editorials in favor of smoking bans?

For the record..............I am personally not happy with the State Supreme Court's decision.

False Alarms

In my opinion one of the lowest things a person can do is turn in a false fire alarm.

This was unfortunately brought out again this past Sunday evening.

At approximately 9:20 PM my fellow tenants and I were greeted by members of the Shawnee FD evacuating our building. After a thorough search of the premises it was determined that a false alarm had been transmitted by someone activating one of the pull boxes.

These men are like firefighters everywhere. Willing to put their lives on the line for us (witness what just happened in South Carolina). To send them on a wild goose chase when someone else might need their expertise is disgusting.

Now, please follow what happened next. Just as the firefighters were preparing to leave, a large volume of smoke was observed coming from one of the apartments. Fortunately it was street side, and readily visible. They got out of their vehicle and went back into the building.

Apparently, one of the tenants in their haste to evacuate left something cooking on the stove. Fortunately, it just belched smoke (lots of it) and was stopped before it flamed up.

This false alarm almost turned into a real tragedy, and the tragedy would have been because of the false alarm.

I sincerely hope that the perpetrator is found and made to suffer the maximum penalty allowed by law for their criminal action.

The thanks and gratitude of myself and my neighbors to the Shawnee FD.

Counter

Just decided a few minutes ago to add a counter to the blog.
So, the "hits" are as of now.

Wonder how many there were before now?

A Quiet Evening

Last night's city council meeting was basically a quiet one.

The only "hot" item was the final plat for the Grey Oaks Commercial 2nd Plat. An attorney representing some of the homeowners in the Grey Oaks sub-division spoke and advised the council that earlier yesterday a lawsuit had been filed.

For what it's worth, I personally did not find that attorney's presentation impressive. But then, what do I know?

BTW, I realize that most meetings of the council are "casual" in attire, but personally I wish that Dan Pflumm would save that California beach boy outfit for Malibu. Shorts and loafers with no socks..................what next? Speedos?

Judy, Judy, Judy..........What is the Answer?

On 5/10/07 I sent an email to my State Rep, Judy Morrison. When I didn't get a reply by 5/18/07 I sent a follow up. Well, as of this morning still nothing. But then I should have realized that very few elected officials, at any level of government like to talk about raising taxes.. The email is published below and it refers to the 79¢ per pack Kansas state excise tax on cigarettes. Which previously had been 25¢ It does not include the 39¢ per pack federal excise tax, nor does it include info on local sales taxes.

So go ahead, as the goose that lays the golden egg keeps getting thinner, what will be taxed at higher levels to make up the difference in the loss of excise tax monies? Beer? Wine? Hard liquor? Property? Vehicles and other personal property? Income? What about items that do not have individually assessed taxes? Maybe they need to be added to the list....like household supplies, clothing, electronics?

Then of course local governing bodies will need to look at raising sales taxes to make up for lost income. That is a separate calculation. Oh, and please do not confuse this with the 'Master Settlement Agreement" as that is something entirely different.

The email to Ms Morrison is below:
************************************************************************************

Hi,
We chatted about this a couple of years back and you had indicated to me that when Kansas raised the excise tax that there was not a mass exodus of smokers to buy cigarettes elsewhere.
Well, I think the figures supplied by KDOR would contradict that. There has been a tremendous reduction in actual cigarette sales (and for the local municipalities the corresponding sales tax)
Here are KDOR's figures, income from the excise tax, with a tremendous increase in 2003 based on the increased excise tax

Fiscal Amount Percent
Year Collected Change
2000 $49,124,538 -4.0%
2001 $48,784,401 -0.7%
2002 $48,040,207 -1.5%
2003 $129,249,741 169.0%
2004 $119,789,045 -7.3%
2005 $118,979,280 -0.7%

Now when those dollars are divided by the excise tax rate, one gets the number of packs actually sold

2000 196,498,152 packs
2001 195,137,604 packs
2002 192,160,828 packs
2003 163,607,267 packs
2004 151,631,702 packs
2005 150,606,683 packs

Now, I'll ask the question that I asked back then....................what will be taxed next to make up the difference?
*********************************************************************

The above represents a reduction of 46 million packs of cigarettes. At 79¢ per pack state excise tax and 39¢ per pack federal that's a bunch of money to make up. And at approximately $3.50/pack retail at approximately 7.5% sales tax that is also another bunch of money.

