In a previous post I commented about the proposed referendum that the council will see in the next couple of weeks that would essentially put the decision in the hands of those who vote on what form of government Oshkosh should have. Although I have gone on the record to say that I prefer the Manager form better because of the ability to screen the person better than a campaign would, I agree that it is good to get the voters opinion. Mine is not the only one in town.
I was given a copy of a letter(email) sent by another elected official to the council that seems to think otherwise. I will share that here with you and let you see what you think about it.
[Subject: Council/Mayor Referendum Proposal
My family and I respectfully and adamantly request that the
council reject the most recent call for yet another referendum on the
form of government here in Oshkosh. We firmly believe that the
Council/Manager format is far superior to any of the other proposals
forwarded over the past 10 years or more and we now sincerely regret
having an elected mayor rather than a "mayor" chosen by the council from
its own ranks.
The nose under the tent flap that the elected mayor represents
only serves to embolden and encourage the most vocal and vicious of the
political malcontents and wannabees in this community, thereby
exacerbating the social rifts they exploit. It also encourages an
endless stream of whining that "the public hasn't been heard on this
subject".
We submit that the public has indeed been heard loud and clear
on the many previous occasions when each and every one of these
proposals were soundly defeated. The current proposal deserves to die
and early an ignominious death. It's time for the council to focus on
the far more important issues facing this city rather than supplying
oxygen to the blatant political ambitions of the vocal few.
Sincerely,
Ted and Karen Bowen ]
This is unbelievable that a representative of the taxpayers doesn't feel that we should have a say in how our city government is run. It also seems to be a slap in the face of our current Mayor Tower and former Mayor Castle saying that we should not be able to choose our Mayor and the council should appoint him/her.
Mr and Mrs Bowen have no problem voicing their opinion. Heaven forbid that we do though.
What do you think?
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13 comments:
Is anyone surprised that this came from Karen and Ted Bowen?
I'm not. Both are arrogant beyond belief!
If the citizens want a referendum, let the citizens bring it forward.
So....Paul and Dennis are not Oshkosh citizens???
Hummmm.
I think its a great idea! Furthermore what Carl Sosnoski said tonight about City Staff seems to be a broken record we've all heard so very many times. I think this idea that city staff is not genuine and attentive to citizens requests was a big part of Dick Wollangks downfall.
Beyond the advisory referendum, I would encourage the next City CEO (Mayor or Manager) to get the broom out and sweep the dead wood out of 215 Church Ave and all the other little City Department Head enclaves throughout Oshkosh.
A new broom sweeps clean...I hope our new guy brings in a really big broom! There is lots of dirt to be swept up.
Wonder where you got it from, Kent. Paul Esslinger?
A lot of people complain about city hall and the dept heads that need to be removed. Everyone here's anonymous. Share the names of the city people you think need to go. If you don't know names, let's at least hear positions. This whole 'clean sweep' idea is too broad. Let's hear specifics.
Sound to me like the Bowen's are expressing their concerns over the current BOE and the current MESS they have made in the OASD.
It's time for the BOE to focus on
the far more important issues facing this SCHOOL DISTRICT rather than supplying oxygen to the blatant political ambitions of its CURRRENT members.
Two thumbs up to Paul Esslinger at the council meeting last night.
I couldn't believe the words Karen Bowen (and her husband) used in their letter. The first poster was right, they are arrogant!
Perhaps Esslinger doesn't watch school board meetings enough. If he did, he could have shown the hypocrisy of Bowen. Bowen doesn't want a referendum to ask people about government in Oshkosh, but she has no problem stealing $45,000,000+ from your pocket for her failed boundary mess!
History has a way of repeating it self, and Oshkosh has become an All Star of this concept. I don't know the Bowens at all, but I tend to agree with them that we have been down this road before. Let the citizens start the referendum process. Our council has bigger fish to fry!!!! Why are they spending time on this issue, this is not why we voted for them in the first place. I don't remember any of them running on the "we need to change the form of government" ticket except for Mr. Esslinger. He can't seem to get over the loss of Mayor a few years back!!! Move on Council and concentrate on developing Oshkosh in to a city our citizens can be proud of.
Jack Straw
Interesting to read all the anti union comments posted on the liberal MSNBC website. I can only imagine what is posted on FOX is all these anti UAW comments are listed on MSN!
1) Here in Michigan auto workers still have a wage package that is about twice that of non autoworkers in my area. Also the big three have too many workers who do not work. For example I have a friend who works at night as a machinist line repairman. He has a deal whereby he sleeps all night except when some repair is needed. Then a friend wakes him by a cell call. So then he can stay up full time when he is home and run another business. He makes about $60-70k / year working with holiday pay which is double or triple time. And this structure is present throughout the big three. It is like working for the government.
Competition may make the companies more efficient or the customers may make pay for the inefficiency. Time will tell.
2) Labor union entitlement...u can't beat it!!
3) Unions built America....Unions will bring it down. They are no longer relevant in today's global workplace.
4) Hopefully GM will start turning a profit or else. GM needs to put its foot down and get rid of these jobs where high seniority people hardly do anything to collect their pay check! The jobs bank needs to go too! My biggest concern is that the UAW gets a GOOD investment company to handle the retirees benefits because I have little confidence in the UAW to manage it on their own! I support the UAW but times have changed and enough is enough!
5) We can always count on those overpaid yankees to help drive the auto industry South, where workers appreciate what they earn. Toyota caught on...not long till the big three catch up to the rest of the world either. Thanks for your greed, we need the jobs down here....
