Shelby's “Recall Zombies” Seek to Devour Democracy In Their Hunger For Power and Control

“The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it.”
        - George Bernard Shaw

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When news that the recall attempts against Shelby Township Supervisor Rick Stathakis and Treasurer Paul Viar were declared dead, a majority of taxpayers were elated that we would not be forced to pay up to $60,000 (or more) of our scarce tax dollars to fund the political dirty tricks of a few special interests hungry for power.

Now, just when we all thought it was safe to venture out into the township once again, the recall addicts are coming at us for round two.  Yes, they are actually going to try and do their whole recall all over again!   

Inside Out readers know that was have previously referred to the recall group as “recall addicts.”  We gave them this title as a result of the HIGH they seemed to get from being featured in the newspapers talking about their recall.  This recall was their drug, and they couldn’t seem to get enough of the publicity that went with it.

Since these people are trying to bring a dead recall back to life so they can, allegedly, “save Shelby”, we have decided that these recall addicts deserve a new title: RECALL ZOMBIES.

Beware all Shelby residents.  The Recall Zombies may be on the prowl again soon in your neighborhood.  

“They’re coming to get you Shelby.  They’re coming for you Shelby!  They’re coming for you!” 

Going forward, we will forever refer to the individuals and special interests who keep pushing their selfish recall as Shelby’s RECALL ZOMBIES - rising up to protect their entitlements and devour our democracy.  And, as highlighted in the movies, what do zombies hunger for more than anything else?  BRAINS!!! 

If you see one of these recall zombies walking around you neighborhood, remember they’re coming coming to get you (or at least get your signature).  The best way to protect yourself and your family from the Shelby recall zombies is to DECLINE TO SIGN.

In our May 17th Inside Out we wrote that if the recall attack against Mr. Stathakis and Mr. Viar failed, the group would go ahead and file new petitions.  We predicted it, so this either means:
(1) We can predict the future;
(2) We are a terrific judge of character; or
(3) The political motivations of the recall zombies outweigh common sense.

As reported by the Shelby-Utica Patch, a couple of days after the recall was officially dead and buried, resident Tom Delise decided to go ahead and refile new petitions.  Delise actually took the lazy way out, refiling the same petitions that he already filed - petitions that already failed.  His targets this time include Treasurer Paul Viar, Supervisor Rick Stathakis and Trustee Mike Flynn.

Responding to the latest recall, Supervisor Stathakis said that it is time to put this distraction to rest and get back to the business of running the township during tough financial times.

“It’s time to move on,” Stathakis said.  “There’s another election for township offices next year, and there’s no point in wasting any more time or money on this.  It just distracts us from doing our jobs,” Stathakis said.

Trustee Mike Flynn was a more direct in his comments about the new recall threat, as reported in the Source Newspaper.  Mr. Flynn called out Trustee Lisa Manzella as the person behind the recall — the person primarily responsible for convincing Delise to file new petitions.  Actually, Delise took the lazy way out and refiled petitions that were already circulated — and failed.

“Unfortunately Mr. Delise continues to act as a pawn of Mrs. Manzella (Trustee Lisa Manzella), who wants her liberal tax-and-spend polices to go unchecked,” Flynn said.  “I however, will not be intimidated into ignoring the rights of the taxpayers.  As long as I have the pleasure of serving I will continue to represent them, not government unions or other special interests.”

On the June 25th edition of Shelby This Week, anchor Phil Nye reported that after the recalls failed, Delise told the press that he would not file again.  As Delise said, this recall was only supposed to serve as a “warning” to the Board.  However, now that new petitions have been filed by Mr. Delise, Shelby TV’s Phil Nye put it bluntly:  “Either Mr. Delise had a major change of mind or his arm was twisted.”

Other residents are asking different questions: Did someone offer Delise something in exchange for him agreeing to do the recall over again?  Did a township Trustee twist his arm for some kind of personal vendetta?  What is this recall really all about?

Treasurer Viar Recall Fails for Lack of Support

As readers already know, the recall campaign against Mr. Viar ended in defeat.  Just as it did with the attempt against Supervisor Stathakis (also a failure), the Save Shelby recall came to a screeching halt when a large number of signatures were disqualified for numerous reasons.

Treasurer Paul Viar has not said much about the recall at Board meetings.  However, he has been vocal about the high-cost of police pensions.  He has spoken about how taxpayers are on the hook for millions in pension liabilities for decades to come.  His attention to this touchy issue has sparked concern from the union about too much information being given to taxpayers.  Did this spark the union’s interest in trying to get rid of Mr. Viar?

We commend Treasurer Viar for speaking out about pensions.  His information is long overdue as Shelby taxpayers struggle to pay their bills while others face foreclosure.  We also thank Mr. Viar for his editorial in the June 25th issue of the Source

To clarify, we all believe police officers should be compensated well for the work they do.  They should be given the best equipment and training possible to perform their duties.  This includes a new police station.  Supervisor Stathakis, Treasurer Viar and the Board of Trustees have done all that, and more.  They have also reduced the costs for those services without cutting services.  A truly remarkable achievement given Michigan’s lousy economy.

However, when taxpayers are forced to pay MILLIONS in pension benefits for police retirees, this not only threatens the public safety budget of our township, it jeopardizes our township’s long-term fiscal stability as well as the taxes we all pay for these services.

We first received notice of the recall defeat against Mr. Viar from the Shelby-Utica Patch.  The Viar recall defeat comes on the heels of a similar result in the recall against Supervisor Rick Stathakis.  The Stathakis recall ended when the County Clerk ruled the recall addicts had not collected enough signatures to force a recall on their terms.

After months of self-righteous rhetoric about how the recall was a clear indication that residents wanted Stathakis and Viar out, the end result proves that more residents support Mr. Stathakis and Mr. Viar than want an expensive recall election paid for by all — for the benefit of a few.

Fraud Allegations Against Save Shelby Recall Petitioners

Not only did Mr. Viar’s recall come up short in signatures, it also included accusations of fraud by those who circulated the petitions.  Mr. Viar first raised this issue at the Tuesday, June 7th Board of Trustees meeting.  You can read about this discussion on the Shelby-Utica Patch. Viar pointed out a signature that was PRINTED instead of signed, as required by law.  He read a letter from the alleged signer who said that she never signed the petition.

If, as this lady admitted in writing, she never signed the petition — then who did?  It  makes you wonder how many other residents who didn’t sign a recall petition had their name on one?

Treasurer Viar’s accusations of fraud by may have been the first mention of that word, but it was not the last.  The possibility of fraud was raised during the petition review by Supervisor Stathakis.  Practical Political Consulting, a Lansing-based consulting firm, helped Mr. Stathakis analyze his petitions.  In their petition report, the company said the following:

We counted 7277 raw signatures.  For our purposes, I define this as lines on which there is an entry that has not been clearly crossed out.  There are always a handful of ambiguities.

If we had filed a formal challenge, we would have challenged 1866 signatures for various reasons.  A few would have been challenged for two different reasons.  The vast majority would have been challenged because the signers were not registered to vote in Shelby Township.

In making a formal challenge, it is our practice to challenge invalid signatures even if the township or city clerk has already disqualified the signature for the same reason or for a different reason.  This is done because the clerk's findings are often not available to us in a form that allows us to easily compare results and also to preserve your legal standing if a dispute ends up in court.  That said, I suspect that the vast majority of our findings duplicate what has already been found.

