Heavy Hitters!

[Jerry]

The good news: Barbara "I'll spend your money like a drunken sailor" Welch is out.

The bad news: The Excess Levy is still in: People have one again voted to pay taxes THREE TIMES on this school system. So, what will you get?

"The new excess levy, will bolster salaries, help fund new elementary schools, technology and high school commons areas and pay for new counselors, custodians and art teachers."

There ya go. We sure as hell need Art Teachers, "counselors, and automatic pay raises in these economic times don't we.

Fine.... I DON'T WANT TO HEAR ANYONE CRYING AND WHINING ABOUT THE PRICE OF GASOLINE, ELECTRICITY, NATURAL GAS, WATER, SEWER RATES... OR ANYTHING ELSE!

Stuck in third place most of the night, Board President Jim Crawford surged late to tie challenger Robin Rector in the race for the Kanawha County Board of Education.

Pending an official canvass, Rector will overtake incumbent Barbara Welch on the board. Crawford will retain his seat.

With all 160 precincts reporting, Crawford and Rector tied for the most votes at 12,321 each. Seven candidates vied for two spots.

Welch trailed in third place, with 12,153 votes. She led challenger Bill Ferrell, who received 11,126 votes.

Crawford, who spars with board member Pete Thaw on most issues, is displeased with the negativity of the campaign. Thaw campaigned for Rector and Ferrell.

When asked if he could work well with Rector, Crawford said "anything's possible."

"I can just say I'm really pleased. I represented my campaign well. I'm just very appreciative of all the support," Rector said late Tuesday, before all precincts were counted.

County voters also backed an excess levy by a margin of 60.39 percent for, with 24,668 votes, to 39.61 percent against, or 16,182 votes. The five-year excess levy is worth about $44 million a year. It needed a simple majority of voters to pass.

http://www.wvgazette.com/News/200805140022

[CallmeSue]

After this bond levy passed, I do not want to hear the whinning regarding greedy BIG OIL COMPANIES.
My response to any comments directed at me will be "I do not know about the oil companies with a 6 to 8% profit margin but I know the residents of my county support the BIG SPENDY school system who pilfer more than 6 to 8% of county tax dollars alone."
It is beyond me to understand the rationale of pointing the finger at the oil companies or utilities and throwing support behind BIG GOVERNMENT usless the people are ate up with the socialist propaganda.
Spend our way to prosperity. Support the government and not free enterprise. We are so stupid that we stamp our approval for more TAXES.
We deserve what we have become. A servant of the state.

[DMike]

I continue to be amazed at the stupidity of the people.

It almost seems like they should have had that teacher driving the "get away" car for this robbery as well.

[Gladys]

Everything is going UP. There is aboslutely nothing to be gained by whining about it. I have mixed feelings about the levy. The school board leadership is less than adequate, however we must educate our kids and do it well. The statement that everything is going up, however is the point I wish to make. We are all going to have to get used to it and adjust.

[Jerry]

While it's true that everything's going up, it doesnt mean that we have to throw money at the school system THREE TIMES in order for these kids to get a decent education! Many counties do fine with just the State money. We have a completely BLOATED system here that fools have bought into, and God help us when we're thrown into the streets for not being able to pay our property taxes due to the fact that EVERYTHING'S going up.

[P.E.]

After this bond levy passed, I do not want to hear the whinning regarding greedy BIG OIL COMPANIES.
My response to any comments directed at me will be "I do not know about the oil companies with a 6 to 8% profit margin but I know the residents of my county support the BIG SPENDY school system who pilfer more than 6 to 8% of county tax dollars alone."
It is beyond me to understand the rationale of pointing the finger at the oil companies or utilities and throwing support behind BIG GOVERNMENT usless the people are ate up with the socialist propaganda.
Spend our way to prosperity. Support the government and not free enterprise. We are so stupid that we stamp our approval for more TAXES.
We deserve what we have become. A servant of the state.

I just don't understand how the voters of this County can be so stupid, the politicians can ask for anything and the voters will vote for it. It would be a good time for the county to say they need some type of user tax, because the tax payers will definitely approve it !!

[MikeAldridge]

It is utterly amazing that Jim Crawford would be re-elected to the Kanawha County School Board.

I really think something is up with the voting in kanawha County. This man has trailed every time and just at the end manages to get a surge. I am not buying it.

[wienerdog]

Of course it has nothing to do with the geriatrics running the polls and counting ballots, right?

[Jerry]

I sent this to the newspaper:


Once again the voters of Kanawha County have been duped into voting for the Excess Levy. We are taxed THREE TIMES once again to feed this bloated school system that should be cutting back, instead of hiring more "counselors and art teachers". Most of these voters are the very same people who complain about the cost of gasoline, increased water and sewer rates, electricity and natural gas. These are the same people who will call their representatives and Vent Line to shout about the high cost of living, and yet, they almost PLEAD with the government to take hundreds of more dollars away from them to spend any way they wish. To you I say... don't ever complain about anything again!

For a taxpayer with a house of a fair market value of $100,000 and a vehicle worth $15,000, the current excess levy would account for $281 of his property tax bill this year.

That same taxpayer will pay $290 next year based on the excess levy.

There ya go... almost $300 that you could spend on gasoline or to keep warm in the winter. We MUST have money to burn!

[ibposing]

...however we must educate our kids and do it well.

I would like to see an itsy bitsy piece of proof that we are doing this.

[P.E.]

Of course it has nothing to do with the geriatrics running the polls and counting ballots, right?

I knew an old lady from the westside (she is now dead) and she had always worked the election since I was a kid....... she told me that they (the poll workers) have voted the dead for years. This was in the 90's and she said that she had about 75 dead people that she voted for. I thought she was full of it, but from the results of this election it seems obvious that she must have been telling me the truth.

[afan]

It is very easy for the voters who pay no taxes to declare that those of us who DO pay taxes should pay more of them...

[JackSharkey]

Can someone tell me one accomplishment that Jim Crawford has done in life that would have the voters of Kanawha County constantly re-elect him into office? The laziest teacher and coach that I have ever seen. And I have had that opinion for decades.

[MikeAldridge]

Jack is that a serious question. Just look at who the majority of voters keep putting back in office wv. do we really think anything is ever going to change?

Jerry, is right about one thing. WV will never change because the voters are stupid enough to keep electing the same people and think things will change.

WAKE UP KANAWHA COUNTY.