Max Miller Dead at 93

We lost a friend Sunday. Max Miller died at 93 Sunday morning. If you knew Max, your life was better. The eulogies will be better said by others, but New Philadelphia will miss this quiet man who gave his life to make things better for all of us, unselfishly, without expecting a return, just because he thought it was right. You'll be missed Max.

Police Contract Vote

In answer to a question from an anonymous writer on the voting on the Police contract, see the comment on Police Contract Reprise of November 24, a note of explanation. There were two resolutions, 35-2009 to Adopt the Agreement with the FOP, and 36-2009 to Reject the Agreement with the FOP. Each resolution required five votes to pass as they both were proposed as emergency resolutions.
On Resolution 35-2009 the vote to Accept the contract the Police requested, the vote was three Against Acceptance, Sandy Cox, Winnie Walker, and Bob Conner, and four For Acceptance, Jim Locker, Colleen Espenschied, Darin Lautenschleger, and Rob Maurer.
On Resolution 36-2009 the vote to Reject the contract the Police requested, the vote to Reject was four in Favor of Rejection, Sandy Cox, Bob Conner, Jim Locker, and Winnie Walker, and three Against Rejection, Colleen Espenschied, Darrin Lautenschleger, and Rob Maurer.
As the the Police Contract was neither adopted nor rejected by City Council, and no opening of negotiations on this contract is planned by either the Administration or the Police Department, by Ohio law, the contract will automatically go into force the first part of October with the effective date of January 1, 2010.

Investers Business Daily

A link was added to bring you a new perspective on world news. I know. There are losts of news pages floating around, but this one does not seem to have the bias of the major networks and big city newspapers. You owe it to yourself to give it a try. If you are tired of the party line coming from the White House and Congress you will certainly find this one interesting.

Road Signs

It seems a long time ago, but there was a time when my wife and I traveled the country in a 34-foot motor coach. I wrote for an Indiana newspaper in those days. I was going through some files the other day and came across some articles I had written. This one shows that times haven't changed in the last fifteen years.

MILE MARKERS REMAIN A MYSTERY

RHODES, IOWA - One of the great mysteries of travel is when are we going to get there? How far away are we? With children, this translates to, "Are we there yet?" After four cups of coffee, distance converts into crisis.
Fear not. The highway department understands and wants to help. So does the American Automobile Association, lovingly known as Triple A.
Triple A makes great maps. They show more towns than you ever want to visit, more roads than you ever want to drive. Mileage between towns is marked on the map. Look for the little numbers. Some are red, some are black. I never figured out why.
The highway department puts up signs all over the road system. Most have green backgrounds and white letters. Chicago 120 miles, or Ames, if you happen to be in Iowa, 23 miles.
But wait. Between what points do they measure?
I asked Deb McNamara of the Marshalltown Triple A.
"Between the main post offices," she said.
"But, Deb", I asked. "What about a place like Las Vegas where the post office is out of town?"
"Maybe we should call the county engineer," she said.
Deb dialed the county. Gene McKiven answered at the county engineer's shop. A miss. Gene is a mechanic. He suggested the court house. I talked to Wayne Chezek. Wayne is a computer specialist. He can write programs to do anything, probably get a man to Mars, if you want.
"Interesting question," he said. "I never thought about it before."
Royce Fichtner happened by Gene's desk. He is the county engineer. Knows all about roads and things.
"It's measured from the center of town, or from the court house," he said.
Well, maybe. "In Des Moines," Royce said, "the starting point is someplace downtown, but might not be the courthouse." He wasn't sure. The state capitol is there. That complicates things. Sometimes the starting, or ending, point of the measurement is at a cross roads.
"Here in Marshalltown," he said, "it's measured from the junction of US 30 and Route 14."
I mentioned to Royce that was five miles from the court house.
"Yeah," he said.
What happens if you are coming from the other side of town? I guess it's further.
It depends on who is marking the mileage, according to Royce. Everybody does it differently. On major roads, like US 30, it is the state's responsibility to determine starting and stopping points. His responsibility is for county roads. Depending on the size of the town, it can be the city limits, the town hall, the blinker light, what ever. There doesn't seem to be a rule.
"A lot of times," Royce said, "the man who puts up the sign decides."
I called the Iowa state department of transportation highway department. Nobody answered. After 12 minutes I hung up.
I called the department of transportation, United States Government. They have a recorder. Press 1 for a two minute presentation by the secretary of transportation on spraying of insecticides in airplanes coming from overseas and its effect on passengers. Press 2 for an explanation by an under-secretary of transportation about labels that are going to be put on cars showing in which country they were manufactured. Press 3 for news about the Coast Guard guarding the coast. I pressed 0 and got an operator.
I think she thought I was crazy. I don't believe she knew about mileage markers.
I got transferred to Warren Flaceau in the highway information department.
"What is used as a starting and ending point for measuring the mileage between towns and along the way," I asked?
"Who is this," he said?
I told him who I was and that I worked for a newspaper.
"I don't know the answer. I don't think anyone here does," he said. "We'll have to do research on it and call you back."
Sure.
On the other hand, I'm usually in the car, not walking, so maybe a guess is good enough.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving. In spite of it all, there are a number of things to be happy about this year. For one we can quote Will Rogers, if the name isn't familiar to you, you are younger than you think. Anyhow, he said that we should be thankful that we aren't getting all the government we are paying for.

