One of my nephews wanted me to be the Best Man at his wedding recently because I had a tremendous impact on the young man growing up. For me it was an odd experience because with him it was as if he were grown up and graduating from life close to an equal, while in the audience of my best man speech at the reception were many other young people who I am currently just as important to and I take that role very, very serious.
At the wedding mentioned, as is the standard for my involvement in any wedding, I do not attend bachelor parties. I do not indulge in drunkenness. I do not sit with strippers in Vegas, even when my own brother was married and every male member of my family went to see naked women, I did not. I didn’t because I would ask the young people who look up to me not to do such things, and if I want for them a good life, I must do my part and stay away from any kind of mortal revelation that indicates weakness. You have to lead by example. You can’t send children to public school and hope you can “cheat the system,” while you’re off doing bad things. Kids will see through it. You cannot have a “do as I say, not as I do approach.”
Early campaigns McMillan’s first run for political office came in 1993, when he ran for Mayor of New York on the Rent Is Too Damn High ticket. In the course of that campaign, McMillan was at one point tied to a tree and doused with gasoline;[5] he would later climb the Brooklyn Bridge and refuse to come down from it unless television stations broadcast his message.[6] He was ultimately disqualified from the ballot for coming 300 petition signatures short of the 7,500 needed to qualify for the general election ballot.
McMillan next ran for governor of New York in 1994 by traveling from his home in Brooklyn through upstate New York to Buffalo on foot, staying in homeless shelters along the way; his original itinerary had him walking back to Brooklyn as well, but an injury in Rochester led to him taking a bus home.[7] When he arrived in Buffalo, the site of the state Democratic convention, McMillan disrupted a speech by incumbent governor Mario Cuomo at the convention and was thrown out because of it.[8] After failing to collect enough signatures to get onto the ballot, he continued in a write-in campaign.
The Federal Elections Commission has a record of McMillan entering himself in the United States presidential election, 1996 as a Republican; McMillan did not get onto any primary ballots. McMillan was removed from the ballot during the 2000 U.S. Senate election in New York.[9]
McMillan’s political positions contain heavy influence from populist principles. The Rochester Democrat and Chronicle described his 1994 platform as such: “While McMillan said he hopes to be a spokesman for the poor in his bid for Governor, his solutions make him sound more like a Republican.”[7]
• McMillan has come out against federal bailouts, specifically the Wall Street Bailout of 2008 and the Obama Administration’s bailout of General Motors. Referencing the bailout and his presidential run, he said of Obama: “If you don’t do your job right, I am coming at you.”[30]
• McMillan believes that global warming is a natural occurrence that occurs every 15,000 years. He disputes the idea that is caused by man and pollution, saying he “isn’t buying [the] punk science” of Al Gore.
• A supporter of same-sex marriage, McMillan joked in the 2010 gubernatorial debate he would allow marriage between a person and a shoe.[31][32][33]
• McMillan, as founder of the Rent Is Too Damn High Party, is against high rent and property taxes for homeowners. He believes that lowering rent and cutting taxes will ease financial stress and help eradicate hunger and poverty, as well as raise tax revenue. He surmises that reducing rent would “create 3 to 6 million jobs” by freeing up capital to give businesses a chance to hire people. He also favors tax credits for commuters.[34][35]
• McMillan and the party are in favor of writing off all taxes owed to the state, consolidating the rent boards in New York, seizure of unoccupied apartment buildings, reforming the state court system, and free college tuition.[34][35]
• McMillan is in favor of having fixed rate of low rent across America, which would be the same regardless of property value. He states that adjusting the rent for property value “is a bunch of crap” and “a scheme to run out the poor.”[citation needed]
• McMillan supports allowing laws to be influenced by Christianity. His website states that “we need more reliance on the moral laws brought by religion and not limit out goodwill to our neighbors and co-workers to what the law demands alone.” He also spoke of “restoring family values” and making sure that one parent remains at home to watch children.[36]
• McMillan and the party oppose any spending cuts to education or elderly care services.[34][35]
• McMillan has called for investigations of, and has sought to increase awareness of, fraud and Ponzi schemes in the real estate markets.[37]
• Of his potential Republican opponents for the Presidential nomination, he thinks of Newt Gingrich as a “good liar” in the vein of John Edwards and that “people look at him and laugh,” Mitt Romney as a “good-looking guy [that] will keep the ladies from looking at me.” He has also stated that he loves Sarah Palin[38] and holds an extremely negative view of New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg.[39]
And of course just like all the radicals Obama has surrounded himself with, when they get caught, he washes his hands of the subject, hangs them out to dry, and changes the subject.
