20060910 KDDC Minnich: A Concern About the Body Politic

A Concern About the Body Politic

September 10^th, 2006

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From: Friends of Dean Minnich [mailto:tucker495@adelphia.net]
Sent: Sunday, September 10, 2006 8:54 PM
To: undisclosed-recipients:
Subject: A Concern About the Body Politic

Please feel free to distribute this to anyone who has a concern about ethical processes in an election; and anyone who received any of the venomous tracts mailed out this past week.

We all expect elections to be a time of debate and disagreement. In many local elections, for example, pro-growth development forces are being opposed by those advocating more cautious, slower-growth policies, resulting in intense public disagreements.

Carroll County, however, is unique among all in the level of outright vilification and downright hatred some have displayed. Their tactics mirror many used by extreme religious and political movements built more on fomenting hatred and division than on airing legitimate public policy differences.

1. Loyalty to the party is emphasized over policy or community and absolute adherence to certain slogans is required over all other considerations.

2. The focus is on division, attempting to exclude the opposition. A strong personal hatred is usually manifest, resulting in a "divide and conquer" mentality excluding those with differing beliefs or loyalties.

3. There is no real discussion, in favor of short slogans with little substance.

4. Complete intolerance is encouraged with one accepted perspective; others are to be excluded.

5. The opposition is dehumanized by "over the top" negativity about personality, personal habits, personal ethics and non-policy issues.

6. Campaign messages are all negative, vilifying the opposition as unfit to serve, with no positive policy comment.

7. Big lies are presented as fact, using deceit as a campaign tool that focuses on outright false or misleading statements that are easily disputed but then repeated anyway. The opposition is accused of standing for the very things they oppose, or failing to do the very things they have accomplished.

8. Sensationalism is reflected in substance and form, with outrageous, shocking statements that are repeated in a massive repeat advertising campaign where money is no object.

9. Cynicism is reflected in the disregard of accepted processes - elections laws, campaign regulations and normal community standards.

10. Behind it all is contempt for the voters. A belief that lies work, based on the assumption that voting public are fools. These groups despise the very public they say they want to serve.

Anyone who has faith in democracy must hope that on election day, voters will reject these efforts to destroy our sense of community and undermine our basic respect for one another. No matter who wins, let us encourage voters to support candidates who propose positive ways to solve problems by working together rather than those who just spew hatred and deceit.

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20060910 KDDC Friends of Dean Minnich respond to negative ads and mailings

Friends of Dean Minnich respond to negative ads and mailings

September 10^th, 2006

Pasted below is a response from Commissioner Minnich’s campaign concerning the recent negative ads and mailings.

If any candidate has a response – please email KDDC at kdayhoff@carr.org and I’ll be happy to post it on this web site.

From: Friends of Dean Minnich [mailto:tucker495@adelphia.net]
Sent: Sunday, September 10, 2006 8:46 PM
To: undisclosed-recipients:
Subject: [Fwd: Feel free to forward, or print out to read at the polls IF QUESTIONED on Tuesday]

Please forward to interested friends.
Thanks,

Recent negative ads and mailings to county voters misrepresent the truth. Here are the facts:

Salaries

Department heads in Carroll County earn at least 20% less than their counterparts in neighboring counties. Only 3 county employees, each with more than 20 years of service, earn more than $100,000. One of those now does the job of two persons in the previous administration, who together had earned $155,377. In 2006, one person, the chief of staff, earns $116,439 – a savings of $38,938 per year, plus benefits.

Credit cards

Credit cards have been issued by the County since the 1980s and are not for personal use. They are for the sole purpose of paying for budgeted items. The Comptroller monitors and approves all payments.

Authorized spending

It has been alleged that $119 spent at the Treat Shop was for personal use. In fact, it was for a hospitality basket purchased by the Department of Economic Development to welcome a new business – part of the cost of doing business to grow business.

Another legitimate business expense, common practice in every county and at the state level, was a bill for guests of the county at a local restaurant. The county hosted representatives of three New York based bond-rating agencies to eat at the Antrim in Taneytown. The bill for dinner and drinks for 17 people totaled $1,579.43 – less expensive than the trip to New York for the required annual meetings with bonding agencies.

Travel

The County has not funded any oversees travel by Commissioners in the past four years. As an elected officer of the National Association of Counties, Commissioner Gouge represented Maryland at an annual conference in Hawaii in 2005. She provided her own air fare and meals. The County paid for the registration fee and hotel room for her during the conference.

Taxes

The Board of County Commissioners lowered the amount a homeowner’s property taxes can increase by 3 percentage points. They instituted a tax credit for senior citizens. They have never proposed legislation for a personal property tax.

Growth

The number of new housing units permitted has dropped from 1,294 in FY03 to 737 in FY06. Buildings approved for construction under the previous board will continue to be built into 2008.

If the commissioners’ opponents lied about these issues, what else are they lying about? And what are they hiding? Whose money is behind these smear campaigns, and who benefits if the perpetrators of these untruths are successful?

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20060910 Dave Roush candidate for Carroll County Board of Education

Dave Roush candidate for Carroll County Board of Education

Mr. Roush does not have a web site. However, a brief synopsis of Mr. Roush’s candidacy can be found on the Carroll County Times web site here.

The Baltimore Sun did an article on the Board of Education candidates on August 27^th, 2006: “8 candidates in contest for 3 school board seats.” Gina Davis wrote the article.

Her introduction to the school board race reads:

“Carroll County's school board members juggle many demands, including keeping pace with steadily increasing student enrollment, implementing state requirements such as providing all-day kindergarten and maintaining a rigorous academic program.

With hopes of influencing the countless decisions that affect the nearly 30,000-student district, eight candidates -- including two incumbents -- are vying for three open seats on the school board.

The six top vote-getters in the Sept. 12 primary election will proceed to the Nov. 7 general election.

The nonpartisan elections for the five-member school board are staggered, with two seats open in presidential election years and three slots open in the years of gubernatorial contests. School board members are elected to four-year terms.”

A synopsis of Mr. Roush’s credentials, found in the article, are as follows:

David H. Roush

Age: 63

Residence: Westminster

Family: Married; two adult children

Occupation: Retired engineer, Lehigh Cement Co.

Education: Master's of business administration, Frostburg State College; bachelor's degree in chemical engineering, Lehigh University (Pa.)

Issues: "It is clear that facilities issues are becoming more and more important for the school system. We need to provide for and balance the needs for new schools, added classrooms, renovation/expansion of existing schools, and ongoing maintenance." Roush says his training and experiences as an engineer and plant manager for Lehigh Cement for more than 38 years gives him unique qualifications to address facilities issues. "As plant manager of Lehigh's Union Bridge plant during the recent $300 million modernization project, I was very involved in the largest construction project ever in Carroll County, from the first permitting to start-up and the first year of operations."

Read the rest of Ms. Davis’ article here.

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