My thought was to write something about Thanksgiving which would be memorable prose, memorable due to its eloquence and profundity and not its length, but in the interest of Thanksgiving will keep it short.

I want to thank God for what He has so generously given us. We have it mixed up when we say God bless America, because He already has ten thousand fold. We have the blessing of a country which is abundant in natural resources, minerals, timber, water, coal, petroleum, natural gas, futile ground, material things beyond the imagination.

He gave us the ability to become the greatest country which ever existed, making the glories of Rome and Greece, in their day, pale before what our country has accomplished. He bestowed knowledge, understanding, and moral values which, in a few hundred years, built a wilderness into a power which, by its industrial might, twice armed a world to fight tyranny and destroy plans for enslavement.

By His might and in His name we have freed millions of people from oppression, protected countries too weak to defend themselves, helped the oppressed in times of peace when disaster struck, and asked nothing in return.

We stood proud as our soldiers, sailors, and airmen answered the call to duty from Concord and Bunker Hill to Iraq and Afghanistan. We lived the fights of Lake Erie, Gettysburg, Little Round Top, the Little Big Horn, Mexico, the Marne, Bataan, Iwo Jima, the daylight raids, Normandy, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf and Near East. Our soldiers died to preserve freedom and expected nothing in return.

We stopped the concentration camps of Adolph Hitler, the brutality of Josef Stalin. We rebuilt a destroyed Europe and Japan. We freed the satellite countries of the Soviet Union and asked nothing in return.

What do I have to be thankful for this Thanksgiving? That I was a part of this country when it stood for right, liberty, freedom, and responsibility to its citizens. I'm thankful that I have a God who loves and protects me and who will continue to do so regardless of what man will do to destroy the bounty and blessings He so lovingly bestowed on us.

I am thankful for the knowledge that God and Jesus will protect me and remain with me through the troubled days which may come to my country and family.

God bless and keep all of you, not only during this Thanksgiving Day, but for ever and a day.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Police Contract Reprise

Well, New Philadelphia, you've been had again.

The Police Contract is evidently going to be approved, even if only by a technicality. Last night City Council couldn't muster the votes to either adopt or reject the proposed contract. It required a vote of five to do either, and both options, accept and reject, were one vote short. In another week it becomes effective by state law because of the lack of decision. It was, to me, an unbelievable display of self interest and ignorance which set the stage to let this contract go into effect.

The Mayor indicated that a pay raise from $20.41 to $21.61 was only 1%. One of us needs a new calculator.

One council member indicated that the proposed contract will save the city money. If you increase wages, benefits, overtime formulas, and retirement, how can that save money?

The City Auditor said, for the umpteenth time, that in her opinion the City finances would carry us through the end of this year, but she didn't have a clue what was going to happen next year.

The City income tax is far behind last year's revenue, and there are still two months to be accounted for in this year. The money in general fund and Safety Forces fund are both well below last year.

