Gotta Laugh
Working on a project and needed some prices for a unisex restroom sign. I ran across the one to the right. I thought this was a amusing illustration of how ridiculous things have gotten. Just please wash your hands!
If you like it, and have a need for such things, you can purchase one from Amazon here.
Blight
It seems odd to talk about Blight and missed opportunities at the same time, but here we are.
I attended the SBERP RDA ( South Bend Elkhart Regional Partnership Regional Development Authority) board meeting last week and heard presentations of several properties that would benefit from the Lilly Foundation funds that have been pledged to them for blight elimination. As a sign of the times, all of them included some form of housing, as additional and better housing is the biggest perceived need at this time. The project that would be most recognizable to those in our area contemplated a multi-million dollar renovation and repurposing of the old Kamm and Schellinger Brewery in Mishawaka currently known as the 100 Center.
Several properties in St. Joe and Elkhart Counties were submitted. Marshall County was conspicuously absent… thus the missed opportunity.
Blight, as referred to when talking about communities, is generally a reference to systemic vacancies. But it is sometimes referring to buildings with deferred maintenance. I’m sure we all can think of properties in our communities that would fall under one of these definitions. Without even trying, I can name seven properties that fit this definition in Culver. I can think of half a dozen in Plymouth. I know of several in LaPaz and Argos. I’m sure those familiar with Bourbon and Bremen could name similar properties there. So how did we allow this opportunity to pass us by? Couldn’t we have put together something? We are the smallest county by population in our three county regional partnership. There would have been strong incentive to try and share some of the largess if we would have presented something.
We’re at a disadvantage in these things that we need to figure out how to overcome. The internal staff available in South Bend, Mishawaka and Elkhart to throw at these opportunities far outweigh the capacity of any Marshall County community. One Marshall County is being touted as a possible answer to this, but they couldn’t muster the effort to make a presentation as they are still fighting to gain acceptance locally. This is sad, as this could have been an easy win for them that would have shown their value.
Just from attending public meetings, I know of three properties in Culver, two in Plymouth and one in LaPaz that have asked for help and would have qualified for this program. A Marshall County regional submission could have been a combination of projects that would have helped all of our communities. A rail transfer facility was floated at the PIDCO annual meeting for one of Plymouth’s blighted properties. There were opportunities there.
Submitting something would have helped our larger region as well. It’s been clear from the feedback from the Regional Partnership that they need to use some of the funding in Marshall County, but if we fail to give them something to spend it on, it’s hard for us to complain. At some point this could be a problem when the region goes for additional funding. The down state entities want to see the wealth shared.
Some of the issue has been disorganization and some has been a lack of cooperation. Both should be things that can be remedied for the greater good. The sad thing is that most Marshall County residents don’t even know about this missed opportunity. It is likely that most of the property owners of the above mentioned sites don’t know they missed an opportunity. But by definition of the program, the projects must be put forward with government support. Unfortunately, I would guess that the majority of our elected representatives aren’t aware of this either. At least that’s my hope. If they knew and did nothing, that is worse.
There will be more opportunities like this coming down the line. We need to take steps so they aren’t missed too…
What’s in a name?
I’m pretty unhappy that I know the name of the shooter that attempted to assassinate former President Trump. If you don’t know his name, I’m not going to be the one to enlighten you…
My personal feeling is that it’s unconscionable that the press puts the names of such people out there. Law enforcement must, in the name of full disclosure, but it’s the press that gives them posthumous fame. My distaste for this is not because of concern for their families. Often their families are complicit, through ignoring red flags, if nothing else. My reasoning is that many of these individuals are doing it for that fame. How many other disturbed people see this and think, “At least I will be recognized”? What other heinous acts are being contemplated by disturbed individuals seeing this shooters name plastered across all media?
I knew the names of the killers from Columbine. I knew the name of the Boston Marathon Bombers. I knew the name of the Aurora, Colorado shooter and the man that shot up the music festival in Las Vegas. I know the name of Sharon Tate’s killer cult. I know the names of the brothers famous for killing their parents. I know the name of President Reagan’s attempted assassin. I know the names of JFK’s assassin and clear back to Lincoln’s assassin. I’m sure this is enough to bring many of those names to your minds… None of this information is valuable to us nor does it protect us. All of this could be the catalyst that causes a continuation of this murderous loop.
What’s in a name? For some people, this is their way of achieving their 15 minutes of fame. Let’s stop making that possible.