Smoking Task Force is a Reality

Yepper, it has finally been set up.

And guess who is on it?

Two articles about it:

http://www.kccommunitynews.com/articles/2007/05/18/shawnee_-_lenexa_sun/news/l-all-news-shawnee.names.txt

http://www.shawneedispatch.com/section/news/story/6481

Shoulda Been an Artist

I blew it. I should have become an artist. Grabbed a copy of today's KC Star and headed out to dinner.

Got myself seated, relaxed and started eating. Opened the newspaper and eventually got to page 3. That's where I saw it. A picture of a 1950 painting by Mark Rothko entitled "White Center (Yellow, Pink and Lavender on Rose)" Then I read the accompanying article. This painting brought $72.8 Million at auction yesterday at Sotheby's in New York.

My first reaction was............why didn't I think of doing something like this? I could sit my grandson down with some finger paints and become an instant millionaire. Or, I could throw some paint on a canvas and let some neighborhood pets walk on the canvas. Another thought is to place a canvas on the floor, climb a ladder and just shoot paint balls at it.

I'm sure that there are local art connoisseurs out there who probably think that I am very low class for these comments. Certainly I don't have an appreciation of fine art.

Tough Shih Tzu

Another interesting item came up Monday evening. Briefly, an individual applied for a special pet permit to maintain 5 dogs on his property.

What irks me was the missing resident. The individual who applied for this permit never showed up to the meeting. If a person is not going to show why don't they contact City Hall and either have their item rescheduled or totally withdrawn?

After a period of debate the council voted not to approve the special permit.

The time spent on this could have been better used on other items

Pfrick & Pfrack Just Don't Get It

Interesting evening at the Shawnee City Council tonight.

Because of what happened a few weeks ago I brought something up and this is what I said:

COMMENTS FOR CITY COUNCIL 5/14/07


A couple of weeks ago, a member of the city council was so concerned about the health

of the citizens of Shawnee that an attempt was made to jam an ordinance down the

throats of the people without proper review. Another member of the city council

apparently was equally concerned as that member seconded the motion for the

“jamming”.

Are these two individuals really concerned about the health of the people of Shawnee or

are they just grandstanding ?

Many studies have been done about the effects of fossil fuel emissions. The negative

effects run the gamut from respiratory problems for people, to acid rain affecting soil and

and physical structures. But let’s concentrate on the respiratory problems associated with

fossil fuel emissions. The City of Shawnee and these two council members have the

opportunity to set a precedent that could spread across this great country of ours.

Remember when California first enacted its smoking ban? And recently, in the name of

health, NYC has placed restrictions on trans fats in food preparation.

What can we do? We cannot outlaw cars and trucks. But, we can make it expensive for

polluters of our environment to change their habits. SUVs, trucks, vans and mini vans,

are basically gas guzzling rolling pollutants. Therefore, it is suggested that if these two

council members are serious about the health of the citizenry of this community they will

propose an ordinance based on the guidelines listed below:


PROPOSED ELEMENTS OF A GAS GUZZLER ORDINANCE


It would apply to all SUVs, pick up trucks, vans and minivans registered to individuals with a residence address within the city limits of Shawnee. SUVs that are “crossover” (those built on car chassis) would be exempt.

Each of these vehicles would be required to obtain a “Clean Air Permit” on an annual basis.

The cost of the permit would be $200 if the vehicle is of the current model year. Since vehicle performance declines over time, and pollutants increase, each year after the current model year would increase the cost of the permit by $50

The City would retain 10% of the fees collected as an offset for administering the program.