Of the 1866 challenges we would have submitted:

*122 were for signer or circulator errors in dates and/or addresses.  This is not unusual and nearly all of these cases are unambiguous.

*307 were because the signer had signed the petition more than once.  This is a larger number than found by the township clerk.  The last time we had a similar situation, in Flint, the county clerk ended up accepting our findings in nearly every case.

*57 were because of similarities in handwriting between two or more lines in the address column.  These are judgment calls and there is no way to predict how a clerk will handle them.  Typically, clerks look at other issues first to see if the petition can be disqualified without getting into these.

*1380 would be challenged because the signer is not a registered voter in Shelby Township.  In 124 of these cases, the signer is clearly registered, or has provided an address, in another jurisdiction.  Another 1256 lines, however, involve signers who appear to have provided  Shelby Township addresses but who are not registered to vote at that address or at any other address in the township.

All of the other numbers are typical of Michigan petitions.  This last finding, however, that over one of every six signatures simply cannot be matched to the voter list in any way, is worth further investigation.  As a start, I have attached a spreadsheet detailing the problems on 48 pages with significant numbers of problems.  Some of the pages raise questions but do not indicate widespread problems.  One circulator, for example, submitted two pages collected on the same day with exactly the same names.

Another submitted a sheet on which two individuals clearly signed on behalf of all the names on the sheet.  In another case, two different circulators appear to have collected signatures from the same people on the same day.

One circulator, however, appears to have submitted page after page of unregistered signers.  I think it is ambiguous what was going on, but further investigation could turn up explanations for these findings.

If you want to read the full report, you can go to www.rickstathakis.com and click on the “news” tab at the top of the home page.  All residents are encouraged to go to the website and read the report for themselves.

The information in this report counters what Nick Nightingale said at the June 21st Board of Trustees meeting.  During his most recent tirade, Nightingale lashed out at Practical Political Consulting, implying that they were wrong in their analysis because, as Mr. Nightingale said, he went through “all of the petitions” and all the signatures were good.  As this report shows, “all of the petitions” were NOT good — and the recall was declared dead.

The comment that Practical Political Consulting discovered more duplicate signatures than Clerk Terri Kowal is disturbing.  Was this an honest mistake on Mrs. Kowal’s part?  Or was their something more politically devious going on?  Remember, Mrs. Kowal supported the recall and had her son and daughter in-law circulating petitions.  Did Clerk Kowal overlook these duplicates hoping that no one else would notice (she obviously didn’t know an independent consultant was involved)?

We learned a long time ago (much longer than we want to admit) that there are no coincidences in politics.  That is why when we assemble all the pieces of this recall campaign, and actually see the faces and listen to the voices behind it, the puzzle become clear.  There is no coincidence that the groups involved decided to launch their recall.  They have personal, political or financial goals at stake, and likely see recall as a way to protect their agenda.

Is Trustee Lisa Manzella behind the newest recall attack?  Take a look at this Facebook conversation:

As you can see from this Facebook exchange, Trustee Manzella logged onto her computer and began the discussion about puking at 7:56 p.m. on Tuesday, June 21st.  Mrs. Manzella certainly has the right to use Facebook - that’s not the point.  The point is that she felt the need to smear Mr. Stathakis on Facebook following his factual explanation that the recall, which she proudly supported, fell flat due to a lack of public support. 

What do you think was happening at 7:56 p.m. on Tuesday, June 21st?  There was a televised Shelby Township Board of Trustees meeting taking place that evening and, as television records prove, Mrs. Manzella was in attendance at that meeting.  The Board was discussing a $50,000 expense for a fence around the parking lot of the new police building.  Resident Dub Hearon was giving the Board his insights into the parking lot fence.  So while the rest of the Board was listening to public comments and taking their duties seriously, Mrs. Manzella felt she had more important things to do — like typing on Facebook about wanting to puke.

So what we have is a Trustee, being paid by taxpayers, using a taxpayer-funded computer to log on Facebook during a televised local government meeting.  Shelby taxpayers purchased Mrs. Manzella’s computer which she uses to participate in social media chatting, and we are paying her township salary so that she can blab on Facebook during a township Board meeting.  Is this appropriate and professional conduct for a public official during a public meeting?

Now, getting back to the failed recall.  Nick Nightingale and Trustee Manzella both criticized Supervisor Stathakis and Treasurer Viar for what they considered inappropriate efforts to fight the recall at the Board meetings.  They called this campaigning and said it was wrong.  Just more political nonsense from the uninformed.

If you go back and watch past Board meetings, you will plainly see that the only campaigning, if you want to call it that, about the recall came from the floor by the Save Shelby recall zombies themselves.

“Sign our petition at Nightingale towing,” one recall zombie said.
“Go to the Save Shelby website for information about our recall,” another chimed in.
“Come to our spaghetti dinner and support the recall of Stathakis and Viar,” Mr. Delise announced during a televised Board meeting.

Perhaps Mr. Nightingale, Mrs. Manzella and others who are offended about recall “campaigning during Board meetings” should look in the mirror and condemn the man or women they see staring back.

Even while all this mud, and more, was being thrown at them, Mr. Stathakis and Mr. Viar stayed quiet about the recall.  Mr. Viar discussed financial issues, including the high cost of police pensions, while Mr. Stathakis outlined what the Board has done to improve the township’s budget, create two years of surpluses, and reduce overall spending without cutting essential fire, ems, police and other services.  While our Supervisor and Treasurer have been doing the job we elected them to do, Mrs. Manzella has been spending her time on Facebook and Internet blogs smearing our township and desperately trying to ram a special interest recall down our throats.

So with the first recalls dead and buried, and now more recalls rising up from the dead, Shelby residents will spend our summer under a cloud of embarrassment brought about by this barrage of recalls.  Residents who understand the issues didn’t fall for their tricks the first time, and won’t this time either.  In fact, rest assured that we will expand our circle of influence and reach out to expose the truth about the recall zombies and their actual vision for our township.

As proud supporters of Supervisor Stathakis, Treasurer Viar and Trustee Flynn (as well as Trustees Wozniak and Filar) we want you all to know that we have your back.  Don’t worry about the recall zombies and their horror movie.  Keep doing your job, fighting for taxpayers, pushing back against the special interests and remember that a majority of residents reject these dirty political tricks.

Until next time...

Shelby Taxpayers Celebrate As Stathakis Recall Dies; Accusations of Fraud By Petitioners Surface

When the recall against Shelby Township Supervisor Rick Stathakis 

died a well-deserved death, so did the demands and political agendas of 

the people and groups who embraced this special interest power grab.

(CLICK ON PHOTO FOR A LARGER VERSION)

“Ding dong the stupid recall is dead!”

All Shelby Township taxpayers, at least the majority of us who believe in, and support, the current conservative policies of Supervisor Rick Stathakis, Treasurer Paul Viar and Trustees Flynn, Filar, and Wozniak, are happily singing this song.

The death of the Stathakis recall was headline news in all local newspapers.  We have included links to four of these articles below:
• Here is how the MACOMB DAILY reported the death of the recall.
• Here is the same story as reported by the ADVISOR SOURCE NEWSPAPER.
• Here is how the SHELBY-UTICA NEWS reported the story.
• Finally, here is how Save Shelby’s recall failure was covered by the SHELBY-UTICA PATCH.