Chevron Deference
I wrote a bit on this last January (here) when I first heard the Chevron Deference was up for consideration by the Supreme Court. (Kiplinger’s follow-up article here.) Now there seems to be a huge uproar over this or to paraphrase the words of Charlie Daniels: They’re all out there steppin’ an’ fetchin’, like their heads are on fire and their asses are catchin’… (from Uneasy Rider)
Saying that we’ve always done it this way, fails to recognize that the Chevron Deference is a product of the 80’s, not something springing from the Constitution. It was a case where the courts gave up their constitutional power to interpret laws, ceding it to the administrative agencies. This has been abused by the agencies and aided by lazy lawmakers, who intentionally or unintentionally write ambiguous legislation.
Unfortunately, the agencies are abusing their power over their clients, the citizens of the United States, while also ignoring their bosses, the Senators and Representatives that write the laws. (Check out this video of Democratic Senator, Joe Manchin, schooling Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, on the way that agency is disregarding very specific language in a Law he wrote and helped pass.) Unambiguous language in legislation is rare, but even when it’s in place, it requires legislators to be enforcers, as with the above video or citizens to risk their livelihoods taking them to court. The Chevron Deference had been used to give the advantage in these situations to the agencies as the de facto experts.
I seriously feel that the various bureaucratic agencies are being allowed to run the show. Even granting them the benefit of the doubt on knowing a lot about the things they oversee, bureaucracies tend to be invasive. They try and make themselves seem more valuable by growing and inserting themselves into more things. This is true with private bureaucracies and seemingly more so with public bureaucracies. When President Biden said we’re going to add 80,000 more IRS agents, I never heard the IRS say, they could get by with 50,000 or even lets start with 30,000 and see how it goes… No, they gladly accepted the growth, the larger budget and the increase power that came with this.
IRS: You owe us money. It’s called taxes. Me: How much do I owe? IRS: You have to figure that out. Me: I just pay what I want? IRS: Oh, no! We know exactly how much you owe. But you have to guess that number too. Me: What if I get it wrong? IRS: You go to prison. ME: [rifling through papers] Ok this is all kind of confusing, but I think this is how much I owe. IRS: Yikes, looks like you missed a number somewhere. I guess you’re going to prison. ME: [being handcuffed] Can’t argue with justice! – Jordan Stratton
As I mentioned on the previous post here, the agencies’ positions and enforcement can swing wildly based on whichever party is in office. Taking the political positions out, at least as much as possible, by putting it back in the hands of the judiciary, seem prudent. Acknowledging their expertise in these things, it would make more sense to bring them in when the law is being crafted rather than waiting until it’s in place and subject to their, sometimes bias, interpretation.
The striking down of the Chevron Deference seems to make perfect sense to me, but only time will tell. While in place, it was interpreted broadly, which caused the problems leading to the Supreme Court’s review. Doing away with it may create a new set of unintended consequences, but with government in general, less is better…
Strange Use of Funds (cont.)
August 5, 2024
Kevin Berger
Commentary, Culver
Community, Culver, government, INDOT, Rants
This is a Culver follow up on the Burr Oak post, Strange Use of Funds, from last September. I still vacillate between amusement at the absurdity of that project and outrage at the wasted tax dollars.
In any case, my bemusement extends to Culver and the thinking that went into the crosswalk from the southwest corner to the northwest corner of intersection of S.R. 10 & S.R. 17 at the end of Lake Shore Drive. First, it’s an absurd place for a crosswalk. As with some of those pointed out in the Burr Oak post, there is no connecting walk on the north side. Second, there are no storm drains or even right-of-way swales, so the condition pictured to the right, is pretty normal when there is any rain at all. Third, in the best of conditions, as shown in the picture below, the corner remains muddy after a rain, the walk is below the road and the surrounding grass, and it runs directly into a gas line marker and part of a stone wall!
This was a Town of Culver project, but I assume this design falls squarely within INDOT requirements. Culver just wanted a sidewalk going west to accommodate Culver Academy students walking to the Family Dollar. This extra little feature was no doubt a INDOT requirement, costing several thousand dollars in engineering and construction. Money spent to solve an non-existent issue, while not fixing real issues, i.e. flooding and obstacles, that make this even less useful, if that’s even possible.
I often wonder if others see these things. For any of you that have looked at this and scratched your head, did you also notice the weird hump in the sidewalk just west of this intersection? The rest of the new walk pretty much follows the curb grade, except for the 20′ +/- section right there that rises up 4″-6″ and then back down for no discernible reason. I suspect someone kicked a grade stake and no one noticed until it was too late, but that’s just a theory. There could be many other explanations. It just looks weird though…
Keep your eyes open people. You never know what you’ll run across. Best to just be amused, because impotent outrage will just make you crazy.
0 comments