TAXPAYERS Are the REAL Target of the Shelby Recall Zombies

Courage is a characteristic that is lacking in most (but not all) elected officials these days.  Politicians are, by their very nature, timid.  They are concerned about the next election and keeping their jobs.  This is why most of them are prone to take the easy way out — keeping quiet, not ruffling feathers or rocking the boat, not asking important questions, and bending over backwards to try and keep everyone happy.

Unfortunately, some politicians seem more content to do what is politically correct at the moment than what is absolutely right in the long term.  As a result, these politicians fail to tackle tough issues, afraid of possible backlash they will receive.  So, they refuse to stand up to special interests, worried about threats of recalls.  They try to keep employee unions happy, afraid to anger the union because the union’s power and resources will be used against them.

Even though they have been repeatedly targeted for recall, have been badmouthed by the Nightingale family, and berated by the township police union, our current Shelby Township Board of Trustees has NOT been skittish about tackling tough issues.

The five conservative members of the Board — Supervisor Rick Stathakis, Treasurer Paul Viar and Trustees Mike Flynn, Paula Filar and Doug Wozniak, have made it their priority to stand up and protect the interests of taxpayers.   Meanwhile, the two left-leaning Board members, Clerk Terri Kowal and Trustee Lisa Manzella, have become advocates for the unions, employees and special interests — including the special interest most directly tied to the seemingly never-ending recall carousel: the Nightingale towing family.

Shelby Township Treasurer Paul Viar has been the subject of an especially malicious campaign.  The Recall Zombies have declared Treasurer Viar their number one enemy.  Why?  Is it, as we supposed to believe, because of hard feelings over a zoning vote?  Or is it something closer to the hearts (and pocketbooks) of the police union and the Nightingales.

Treasurer Viar is not perfect — and we don’t believe he ever claimed perfection.  As we said in our July 12th Inside Out no politician (despite his or her feelings to the contrary) is.  Politicians are not to be worshipped as gods.  They get elected to do a job, and for Shelby taxpayers that means opposing wasteful spending, cutting spending, and fighting for the interests of taxpayers.  The malicious attacks have not deterred Mr. Viar from staying on message about police pensions.  For that Mr. Viar certainly deserves credit for showing great political courage under fire!

The attacks on Treasurer Viar are not new.  They are just the latest in a 12-year campaign to oppose Mr. Viar’s conservative views.  Over the years, Treasurer Viar has been the focus of criticism from a handful of residents and some township officials who reject his views about lower spending.  When Skip Maccarone was Supervisor, Mr. Viar was a consistent voice against Maccarone’s persistent spending increases.  As Mr. Viar said, his opposition to the $49 million campus earned him criticism from some elected officials, but praise and accolades from a majority of township taxpayers.   If Mr. Viar and others had not stood up and stopped Maccarone’s campus dream, we would all have awakened from that dream with a huge hangover and the nightmare realization that our taxes would likely have to double (or in some cases triple) to support the Maccarone/Manzella campus plan.

When you think about the position of Township Treasurer, which candidate would you prefer:

(1) A Treasurer, like Mr. Viar, who cares about spending and who speaks up and has tried to reduce township spending to protect taxpayers.  Or, would you prefer someone else who is more open to higher spending and higher taxes, and who sees spending as the first and foremost duty of elected officials.
(2) A Treasurer, like Mr. Viar, who is concerned about the high-cost of police pensions and what they will mean to township taxpayers — today and for decades to come.  Or someone else, who is not really that concerned and, perhaps, inclined to let things go on as they always have been as long as the unions are happy and don’t launch a recall attempt.
(3) A Treasurer, like Mr. Viar, who gets upset when he sees tax money wasted and spent needlessly on a politician’s pet project.  Or someone else, who believes that all government spending is good, and who wants to return Shelby to the days of higher spending, bloated budgets and higher taxes.

The special interests pushing the recall want a new Treasurer.  In fact, at the Tuesday, June 21st Board of Trustees meeting, township resident Lewis Kramer stood before the TV cameras and declared, for all to see, that the people organizing and supporting the recall of Mr. Viar are doing so because they want “something different.”

Following this argument to its logical conclusion:
• Treasurer Viar is a true conservative.  The Recall Zombies advocating something “different” prefer a die-hard liberal Treasurer, more receptive to grand spending schemes.
• Treasurer Viar is outspoken about spending.  The Recall Zombies advocating something “different” prefer a Treasurer who will keep his or her mouth shut about spending.
• Treasurer Viar is informing residents about the high costs of employee pensions.  The Recall Zombies advocating something “different” prefer a Treasurer who will not bother residents with such meaningless information about pensions, and who will just keeping writing the checks as long as there are no recalls coming his or her way.
• Treasurer Viar (and the majority of the Board - minus Kowal and Manzella) is trying to win contract concessions from employee unions to help the township during tough times.  The Recall Zombies advocating something “different” prefer a Treasurer who will be “union friendly” and more willing to give the unions whatever raises and benefit increases they want to keep the union bosses happy.

The Recall Zombies want something different, and to get it they are coming to feast on our tax dollars. “They’re coming to get you Shelby.”  Ask yourself what will happen to spending if their candidate gets in there?  Who will win?  Shelby taxpayers, or unions and special interests?

Treasurer Paul Viar may not be perfect, but Mr. Viar has made it PERFECTLY CLEAR which side of the tax and spend equation he is on.  As he said, he is an unapologetic conservative who has a track record of opposing higher spending and taxes.  Lisa Manzella and the Save Shelby gang may want something different for their own purposes, but taxpayers who are struggling to pay their bills don’t agree with the recall zombies’ views and appreciate Mr. Viar’s service as our Treasurer.

