A Revolutionary Idea to End the Independence Day Weekend

[XLFD]

When Independence Day (July 4th) falls on a Thursday, one can't help but look at it, for at least a brief moment, as a summer Thanksgiving with a slightly different focus.  Whereas both are a time for family to get together and follow established traditions in celebration of our blessings and of being in America for these strictly American holidays, Thanksgiving is a bit less showy and more of a private celebration of a year almost finished with a bountiful harvest reaped, even if none in the family are farmers.

On July 4th, we also give thanks and we do often have feasts, but we do so in observance of our country's founding, which happened well after the pilgrims landed and had the first Thanksgiving with Native Americans.  Those people both had their own significantly different rules of governance than what was to come after the Declaration of Independence signified that the thirteen colonies were to become united states, the date of the ratification of that document to become this midsummer holiday.  

Our country appears to be having some existential threats as we approach our nation's sestercentennial in 2026.  Only the most rabid partisan will deny that our nation's chief executive has been showing signs of cognitive decline over his term and that whoever is in charge of the executive branch has weaponized the justice system and our courts against the leader of the opposing party and those who would support him.  Such actions would have been stridently and universally condemned by both parties in the past, because they knew such Banana Republic conduct would be destructive to our actual republic (and eventually their own party).  Nowadays, one can see a great majority of those in the corridors of power (in both parties) and their corporate media partners cheering such actions.  

But at the Ludington Torch, we recognize that all politics is local, so when our federal and state leaders are acting against the republic and advancing the administrative state beyond its reasonable boundaries, we notice the effect in our councils, boards, and commissions.  The Ludington City Council is where this has most recently manifested itself in force.  

By its charter (section 8.6) and state law, the city lacks the authority to adopt appropriation and revenue ordinances for the next year until after they have adopted a budget.  Yet, last summer they raised taxes by nearly $300,000 in July, over five months before they adopted a budget.  This year they plan on hiking taxes in 2025 by over $300,000 in July, before any 2025 budget discussions have taken place. 

Provided they unlawfully do this action once again (see p. 27-44), city hall will be raising over $600,000 more than they normally would have access to in 2025, had our elected representatives not taken action under truth in taxation hearings to raise your tax rates in 2023 and 2024.  That's over $200 per household, households hit hard by recent inflation rates on food, housing, transportation, and utilities.  

Last year, the Ludington Torch was the lone voice at the public hearing, asking for rationales as to why they deserved a raise/reward in taxes that went beyond the rate of inflation guaranteed to them under the Headlee Amendment and why the inflation-infested citizens of Ludington deserved the punishment of a tax hike.  We had made a similar plea in writing at the prior meeting.  Without discussion and without any no votes, the council passed the unlawful ordinances then and threw every homeowner the bill.  

This year, the council will likely do the same under the watchful eye of their unlawful interim city manager, Jeanne Oakes.  Why would they do otherwise with only one nettlesome insect gnawing at their narrative that they need your money more than you do?  Britain's King George thought the same when the colonists had no voice in his court.

No, our elected representatives who are supposed to represent our interests seem to believe that they are entitled to the money you earned more than you.  I talked with Councilor Kathy Winczewski, who has the most seniority on the council and now chairs the Finance Committee, after a meeting within the last year.  She was adamant that I was wrong in saying that her vote in July 2023 was to raise taxes and indicated that the money was the City's by right.  She wouldn't even concede the point that had she done nothing, that the $300,000 raised by her tax hike would still be in the pockets of Ludington property owners.  But the notices are clear, property taxes will be increased, and that money comes from property owners:

At the June 24th meeting of this year, I made clear to the council that these appropriations and revenue ordinances for 2025 are unlawful before the 2025 budget has been adopted, it's in the charter.  They seem to have brushed it off, fearful that if they release a real reason why they need over $300,000 to stuff a turkey budget, it won't compare to the reason our households could use that extra $100 they want to take from us.  

The American Revolution that we effectively celebrated yesterday, arose from onerous actions by the Crown to exact more money from colonists more prosperous on average than those in jolly old England.  Whether it was the Townshend Acts, the Stamp Act, or other ways to earn money from the colonists who would see no return of services, it became unbearable and intolerable for many to continue paying taxes to an oppressive government without any kind of representation.  

In Ludington, we do have representation, but all too often it represents the corporate interests of themselves or those of out-of-county developers who promise them a growing tax base dream, but generally deliver an infrastructure nightmare paid for by the taxpayers twice through corporate welfare and increasing public service/utility costs.  This model is a guaranteed failure over time. 

Our representatives may know this deep down in their consciousness, but with their median age in the 70s, believe that the point of failure will come after they leave office and are given a key to a city whose decline won't be noticed if it lasts just long enough to outlive the republic.  Let's hope our future generation remembers them for feeding the beast of destruction that left them in ruins.  

For now, you have a voice in your local government.  They can silence you on social media, they can receive your letters and emails and not ever reply, they can even throw you out of meetings or keep you out of meetings by meeting in restricted access places.  They can even publish bad things about you on local corporate media.  But you are guaranteed a public hearing on this tax hike, and you should take advantage of that opportunity to explain exactly how your household could use that money more than they can and reinforce the fact that what they are doing is unlawful and harmful to the tax base.  

The notice above tells you where to go to give your input on this tax hike and how to celebrate Independence Day from an oppressive government in a more meaningful way, the Monday after.  

[Freedom Seeker]

I hope more citizens go to the City Council meeting this Monday with feathers, clown nose, music or whatever it takes to let them know they are unlawfully raising taxes under the leadership of a city manager acting without following City Charter law.

