Cutting Through the Propaganda

In sifting through all the propaganda supporting or opposing the state ballot proposals, I finally figured out how to vote.  It wasn’t easy.  I had to examine who stood to gain what and who was paying for what propaganda.  It got me thinking about our own 2 local proposals. 

There are four of us standing up to oppose 2 increases in taxes in Grosse Pointe Woods.  We all own pretty nice homes in Grosse Pointe Woods and have been here for decades.  Do you really think we want fewer Police on the street or want to close the pool or want our roads to crumble?  Of course not!  What could we possibly gain by reducing public safety or allowing our roads to remain in disrepair? 

Those who want you to vote in favor of these tax increases stand to gain plenty.  For one thing, they won’t have to make any cuts to parties or anything else for that matter.  It appears to be all about the employees and not about the residents, including this Mayor and Council who behave as if they are employees of the city and not guardians of the taxpayers’ money.  They are there to represent you!  If Headlee is overridden and taxable values increase, do you really suppose you will ever see any tax cut?  Have you ever seen a tax cut? I haven’t.

As for the road bond, it all sounds good until you think about the 10 years they have to spend it.  Why not do it for a shorter period of time in case taxable values go up?  That way, your tax dollars can be spent on the roads and there would be no need for the bonding and this additional millage.   

We are hearing that the city is threatening to cut police and close the municipal pool if you don’t vote the way they want you to vote.  Baloney!  If this city council is so cocky that they propose any such cuts, boot them out of office in November 2013.  There is NO reason for such cuts except to punish you for not voting with them.

We used the city’s own data to show that there is no multi-million dollar decrease in revenue as of March 2012 when the city comptroller said in no uncertain terms that there was a deficit of $664,000.  NOT $2.5 million.   Where did that figure come from?  By March 2012, the assessments were already finalized.  The city comptroller knew exactly what the shortfall would be and announced it at the public hearing on the budget which we attended and at which we spoke.  We identified cuts that we’ve identified for years that were never made which would have taken care of this budget deficit.  None of these cuts affect Police or recreation. None of these cuts affect the taxpayers.

So while you’re sifting through proposals, think about it.  What in the world do we have to gain?  Unnecessary spending needs to be cut BEFORE asking for more money.  Don’t let them scare you.  Look at our charts- these are THEIR figures not ours.  And while you’re at it, ask them to explain how the shortfall goes from $664,000 in March 2012 to 2.5 million in June 2012?  

Lisa Pinkos Howle