FEBRUARY 13 - FEBRUARY 19, 1999
FEBRUARY 19, 1999
These are Republicans?
Good morning. It is 25.3 degrees at 5:30 A.M. and do I have news for you!
Many people took great interest in the article that appeared here yesterday, Secret
slush funds? One reader wrote:
MR.BECK,
PLEASE GIVE US TAXPAYERS MORE INFO.ABOUT THIS LIFETIME CONTRACT. IT MUST
BE SOME JOKE OR SOMETHING. WHAT IS THE OECD AND WHERE DID IT COME FROM? BRADFORD IS GOING
BACKWARDS WITH THIS CURRENT MAYOR AND HER APPOINTED COUNCIL. IT IS SAD WHEN NOBODY CARES
TO RUN AGAINST HER.
WHAT WOULD CONNIE RUN ON HER RECORD? DON'T FORGET SHE BOUGHT THE OLD CITY HALL BUILDING
FOR MORE THAN THE CITY SOLD IT FOR. THE CITY COULD HAVE BOUGHT IT FOR BACK TAXES. I AM
GLAD YOU ARE RUNNING AGAIN. I SAVED YOUR SIGNS FROM THE LAST TIME YOU RAN. LET ME KNOW
WHEN YOU WANT THEM IN MY FRONT YARD? KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.
Along with that one, there were several others that said essentially the same
thing. At about the same time, the Court House called me on my cell phone with a message
from a Mr. Bullhorn of the Republican National Committee. It sounded important so I went
to a "land line" and returned the call.
"Mr. Beck," the call began. "Certain people have been following your
daily column. I have just brought myself up to speed today and have been skimming your
most recent articles on the internet. Let me start by saying you are quite a talented
writer."
"Thank you," I said. "What can I do for you?"
"You are running for re-election?" he asked.
"Yes I am," I answered. "Why?"
"We are concerned, both at the national and the state level, about the damage you
can do to fellow Republicans if you continue on the path that you are following."
"What are you talking about?" I asked, becoming irritated.
"Don't take this in the wrong way, but the way you depict certain Republicans, is
not very loyal."
"Are you talking about the Sludge King thing?" I asked.
"Yes," he said. "The Sludge King thing, the asking what is being served
instead of who he is serving, your attacks on the Governor and the Stadium Funding, your
insistence that the Homestead Act is a sham, your calling the local Party Chairman Kingfish,
and that Elmer Fudd thing. You attack and ridicule very important people in the Republican
Party."
I began to laugh.
"And you seem to think it is funny. Don't you have any party loyalty?"
"Listen, bub," I said. "I am more loyal to the Republican Principles
than any of you phonies in Washington or Harrisburg. As for the Republican Party, it has
lost its direction. I can't tell Republicans from Democrats anymore. Governor Ridge
insists on giving millionaires white collar welfare in the form of Stadium Funding and
raises the debt ceiling by $650 million dollars. The Democrats do things like that, not
Republicans. While he is giving money to those millionaires who are prepared to back him
for Vice President, look at what he has done to our State Store employees."
"What are you talking about?" he asked.
"The clerks in the State Liquor Stores are the only state workers who have gone
without a wage increase since July, 1995. Do you think that is fair?"
"I can't say," he said. "There must be extenuating circumstances."
"Oh! They are the only state employees who have been required to take concessions
in their health benefits, and newly hired clerks who come on as part-time workers, receive
no benefits at all. Then, when an impartial arbitrator comes in and negotiates in good
faith and orders the Governor to make concessions, he refuses. When they Union files an
unfair labor practices charge he demands they withdraw it or he will not give them a
contract at all. All this anti-labor business is only insuring that the next governor of
Pennsylvania is going to be a big city Democrat. Any you single me out for being disloyal
to the party! There are over 40% of the workers in that union who are registered
Republicans. Most of them voted for Governor Ridge. I don't understand his thinking."
I was on a roll now.
"You have the nerve to call me up and talk about party loyalty. What about that
moron Arlen Specter voting Scottish Law? Explain that one to me? Look at Dennis Vacco in
New York. He loses an election and he dismisses an anti-trust suit against a wealthy
Houston, TX company, and then goes to work for them as an Executive Vice President. What
is going on? Who are you representing? Whatever happened to the people? The Steelers, the
Pirates, the Phillies, and the Pirates all get new stadiums and the people and our kids
get $650 million in debt for the next thirty years and then they treat us as idiots by
saying that it isn't costing us any money. $650 million is some serious money, bub! That's
over a half a billion dollars.