The trouble is that this tax increase is sneaked in at a time many residents of Ludington are on vacation, busy with their kids, busy at their jobs or otherwise busy with summer.

Do your best to regain your government!

[Freedom Seeker]

Even if you don't speak against the illegality of the new city manager, go to the City Council meeting Monday, July 8 to verbalize against another raise in taxes.

Some City Mercedes-types claim they need a raise, and treat residents like peon servants--claim NO tax hike!

[XLFD]

Bravo, FS, and thanks for adding the fact that people are busy on vacations, manning tourist/seasonal jobs, looking after kids, and/or enjoying the summer.  If this tax hike happens during the Christmas season, folks would have more time and be more aware of how their own budget was tested that year and may take offense that they would automatically be down about $100 simply because the council overrode Headlee and hiked taxes-- and likely see nothing on the budget that would justify their sacrifice.

[RK Hubbard]

Its interesting that you expect Ludington leaders to follow the law precisely, while you want the "leader of the opposing party" to get away with 34 financial felonies, a rape charge, obstruction of justice, stealing classified government documents, and tax fraud. None of those actions were taken while he was the president. The law is the law, right? 

[Willy]

RK you have no idea what you are saying. You represent all of the completely clueless and ignorant electorate that follow CNN and other news agencies who have continually lied to the American people. You are more senile than Biden. I usually don't get this negative with posters but you encompass all that is wrong with the ignorant left. I would debate you here but after all these years of listening to dumba-s A-holes like you who are going along with the Marxists trying to crush this Country, I've just had enough of it.

X, another excellent article. It's because of supporters like RK that give incentive to the corrupt behavior of all the dangerous politicians who are running so many good communities into the ground.

[RK Hubbard]

I worked for the federal government in Washington DC and other cities and held a security clearance for 29 years, so I think I know a bit about how our government works. Everything I said about "the leader of the opposing party" is factual. 

[XLFD]

Many of the people in Washington DC that are trying to derail Trump have three decades or more of experience with the federal government'[s administrative state, so why should you be any different in defending the proverbial swamp that does not recognize rights such as 'equal protection under the law' and all those other protections under the Bill of Rights that guarantees justice for all? 

What the Biden administration is orchestrating in these cases against Trump, which surprise, all came out after two years of being out of office and only when Trump indicated he would run in 2024, is disgustingly third world, and something that was never considered by President Trump despite all the legal infractions of the Obama Administration, where Hillary and Joe were caught doing some big time illegal stuff themselves while in office.  

If Trump wins, expect more of the same because he has already shown that he respects the constitution, despite what corporate media tells you; whoever is actually running the country right now has no respect for the people or principles that make this country special as shown by their actions throughout that have led to runaway inflation and a totally open border.

[RK Hubbard]

So "...equal protection under the law" means what? Trump broke the law. Why should he be protected from it? And "weaponizing the Justice Department?" From Fox News (the most heavily fined news organization in history) direct to your Web site. Nice bit of original prose there, Tom! Keep those Fox subscription dollars rolling in. They really need it to pay their $787,000,000 fine. And you might send a couple of bucks to bankrupt jailbird Alex Jones, who owes Sandy Hook families almost twice that much. 

[XLFD]

I don't get Fox News on my smart TV and I don't read their on-line articles, so guess again on where I get my vocabulary, besides CNN and other agencies well-known for actual fake news used to use the same language against Trump back when he was president as in this article Trump is weaponizing the EPA against California. 

The language is very applicable in the prosecutions against Trump. all of which reasonable people who look at the facts (rather than those spoon-fed and effectively brainwashed by their own corporate-based media) can agree as excessive and unlikely to be successful against anybody other than someone named Donald John Trump.  

I know you like the Democratic talking points, but equal protection was part of the 14th Amendment (probably the most substantial amendment after the original 10 in the Bill of Rights), which along with the 15th and 16th allowed recently freed slaves and Native Americans all the rights granted to white folks.  These amendments would typically get 100% support from congressional republicans, 0% from democrats, mostly representing states that had recently tried to secede from the union.  

The Democratic Party has done an admirable job of trying to nullify those advances over the years and put the black constituency back on the plantation, and they have done this by taking away rights and making it seem like they are doing them a favor.  

BTW, the civil fines you mention are clearly violating the Eighth Amendment rights of Mr. Jones and Mr. Trump, but if you don't even know that 'equal protection' is, you won't know or care about that either.

[stump]

    I really don't understand how the left leaning brains work or actually don't. Had a conversation with my daughter in-law the other day about the Trump/ Biden debate. She said she watched the whole debate and seen nothing wrong with Biden and his answers. I just couldn't wrap my head around that. Just that Trump was a convicted felon . Well, I'd vote for a convicted felon before a scarecrow with out a brain.

[XLFD]

Biden made this comment:  “I’m the only president this century that doesn’t have any — this decade — that doesn’t have any troops dying anywhere in the world, like [Trump] did.”

Those 13 from his total failure in Afghanistan apparently do not mean anything to him, if it wasn't apparent when he looked at his watch during the return of their dead bodies.  An unrefuted Trump claim: during the last 18 months of his term there were no combat casualties in Afghanistan, making the 12 2/3 months he had in office during this decade death-free, at least in that combat-sector.  This is only one of several lies and mumbles during Biden's comments and a reason why many former-supporters are finally realizing that he's not all there, some realizing that he is little more than a muppet.