This defeat means Shelby taxpayers will be spared the enormous expense of unnecessarily spending THOUSANDS of our precious tax dollars to promote the selfish recall agenda of special interests seeking influence, control and power.  It is also a huge victory for DEMOCRACY against those seeking an iron-fisted dictatorial control over our township.

The much ballyhooed recall attempt against Supervisor Rick Stathakis died on June 17, 2011 when it was proven that those seeking to oust Supervisor Stathakis fell significantly short of the minimum number of signatures required to force an election.  A review of the petitions showed that the Save Shelby gang, despite everything they told the press, did not have what they claimed to have.  In fact, the recall addicts had far less than expected — and far less than what is minimally required to force a recall election on their terms.

The failed recall was discussed at the Tuesday, June 21st meeting of the Board of Trustees.  Supervisor Rick Stathakis, who for weeks stood silent about the recall, opened the meeting with some brief remarks about it.  Here is some of what Supervisor Stathakis said:

Our review of petitions showed that 80% of the signatures were collected by Nightingale family members, members of the township police union and casual workers hired from cities like Detroit, Troy, East Lansing and Warren.
 
I asked Practical Political Consulting, an independent firm in Lansing, to examine the petitions.  Their review concurred that petitioners fell short in both the number of signatures collected, and the number of valid signatures required.

Mark Grebner, President of Practical Political Consulting, said: “We found hundreds of fraudulent signatures, as well as other problems.” 

The way this recall campaign was handled raises serious concerns.  Here is one e-mail I received yesterday:

Mr. Stathakis - Several months ago I was approached outside a local grocery store and asked to sign a petition to reinstate the DARE program (editor’s note: the DARE program was never eliminated by the Board).  I was handed a clipboard and when I looked at the paperwork I realized that it was a petition to recall you and others.  Had I not looked at the paperwork I would have unknowingly signed the recall petition.  I realize that maybe this is not such a big deal but I wonder how many others might have signed without realizing what they really were signing.  This concerns me and I just though that you should know.  Sincerely, Helen Reeves

Editor’s Note: Supervisor Stathakis then asked Fire Chief Gene Shepherd to tell residents about something the Fire Department experienced concerning the recall.  One petitioner approached a resident and said that if you support the fire department you need to sign the recall.  The Chief made it crystal clear that the Fire Department DID NOT condone or support the recall, and found this petitioner’s actions disgraceful.

I have been advised that Macomb County Clerk Sabaugh’s office contacted Practical Political Consulting yesterday {JUNE 20TH} and requested a copy of their report.  I authorized a release of that report and it was sent to Mrs. Sabaugh’s office.

Editor’s Note: If you would like a copy of the report to read for yourself, go to www.rickstathakis.com and click on the “news” tab for an explanation of each of the challenged signatures.  Very interesting!

I want residents to know that I will not allow political attacks or recall threats to stop me from serving you, the people of Shelby Township.  Your Board of Trustees will stay focused on the issues of our township: Finances, public safety and quality of life.

===== 

What Mrs. Reeves points out in her e-mail is how a petitioner used misleading information to try and “sell” the recall.  Why?  Could it be that the zoning excuse was not enough to garner signatures?  Could it be that those behind the recall had other, more personal, issues driving their interest?  Could it be that the special interests pushing this recall had one thing in mind, POWER, and to them the ends justified the means? Could it mean that the hired circulators did not understand the issue and were saying anything just so they could increase the signature count and pad their paychecks?

Mark Grebner, the President of Lansing-based Practical Political Consulting, was called upon by Mr. Stathakis to verify the petitions.  Even though the Clerk is supposed to verify signatures, Mr. Stathakis made the correct move in hiring Grebner’s firm.

We would NEVER trust Clerk Kowal.  Why?  Because Terri “Bykowski” Kowal was a publicly-linked “friend” of the Save Shelby recall Facebook page, as reported in the January 21, 2011 INSIDE OUT.  She chose sides in this fight and her son (Jayson) and daughter-in-law (Misty) both circulated recall petitions.  If you doubt us, check out the two petitions above (click the image for a larger view).

As if the Reeves e-mail isn’t bad enough, we also received a note from Joanne Brazel-Wheatcroft.  Joanne is the township resident who was kicked off the Save Shelby Facebook page after she began challenging the recall.

Here is Joanne’ message:
I was in a hair salon in Shelby Twp yesterday and was shocked to find out how many residents don't know why there is a recall petition out there and whats going on in their own community, it makes me sick!!! Of course they knew about a recall and 1 lady said she signed the petition but didn't know what its really about (a police officer told her he would lose his job if we didn't recall our supervisor), I filled her in and now she wants her name off the petition, makes me wonder, just how many more people like her signed the stupid thing?!

I spent 3 hours in the salon and happened to chit chat with quite a few people, I filled them ALL in on the truth!  I wonder how many others have signed the petition under false pretenses??? 

The recall fanatics tried hard, no one can dispute that.  They were willing to say anything and pay any price to accomplish their mission.  However, when all was said and done truth ruled the day and Shelby Township taxpayers, and our cherished democracy, are the BIG WINNERS.

Just as there are recall winners, there are also losers.  We have outlined the individuals and groups who lost in the “Shelby Recall Graveyard” photo appearing at the top of this post.  Some of these recall addicts are actually suggesting that they won.  They have belittled those who view this as a defeat, going so far as to quote Mark Twain: “reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”

Since they mentioned Mark Twain, the following Twain quote more accurately depicts the recall: “It ain’t what you know that gets you into trouble.  It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.” 

The Inside Out’s List of Shelby Township Recall Losers:

Trustee Lisa Manzella.  Perhaps more than anyone else in the township who was publicly associated with the recall, Trustee Lisa Manzella had the most to lose — and lose she did.  She can try to deny the loss, claiming credit for what she considers a victory, but come on...really?  Shelby Township residents aren’t that dumb Lisa, no matter what you say about us on Facebook!

Following months (if not years) of pumping up the recall campaign — speaking about it, cheerleading for it, posting about it, advocating for it and raising money to support it, this loss poured a bucket of ice-cold water on Manzella’s heated and nasty recall rhetoric.

As a result, Manzella’s credibility (what’s left of it anyway) is melting away faster than the Wicked Witch of the West at the end of the Wizard of Oz.

“Ding dong the stupid recall is dead.”

Faced with such a defeat you would think that talk of recall would subside.  However, Mrs. Manzella is trying to pump up talk of yet another recall.  You heard correctly.  Lisa Manzella is openly encouraging another recall.  Check out this exchange posted on the Save Shelby Facebook page on June 21, 2011.

As you will see from the date and time stamp of this post, Mrs. Manzella began this discussion during the Board meeting. This means she was using a township laptop computer to conduct Facebook business during a township meeting.  Is it professional and appropriate conduct for an elected official to post on Facebook when she is supposed to be engaging in township business?

Oh the irony of it all!  Back in our May 17, 2011 INSIDE OUT editorial, we predicted that these people, if they did not succeed in their attempted power grab, would try to do the whole recall thing over again.  Lisa Manzella is obviously so crazed that a majority residents didn’t buy what she and her recall addicts were selling that she is still out for blood.

