Take back our country in this year’s elections

January 7, 2010 — buckeyerino

Watch.

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One more reminder that Mark Stewart needs to be challenged for Lorain County Auditor

January 7, 2010 — buckeyerino

With the economic meltdown, more than a few local businesses can’t keep up with their bills.  If a business becomes defunct, it might garner some news coverage.  If it garners news coverage, there’s a good chance that the outstanding debts will be reported, particularly if taxes are overdue, especially when taxes are a matter of public record.

Elyria’s Chronicle-Telegram has a story about a shuttered strip club that, yet again, reveals the trend of inflating property tax assessment values beyond what the market would support.  This particular property was sold for $10 to get out from under the debt, but the prior sale price was $750,000.  One would think that the ever-worsening economy would support the notion that assessed values would be revised downward, but the Lorain County Auditor’s office assessed the value at $768,200.  Does anyone know anybody that will by this property for &768,200?  Didn’t think so.  When you add this bit of information to the info about tax assessments on the former Ford Lorain Assembly Plant property, and the complaints I’ve heard from some Lorain County homeowners, it’s clear to me that Stewart has been gouging the public.  In October, the Lorain County Auditor’s office announced that assessed property values were dropping, and a news story of potentially-inflated assessed property values in neighboring Huron County may have motivated the Lorain County Auditor’s office to make such an announcement.

But these are not the most egregious excesses perpetrated by Mark Stewart during his tenure as Lorain County Auditor.  For the most egregious excesses, I recommend poring over That Woman’s Weblog under the category heading of “CRA.”  Mark Stewart thinks that a Lorain County Auditor has the right to veto ordinances enacted by Lorain City Council.  In Stewart’s wranglings to retroactively (a violation of ex post facto provisions of the Constitution) rescind tax abatements, he’s cost the county and Lorain city lots of $$$ in legal fees.  The power Stewart has usurped is absolutely tyrannical.

In my opinion, Lorain County Auditor Mark Stewart is in need of some checks and balances.  The check and balance I’d prefer is that someone runs against him for election this year so that voters can show him the door.

Here’s a recent blog entry about launching a candidacy.

The deadline for submitting election candidacy petitions to seek party nominations in the primaries is February 18, 2010, before 4 p.m., at the Lorain County Board of Elections.

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[UPDATE]Civil trial before federal judge to be “YouTubed”–on trial: California’s Prop 8

January 7, 2010 — buckeyerino

Ah, the wonders of the world wide web . . . in this case, YouTube.

In the November 2008 elections, not only were Presidential candidates on the ballot in California, so was Proposition 8.  Proposition 8 sought to affirm that lawful marriage in California would be reserved for matrimonially joining one woman with one man.  Voters approved the measure.  Those opposed to the measure are apparently still miffed at “democracy” spelled with a little “d,” and have made numerous attempts to do an end run around voters and the fundamentals of American governance.

Among the latest attempts to circumvent democracy, those opposed to California’s Proposition 8 are in the process of litigating the measure as a civil matter in a federal court where one judge (no jury) will decide the case.   In an unprecedented move, U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker has ruled that courtroom proceedings will be recorded on video for display on YouTube.  (All the handier for harvesting sound bites out of context, don’t you think?  After all, who’d stare glassy-eyed at a computer monitor for hours upon hours watching courtroom YouTube clips to wrap their heads around the full scope and context of everything presented at trial?)

Michelle Malkin points out, in her blog post on the upcoming trial, that the move to YouTube the trial may be an attempt to intimidate witnesses that might be called to testify.

My advice to Prop 8 supporters who will be testifying:  Don’t let the opposing side sucker you into their straw man arguments wherein religion is the bogeyman.  Don’t let them turn this trial into a referendum on religion.  The opposing side has attempted to use that trick to sidetrack debating the real issue time after time.  As I’ve argued in a prior blog entry here at Buckeye RINO, one can be an atheist who subscribes to Darwinian evolution and still see the wisdom of withholding state recognition of same-sex “marriages.”

Of course, I’m not surprised that the opposing side is pushing for video coverage.  I’ve noted the opposing side’s double-speak before, when they’ve said that they want the government to stay out of bedrooms yet their actions demonstrate that they really want to parade their bedroom activity in full public view.

I suppose we could be thankful that the liberal left will only be presenting us with a courtroom video and not a bedroom video.

UPDATE 1/11/10: At least for the near future, the Supreme Court has blocked cameras from the courtroom for this trial.

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