The remaining 90% would be placed in an interest producing trust fund. Citizens of Shawnee who experience respiratory problems that require medical attention and who have insufficient funds and/or insurance could apply for grants from the fund.

************************************************************************


Personally, I really think that these two individuals should lead the fight to reduce the emissions of gas guzzlers in our city.

*****************************************************

Wow, I must have really rattled Kevin Straub's chains. He said something to the effect that I would have been better off if I didn't start my comments by insulting him. I told him I didn't insult him, I spoke the truth. Heck, he and his buddy boy were insulting the citizens of Shawnee with their little stunt two weeks ago.

Then the other half chimed in, Dan Pflumm. He again brought up that he submitted his ordinance proposal because "due diligence" had already been done. He was referring to the Johnson County survey. I had to remind him that another council member at the previous meeting tried to explain to him that surveys can be manipulated. I offered to show him how a survey can be manipulated and it would only take three minutes. My offer was not accepted.

I think these two are missing the point. If they are so concerned about the health of the citizens of Shawnee they would embrace items like the one I brought up. It takes guts to set a precedent, and also to show that you are sincere about what you say.

Any fool can jump on a "me too" bandwagon.

Fourth Ward is a Star in The Star

Ahhhhhhhhhhh, common sense. What a breath of fresh air this is, especially in view of the idiocy perpetrated last week.

Michelle Distler, a Fourth Ward Councilperson from Shawnee had her views of smoking bans published in the Kansas City Star on 4/30/07. The link is
http://www.kansascity.com/273/story/88424.html

Also, this commentary originally appeared in the Shawnee/Lenexa Sun on 4/26/07. At least we still have freedom of speech.

Sometimes those links don't work, so I'll quote the article here:

AS I SEE IT City bans deny people their constitutional rights
By MICHELLE R. DISTLER

Special to The Star

As an asthmatic, I initially thought smoking bans were a good idea. I still think they are, but not one that the government should implement. It is a decision that is best left to the individual owners and their customers through the power of the purse.

Upon further thought on the matter, I remembered taking my oath of office and swearing to uphold the Constitution. Although there is nothing stated specifically to the rights of smokers or nonsmokers, the Constitution does speak directly to individual liberties and private property rights. I do not want to open Pandora’s Box and give the government undue power and control over our lives.

Communities across the country are wrestling with the dilemma of whether to enforce smoking bans, and unfortunately we’re quickly losing sight of our obligation as a society to protect civil rights in the process.

The constitutional purpose of our government is to promote commerce, build roads, protect us from foreign invasion and protect individual rights. This includes property rights. Any act to the contrary is an outright violation of the Constitution. A smoking ban is a violation of property rights, period.

The Constitution was written in such a manner to specifically limit the power and scope of government to preserve our individual rights — rights that are being eroded daily with a variety of seemingly small encroachments, such as the smoking ban.

Just as eminent domain started as a good idea and a means to acquire private land for the public good, it has become extremely problematic when untrustworthy government officials and self-serving developers define what is in the public’s best interest. Tax increment financing also began as an effective means to restore blighted areas until insiders began using it to increase their personal profits.

Everyone has the freedom of choice to go into any building where people are allowed to smoke or not smoke. But no one has the inalienable right to go into a privately owned business and demand that it be smoke-free or demand that a smoke-free building allow smoking.
No one should have the right to use government to force an owner to make his property smoke-free. In doing so, all our rights become easier targets for anyone disagreeing with, or who is offended by, the practice of our personal freedoms.

In the long run, this is far more dangerous than secondhand smoke ever could be.
Supply and demand drives free enterprise, and I think the best way to implement a smoking ban is to support those establishments that cater best to your desires. I think we must remember that whether as employees or patrons to businesses, we are the "guests" of the property owners.

My concern is for the property rights of all Shawnee residents and business owners.
Michelle R. Distler serves on the Shawnee City Council.

Pflumm Pforgets His Place

Let's look at the background. A few weeks ago the City Council unanimously authorized the mayor to form a task force to study the issue of a smoking ban. Ideally the task force would hold meetings, research information and obtain input from the public (residents and business owners/managers of Shawnee)
That sounds like the democratic process at work.