EDITOR’S NOTE: By the way, in case you are wondering, Manzella’s notation “2Fb”, as defined by the urban dictionary, stands for two faced bitch, someone with two personalities.  Used more to describe girls rather than boys.  OR, if you prefer to use internet slang the term “2Fb” stands for: Too Fucking Bad!

Trustee Lisa Manzella’s self-serving posts on Facebook and other websites have proven her motivations.  Not only that, but her arrogant disregard for our township exposed a much darker side of the whole recall campaign.

Lisa Manzella was in her glory days when the Stathakis recall petitions were filed.  But, as Bruce Springsteen says, “Glory days, they’ll past you by, glory days, glory days.....”  I guess, now that the recall is dead, the glory days are gone.

Here is what Trustee Manzella posted on the Shelby-Utica Patch website after Supervisor Rick Stathakis filed his lawsuit claiming the recall was invalid because the petitions were submitted after the 180-day deadline:

Hey Lisa, you are right when you mention Skip and Linda Maccarone, the Nightingales, you and (you forgot to mention) outsiders hired to work from Detroit, Warren, Troy, East Lansing and Clinton Township.  However, instead of pointing fingers of “blame” we prefer to think of it as giving credit where credit is due! 

Then there is this Facebook gem.  Read along and follow the logic:

Very interesting!  One day (May 26) Manzella is criticizing Mr. Caradonna (the developer of Shelby Woods North) and calling him a puk (we think she meant to write “puke”).   Then one day later, May 27th, Manzella wants to call off the dogs.  Doesn’t this exchange seem rather bizarre? 

Since the Shelby Woods North excuse is what allegedly motivated resident Tom Delise to file recall petitions in the first place, why the sudden change of heart by Manzella?  Could it be that, as Manzella herself wrote, “he [Caradonna] donated a substantial amount of money to the recall effort, funds that went to the company hired to circulate petitions” and it is not good strategy to attack a financial contributor?

Given that this recall failed miserably, and that residents have grown tired of the whole recall rampage lately, you would think that talk of recalls would fade.  Yet, as she commented during the June 21st Board meeting, Trustee Manzella couldn’t help but lash out against Supervisor Stathakis once again.  It is obvious that this defeat has hit her very hard — it is a personal defeat.  Yet, she persists in her condemnation of Supervisor Stathakis at meetings and on the Internet.

Afterwards, one Inside Out reader sent us this e-mail message: “Trustee Manzella’s actions have really grown tiresome.  People are sick of what they are seeing and how she is trying to go after other Board members.  If this is the best Lisa can offer to our township, then she should do us all a favor and RESIGN tomorrow.” 

BREAKING NEWS! Taxpayers Cheer as the Nightingale/Police Union Recall Attempt Against Supervisor Rick Stathakis Fails!

We have just been advised, by a friend at the Detroit Free Press, that the recall attempt against Shelby Township Supervisor Rick Stathakis has officially ended.   Here is a link to the Detroit Free Press article.

What does this major development mean for our township and for those who organized and carried out this recall attempt?

(1) The Save Shelby people who boasted about having all the signatures they needed ... FAILED.

(2) Trustee Lisa Manzella is the BIG LOSER.  She put herself squarely in the center of this recall campaign.  She got emotionally drawn into this recall out of her hatred for Supervisor Stathakis.  She blogged about it on Facebook, bragged about it to friends, and congratulated the Save Shelby group for a “job well done.”  She still has not accepted the fact that Shelby Township voters elected Mr. Stathakis by historic numbers in 2008 when we voted Skip Maccarone out of office.

(3) The Nightingale family, including their rude and disrespectful leader Nick Nightingale, who demanded (after filing the petitions) that Supervisor Stathakis resign ... LOST.  So much for his demands upon our township!

(4) The special interests, including the Shelby Township police union, that went door-to-door spreading their wealth of misinformation about the recall got kicked in the a$$. 

(5) Those outsiders (people from Detroit, Flint, Garden City, East Lansing, Monroe County, Sterling Heights, Troy, Warren, etc.) who were paid to circulate recall petitions got the money ... but not the signatures.

(6) Some township residents, like Tom Delise (the guy who filed the petitions) were left hanging when the Nightingales and the police union saw the recall as a way of pushing their own agenda.  The Nighingales and the police union took over the whole thing - because they knew they could do a better job.  Mr. Delise and others who believe what they did was right should be justifiably embarrassed by this defeat.

Interestingly, even though the Nightingales bragged that they had collected 7,600 signatures, the facts show that they obviously couldn’t add either.  They actually collected 7,275 signatures - according to the Free Press.  Of those, only 5,817 were deemed valid signatures — far below the 6,300 minimum required by law to force a recall election.

During one of her numerous Internet rants, Trustee Lisa Manzella bragged about how successful the recall campaign was.  In fact, during a May 28, 2011 written post on the Shelby-Utica Patch internet newsletter, Manzella said the following about Supervisor Stathakis:
“6400 votes to get in office and 7600 signatures to get out.”  Her point was that more people seemed to want Supervisor Stathakis removed than voted for him in 2008.

Taking Manzella’s logic, and using actual facts, we offer the following:
6,400 Shelby residents voted to elect Supervisor Rick Stathakis in 2008 and 5,800 people signed a petition to call for a recall election in 2011.  The majority of people still support Supervisor Stathakis.  We wonder how many of those who signed did so without fully understanding what the petition said?  Were they mislead into signing?  Did they sign under false pretenses?  Stay tuned!

As we discussed in our June 8th Inside Out post, Lisa Manzella made a point of saying that the group had 20 talking points that their paid circulators used when going door-to-door begging for signatures.  Why so many different talking points?  Does this indicate that the so-called zoning issue was not strong enough to stand the test of a recall and so the Save Shelby recall addicts needed a bunch of half-truths and outright lies to prop up their selfish recall?

This is VERY GOOD NEWS for Shelby Township taxpayers.  We will now be spared the unnecessary burden of spending $30,000 for a recall election to promote the interests of the Nightingales and the police union.  They were the chief architects of this recall.  They put themselves out on a limb, and the limb broke with them standing on it.

The Inside Out will have more to say about this dramatic development soon.  We will also report on Treasurer Viar’s recall once that information is released.  However, given the end result of the Stathakis recall failure, we expect Treasurer Viar’s recall will also be thrown in the trash can.

Until next time...

Who Should Decide Shelby Township’s Future: Taxpayers or Special Interests and Outsiders?

Republicans, from the national level down to the state and local governments, are talking “fiscal responsibility.”  Elected leaders, and those who aspire to political office (at least in the Grand Old Party), are talking about bud rides, taxes, cutting spending and reforming government operations.  Republicans are sending a message that they oppose higher spending and want to get a firm grip on the nation’s deficit dilemma. 

Congresswoman Candice Miller, featured on a recent issue of Shelby This Week, talked about the national deficit and debt.  State Senator Jack Brandenburg did likewise as he discussed the financial situation facing the State of Michigan.  Senator Brandenburg gave our Governor Rick Snyder a B+ for the way he has tried to get Michigan‘s economy back on track and reverse Granholm’s miserable economic and fiscal policies.  These are tough times, and they require tough decisions which are (sometimes) unpopular.