And what we never did find out, is what more does the city get for it's money from this contract. Read the contract if you chose. It's a matter of public record. The answer is nothing. Well, that's not exactly true. You can look forward to higher taxes in the foreseeable future. The Mayor promised that in the Mayoral debate at Kent State when he was running for office.

But, that's not all. There are two other city unions negotiating contracts with the city. Their contractual requests are secrets at this point, but when they hit the council floor, you can expect to see similar increases to what the police contract contains.

So how did it finish up last night? Another round of pay increases for the Safety Forces. No predictions on next year's city income. A total unemployment rate in Ohio of sixteen percent. Increasing foreclosures in the state. Ohio in debt in excess of a billion dollars. The federal government in debt for more than eleven trillion dollars. No foreseeable increase in city income. More wage and benefit increases for city employees in the wings. I guess I'll have to borrow the mayor's calculator to figure this one out.

Thanks For Your Support

The Election Vote from the General Election on November 3 was certified last week with no changes to what was reported on election night. For those of you who keep count, I finished with 551, Zucal with 604, and Buterbaugh with 61. And so it went.

I want to thank those of you who voted in this past election. The turnout in Ward Two was gratifying, the number of voters far outnumbering those of any of the other three wards.

While I won't return to City Council, what I have learned over the past four years will not be wasted. The New Philadelphia Tattler will be your watchdog, not only for City Council, but the Administration and what ever else needs looking at, and reporting to you, the voter. After four years I know where to look, and look I will. If you need a place to vent your frustrations, here it is. If you can't get answers to your questions, let me give it a try. If you have concerns about the city, items of interest, whatever, drop a note. I don't have the council seat anymore, but I do have New Philadelphia Tattler, and will report the answers, non-answers and evasions.

So, in short, I didn't get sent back to represent Ward Two. But I'll still carry your case to Council, report what I hear, and generally make myself more beloved to the Administration.

Thanks again for your support in the election. But it's over and I'm for getting on with trying to protect the City from the spending and fiscal irresponsibility which is lurking in the new year.

Increasing City Costs

Union contracts are progressing. Even before the vote on the Police Contract on Monday, November, 23, 2009 in City Council, the Mayor has announced that the Police Department has requested a fact finder hearing. The date is set for December, 7, 2009. The Fire Department fact finding is scheduled for Tuesday, November 24. The American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees union (AFSCME) which represents city employees other than the Police and Fire Departments, had their third meeting with the Administration last Friday, the 20th, and announced suspension of bargaining until they see how the Fire Department makes out in their fact finding session. City Council, at this writing, has no clue as to what AFSCME is requesting but if the past month is any indication, you can bet it is going to be expensive.

How did we get to this point? The difference is in experience. The union advisers are professional union negotiators. The City does not have the experience in contract negotiation. Maybe there are different motivations involved, different priorities. One thing for sure, the welfare of the New Philadelphia citizen is not on the top of the list.

Total unemployment in Ohio has now reached 16.1%. Home foreclosures are growing daily. Food banks are serving record numbers of folks not able to meet daily food requirements. City tax revenues have fallen $352,735 this year and there are still two months yet to be reported.

The unions do not take this into consideration in the new contracts. Their consideration is self-serving. They demand pay increases of up to nine percent, fifteen percent when you include benefits, at a time when other municipalities are taking cuts and facing layoffs.

And so the lines are drawn between city workers, who believe the City owes them wages which are greater than 51% of those New Philadelphia families they serve and those who feel the obligation to protect tax payers from the increased tax burden which is waiting in the wings.

Public service or self service? City Workers, the Administration, and City Council must decide.

New Philadelphia Police Contract

The police contract is up for grabs again in New Philadelphia. City Council will vote on it come Monday, November 23. Actually, Council votes on whether to accept it or turn it down. There is no other option. The contract itself was put together by members from the Police Department and the Administration who agreed on what will be changed and included in the contract. It is their wish that Council just accept it without any consideration of its effects on the folks who have to pay the bill. This time, it's a honey. I've seen it, Council had a short discussion about it, and this one isn't in the best interests of the city.