Now, what happened at this evening's council meeting? Well it appears that Dan Pflumm decided he didn't need input from the citizens of Shawnee. He whips out a copy of the City of Overland Park's smoking ordinance and wants the City Council of Shawnee to adopt it. And to top it off, he has an accomplice in this travesty. Yep, his good buddy, Kevin Straub seemed to support this action.

Needless to say other councli members were curious as to how they could vote to approve something they haven't studied. But more importantly, most of them wanted to know how they could vote on an ordinance without the input of the citizens of Shawnee.

Well, it seems like Pflumm feels that they have already provided input. He brings up Johnson County's recent "survey' about smoking. Neil Sawyer, to his credit, tried to explain that surveys can be manipulated. Pflumm let's that one go by saying that the survey company has been around for quite awhile. Sawyer then indicates (tongue in cheek I think) that that could be one of the reasons. Let's give Mr Pflumm a lesson in Public Surveys 101. They CAN be manipulated. The key elements are what the questions are, how they are worded and the restricted answer choices made available.

Now I am sure that there are some in Shawnee who wish he would have been successful. But I ask, would they like it if an ordinance was adopted that they were against, without allowing them to provide input?

This action of Pflumm's was a blatant attempt to ignore the rights of the people to participate in their government. He can try all he wants to wiggle out of it, but he can't. Is this what the voters in Ward 1 want of their elected representative? Someone who attempts to usurp their rights.

Fortunately for the citizens of Shawnee there were enough members of the City Council who still feel that the people have the right to provide input.

My opinion: These two are very dangerous individuals, in that they have no regard for the rights of the people.

Duke Lacrosse Players

Has anybody heard anything about Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson issuing apologies to these young men?

Just curious.

Presidential Politics - Too Much Too Soon

Let's see, it is what, 9 or 10 months before the first primaries and caucuses? Definitely nineteen (19) months before the election. and what has been going on? Folks have announced their candidacies months ago. For some it will be almost two years between announcement and the election.

That is a little too much, at least for me. But, what really ticks me off is that some of these individuals are elected officials. By campaigning for the presidential nomination, some of them are ignoring the responsibilities of their elected offices. Especially those that are either US Representatives or US Senators. What that means is that they are campaigning on our dime and not giving their full attention to what we, their employers, elected them to do.

How many "civilian" companies would put up with the absenteeism that some of these individuals display?

My solution: A federal law, that if you are a serving member of the the US Congress (either house) and announce for the presidency, that you must, at that time resign your position. Let's get someone into the office who is willing to work for the constituency.

Let the states handle the situation for sitting governors.

Check this one out http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/local/46691.php

Brown Shirt Award

Periodically I will be giving out the "Brown Shirt Award".

This will be given to the person, who, in my opinion, most exemplifies by their actions, or words, that they are desirous of restricting and/or curtailing individual civil rights and liberties.

Phill Kline - Out of Control

Has anyone read this article?
http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/66212.html

I don't even have the stomach to explain it.

This man is out of control. Last November the citizens of Kansas told this individual to take a hike as the State Attorney General. When the vote resuslts were broken down by county, the citizens of Johnson County spoke very loudly that they did not want him to continue to serve.

Sooooooooooooo, what happened? The man who defeated him was the then Johnson County DA Paul Morrison, whose office was now open. Since Mr Morrison had originally been elected to the DA's post as a Republican, then the county committee reps would elect his replacement until the next general election.

Here's the juicy part.............these irresponsible jerks gave Kline the job. A man that the citizens overwhelmingly said they did not want in office.

Now he goes and pulls a stunt as indicated in the linked article.

Almost makes me ashamed to admit that I am a registered Republican.

Response to Editorial in The Shawnee Dispatch

The editor of the Shawnee Dispatch has outdone himself this time. In his campaign to champion a smoking ban he now purports to defend the health of workers, http://www.shawneedispatch.com/section/opinion/story/6139

For the record, since I had a letter recently published in the Dispatch on another subject, it was too soon for me to respond there. The editor has been advised of this article and is invited to comment here.