While conservative lawmakers across the country are being lauded for their attention to detail on taxes and spending, and for their determination to cut the size of government and reduce costs to taxpayers, unbelievably here in Shelby Township our elected leaders are being ignored for how they are working to address township financial concerns.

Even though the Board of Trustees has balanced the budget, created two years of reserves (totaling more than $1 million in savings to taxpayers), produced millions of dollars in cost savings in the fire department, DPW and parks and recreation, protected vital services (Fire, EMS and Police) and not raised taxes, some misguided township residents want us to ignore these factors.  “Saving money is realy no big deal,” these people contend.  These are all positive benefits for all taxpayers.  Yet some people (primarily those fueling the recall rage) are so bent on the politics of personal destruction that they brush off the truth about what people elsewhere are concerned about: FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY.

As we all know, Supervisor Rick Stathakis has been the primary target of this political wrath.  A local towing company (Nightingale), the police union, and some fringe Republicans (backed by Skip and Linda Maccarone) have launched personal attacks on Mr. Stathakis to try and draw attention away from the real issues.  Their attacks may be making headlines in a few local newspapers, but they are certainly not making headway in the minds of a majority of residents who recognize the positive developments Supervisor Stathakis has brought to Shelby.

There is little doubt that when politicians go beyond the talk and make concrete changes, they can pay a political price.  Some people, especially those special interests who love the status quo, will stand up and make lots of noise.  Governor Snyder is seeing this on the state level, where he is the target of a recall for doing the job he was elected to do.  Those behind the Snyder recall most likely didn’t vote for him in the first place, and are angry that he won.  So now they are trying to kick him out of office with an attempted recall.

The same situation is confronting Shelby Township Supervisor Rick Stathakis.  Mr. Stathakis is the target of a recall by the Shelby police union and a township towing contractor, both of which are very angry at him.  Remember, Stathakis has taken action to cut spending, restructure and reform government operations, and introduce competitive bids into all township services, including towing.  He has demanded the employee unions (including the police union) accept concessions during tough times.  Here again, we can see that when politicians make changes, they can pay a political price.

When you listen carefully to what the recall addicts say, it is clear that they don’t care about finances or fiscal statistics.  Beyond the talking points of the recall, you get the feeling that they really don’t care about anything. They only care about the recall as it relates to THEM.  The Nightingales are concerned about the costs of competitive towing bids and the police union are concerned about what the costs of government reforms will mean to their lifetime pensions and health care benefits.  Both are suffering from entitlement envy.  Neither has the interests of the township at heart as they try to protect their benefits and personal interests from any talk (or the mere thought) of reform.

These two special interests groups, along with hired workers from OUTSIDE of our township, have engaged in a recall campaign of deception.  They claim to care about the township.  Really?  Ask yourself why people from Clinton Township, Sterling Heights, Troy, Detroit, Flint, East Lansing, Metamora, Rochester, Warren, Garden City, New Haven, Lenox Township, Macomb Township, Washington Township and other communities care about a zoning issue (or anything else for that matter) in Shelby Township?  Why would they care about the township so much that they would circulate recall petitions?  The answer is they don’t. So what is their true interest in backing the ouster of our conservative, Republican Board?

As concerned taxpayers it troubles us that these people are attempting to shove their agendas down our collective throats.  This goes beyond partisan politics and cuts to the core of the foundation of our democracy.  The minority trying to subvert the will of the majority — plain and simple.  Those who didn’t support Supervisor Stathakis are trying to play tricks to kick him out of office.  It is one thing to support a recall on principle, but quite another to support it for selfish reasons, or financial gain.

If special interests groups can subvert the democratic election process by submitting recall language over a contrived issue, hiring outsiders to circulate them, and then getting “their” hand-picked candidates elected to office, what will this mean for Shelby Township?  What will it mean to the competitive bid process if a towing contractor can determine the fate of our elected officials?  What will it mean to efforts to reform lifetime union pensions and health care benefits if the police union is financing political campaigns and running the show?  Will taxpayers’ interests continue to be protected, as they are today, or will the priorities of special interests come first?

These are all relevant and important questions as the November recall election approaches.

When the Save Shelby petitions were submitted to the Macomb County Clerk the recall entered a new phase — one of verification and challenges.  The Save Shelby group immediately went into overdrive criticizing Supervisor Stathakis for exercising his legal rights (as outlined under Michigan’s recall law) to challenge the validity of signatures.  Apparently, the recall addicts feel that any attempt to challenge what they and their hired outsiders did is somehow against the wishes of residents.  Well, they are wrong.  Challenging what could be an invalid or illegitimate recall is exactly what the majority of residents feel is the right thing to do.

We reference the June 8th 2011 Macomb Daily article describing how Supervisor Stathakis has decided to fight back.  In addition, a June 15, 2011 article from the SOURCE NEWSPAPER also reported that Supervisor Stathakis filed suit against County Clerk Carmella Sabaugh claiming the recall is invalid.  It will be interesting to see what the court decides.

Meanwhile, Treasurer Paul Viar has also been showing signs of his counter-campaign against the recall.  In fact, at the Tuesday, June 7th Board of Trustees meeting, Treasurer Viar outlined some very compelling reasons why he is being targeted.  First, he explained the obligations that Shelby taxpayers are being forced to pay for lifetime pensions and health care for township police officers.  The information he provided was SHOCKING.

Here is some of what Treasurer Viar said:

To the citizens who watch these Board meetings, you know by now I am an unapologetic conservative when it comes to spending your tax money.

I have made no excuses for my diligence on spending, and my position on cutting costs.  I warned the Board and community as far back as 2006 that we were in for some troubled economic times and we all need to seriously reduce township spending.

No one on this or the two preceding Boards has worked harder to reach solvency with our Police and Fire Pension situation.

I have thought long and hard about why I was truly included in the current recall effort by our police union.  I have concluded that their anger at me is because I have chosen to let the taxpaying public know about the obligations they face today, and for decades to come, concerning pension payments.

The very thought that someone would dare speak up and tell the people the facts about these pensions has obviously angered the police union.  So they have decided to try and silence the messenger.

You may rest assured that no recall efforts or threats will stop me from speaking up for the taxpayers interest and exposing the truth about employee pensions or anything else.

This information has riled the police union.  As a result, the union has decided that the best way to keep taxpayers in the dark about what these pensions are costing is to get rid of Mr. Viar.

In addition, the June 8th issue of the Shelby-Utica Patch, an online newsletter that reports news of interests to Shelby residents, discussed Treasurer Viar’s assertion of possible fraud by a petition circulator.  When we read through the Patch article, it is obvious that something smells here.  The petition cited by Treasurer Viar has a PRINTED name on it, allegedly from a township resident, and not a signature as required by law.  However, that resident said they never signed the petition.  Even more interesting is the fact that the petition in question was circulated by a Shelby police officer.

Does this raise any red flags with you?

If not, then perhaps this will.  At that same Board meeting, Treasurer Viar pointed out that the name of one petition circulator matched the name and address of a man listed on Michigan’s sex offenders registry.  Does it concern you that a convicted sexual predator was trolling your neighborhoods getting petitions signed for this recall?