Here we are in the midst of severe economic problems. Total unemployment in the state exceeds 16% with that number still on the rise. Washington considers it a victory when the number of folks applying for unemployment insurance is slightly down from the previous month. Less workers being laid off isn't good news. People getting jobs is good news, unless those jobs are newly created government jobs, which most are. It's back again to ignorance on the part of governments, large and small, and their inability to understand what is happening to middle America, those folks who are dependant on jobs for wages. One thing that never changes. No matter what the common man faces, government wages seldom fail.

Council asked that wages be held to a one-percent increase for this contract.
When the proposed contract was presented to council, the one-percent increase had long since disappeared. Consider the following hourly wage increases agreed to by the Administration for Patrol Officers based on service time:
1 to 2 years - increases 7.5% from $20.17 to $21.61, or from $41,954 to $44,949 a year
2 to 4 years - increases 5.9%, from $20.41 to $21.61, or from $42,452 to $44,949 a year
4 to 8 years - increases 3.8% from $20.81 to $21.61, or from $43,285 to $44,949 a year
8 to 15 years - increases 2.4% from $21.11 to $21.61, or from $43,909 to $44,949 a year
15 plus years - increases 1.0% from $21.40 to $21.61, or from $44,512 to $44,949 a year

Same thing for Dispatchers and Jailers:
1 to 2 years - increases 9.6% from $17.74 to $19.45, or from $36,899 to $40,456 a year
2 to 4 years - increases 7.8% from $18.04 to $19.45, or from $37,523 to $40,456 a year
4 to 8 years - increases 5.5% from $18.44 to $19.45, or from $38,355 to $40,456 a year
8 to 15 years - increases 3.7% from $18.75 to $19.45, or from $39,000 to $40,456 a year
15 plus years - increases 1.9% from $19.09 to $19.45, or from $39,707 to $40,456 a year

But, like the huckster on TV says, that's not all. If you happen to be a Jail Administrator, Dispatcher, SWAT member, or an On-call Detective, you get an additional $.25 an hour for every hour you work. Hear that? For every hour you work. Which means additional wages of $520 a year. But wait, that's not all. There's longevity paid at the following monthly rates:
5 to 10 years $15 for $180 a year
10 to 15 years $20 for $240 a year
15 to 20 years $30 for $360 a year
20 to 25 years $40 for $480 a year
Over 25 years $50 for $600 a year

Captains can't be left out, their wages to be set on a floating scale which pays them 10% more than the highest paid patrolman. New positions of Sergeant are included in the contract with another floating pay scale which is 5% above the highest paid patrolman. There is a danger here because according to the contract as it is now, the City and the Union shall reopen the bargaining contract for wage negotiations for in 2011 and 2012. The secret word here is "shall", and that is scary.

But, as the TV huckster says, there's even more. If an officer is called in for an emergency, he will get three hours minimum pay regardless of the time worked, and that paid at one-and-a half-times for overtime if necessary. And while that sounds like it should be it, it isn't. You add to that uniform allowances of $900 in 2010, $925 in 2011, and $950 in 2012, which is actually untaxed income. The city's payments to life insurance, health insurance, dental insurance, and wage based items such a Medicare, retirement, education, vacation, sick leave, and other payments to and for the members of the police force covered by contract, federal, and/or state mandate, add up to close to 48% additional cost up and above base salaries.

Simply put, to equal the package requested by this contract for one of our patrolmen in the non-governmental world would require a job paying a minimum of $65,000 a year.

City Council, the Administration, and the city's unions all have responsibility to the people of New Philadelphia which includes financial responsibility. Tax revenues are falling because of decreasing employment. Foreclosures are rising. Prices are still on the increase. Wages and jobs are still decreasing. It is time for the city as a whole to understand that city wage increases are not in the best interest of the city or its citizens. Wages can be increased by contract, revenues cannot. If our city employees believe that they have a responsibility to the citizens of New Philadelphia, they will forgo wage increases in this time of depression.

