By-Laws/Dump/TM/CPA/Walker

An extensive list of fines which represent disguised revenue enhancement will now be on the books for Middleboro. I’m sure the chief will order up a whole passel of new ticket books and maybe even assign paid details - can they do that? - to forage around town during snow storms and patrol the downtown area on their latest Huffy bikes while on the lookout or is that hear out for words on George Carlin’s infamous list. Maybe the MYA can branch out and target silly string at the local stores - if we have any left - stores that is.

The basis of much of the levies of fines is just simple behavior modification. That, after all, is what the law really is - confine us to socially acceptable behaviors. Most take the form of the obvious - usually found somewhere in that Commandment thingy. But why stop there? Some of those by-laws have shown that just about anyone with a cause or grievance can get something on the books. Can we have one for unsightly weeds on the sidewalks? Our downtown really does need a Round-Up and that is the kind that you can squirt on the little non acceptable vegetative pests. Personally a little vinegar or judicious use of a weed extraction tool will accomplish the desired results.

Beautification has taken root (pun intended) in our downtown. MiMi has lead the charge for potted plants that hang from various light structures. At least they are at a height that discourages thievery and prevents the potted plants from become an ashtray. Ah…there is a real cause for the spiffy tee shirted MYA group - the elimination of the butt tossers! Smokers do have that attitude that the world is their personal ashtray. I am often amazed and, yes, confrontational when I go to a store and see someone casually dump the contents of their vehicle’s ashtray into the parking lot. Usually the car/truck itself has an interior that would qualify for some serious fees at the Waste Management depot.

Waste Management from what my simple mind can grasp is now “In Charge” of our dump (AKA - Landfill). I also see town employees in the area that I assume are part of a brigade designed to make sure wood, plastic, metal and assorted body parts end up in the proper receptacle. All are extremely courteous and helpful so maybe they are really WM?

The Landfill (AKA - Dump) is quite interesting. There are cranberry bogs adjacent to it and that fermentation of a few generations of disposable diapers, cat litter, food particles, dead pets and what ever else ends up in the plastic bag eventually works its way into the holding pond and the bogs. I do notice that the whole berry sauce the last few years has been especially enjoyable and its ability to glow in the dark means less candles.

The landfill/dump has become just about the highest point in Middleboro. If that Global Warming thing is the hoax I believe it is then I expect some real returns to harsh winters. With that comes opportunity. A ski lift! Maybe a toboggan course? You could even use that punch card that is issued for dump/landfill visits as entry.

Now the next TM will have 32 articles. If I attend - a rarity - I’ll last through about ten at tops. Why do they have to read the silly things? Is that another “law” on the books somewhere? Maybe back when school attendance was spotty and many were barely literate it may have been necessary. Hmmm….based on the continual lackluster MCAS results maybe it is better to read them?

I’m all in favor of a voter ID measure. I’m old enough to remember taking a literacy test (I barely passed) and paying a poll tax. I think that tax was $5? Even back then I thought they should charge $5 for those who didn’t vote. Is that another potential by-law? More revenue enhancement?

When the TMFH (Town Meeting From Hell) took place I saw several folks who were not residents in the crowd. What passed for security was quite lax and the unions did manage to pack the house. The section I was in was filled with them and I sat with two who were friends of mine. I would have loved to see a check of ID’s at random.

You could not get into the Massachusetts State Democratic Convention without a photo ID. What a group of “racists” and “bigots.” I guess that falls under do as I say not as I do?

In Bridgewater $1,140,000 in CPA funds were used to purchase an historic home and 14 acres of land. The total amount paid was $1,300,000 with other state monies (re: Taxpayers money) allocated. The home is now on the market less than two years later for about $250,000. When you deduct the land portion of the purchase the eventual loss will be $300,000 in CPA or TAXPAYER funds. Significantly more when you include the other taxpayer funds via the state.

A Dorchester peace activist landlady recently refused to rent to a Iraq/Afghan vet since it represented a “conflict” for her. Since this is Massachusetts the vet will probably be locked up for being a “racist,” “Sexist,” “Ageist,” and any other ist that can be dreamed up.

Driving along Route 79 the other day I realized a lost opportunity - I could have made a small fortune selling No Casino signs.

And on the casino front my second favorite non Indian after Elizabeth Warren - one Glenn “The Raven” Marshall - is now out of the slammer and into a half-way house.

The more I read about Scott Walker and Wisconsin the more stunned I became. The public employees pay virtually nothing towards their retirement and under 15% for their share of health care. Tag on generous benefits for vacations and various leaves and it is great to be a public employee in Wisconsin. Now the bubble has burst and the latest requirements for “fair share” are still less - far less - than I contributed.

The lesson of Wisconsin is a change is in the wind. Here in Middleboro it is currently unsustainable to continue to offer packages that simply can no longer be funded. The real kicker is not the monetary compensation but the sundry list of “other” that is a fiscal hit either up front or down the road.

Lost in the media feeding frenzy in Wisconsin was votes in San Diego and San Jose that altered public pensions. It is not a liberal/conservative issue but one of fiscal solvency and sanity. The unions damn well can see the numbers and know this. Their job is to protect their members but they also must realize that those elected also have a job and that is to protect the taxpayer and services.