Those who propose kicking out our elected officials have a proud and outspoken advocate in Trustee Lisa Manzella.  She has been one of the central figures in this recall.  She supports it, she speaks in favor of it, she brags about it on Facebook and even blogs about it on local media websites.

In fact, when news came out that Supervisor Stathakis and Treasurer Viar were both determined to fight back against this recall, Manzella went nuts.  Responding to Treasurer Viar’s allegation of election fraud by a petition circulator, Manzella came up with a lame explanation (excuse) for how a recall petition could have a forged signature on it that was circulated by a police officer.  Here is what she wrote:

In other words, here is what the average informed reader could take away from this Manzella rant:
“This lawsuit is a waste of time.  Having a false signature on a recall petition is no big deal.  Geez, it happens all the time!  The lady probably was afraid of all the rain and thunder and forgot how to sign her name.  Heck, she had to sign on a clipboard, and we all know how easy it is for people to make mistakes when signing on a dumb clipboard.  It also doesn’t mean anything that the petition was circulated by a police officer who should have known better.  Now can I change the subject, because Treasurer Viar is a jerk.”

Above is what Trustee Manzella was really saying in that Patch comment.  You can see how dumb her logic is.  Can you imagine what Manzella would be saying if a recall petition filed against her contained such a blatant violation of campaign laws?

As for Manzella’s claim that this does not constitute fraud, that may be her opinion.  However, a decision like that rests with the proper authorities, not with Mrs. Manzella or any of her recall cohorts.  Of course they don’t see anything wrong — remember it is THEIR recall campaign.

Predictable to a fault, Trustee Manzella once again took to the Save Shelby Facebook site to criticize Supervisor Stathakis for fighting back and engaging in a legally-protected campaign to challenge the recall.  Here is how one recent exchange on the Save Shelby site went:

What we find amusing is how Trustee Manzella vehemently opposes Mr. Stathakis’ lawsuit.  She even calls the lawsuit “a slap in the face to the residents.”  Really??  Remember, Manzella filed a lawsuit against township resident Michael Ward (recently named the most charitable person in Macomb County) when Ward filed recall petitions against her.  Some have said this was a blatant attempt to stifle that recall through intimidation.  In Manzella’s world  that lawsuit is just fine and dandy.  However, the one filed by Supervisor Stathakis alleging that recall petitions were filed late, and thus are invalid, is not?  Manzella’s rant  is merely another crazed comment from Shelby’s cuckoo bird.

Two other interesting observations from this Facebook post.  First, we have a man named Lou Aceti publicly calling all of our township elected officials “garbage.”  Have we come to the point in our public discourse when we call our elected officials “GARBAGE” and nobody cares?  We have all witnessed how disrespectful some township gadflies have become during televised Board of Trustees meetings.  This rowdy crowd is really getting out of hand and Aceti’s comment takes this growing disrespect to a brand new low!

People like Nick Nightingale, who repeatedly shouts rude comments from the floor during Board meetings, and other residents who come forth to belittle and smear the reputation and integrity of our elected officials, have given birth to this maniacal movement.  Our experience has shown that whenever people stoop to the level of trying to dehumanize people it demonstrates a great deal of insecurity.  What is also quite enlightening is that the same people who complain about the Supervisor’s so-called “rudeness” are engaging in the very conduct they eagerly criticize.  The difference is that while the Supervisor is NOT rude, his detractors are - and are become more hostile with each passing day.

When you see comments like Aceti’s you can understand why the Save Shelby people have become a total embarrassment to our great township.  It doesn't taken an “Einstein” to see the stupidity in what the Save Shelby ilk are trying to do.

However, Mr. Aceti goes on to write that it is “way overdue” to remove Clerk Terri Kowal.  Now THAT is an opinion with which we completely agree.

As we noted in our May 21st INSIDE OUT, Clerk Kowal has been feasting at the public trough for a VERY LONG TIME — 20 years to be exact.  In our humble opinion that is long enough — and it is time to bring in someone new to the position of Clerk who will focus on performing her duties as Clerk and not engaging in, and having her family members join, politically-motivated games like a recall.

In addition, Save Shelby recall addict Marsha Nightingale (does that name sound familiar?) took exception to Aceti’s statement about getting rid of Mrs. Kowal.  Nothing really surprising about that, especially when you consider that the Clerk’s son and daughter-in-law circulated petitions supporting the Nightingale recall.  Very typical of Kowal’s “you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours” mindset.

When talk of a possible lawsuit to challenge the recall first surfaced, Mrs. Manzella could’t help but go to Facebook and begin her attack:

Trustee Manzella has truly gone off the deep end.  Since the attorney who filed the lawsuit against this misguided recall is Jack Dolan, Manzella has shown how out of sync with reality she truly is. 

We have known the Honorable Jack Dolan for a LONG time.  He even once served as Township Attorney.  He may not be perfect but no one has ever called Mr. Dolan an “incompetent attorney” — no one, that is, except Trustee Lisa Manzella!

Hey Lisa, do you want to rephrase that attack now, or do you stand by your ridicule of Mr. Dolan?

We applaud Supervisor Stathakis for using the courts to not just challenge the recall, but gain clarity and clarification on what exactly the recall law says.  What does it mean by 180 days?  For the sake of our democracy, we must never allow vague inferences and (mis)interpretations of law be used as an excuse by a few disgruntled people with money to skirt the intent of the law and deprive us of our democratic rights.

It is has been written that everything in life has a time and place.  Some have repackaged this to read “every dog has its day.”  However you choose to view it, we offer the following:

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
To everything there is a season,
a time for every purpose under the sun.
A time to be born and a time to die;
a time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
a time to kill and a time to heal ...
a time to weep and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn and a time to dance ...
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to lose and a time to seek;
a time to rend and a time to sew;
a time to keep silent and a time to speak;
a time to love and a time to hate;
a time for war and a time for peace.

Considering where the Shelby Township recall stands today, it looks like it is time for us to fight back against the Save Shelby/Nightingale recall posse.  We will not let this group of malcontents drive our township into the ground for the sake of their personal greed and political agendas.

We have wondered why Supervisor Stathakis has let these bullies mistreat him and push him around for more than two years now.  Yes, we know he is a nice guy, but COME ON!  Even the nicest of the nice need to throw a few punches in self defense when facing such a brutal and malicious attack.

Given his record in office — a record unmatched when you look at the surrounding communities — Shelby Township Supervisor Rick Stathakis has done a remarkable job of standing up for taxpayers, protecting essential services, and reforming the way our township government works.  Sure, some people who dislike him disagree with what he has done and want him to fail.  They may be loud and enjoy seeing themselves on television, but they are in the MINORITY.

Speaking for the overwhelming majority of residents who oppose the recall, we want to go on record as sending our appreciation to Supervisor Rick Stathakis, Treasurer Paul Viar, Trustee Mike Flynn, Trustee Paula Filar and Trustee Doug Wozniak for upholding your pledge of service.  Each of you has done a remarkable job, especially when considering the barrage of attacks you have faced from those whose only agenda is face time on the taxpayers’ dime.

As for that other Trustee and the Clerk, let’s just say they enjoy playing self-serving political games and end it there!

Until next time...