Golly gee willikers, will the trash talk never end? First, let's look at restaurants and bars that do permit smoking in Shawnee. How many of those employees that Mr. Beal wants to protect are smokers themselves? Now, let’s look at "office" type businesses. Well, another golly gee willikers goes to Mr. Beal. Let's put the "office" workers into two categories. Category A will be single company offices. Oh, let's say like Bayer on Shawnee Mission Parkway. And yes, there are other smaller companies that would fall into this category. Category B will be multi-company office buildings, like the one that houses the Shawnee Dispatch.

Now Mr. Beal, how many category A businesses already have their own smoking/non-smoking policies in effect? How many employees in these companies are subjected to unwanted secondhand smoke? Give me those numbers. Those are "hard" stats, based on facts, not mathematical models subject to interpretation.

Let us now move on to the category B businesses. Same info please Mr Beal. In the City of Shawnee how many of these businesses subject their non-smoking employees to secondhand smoke? Is it possible that you would find that companies are already taking care of most of this on their own?

And yes Mr Beal, it is about the rights of the business owner to run his or her business. And, the customers of that business will dictate the policy of the business by their activity at the "cash register".

While we are talking about secondhand smoke, why don't we talk about automobile emissions. You know Mr. Beal, all that gunk and junk that gets tossed into the air by cars, trucks, buses, etc. And what about in cities like Shawnee that have a per capita income above the national average and have a high ratio of SUVs? You know, those gas guzzling, emission belching monstrosities that are exempt from the Clean Air Act. What do those emissions do to our lungs?
Is it possible that many of the medical problems blamed on secondhand smoke are really caused by vehicle emissions? Or would you rather not touch that? But I do think about that every time I see those members of the SMNW track or is it cross country team jogging along Quivira Rd. You know, working up a sweat, and their lungs acting like big vacuums just pulling in all of those emissions. Just a thought. :-)

At this time I won't even mention that beautiful smell in the air in the winter of all those wood burning fireplaces. Actually it is nice, but what are they putting into our lungs? And wouldn’t that be worse inside those residences?

But, the really, really big question is........................WHAT NEXT?

DeSoto USD 232 is Saved

The results are in. Don Clark won reelection in the Position 7 At Large seat over Kevin Straub 56.33% to 43.52%

Personally, I feel the voters there made a wise decision.

Western Shawnee Wal-Mart Part II

Just loved the article in the Shawnee Dispatch
http://www.shawneedispatch.com/section/news/story/6222

In a previous post I mentioned that one of the opponents of this store was quoted as saying the store would bring in transient shoppers. That didn't make sense, and I mentioned Wal-Mart's demographic studies before they build. My opinion was that the residents of that area didn't want it to be known that they too shop at Wal-Mart.

Well, in the above linked Dispatch article this appears, attributed to a Wal-Mart rep:

"Thum said one of the most-asked questions was why Wal-Mart would choose the site with its close proximity to supercenters in Bonner Springs and in the Shawnee Station shopping center at Shawnee Mission Parkway and Maurer Road. She said the store does extensive market research whenever it considers a potential store site and found the area could support all the stores."

Look at the benefits that the western Shawnee residents will receive. They won't spend as much money on their gas guzzling SUVs to go shopping at Wal-Mart. Maybe some of them will visit that new fancy sunglass store in the Westbrooke Village Shopping Center. There they can get designer sunglasses at super discount prices so they won't be recognized when they shop at the new Wal-Mart.

Whoops....Did I Rattle Somebody's Chain?

Seems like a gentleman by the name of Mark Crouch took exception to my comment about exploiting children to protest against Wal-Mart. You can see his letter to the Shawnee Dispatch at http://www.shawneedispatch.com/section/letters/story/6188

Mr Crouch seems to be concerned about the increased traffic levels near an elementary school. That could be a concern. So.............go ahead and protest Mr Crouch...........that is your right. But, having pre-school children (eventhough they may someday attend that school) stand outside and chant slogans that they have no understanding of, is still, in my opinion, exploitation of the children.