I want common sense. I want the least polished candidate that is functioning from true intentions. And more than any of that, I want a guy that has made peace with themselves, and is happy with who they are, because such people are less likely to attempt to use public money to fill the voids in their lives.
Half of what he says in this next clip, I don’t agree with at all. But he’s right about one big thing, government is corrupt.
I think that once Jimmy had an elected office he is smart enough to figure out what’s right and wrong. I’d trust him well before I’d trust another candidate.
As to the article in the Pulse Journal where the Pro Levy people exploded in exhilaration that Mark Sennet showed signs of defecting. Read that article here:
‘No Lakota’ group split on next levy
Some would OK ‘conservative’ levy in November; others don’t want any levy.
Staff Writer 11:32 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011
LIBERTY TWP. — Members of the No Lakota group are in disagreement about whether they would support a levy if Lakota puts one on the ballot.
West Chester Twp. resident Mark Sennet spoke to the board of education Monday, saying the No Lakota group would support a “conservative” levy in 2012 if the board would bypass the election this November. However, No Lakota member Rich Hoffman, who has typically spoken on behalf of the group, said no discussion had occurred at a meeting about supporting a levy, and he was holding fast to his stance on never supporting a levy.
Hoffman said there may be a split in the group, but he thinks the 50-and-older crowd will stand with him. Sennet said Lakota officials have made “a valiant effort to try to work and control spending,” but people still need time to recover from the economic crisis. He said he and several developers would be on the board’s side if it waited for November 2012.
“We acknowledge that there were changes made,” he said. “The businesses had to make changes. The citizens had to make changes, and we were glad to see the union and teachers and board agreed to a pay freeze. But if the levy were to pass, then I guess that would be good for the community.”
Board member Ray Murray said he was pleased the business community is recognizing the district’s transparency and how it is listening to the community.
“There are going to be people who are not going to ever say yes to anything, and there’s nothing you can do about it,” he said. “We’ve got to generate more revenue. We can’t survive on a 2005 budget.” Former For Lakota levy chairwoman Sandy Wheatley said the board and district representatives have been mending fences with those in opposition since the last election.
“Everyone has kind of stepped up to the plate to do their part,” she said. “Now, with all those pieces in place — because this is the only way Ohio has left us in terms of ways to fund schools — I think the community will see this as now it is time for us to put the last piece together by doing our part to support the tax issue. … Perhaps the residents now will be better critical thinkers around if what they are hearing is accurate information.”
Board president Joan Powell said the board will meet for a work session at the end of the month to study an updated five-year forecast and discuss options.
Administrators at the Pickerington Local School District in Ohio are gearing up for an August levy vote to avert the need to make $7 million in budget cuts. Superintendent Karen Mantia estimates 30 more educator jobs will be cut during the 2012-13 school year if the levy does not pass. While some school administrators and staff are blaming the planned state funding cuts for the district’s financial woes, there is a lot more to consider than the lack of availability of taxpayer funds.
According to the fiscal information on the school website the projected $5 million state funding cuts for this school year would only scale the district back to 2008 funding amounts. The districts experienced at least $5 million per year in increased taxpayer funds since 2000. The school garnered $15 million in state assistance in 2000 and $45 in 2010.
Unsustainable spending is an issue for not just the Pickerington Local School District, but public schools and agencies throughout Ohio. A business as usual approach to funding schools and entitlement programs is simply not feasible without drastically increasing taxes. The fiscally responsible measures detailed in Ohio’s Jobs Budget and Senate Bill 5 are not meant to punish schools or attack public employees, but to ensure districts and agencies can remain solvent without adding to the burden of taxpayers.
Voters residing in the Pickerington Local School District said “no” to a levy increase last year. Residents currently pay $1,303 in property taxes on homes valued at $100,000 and a 1 percent income tax to support the school district.
Even if the 2011 levy gains approval the $500 per student extracurricular fee per sport will still stand. The proposed levy would generate nearly $6 million and add $168 to the average property tax bill. Salaries and benefits comprise the largest portion of the budget. Administrator salaries range from $75,000 to $144,000 per year.