There may be a question why I speak out on contractual wage increases at this time. I am not singling out the police department. I had the same feelings when the fire department contract was discussed a month ago, but was unable to express them because the fire department contract was discussed behind closed doors in what I considered an unnecessary executive session. That session was unfair to the public and denied them the ability to understand the implications of that contract. This contract was briefly discussed by council and no decision made. The police department union contract will be voted on this Monday, November 23. I invite your comments. I invite you to contact your councilmen, your mayor, the media, and to make personal comments to the city council on this issue next Monday evening. Remember that this is your city, your finances, your savings we are talking about. There is no issue other than money here. The city must come to the realization that we are in a depression, that people are losing their jobs, incomes, and homes. This is not the time to raise expenses.

Concealed Carry Ordinance

Well, the uninformed are at it again. If you want to get people riled up, mention firearms in general and concealed carry specifically. I can't think of many issues which cause the debate and furor that those do. I've heard it all before from the anti-gun folks and it's started again with a requested change in legislation by Chief Urban to city council. As usual, the loudest complaints come from people who don't have a clue about the real world. Well, people, wake up and take a look.

Consider this. More people die from doctors' mistakes than from gunshots. More children drown in bathtubs than from gunshots. Cities which have the greatest restrictions on concealed carry have the largest crime rates including rape, murder, break-ins, theft, holdups, drugs, gang shootings, drive-by shootings. Don't believe it? Look up the statistics for Washington, DC, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Detroit. Guns are terrible, that's why shootings at schools make the news. What doesn't make the news, probably because of political bias, are incidents such as the shooting at the Appalachian Law School in Virginia in January 2002 which left three dead. That part made national news, but nothing was mentioned that the attack was brought to an end by two students who who ran to their cars, got their pistols which were in them, and confronted the shooter who immediately stopped the attack by throwing his gun down. The difference between that incident and the tragedy at Columbine High School is obvious, nobody at Columbine High School had a gun with which to confront the shooter. Yep. The gun ban there was effective in preventing any defense of the school by law abiding citizens. Unfortunately, the two murderers didn't see fit to obey the ban. What was the result of the gun ban at Fort Hood? Nobody had a gun except a Muslim who murdered unarmed soldiers.

The moral here is simple. Gun bans just don't work. They make victims of us all. If you don't want to carry a gun, don't. But don't deride those who legally carry concealed weapons to protect themselves, and consequently you, from criminals who don't give a hoot about laws which restrict the carrying of defensive weapons.

Well, back to the legislation in city council to permit the carrying of concealed weapons in the park. A couple of things. The state law is specific that guns are not allowed in government buildings. Buildings, not property outside the buildings. As state law takes precedence over local law, the ordinance had to be brought up to date. It's that simple.

Chief Urban was correct to request the change to the city ordinance. In the long run there won't be any noticeable change in concealed carrying in the parks and cemeteries. They are concealed. Concealed, get it? And that's the whole idea. The weirdos who may want to make an attack in the park will have second thoughts about it because they have no idea who is armed and who isn't. Criminals aren't stupid and readily admit that the risk of their injury or death is higher in areas where citizens are armed. Don't believe it? Look it up. I mean you look it up if you really care.

One final thought. You don't hear about it in the press but about a million and a half times a year some type of criminal activity, murder, theft, rape, you name it, is stopped because a citizen with a gun was there to challenge the perpetrator.

Welcome to the New Philadelphia Tattler

Welcome to a new blog. If you are interested in politics, especially in New Philadelphia, Ohio, this blog may be of interest to you. I am completing four years on the City Council and created this site because I think you should have the ability to know what goes on both in and out of council chambers.


It has been my experience that citizen interest in the operation of New Philadelphia has been limited by a history of inattention by the administration and city council to the needs, questions, and requests by the citizens of the city. This is the result of arrogance, ignorance, lack of understanding of the needs of the citizen, and a lack of commitment by members of both administration and council. For the most part, the administration and council are composed of members who long ago lost touch with the majority of people who live in the city. Decisions are not always made by existing law, which has been knowingly ignored, but on party lines, family ties, political expediency, financial gain, and just plain laziness to look into the facts and implications of legislation being considered.


With this in mind, the New Philadelphia Tattler was started. Our objectives are to provide news about what is going on in the city, along with commentary, both yours and ours, which you won't find anywhere else. You will be able to ask questions and get answers on this site. You have the opportunity to express your opinion on all types of subjects.

Here is the forum which the city should provide but doesn't. It's up to you now. I'd like to hear from you.