6) Unions have passed there prime they are no longer needed. Union workers want free trade and fair market except when it comes to labor rates. As an employer I put union workers at the bottom of the pile for review. My view on unions is that they are at the top of the list to what is bringing down this countries manufacturing abilities.
7) And we wonder why foreign countries call us Fat, Lazy Americans!
8) Michigan has a government that is orientated around the unions also. We have a governor now that is controlled by the unions. And it does not matter whether the Republicans or Democrats were in power. The state employees are very much over paid in wages and benefits.
Another example: Michigan is now broke with a budget deficit of $1.75 trillion.
Yet the governor supports what is known as "the prevailing wage law". So if a private company bids and wins a contract to provide work to the state the company has to pay a wage set by the state. So if a worker normally makes $15/hour on private jobs for his company if the his company works on a state job then the state requires that the company pay the employee "the prevailing wage" set by the state. So the employer would be required to pay about double or $30/hour. And who knows how the $30/hour is determined.
So Michigan is going down the drain and there are many good reasons why.
9) I'm from Michigan and yet again UAW stands for "U Ain't Workin'"... I agree that when the unions were first organized they were necessary to prevent the large companies from abusing the workers. I agree that management is paying themselves unnecessary bonuses however, now I believe the unions have gained so much leverage that they only abuse their employers. I have heard stories of UAW workers colluding to cover shifts so that they could take extra time off while being paid over time. Various examples of such abuse of power have only encouraged Ford and GM to expand production to countries such as Mexico where assembly line workers do not have to be paid over $100,000/year for work that should really cost a fraction of that. Does "buying an American car" really support the US economy any more? Look under the hood and see that your "US car" components (if not the entire thing) are only produced abroad. Can someone verify if its true that about $2,000 USD of every US car produced is allocated to covering Union members' medical costs? The UAW's abuse of its leverage over the years has only been a contributing factor to the struggling Michigan economy. Why would GM and Ford want to maintain production in Michigan if they have to give in to unreasonable wage and concession demands? I can buy a better quality Japanese car today that is still produced entirely in the US for a comparable if not cheaper price that the average US car. Well done UAW, well done; your abuse of power and unreasonable demands have only led to your own demise.
10) The auto industry unions won't get my sympathy especially when their wages are 50-60% higher than the average manufacturing job. For years they were laughing in many of our faces all the way to the bank but their greed has caught up with them. Their shoddy workmanship has also cost them. Look at some of the independent consumer groups. Many of the U.S. models are at the bottom of the list in terms of quality.
11) Labor unions are still thinking in the 1970s. Until that changes there is little hope of true competition with the foreign auto makers. The move toward a global economy can not be stopped. We have to learn to compete on a global scale, and that will be very difficult for Ford, GM, and Chrysler to do with the mill stone of union retiree and employee health care coverage, and other benefits that Honda, and Toyota don't have to contend on the same level. I have two american products in the garage and refuse to buy foreign made products if I can help it. But unions better stop living in the past.
12) I've been in the auto industry all my life in sum fashion or another and wish we could just once and for all give the UAW a good swift kick in the a--. One of these days their going to put all the US carmakers out of business. It will be both a sad and happy day. I must agree with the one post when he said that when he receives an application of a former union work it go's on the bottom of the pile. All of them feel they are intitled to everything no questions asked. Little do they seem to know you are not until you bust your a-- and earn it.
Although they might be true, it is a shame that the authors choose to use condescending language and insinuate that they know what is best for a city of over 60,000 people. The residents of Oshkosh deserve to have the chance to express their disapproval for a form of government that is not working. It may be possible to continue with the current form of government but there needs to be major changes.
A short list of potential candidates to be evaluated for the dust pan:
Kinney- Talk about a spin artist. Don't mask the bullshit with corporate speak Jackson, just use plain language so everybody knows what you’re hiding.
Kraft- Our teflon city attorney. Nothing sticks to this guy.
Patek- No good customer service skills there. It always looks like this guy is tolerating a huge inconvience by attending council meetings.
Burch- He tries to be Mr. Sauvé but he comes across extraordinarily arrogant.
Stephany-Humm where do I begin with this guy.
The entire Inspections Department.
Well that’s a start anyhow.
Although the comments I am receiving regarding GM/UAW is a pretty big issue, it is really off topic and I will not post any more that are related to that issue. I am sure that there are other blogs that would be better to host such comments and I would encourage you to use those.
Also, there is value to the discussion to what department heads should be eliminated under whatever form of government is decided. I will allow that portion to continue as long as it doesn't get out of hand.
Remember, these folks are doing their job in an extremely public forum and deserve some level of respect and civility. Please refrain from getting personal with your remarks.
Thanks.
I read with great interest that the Police Department is moving to a new method of policing Oshkosh. Actually new is an incorrect term for the program as they are actually reverting back to a fixed beat concept.
Rather than have a bunch of cops rotating throughout Oshkosh, we will now have a set group who will always be responsive to specific areas in Oshkosh. They will be responsible to patrol there district and become aware of what people need in their assigned area. As they are dedicated to this geographic area, the notion is that they will have a better buy-in for the success and well being of these residents.
As I look at this new plan, all I can conclude is that the Police are actually changing to an “Aldermanic” method of policing Oshkosh. No longer is the “cop at large” appropriate to meet the cities needs. We now need to have cops who get to know, and are advocated for very specific areas in Oshkosh.
I say if it works for the OPD, it can work for the rest of the city. Time to give the Mayor – Alderman form of government a chance, the city cops did it and I think everyone thinks it’s a great idea!
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