I'd comment in a letter to the editor of the Dispatch, but I'm not sure what their time limitations are. Most newspapers do not publish more than one letter from an individual every 30 days.

Gonna have to look into that.................

Vegas Comes to Shawnee

The TV news crews were hanging around last night's Shawnee City Council Meeting.

What was happening? What earth shattering event was taking place?

Well, it appears that a skeleton came out of the closet and it isn't even Halloween. Kevin Straub (the councilman with the arrogant smirk on his face) lives in a haunted house. The same Kevin Straub who is running for the De Soto USD 232 school board.

According to the KCTV5 reporter when she went on air Mr Straub had 2 bankruptcy filings in Nevada and still has an open judgment of over $140K. Mr Straub claims he did not know the judgment was still open.

Bankruptcy, judgments, personal financial problems.............these are things that unfortunately are affecting many people. Heck, I've had my share of personal financial problems.

What makes Mr Straub's problem different though is his arrogant attitude that he is the only person that can be fiscally responsible with the school district's budget. That becomes highly questionable.

Note: Added 2/27/10 Would you like to see something interesting now? Go here http://shawneeray.blogspot.com/2010/02/ward-iii-primarytue-march-2-2010.html

Shawnee Smoking Task Force

Last night the City Council voted to have the mayor appoint a task force to review smoking ordinances. At the end of its review the task force will naturally have recommendations for the city council.

Mayor Jeff Meyers has a monumental task before him. Can he truly create a well balanced task force? A balance between residents and business owners. A balance between advocates of restrictive ordinances and advocates for less intrusion of government into everyday living.

Two members of the council (Mickey Sandifer and Michelle Distler) have repeatedly stated what this is really about. It is NOT about smoking vs. non-smoking. It is, as they have said, about the erosion of individual rights. It is about government telling folks how to run their business.

As individual rights are slowly taken away, the question that must be asked is: What next?
Folks are so concerned about the effects of secondhand smoke, maybe they need to look at other causes of respiratory problems. Prior to the meeting last night I did a quick count of the vehicles in the parking lot. I counted 24 cars and 27 SUVs/pick-ups. Maybe Shawnee needs to restrict the number of SUVs that can be owned in the city. You know, those gas guzzling, emission belching monstrosities. For the health and welfare of the citizens of Shawnee maybe the government needs to intrude and control tighter what kind of vehicle you can own.

Whaddya think?

The Letter Made It

Yepper, it made it, and can also be viewed at http://www.shawneedispatch.com/section/letters/story/6141

Am sure I'll get some flak from these folks who think it's ok to exploit their young uns.

Western Shawnee Wal-Mart

It's about 9:45PM on Sunday 3/18/07 and I just composed a lettr to the editor of the Shawnee Dispatch. Not sure if it will get published there, so I am going to publish it here:

As a Shawnee resident that lives in a different part of the city I'm not sure, at this point, whether this is a good project or not.

What I am intrigued by though was the video on various metro TV stations last week. The video of the protesters. The video that showed them using preschoolers to protest. Preschoolers with memorized chants.
Yes, little Buffy, Muffy and Barbie were chanting protests that their parents had taught them. And they were smiling and their eyes were wide with glee. See, like all good little puppies they felt good that they were pleasing their masters, and they knew they'd be rewarded. Even if the rewards were only verbal, as in "good girl, good girl". Personally, I feel this is exploitation of the children.

Now, let's look at another aspect of this situation. Wal-Mart does quite a bit of demographic research before opening a new store. They want to know that the odds are on their side for profits before they make the commitment to build. They research the neighborhood, incomes, buying habits, competition etc etc etc.