"You guys who call yourselves the Republican Party only take care of yourselves.
The Democratic Party does exactly the same thing. None of you give a damn about the
people. All you care about is power, money, and where you can make the next deal. It was
you guys that gave rise to other idiots like Ross Perot. Don't you understand that the
people are starving out there? Don't you care that they don't have the slightest idea
where this country is going?"
"Mr. Beck," the man said. "You need to get your thinking in line with
the Party or you can expect no help from us in the up coming Primary."
I laughed out loud. "You are as big an idiot as the rest of them. Just so you
know, I never had any help from you guys nor do I expect any. I am elected by the Real
Republican Party - not you phonies who say you are. The Real Republican Party is made up
of people, not bosses. The Real Republican Party believes in smaller government and living
wages and good benefits for workers. The Real Republican Party expects its elected
officials to serve them, not millionaires who have their own agenda solely for their own
personal gain. They aren't they ones trying to run me out of office because $350 was
reported on the wrong form. You are! Don't give me your bull about the party and your
support."
With that, I hung up the phone.
Oh well. The Sludge King is in town today. He is giving the Port Allegany Senior Center
$15,000 to buy the building they are in. Then he goes to Bradford to give the senile old
women $15,000 for old city hall with veiled promises of an additional one million to come
in the future out of Commonwealth Capital Expenditures.
I checked the Capital Expenditures yesterday. City Hall wasn't on the list but there
was an entry for the Bradford Armory for $56,000 for a new plumbing and heating system.
That was date 1968 and I believe that the Armory was torn down in the 70's. So much for
the Sludge King and his promises of one million for old city hall.
Michele Corignani has announced for Mayor today. Maybe we can get some sanity back in
the mayor's office. Have a nice day. Comment on this article at rdhedbud@penn.com.
FEBRUARY 18, 1999
Secret slush funds?
Good morning. It is 28.3 degrees at 5:08 A.M. Just to start your day off, the
ridge runner (e-mail handle) sent this to us.
Five surgeons are discussing who makes the best patients to operate on. The first surgeon
says, "I like to see accountants on my operating
table, because when you open them up, everything inside is numbered."
The second responds, "Yeah, but you should try electricians! Everything inside them
is color coded."
The third surgeon says, "No, I really think librarians are the best;
everything inside them is in alphabetical order."
The fourth surgeon chimes in: "You know, I like construction
workers...those guys always understand when you have a few parts left over at the end, and
when the job takes longer than you said it would."
But the fifth surgeon shut them all up when he observed: "You're all
wrong. Politicians are the easiest to operate on. There's no guts, no heart, and no spine,
and the head and butt are interchangeable."
This is an election year and I felt that the tidbit was worthy of your
consideration.
Now that all the political hopefuls are out circulating petitions to get their names on
the ballot for the Primary Elections in May, the people are getting a first hand look at
their elected officials and those who want to unseat them. I am part of that crowd.
Many people wonder where all these politicians and hopefuls have been for the past
three years. Generally, they have been attending meetings. You have no idea how many
meetings there are on a daily basis. Today for example, there are three formal meetings
and I will attend one. There is one informal luncheon meeting and I will also attend that
and later I will work on a long standing project of mine. During the entire day, I will
also be accumulating signatures for my petition.
While I have been busy getting names on the petition, I have had the opportunity to
visit with many of my old friends. One, a local lawyer, is considering making an attempt
to run for District Justice in Bradford. I pointed out that he would make the third lawyer
in that race and did my best to influence him to run for District Attorney. "We need
someone with some common sense," I said. "And someone who knows the distance to
Pittsburgh and back, too." He laughed. I hope he took me seriously.
Another person and I spoke of Ray McMahon - the director of the Office of
Economic and Community Development (OECD) who has a lifetime contract with the City of
Bradford.
"Does he really have one?" I was asked. I answered "...that it
wasn't a lifetime contract per se; but, it is structured in such a way that he cannot be
removed except for cause. He has a contract that says he can serve until he decides
to retire. Granted," I pointed out. "That is not a lifetime
contract, but it is damn close to one. I don't know what else you would call it."
"You know," I was told. "Ray is very concerned about the people he does
business with talking to you. I overheard him tell one contractor that he didn't want you
knowing about what they were doing together." I replied that I wasn't surprised.
"That is the reason so many people accuse him of all sorts of things. He does
business in secret. Even though he is not an elected official, but rather a bureaucrat
operating under the auspices of a non-profit corporation, there has to be some oversight
and some accounting for the money that goes through his operation. I think that I just may
have found the way to get it, too."