Beginning in 2007 the district initiated a plan to reduce operational expenses by $7 million. During the same time period the district opened three new school buildings. The taxpayer-funded federal stimulus plan added funds to the district’s coffers last fiscal year when the Strickland administration funding formula reduced state assistance by $2 million for the district. Cost saving measures enacted by the district include nearly $3 million for non-replacement of resigning or retiring employees, more than $1 million in transportation cuts and in excess of $300,000 by eliminating positions.
Unlike the Columbus City School District, Pickerington Local does not have audit findings, ongoing fraud investigations or low test scores. Parents within the school community are concerned about access to extracurricular activities with the $500 price tag per club or athletic team. Although school officials are skirting the subject, there is fear that district enrollment will drop as parents exercise the open enrollment option to transport their children to nearby schools so they can continue to enjoy sports and academic clubs.
It’s really a progressive program designed to teach our kids to move into a globalized government, which I’m against as a tax payer. Here’s what it’s really about:
At that point Abedin might say, “But it’s embarrassing, everywhere we go together, people will think I’m not a good lover. Or they’ll think I’m weak because I let him get away with it.”
Weiner has already tried to make that distinction; it’s just my private life. “I made a mistake. I will not step down because I can still perform my professional job.”
I think now we understand why there is such a push among progressives to embrace the Muslim faith, because the men want to practice polygamy, and the women don’t want to feel alone in public when their men sleep around on them.
It certainly seems to be the desire of Bill Clinton, and the king progressive thinker himself, Congressman Weiner and his multiple online sex partners. There’s always more to the story than what you see on the surface.
Good luck with that progressive lifestyle. If you’d ask me Abedin, I’d say find a real man to be the father of that baby, and not a weiner. But it’s your life.
By the way, if you want to see what a wolf spider looks like, this one is almost as big.
It was shocking to see such large creatures swimming around me in my swimming pool, especially when the water was so thick with green that I couldn’t see what lurked beneath the surface of the water. I helped the spiders out of the pool. It was obvious they had taken up residence there to feed off all the insects about to hatch for the summer. The spiders were visibly upset that their easy supply of food was now destroyed.
For a minute I felt bad that I destroyed the spider’s food. I also felt bad for the food of the spiders, all the poor little insects they were eating in massive droves. But, I want to swim in my pool, so to preserve the spider’s environment, I’d have to sacrifice my pool, and that’s not going to happen. As I poured the chemicals into the pool I realized that I was killing millions of small algae plants and other various insects that were living in the water, and would soon be scooped up by the filtration system.
The government is no different from the algae, the insects or the spiders. They have set up shop living off our tax dollars as their source of food. And the more they can eat, the bigger and scarier they’ll get. That wolf spider was as big as my hand, easily. She was so large because the food was easy and plentiful. It not only supported this very large spider, but about 10 others that were of normal size.
Dear Richard Hoffman: You can rejoice now that Lakota’s teachers have agreed to a three-year freeze in step raises and a much less comprehensive health care plan. Or, is that not going far enough? Oh, that’s right…you believe our teachers are overpaid, even though 100 percent have bachelor’s degrees, and 68 percent of those have master’s degrees. I guess with six-hour workdays and summers off, they really aren’t deserving, huh? Those daily lesson plans and graded papers must magically appear on their desks each morning.
I have friends who are teachers, and let me tell you, they are worth every penny they earn. Not only are they educators; they are counselors, role models, mediators, chaperones and disciplinarians. They perform a balancing act every day in the classroom, having to be assertive yet compassionate; formidable yet sensitive; strict yet respectful.
Instead of recognizing the commitments to our children put forth by Lakota staff members, you, Mr. Hoffman, are spending all of your time blaming unions, threatening school board members and charging “overpaid” teachers with taxpayer abuse. Your arguments are weak at best, accusing school administrators and board members of mismanaging school funds when it is well-documented that Lakota only spent $9,806 per pupil during the 2009-10 school year — less than most other comparable statewide districts. As a matter of fact,Westervilleschool Superintendent Dan Good was quoted in a February 2011 article as saying, “We’re going to be looking at what’s going on in those communities (Lakota and Fairfield) that’s allowing them to keep those high ratings along with such a low-cost per pupil.”
Our school system relies solely on levies being passed so that our teachers can be compensated. The reason for Lakota’s continued success is because of our teachers. They should be lauded, not punished.