A previous letter writer (Martin Gilmore on 3/13/07) said in part".......not just another suburban strip mall that drives in transient shoppers, and drives out families" I wonder about that. Would Wal-Mart be looking for transient shoppers? Or are they confident that the neighborhood and housing within close proximity can support their store? How far away does Mr Martin expect these transient shoppers to travel to come to his neighborhood? Isn't it possible that the areas he feels the "transients" will come from already have their own Wal-Marts? Maybe it's just a case of the folks in western Shawnee not wanting others to know that they too shop at Wal-Mart. It is so déclassé you know. It won't be so obvious if they travel to the one on Shawnee Mission Parkway

USD 232 & Party Crashers

Interesting letter in the Shawnee Dispatch at http://www.shawneedispatch.com/section/letters/story/6098

If an inidivudal wants to sponsor a "meet and greet" for candidates that he/she supports that is a private affair. Heck, we've seen even Presidential candidates do that at the homes of "common folks".

Anyway, for candidates who are not invited (not being supported) it is in poor taste to show up and crash these "meet and greets".

If the content of this letter is accurate, then there is definitely one individual who apparently thinks very highly of himself, to the point of arrogance.

This Explains It..........

Now I know why I don't particularly like this Kevin Straub. He wants to force his views down everybody else's throat.

On 2/20/07 the KC Star published biographical information and answers to its questions to the candidates for the DeSoto USD 232 school board.

Below is question 10 and Mr Straub's reply:


10. Should intelligent design be taught in the public schools? If so, in what context or class?

I believe evolution and intelligent design should be taught as a theory. I believe the founding fathers of our country wrote the United States Constitution so that we can have "freedom of religion" not "freedom from religion."

I think Mr Straub needs to take Civics 101 over. Let's clue him in.............."freedom of religion" also means "freedom from religion". Nobody has the right to shove their religious beliefs down anyone else's throat.

My sincere sympathies to the folks in USD 232 if this guy gets on their board

To Smoke Or Not To Smoke

The City of Shawnee Council's Finance and Administration Committee met this past Tuesday evening 3/6/07.

One of the items on the agenda was a discussion of what to do about a new smoking ordinance.

The final result was the committee recommending a Task Force be appointed to assist in a possible resolution.

I'm getting to enjoy these meetings, and listening to some of the trash that emanates from the mouths of certain individuals. It is an education.

Kevin Straub, 3d Ward councilmember came up with an item that he has mentioned before. It has to do with folks in offices and how non-smokers should not have to put up with the drift of smoke coming from a smoker's cubicle. This guy is a cute piece of work. Bringing up meaningless items, just to hear himself speak, and to make it appear that he cares.

Yours truly took to the podium and had to explain to Mr Straub, that even without an ordinance, businesses today have worked out plans in their offices to eliminate the very problem that Mr Straub wants to codify. These businesses have to do it on their own, so as to retain qualified personnel, to maintain a positive work environment, and to promote positive employee morale.

I challenge this individual to find one office type business in Shawnee that has not created a smoking policy on its own so as not to create the problem he is concerned about. His rhetoric sounds good, but, IMHO it is pure bovine scatology.

Allow the consumer to tell restaurants and bars what to do by what does or does not happen at the cash register.

New Shawnee Justice Center

Did some more thinking after Monday's Shawnee City Council Meeting (2/26/07)

The council members who wanted to delay the approval for 60 days while looking into the possibility of converting a vacated Hy Vee, were, IMHO, off base. They kept talking about saving the taxpayers money. The contractors kept trying to explain how building certain things from scratch are usually cheaper than retrofitting (like an EOC).

But, one point that I didn't hear anybody bring up was the effect on taxes that using the Hy Vee would have. The Police Department, as a city agency does not pay property taxes. That Hy Vee is sitting in a prime retail/commercial area. Taking it off the tax rols could be quite costly over a 20 year period.

The emphasis here needs to be on getting that property reoccupied, either as one large store, or even broken down and subdivided as a mini-mall/office complex. Wow, jsut think of the property taxes that would be generated, and, if it is retail, the sales taxes.

I'm happy to see that 4 of the council members and the mayor had the intestinal fortitude to finally approve this thing.