Save Shelby’s Social Network Smear Exposed; Residents Rise Up Against Ridiculous Recall

Political blogging is one important way that ordinary citizens (like us) can use a powerful tool (the Internet) to make our case and argue our points.  Some people try it and don’t like it (it does take work).  Others do it and don‘t do it well.

The best way you can tell if you are having an impact is by the public response you receive, or the criticism you get from people who read your blogs and are outraged by what you write.  Although we do maintain statistics on our audience, it is difficult to get a reading about how we are being received.  There is no Nielson tracking abilities for weblogs.

Since we first began this blog back in 2008, the Inside Out has had our share of loyal (and ever-growing) followers.  As you might expect, we have also had a small sect of detractors who resent us using the First Amendment to convey information to the public.

What has surprised us over the years is the lengths that other township residents are going to help promote the Inside Out.  We thank each and every one of you!

For example, editorial cartoons (see copy at right) are a great way to advertise.  This cartoon appeared in the June 7-8 issue of the Source newspaper.  Including our blog address makes this ad stronger.  We sincerely thank all individuals who are helping promote our blog, by either word-of-mouth, e-mail alerts, text messages, flyers, or print media.  We also thank you for sending graphics, ideas and suggestions directly to our e-mail address stopskip08@aol.com.

In addition, a Shelby-Utica Patch blogger named Matt Guarnieri generously included the Inside Out in a June 6th Shelby Utica Patch report he posted concerning Shelby Township political bloggers.

In his list of blogs we noticed that someone has tried to copy the name of our blog (shelbytwptruth) perhaps hoping to confuse people.  However, as readers of the Inside Out will attest to, we may be imitated, but we will never be duplicated.  However, we certainly welcome the public debate!

Speaking of the public, response to the June 1st INSIDE OUT, where we exposed the activities and comments on the Save Shelby Facebook page, was so overwhelming that we decided to keep the ball rolling this week.  Keep in mind that what we reprinted last week was just the proverbial tip of the iceberg.  There is much more interesting reading ahead.

What is this Shelby Township recall thing all about anyway?  That is the big question, and the answer depends on who you speak to and what day of the week it is.  Some people believe it is about a zoning issue, while others claim the recall is about DARE, taxes, crossing guards, excessive spending, an unneeded police building and other ancillary items.  Heck, at the Tuesday, June 8th Board of Trustees meeting, resident John Holeton said that the recall is due to the Board’s actions on so-called “smart meters.”  Smart meters?????

We ask again: what is this Shelby recall thing really all about?

Could the people spearheading this recall crusade for power (Nightingale Towing, township police officers, and outsiders) be misleading residents into believing lies as truth?  If so, for what purpose?

Some residents we have spoken to (remember, names and addresses of the signers appear on the petitions) have told us that zoning was never even mentioned.  They seemed perplexed when we asked them what the recall is all about.  To our amazement, some had no idea.  “I just signed it because they asked me to,” is what one resident said.

The recall advocates themselves can’t seem to get their story straight.  They aren’t following their talking points.  Consider Shelby resident Tom Delise. While we disagree with his undying thirst for recall (remember, this guy filed more than 40 petitions over and over and over until he FINALLY got one approved), we applaud him for standing up for what he believes in (right or wrong).  Our neighbor Mr. Delise feels this recall is justified, and genuinely feels the recall is being pushed along by a zoning issue that he started.

Here is what Delise wrote to the Shelby Utica Patch about the recall:
“Rezoning! That’s what the petition reads and that is why the majority of the residents signed the petitions. ( period)”

Really?  The whole recall is just that simple?  Is anything in politics that simple?  Perhaps instead of ending with the word “period” Delise should have written “question mark?”  While Mr. Delise thinks his position is solid, could he be a puppet in a much larger scheme by special interests with a darker agenda?  Is Delise being played like a fiddle by Shelby’s “Fiddler on the Roof?”

Is this recall about zoning?  Not according to Trustee Lisa Manzella.  Manzella, a close associate of Delise and vocal advocate of the recall, wrote on the Shelby-Utica Patch that there were “20 bullet points” circulators used as they walked door-to-door (see screen capture above).

Wait a minute, did Manzella just say 20 points?  Yup!  So what happened to Delise’s comment about the recall being about a zoning issue and that’s why people signed petitions “period”?  If it truly is that simple, why did the recall radicals need 20 talking points?  Once again, Manzella has confirmed what we had long expected: the excuses for recall go far above complaints about zoning.  In fact, the 20 talking points have nothing to do with zoning.

As we said a moment ago, residents have reported that zoning was never even brought up by the circulators.  However, issues like the new police building, DARE, taxes, spending, smart meters, and a host of other things were.  Why?  Was someone trying to trick residents into signing a petition?  No one would play that dirty of a trick, would they?

Remember, we are talking Shelby township politics, not reality!

Speaking of people out of touch with reality, we move on to the Nightingales.  They have claimed that the reason they are so behind the recall has nothing to do with TOWING.  They want us to believe them, but very few people do.

If towing is not the real issue, why did they scream “recall” after the Board voted unanimously (7-to-0) to seek competitive bids for towing?  Why did the Nightingale family go out in force circulating petitions?  Why are the Nightingales so active on the Save Shelby recall Facebook page?  Why are the Nightingales coming to Board meetings accusing Trustees of being unethical, criminal, and anti-democratic?

Claiming that this recall has nothing to do with towing would be like us telling a bald man a hair-raising story?  A totally ridiculous proposition!

Now, for the GOOD STUFF...

Below is a Facebook exchange that took place back in March involving Marsha Nightingale.  This exchange also features Joanne Brazel-Wheatcroft.  As we previously reported, Joanne was kicked off the Save Shelby Facebook page shortly after posting these comments that challenged the foundation of the recall.  Below we have copied and pasted the actual exchange as it took place.  When you read them you will see why someone with Save Shelby decided to silence her.
=========

Marsha Nightingale

GREAT NEWS FOR SHELBY RECALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!FB friends please attend.We can make shelby a better community.Meeting at Esplendido's on 23 mile and mound March 23rd at 7:oo.   March 28

Joanne Brazel-Wheatcroft - REALLY???? Your family should be ashamed of what they are doing to this community! You lost, move on!  March 28

Marsha Nightingale - Looking forward to seeing you at the meeting Joanne Brazel-Wheatcroft!!!!!!  March 28

Marsha Nightingale - Love you Joanne  March 28

Joanne Brazel-Wheatcroft - The next election is next year, wait it out and let the voters make their choice, just like they did in the last election. We cannot afford to hold a special election people!!! One more year!!!   March 28

Joanne Brazel-Wheatcroft - Here's another interesting fact. On their website your group is pleading for money. They ask that all donations be sent to a house on Huling Street in Shelby Township. The obvious question is, "Who lives at 46822 Huling?" So we went on-line to Shelby Township's website and, after scanning the township's assessing records (public information), got the answer.  

According to Shelby Township tax records, the owner of that home is Noel Ryan Nightingale.  If you don't believe us, go to the township's website and check it out yourself - this is public information
March 28

Joanne Brazel-Wheatcroft - Very interesting huh?  March 28

=====

Joanne must have really gotten under their skin and as a result, her comments (above) were deleted.  “Hey, just take her off and we will pretend it never happened.”  That revisionist approach may have worked for Vladimir Lenin, but a trick like that fails in a democracy like Shelby Township.  The Save Shelby group deleted the comments, but we copied them for all to see and read (aren’t we stinkers?).