The topic of employee pensions came up again during the July 19th Board of Trustees meeting.   This time, the subject was brought up from the floor by Ken Underwood, a retired Shelby Township police officer.  Mr. Underwood used his TV appearance to trash Mr.Viar for his “rant” about how taxpayers are being stripped financially naked by exorbitant police pensions.  Mr. Underwood was obviously angry that the information about public employee pensions is being exposed by Mr. Viar.  Does Mr. Underwood believe that we, as taxpayers, have no right to know what we are paying, and who we are paying it to?  It is, after all, OUR money, right?

Underwood called Mr. Viar’s information a “rant.”  This was an obvious misuse of this word.  Rants are typically stupid or meaningless things people say or write that have no bearing on reality, and no meaning to ordinary people.  You know, the kinds of things that Trustee Lisa Manzella repeatedly posts on Facebook.  NOW THOSE ARE RANTS!

However, telling residents what we are paying from our taxes to support jackpot public employee pensions is not a rant.  It is, on the contrary, an enlightening discussion with taxpayers who would otherwise have no idea how much are are paying for these union retiree benefits.  We applaud Mr. Viar for taking it upon himself to give us this vital and relevant information.  It helps put things in greater perspective.

If you would like to see Mr. Viar’s “rants” about Mr. Underwood, you can  view it at the following link: Underwood Pensions.

You can also view another enlightening comment from Treasurer Viar about those involved in the petition gathering campaign here: Recognizing Shelby’s Recall Radicals

Finally, you can hear another enlightening exposé about how our tax dollars are funding police pensions here: Jackpot Pensions

Anyway, after announcing that he has “earned” that pension, Underwood then went on to trash Treasurer Viar.  At the conclusion of his remarks, Underwood proclaimed that Mr. Viar, or anyone else on the Board, could take this discussion “to the parking lot outside” after the meeting where Mr. Underwood would be waiting.  This comment immediately brought the question from Mr. Viar: “Is that a threat?”

Here is the YouTube link for this exchange, just in case you don’t believe what we are saying.  The apparent threat is made at the end of Mr. Underwood’s lecture about entitlement.

We couldn’t believe our ears!!!!  This was the latest WTF moment for the recall zombies!

Ken Underwood, who must be in his 50s, actually told Mr. Viar, who is in his 70s, that he will meet him in the parking lot after the meeting.  This is something you usually hear from a drunk at a bar eager to pick a fight.  “Hey dude, let’s go settle this outside in the parking lot!”

Mr. Underwood is obviously enraged that Mr. Viar has decided to educate residents about how our tax dollars are being spent.  So, as one of the recall zombies, he seems eager to silence the messenger, either by recall or by a conversation “in the parking lot.”  

Ken Underwood may believe he has earned his pension.  However, we believe that instead of coming up, acting like a bully and attacking township elected officials, Mr. Underwood (and others) should be kissing the feet of taxpayers who are giving him his $100,000-plus pension and health benefits every year for the rest of his life.  We have not once heard any of these recall zombies, or their supporters, saying thank you to the taxpayers for anything.

Instead of telling taxpayers THANK YOU, these people are telling taxpayers F--K YOU!

At the July 19th Board meeting, Treasurer Viar also mentioned an article about recalls written by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.   The article, entitled “Who Is The Real Target?” talks about what the rash or recalls is doing to our democracy.

We have provided a link to the entire article above, and encourage all Shelby Township taxpayers to read it.  Below are some key excerpts:

Opinions may vary on the legitimacy of recalls motivated by policy differences (as opposed to lawmaker malfeasance). Yet every resident should find it disturbing when a union representing what are supposed to be “public servants” works to recall duly elected lawmakers for being good stewards of taxpayer interests. Specifically, for having acted to rein in unsustainable and unaffordable government employee perks and privileges, among them the excessive power of their union.

The spectacle raises the question of whether government employees are supposed to serve the people, or the other way around.  By seeking to recall the people’s representatives, this union is asserting the latter.

These union-supported recalls escalate into open political warfare what heretofore had been stealthy “guerilla” actions targeted against taxpayers.  Taxpayers need to wake up to this reality and fight back, or they will get hurt. Public officials are the proximate targets of the union’s actions, but their ultimate objective is taxpayer wallets.

Although the Mackinac Center article discusses the current recall attempt against Governor Rick Snyder by the Michigan Education Association, the general theme of the article also applies to Shelby Township.  We have a public employee union (police union) engaged in a recall attack against duly-elected township officials who are trying to do what the people want.  The union is using its resources (money, people, etc.) to push the recall in an apparent attempt to protect their own interests.

By doing this, is the Shelby Township police union serving taxpayers, or do they expect taxpayers to continue to serve their desire for higher and higher pensions and health care benefits?  Either the union  does not see how bad things are right now, does not believe all the news about the economic crisis, or they just don’t give a damn.  Which do you think applies here?

If anyone in Shelby Township told a Shelby Township police officer (active or retired) to continue a discussion “in the parking lot” that person would likely face the wrath of the police department.  However, when a police officer (retired) says something like this we are just supposed to brush it off?

Mr. Underwood may not like it, but we will not be talking to him, or any other union member for that matter, about this topic or anything else in “the parking lot.”  Instead, we will just keep posting these comments from the Save Shelby recall zombies on the Inside Out for the whole world to read and judge for themselves what this never-ending string of recalls is really all about.

Shelby residents we have spoken with about this (and they are many) understand the true motives of those involved in these recalls, and what they see they most certainly do NOT like!

Until next time...