Tax Incremental Funding (TIF) is a concept dreamed up by the legislature
to help develop depressed and falling down neighborhoods. It is a simple concept. A
geographical area pays taxes to the local municipality, the school district, and the
county. In turn, each taxing body, pays the taxes (or a portion of the taxes) back to a
local development agency who uses the money to develop that specific area. In other words,
the taxes are given up by the taxing bodies in order to reinvest in the area.
Bradford Township, Bradford Area School District, and McKean County have been involved
in a TIF since 1993. It centers around the expansion of Bradford Forest Products. It calls
for a total of $30,000 of taxes be paid each year by the three taxing bodies to OECD for
whatever reason. Since 1996, the county has not paid its part. It amounted to about $4,800
in 1996 and about $1,800 in 1997. Bradford Township pays less than the county with the
School District chipping in between $22,000 and $25,000 in the two years.
Now, here is the kicker. OECD was chartered through the City of Bradford. It is the
economic development arm of the city. I appreciate it that those arms extend beyond the
city from time to time. It and Mr. McMahon have done a fine job on occasion in attracting
new business to the area. However, I have a few questions. The first is the obvious.
Where does OECD end and McKean County Redevelopment Authority begin? Bradford
operates and maintains its own Community Development Block Grant Funding on its own. Kane,
likewise, receives its own funding. The remaining municipalities in the County come
through the commissioners and administered for us by the Redevelopment Authority. That
includes Bradford Township. How is it that the county is participating with OECD instead
of the Redevelopment Authority?
Maybe most important is where an how is this money being spent? If the
county does pay OECD and Mr. McMahon approximately $6,600 of tax dollars, where is the
accounting for this fund? We have received bills but no annual statements or explanations
of how the money is spent. I am afraid that I would want to see some hard and fast
financial reports on TIF before I could vote to expend the money from the County Treasury.
If we are funding an operation then we have the right to see where the money is going. We
have the right to audit.
Some would say that I am vindictive and have a grudge against Mr. McMahon. I would
answer that any statement like that is a lie. I would further answer that as a County
Commissioner I would be remiss in my duties if I did not question each and every
expenditure that I could not explain to myself. Even beyond that, I would ask the final
questions.
How many of the taxpayers are aware that moneys are being paid out in such a
way?
Was this plan enacted at a highly publicized meeting or was it done in secret,
behind closed doors, and quietly pushed through the necessary advertising requirements
without anyone being the wiser as has been the case with other deals like this in the
past?
Feel free to comment on this article at rdhedbud@penn.com.
FEBRUARY 17, 1999
See what happens!
Good morning. It is 42.3 degrees at 5:38 A.M.
The Tic Tac girl article drew more attention than I imagined. As a side note,
Mary Jo Allen (from The Downbeat Restaurant, the McKean Theater fight, and the
Bow Wow Boutique) asked, or rather demanded that I write a "love article."
"Wilber T." she said -(she calls me Wilber T. for some reason). "Write
a love story that will make me all misty eyed." I don't know if it made her
misty eyed, but it did me and it continued even into the evening when our son Geoff came
in for dinner and told his mother about the article I wrote that day. Immediately, like
mothers and daughters do, she phoned Kimberly and told her that I had written about
her and her Gloria Vanderbilt jeans. From that, all sorts of old stories erupted,
including the one where Sharyn got a parking ticket while she was running in to replace
the jeans that were stolen at school during a gym class.
Out of that phone call came e-mail from Bradford and North Carolina.
Kimberly: "As you know, I usually let you know (in my own special
way) when you don't quote things quite right. I actually told mother the following:
"If you were planning on leaving him at some point you definitely would have done it
by now." She agreed with me and said pretty much what you had quoted in the article
today. I do appreciate
you acknowledging the fact that you made mistakes in the past and now seem to cherish more
and more what you have. I am glad you let mom know how much you love her because she is
one special and unique woman who has lived her life almost solely to see the ones around
her be happy and loved. She often doesn't put herself first-
Anyway, I have your web page saved on our "favorites" list. I am anxious to see
what you write about becoming a grandfather but no fat jokes please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PS: I am stealing my mother away from you for a week after I have the baby - I need all
the help I can get!!!!!"
Jason: "Well since neither you nor mother seem to respond back to
my e-mails at your home address I thought I would say hello to you here. I've enjoyed your
publishers page although I am not up to date on the local politics. The editorial about
Mom and the Tic Tac girl was really nice. You've mellowed. Maybe not having three
teenagers to drive you nuts helps! Anyhow, I hope all is well. Thank you for the Birthday
card and money (always helps)."