Once again, we applaud Joanne for her bravery in calling into question the intent of this recall.  Her comments were deleted to try and keep people from seeing the truth.  But the truth always finds a way of breaking through the noise of nonsense

Speaking of people who denigrate our township officials, we turn to Linda Maccarone.  It has been more than speculation that Skip and Linda Maccarone are both very much embedded in this recall.   Both have taken high profile positions supporting the recall.  Both Skip and Linda must view this recall as “payback” time.  Why else would Skip write a scathing editorial in the March 25, 2011 Source newspaper applauding the current recall.  Why else would Mrs. Maccarone take to Facebook to rant and rave about our township?

What we find amusing is that whenever Skip Maccarone’s name comes up, the recall addicts make a public spectacle of distancing themselves from him.  For example, take this comment by recall rebel Tom Delise posted on the Shelby Utica Patch Internet newsletter:

SHELBY UTICA PATCH
Thomas Delise
10:31pm on Wednesday, June 1, 2011
“What does Macarone have to do with any of this? I don't know if that is true or not,but it sounds to me like you're ok with what's good for the goose is good for the gander.”

While we are not quite sure what the second sentence of his comment refers to, the first one is pretty clear.  What do the Maccarones (Mr. and Mrs.) have to do with the current recall.  PLENTY!

First, we include a post that Linda Maccarone made in response to some Save Shelby supporters deciding to “unfriend” themselves from the site.  Mrs. Maccarone blames us (and others) for exposing the truth as reasons that people dropped off the site.  Could it be that these “friends” couldn’t stand the heat after we exposed the truth in our January, 21 2011 Inside Out.

Interestingly, after this post was circulated, people like Clerk Terri Kowal, Laura Porter (administrator for the 41A District Court) and others took their name off.  Each made up an excuse for why their names appeared on the “friend” list in the first place, ranging from a mistake, to a misunderstanding, to (in Kowal’s case) “my son did it.”

If this was all just a mistake in the first place, why did Linda Maccarone get so  upset when people dropped off?  No one demanded that names be removed.  Don’t blame us Linda, we’re just doing our public service and informing Shelby residents about the people and motivations behind the recall.

We were also surprised to read Mrs. Maccarone publicly calling for an “overthrow” of the government!  Doesn’t that sound a bit extreme and radical?  Is this how the recall group hopes to take back power — through a selfish recall?  We have speculated that Shelby’s recall radicals are following Lenin’s laws, and this talk only reinforces our belief.

Then, there is this exchange started by Linda Maccarone.  Once again, Joanne Brazel-Wheatcroft (pre-deletion phase) got involved to challenge the recall addicts.  This is a lengthy exchange, but it certainly makes for interesting reading.

This exchange continues below...

Boy did Mrs. Maccarone get angry.  As you can see, she is now trying to blame Supervisor Stathakis and Treasurer Viar for exposing the truth.  Hey Linda, what about us??  We’re doing our part so why not attack us too?  Besides, we love hoisting people by their own petards.

By the way, Mrs. Maccarone’s laughable contention that her husband left Shelby Township in strong financial shape flies in the face of financial reality.  We nearly fell off our chair when reading that.

The truth (for those who choose to forget) is that Mr. Maccarone’s bad spending habits nearly bankrupted this township.  He refused to even talk about cutting spending.  As a result, the current Board is being forced to make tough choices to reduce spending, protect vital services (like fire, EMS and police protection), and not raise taxes.  Certainly a tough task, but the Supervisor and Board are doing their job and for that an overwhelming majority of real taxpayers (who vehemently oppose the recall) say THANK YOU for a job well done!

The Facebook post below shows how people who are NOT Shelby residents were encouraged to jump on the recall bandwagon.  This confirms that Linda Maccarone was among those walking door-to-door with petitions (for anyone who still doubted our information):

The thought that people are peeking into the activities of Save Shelby has gotten some of their supporters upset.  They obviously feel secure in making comments in private (like Facebook is really private?) but cringe when their “private” conversations leak into public view.  Case in point:

As you can see, the mere thought that ordinary township residents may actually know what the recall radicals are saying and writing has Save Shelby and their supporters freaking out.  Trustee Lisa Manzella even chimes in attacking township residents.  Such a class act!

Below is another post from Mrs. Maccarone.   This time, Mrs. Maccarone tries to educate a new resident about township government.  As you can see, Mrs. Maccarone wants to get rid of every elected Trustee except (predictably) for her friends Terri Kowal and Lisa Manzella:

Mrs. Maccarone’s hatred for Treasurer Viar dates back to when her husband was running the township.  Treasurer Viar was the voice of opposition against Skip’s massive spending schemes.  Viar opposed the Maccarone “campus”, voted against Maccarone’s priority of spending millions of our tax dollars for two pedestrian bridges, and was persistent in his demands for budget cuts at a time when Mr. Maccarone was advocating larger township budgets.  This puts things in perspective and explains why she views Treasurer Viar as “the biggest problem.”

What will this recall election cost Shelby taxpayers?  Conservative estimates are $30,000 for the recall election and, if the recall succeeds, another $30,000 election to fill the vacancies.

That means this election could cost Shelby Township $60,000!  Now add in the extra costs to verify signatures, and you can see the bigger noose around the neck of taxpayers.

The tentative date for a township recall election is November.  Then, another election (if needed) would likely be held in February 2012.  Then, just six months later in August 2012, the regularly-scheduled township primary will take place.  This means that within a nine-month period, we could realistically have THREE ELECTIONS for the Board of Trustees.  Does any of this make any sense at all to anyone (except those seeking power)?

Costs are an obvious concern to residents facing tough times.  The recall advocates know the costs involved going in, but pressed on anyway.  Now they are getting nervous and are trying to blame others for the costs of their recall.  They even have the audacity to publicly claim that THEY are the people who are trying to save our township money by not having a recall election.  Ridiculous logic from a bunch of pure phonies!

Some of the Save Shelby recall crowd, fearful of public backlash against their unnecessary recall, are trying to hide this fact or spin the truth:

Tom Delise either can’t, or won’t, answer the question about COST.  Why?  What does he have to hide?  Recall advocate Jill Bleeda is on record saying, however, that the election will end up costing taxpayers “nothing.”  So Shelby taxpayers will be having all this recall fun for FREE?????

Sorry Jill ... but that is absolutely FALSE.  Even Clerk Terri Kowal (your Save Shelby recall buddy) has said that a recall election will cost taxpayers $30,000 (plus the additional costs of verifying the signatures).  Once again, your group is lying to people about your recall.

Whenever you hear members of the Nightingale family, Tom Delise, Val Alspaugh, Jill Bleeda, Lisa Manzella, Linda Maccarone, township police officers, or other recall advocates complain about the costs of the election, remember who started all this.  The costs for this recall rests solely with the Nightingales, the police union, and the Save Shelby recall fanatics.  No one else is to blame.  They supported the recall, and all the unnecessary costs that go with it, and now we are all going to be forced to pay money for their selfish little game.

So the next time you pay your taxes remember that the Nightingales and other recall fanatics are going to cost Shelby taxpayer tens of thousands of dollars just to fulfill their political fantasy.

Until next time...