Wow! It’s been a while since those Thumbs! have been going up-and-down, hasn’t it? Let’s jump on it.
Move those Thumbs!
- Thumbs UP! to Danville’s City Council for getting the message across that now isn’t the time for a tax increase. Speaking of taxes…
- Thumbs DOWN! to Pittsylvania County Supervisor Marshall Ecker for a DOA suggestion to start taxing lottery tickets. Ecker is why the Dillon Rule is still needed in Virginia.
- Thumbs UP! to a Pittsylvania County citizens group for attempting yet again to get Sunday beer/wine sales in the rest of the county.
- While we’re talking about Sunday beer/wine sales in the county, I have to give a Perpetual Thumbs DOWN! to Supervisors Tim Barber & Coy Harville for their attempt to bypass the will of the voters in the last election cycle. The voters in the Callands/Gretna District approved the Sunday sale law, yet Barber & Harville attempted to keep the actual law off of the BOS agenda. When the voters speak, the supervisors must listen. I’ll never forget that episode.
Ok, enough about government & taxes. Let’s move on to other things…
- Thumbs DOWN! to Jerry Meadors. In a recent R&B article, the former director said the failure of the operation was lack of funding from the city leaders and local foundations. Really, Jerry? Look at what the Prizery has done in South Boston and take some lessons from that. You had a grant opportunity for $110K if you had raised $60K. You failed that test, so why should anybody else try with public money?
- Thumbs UP! to Darriel Burnett. He’s the leader of the Danville Tea Party, and he “gets it”. You may not agree with his political philosophy, but you have to admire the way that Burnett has brought rationality and calmness into the organization that was once known for their ridiculous stunts. You’ve still got a few Danville Tea Party people who shout at telephone poles, but Burnett is trying to straighten the ship’s course. It looks like the local Tea Party is finally going to get into local issues and if they do things in Burnett’s style, they should be able to make their voices heard.
That’s enough Thumbs! for now. Got any comments? Post them here.
On Danville City Budget: You eventually have to pay the piper. What they don’t get now, they will get later and it will be even more. As more people leave the area and the State continues to provide less revenue-well, you have to bite the bullet. The ONLY reason there has been no RE increase is because they have been taking millions from utilities, which is a reason why our utilities cost what they do. Which can you afford-your utilities or your RE tax? I bet you would end up better off if you paid a little more in property tax than to continue to provide general fund dollars from utilities. The City will make cuts, but they will still have to generate revenue.
On the issue of the local Tea Party…I give Mr. Burnette credit for asking for civility when there was none. I agree that it was long overdue and glad it was done, but hey, it was obvious that their attitude was costing them support and gave them a bad image. That move was a no brainer! What is worth mentioning is that they effectively have silenced the person who started the local group.