It is interesting to note that these three "kids", Geoff being the youngest
at 25, came together when Sharyn and I married. Over the years Geoff grew to look to
Sharyn as his mother, and Kim and Jason to me as a step father/father - depending on
how much money or love they need at any given point in their lives. With all the odds
against us, we somehow formed what is commonly known as a family and have managed to care
for and enjoy one another. There is no way to put a price on that.
It is also interesting to note that somehow I escaped getting a real thumping from my
wife. Think about it! I openly admitted that I lusted for and was secretly in love - for
years - with the Tic Tac girl. Not trying to push my luck, I am sure that just the sound
of her voice and that cute little smile will still evoke the same tingling feeling that I
used to get - maybe not as severe, seeing how I am over fifty and you know what is
"supposed" to happen then. (It really doesn't!) With ABC News
broadcasting a story about how middle aged people are more satisfied with themselves than
ever before, I guess that I am more typical than I knew or even cared to know. At the same
time, knowing that raises more questions.
What would have happened if I would have started out that way? Also, what about the Tic
Tac girl? What if we would have met?
I am not sure I really want to go any farther with that line of thought. Have a good
day today. Comment on this article at rdhedbud@penn.com.
FEBRUARY 16, 1999
I was in love with the Tic Tac girl.....
Good morning. At 5:35 A.M., it is 31.1 degrees and another cold front is on the
way. On the heels of our editorial and letter on Friday, I see the Army has finally
ruled the death of Gordon Hess a murder. Talk about being timely!
Anyway, with Valentine's Day over, things should get back to normal for the
next forty-one days.
Why forty-one days? Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday and Easter is forty days after that.
Easter is the next time men are required to come up with something special for their
wives. Then, there is Mother's Day beyond Easter, looming in the distance like an
approaching storm.
Sharyn and I have been married for many years now. It has been so long that I am forced
to admit that I tend to forget the actual number. I know that our anniversary is March
14th, and if required, I can back track by remembering the year and doing the proper math
in my head. It was the year I returned from Saudi Arabia - no, not the Gulf War; but more
along the lines when Iraq and Iran were at war. That's another story - my trip to the
middle east.
Anyway, between my first wife leaving me to raise my son alone and going off to pursue
her career, and me meeting and marrying Sharyn, I lived a life that was lonely and very
often in total disarray. I was a working mother and really experienced a major gender
crisis. Women entered my life and they left my life. I can't say that at times it wasn't
fun - but because my wife will undoubtedly read this, I can't say that it was all that
great either - you know, out of self preservation. It was the seventies and the eighties
and most anything went back then. That was the way of the times. Through the turmoil, the
loneliness, and the confusion; only a few things were constant in my life. They were my
job, my son, and the woman on television who did the Tic Tac commercials.
The first time I saw her I was in love. I loved the way she looked and I loved the way
she wrinkled up her cute little nose when she talked.
She didn't entice me to buy Tic Tac, but she did make we want to watch their commercials.
Oddly enough, I never saw her on television programs or in movies. She was only on the Tic
Tac commercials. Through those years I judged every woman I met by her.
My job was gone. I had quit to sell a new process for internally coating pipe. Did you
ever think about how many sections of pipe oil producing countries use? Trust me, they use
a bunch! Off to Arabia I went to the headquarters of the Arabian American Oil Company.
While sitting in a waiting room in Dhahran I picked up a magazine. To my shock, pictures
of women were taken out of the magazine. To my greater shock, there was a Tic Tac add with
the love of my life cut from the page. Barbarians, I said to myself. I could never live
there!
I returned home and eventually married my wife. She was the only woman who I found that
could hold a candle to the Tic Tac girl. But I had an interesting dilemma. She was still
on television doing those great little commercials and from time to time Sharyn noticed my
attentiveness when she came on. Once, she even accused me of having a crush on her. If she
only knew! Me and Jimmy Carter - two kindred spirits lusting in our hearts. Oh my!
But life is all too real and fantasy gives way to earning a living, taking the kids
(she had two and I had one) on vacation, buying our daughter the right jeans (remember
Gloria Vanderbilt jeans?), teaching them to drive, getting the car repaired after their
minor accidents (thank God!), and seeing that they graduated high school - each in order,
and sending them off to college. Somewhere in those years she left television. Tic Tac
stopped using her. The only time I would think of her was on the occasion that my wife
would offer me a Tic Tac on a trip as I was driving. Then I would fondly remember her.