Straub Loses It

Wow, what an event at the 2/26/07 Shawnee City Council Meeting.

While Kevin Straub (IMHO a narcissistic blowhard) was questioning the contractors/architects about the new justice center, Ms Dawn Kuhn, another council member made a comment that a crystal ball would be needed for the answer. Straub then uncorked a vitriolic diatribe aimed at Ms Kuhn.

Actually I was quite surprised that the Mayor did not gavel Mr Straub down. Mr Straub's action called for a strong response from the Mayor and he just sat there. Unbelievable.

Anyway, Ms Kuhn wa right about the "crystal ball". Straub wanted to know why, if the groundbreaking was scheduled for 6/1, that this item couldn't be postponed 60 days while other alternatives were looked at. The contractor tried to explain that if there was a 60 day delay, that that would also postpone the groundbreaking by 60 days, because they could not order structural steel etc until they had a commitment from the city. That would then push construction into the winter months which would cause additional problems and costs. The way material pricing is changing a crystal ball would indeed be needed.

Whether Ms Kuhn's interjection at that time (eventhough accurate) was appropriate could be questioned, but Straub's vicious verbal attack was uncalled for.

This guy is a piece of work.

KS State Sen David Wysong - Another Hypocrite

Well, that's my opinion anyway.

He is the the individual that introduced SB 37 this session which would create a statewide smoking ban in Kansas.

What did I do? I emailed him. Suggested he visit this blog so he could read the info about alcohol. Asked him some brief questions about alcohol.

All he could muster: "Thank you for your input"

That's good senator, go for the smokes, but let the booze run rampant.

Gettin' drunk cheap in South Carolina

Wow, I bet these hypocrites are proud of themselves. This appeared in the 1/19/07 edition of the Kansas City Star. The link is:

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/nation/16493375.htm

Just in case the link is outdated, here is the piece:


Make it a double — and halve the price

COLUMBIA, S.C. You’ve heard of "Happy Hour," but how about "Happy Day?"
All-day drink specials could become a reality in South Carolina. A state House subcommittee Wednesday approved legislation that would allow bars and restaurants to choose one day a week, except Sundays, for all-day specials on liquor drinks.
Currently, businesses can sell and advertise liquor drink specials from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. only.

******************************************************************

Note the total hypocrisy with regards to not allowing this on Sunday.

Don't smoke folks, but have a cheap drunk. Maybe kill or severely injure somebody. Go home and beat the crap out of your significant other, and maybe even rape that lady that didn't want to have anything to do with you. Get drunk cheap, but don't smoke.

Another "what next?" takes place in Bangor Maine

Well, here we go........looks like the City of Bangor Maine has now made it a punishable offense to smoke in a car with children present. Yepper...........$50 and it's a "primary" offense, which means law enforcement can stop a driver for that item alone.

More info at: http://www.bangordailynews.com/news/t/city.aspx?articleid=144999&zoneid=176

That's right folks. Don't smoke in your cars with kids present (actually the concept is good, it just shouldn't be a law), but keep feeding that idiot at the bar more booze so he or she can destroy those kids' lives in a matter of seconds.

Shawnee City Council 12/11/06

On December 11, 2006 I exercised my rights to address the Shawnee City Council.

Needless to say my comments were about the hypocrisy of smoking bans without doing anything about alcohol. I even used some figures regarding alcohol related crimes within the city limits of Shawnee.

What struck me as funny was a comment by one of the council members, Kevin Straub who is one of the 3rd ward representatives.

Mr Straub is quoted in the 12/13/06 issue of the Shawnee Dispatch as saying: "We aren't going to vote against smoking bans just because there are worse things out there."

Strange comment. First, is he using the term "we" to really mean "I" (himself), or is he attempting to speak for the entire City Council?

This is one arrogant, sanctimonious individual. He also brought up the Nevada law that was recently passed by the voters regarding smoking. What he failed to mention is that:

1. The law is being litigated on constitutional grounds
2. The law is hypocritical in that it specifically exempts the gaming areas of the casinos.