Why am I remembering her this morning? It's odd, but they have a new girl doing her
commercials. She is pretty and has short blond hair. She is at a train saying goodbye to a
man and as he runs for the train she blows him a kiss. The lucky conductor steps in the
way and the traveling kiss hits him on the cheek. It is cute, but somehow just not the
same. Of course, neither am I. None of us are the same as we used to be.
Coming back from Pittsburgh the other day I was telling Greg Henry about my homelife
and how good it is. I told him I had it good because of my wife. I said that I enjoyed
being at home with her and really had no desire to go anywhere without her. I also
realized that I hadn't told her that. It bothered me that I hadn't actually said the
words, but I realized that I really had in other ways. Many of them were ways in which she
told me, too. That, I concluded, was love.
It certainly wasn't what I was looking for back in the days of my Tic Tac girl. Back
then, I wanted what everyone has always wanted. It hasn't changed even today. I watch my
children and my nieces and see them searching and looking for something that just isn't
there. Good times and activity is not love. Sometimes, it isn't even fun. In many ways I
was better off loving the Tic Tac girl back then. She did me just fine until something
better came along.
When our daughter asked my wife what I did for her for her Birthday/Valentine's Day,
and my wife told her, she also said that I was a pretty good guy and she is glad she kept
me. Kimberly said back to her something to the effect of "Yes, but you certainly had
cause many many times if you hadn't." Kimberly was right. There were tough times,
there always are. Sticking them out is something that we don't do as a rule anymore.
Unfortunately so because by not seeing them through few seldom realize what love really
is. I do and am satisfied that I do. I can only hope that my Tic Tac girl is as happy as I
am - afterall, it could have been great!
Comment on this article at rdhedbud@penn.com.
FEBRUARY 15, 1999
President's Day
Good morning and Happy President's Day! It is 18.3 degrees at 5:56 A.M. In
light of several events, those being two lawyers entering the District Justice race in
Bradford (Chrissy Hauser and Jay Paul Kahle), and the president being acquitted by the
Senate, the following items are appropriate.
A truck driver used to amuse himself by running over lawyers he would see walking down
the side of the road. Every time he would see a lawyer walking along the road, he would
swerve to hit him, and there would be a loud "THUMP" and then he would swerve
back on the road. One day, as the truck driver was driving along he saw a priest hitch
hiking. He thought he would do a good turn and pulled the truck over. He asked the priest,
"Where are you going, Father?".
"I`m going to the church 5 miles down the road," replied the priest.
"No problem, Father! I`ll give you a lift. Climb in the truck."
The happy priest climbed into the passenger seat and the truck driver
continued down the road. Suddenly the truck driver saw a lawyer walking down the road and
instinctively he swerved to hit him. But then he remembered there was a priest in the
truck with him, so at the last minute he swerved back to the road, narrowly missing the
lawyer. Even though he was certain he missed the lawyer, he still heard a loud
"THUD." Not understanding where the noise came from he glanced in his mirrors
and when he didn`t see anything, he turned to the priest and said, "I`m sorry Father.
I almost hit that lawyer." "That`s okay," replied the priest. "I got
him with the door."
What do lawyers use for birth control? Their personalities.
What is the difference between a tick and a lawyer? A tick falls off
of you when you die.
Why does the law society prohibit sex between lawyers and their
clients? To prevent clients from being billed twice for what is essentially the same
service.
What do you have when 100 lawyers are buried up to their neck in sand? Not enough
sand.
What`s the difference between a dead skunk in the road and a dead
lawyer in the middle of the road? There are skid marks in front of the skunk.
Why are lawyers like nuclear weapons? If one side has one, the other side has to get
one. Once launched, they cannot be recalled. When they land, they screw up everything
forever.
Lawyer`s creed:
A man is innocent until proven broke.
What do you call 20 lawyers skydiving from an airplane?
Skeet.
You`re trapped in a room with a tiger, a rattlesnake and a lawyer. You have a gun with two
bullets. What should you do?
You shoot the lawyer. Twice.
The District Justice race is one I could comment on, but won't. In light of the
fact that Mr. Kahle is a friend of mine and Mr. Hauser, less than one and never a Beck
supporter, it is best that I reserve comment on the qualifications of either candidate.
However, the information included above, does accurately express my sentiments about
Lawyers. Lest we forget our President testifiying before the Grand Jury answering a
question by saying: "It depends on how you define the word is." Only a
lawyer, and a liar at that, would want to define the word is. Have a Happy
President's Day.
Comment on this article at rdhedbud@penn.com.
FEBRUARY 13 -14, 1999
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