Tuesday, 2 March 2010

Why We Shouldn't Elect Judges

Everyone knows that Katie King is a below average judge. Hell she wasn't even remotely qualified to be a sitting judge when her daddy bought her the seat. Thus it doesn't come as a shock that she gets a poor rating among lawyers of the Louisville Bar Association. What is shocking is that three other judges got worse ratings than her.

The 20 judges, who were evaluated by lawyers, had an average score of 83 percent in generally doing well in their positions. But four scored below the mid-70s, putting them in the below-average range, said Jim Lunger of the Thoroughbred Research Group, which conducted the survey for the bar association.

Those judges were Katie King, at 69 percent; Annette Karem, 65 percent; William Ryan, 66 percent; and Paula Fitzgerald, 36 percent. Ryan and Fitzgerald both have senior status.

Wow. How piss poor of a judge do you have to be to score lower than Katie King? Apparently Paula Fitzgerald has no business being a judge yet she is considered a "senior" judge. This is the primary reason we shouldn't elect judges. The electorate has no reasonable means of knowing the legal qualifications or skills of each judicial candidate. Therefore you are bound to end up with a handful of pathetic judges like these.

We really need to have appointments for judgeships. Yeah we would probably end up with some cronyism, but in general the picks would be solid because the person appointing them won't want it to become a political issue in his or her next campaign.



Posted by brians at 9:06 PM in Louisville Politics
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Wednesday, 27 January 2010

Nanny State Marches Onward

When the city was talking about banning smoking in Louisville, I warned then that it was just the first step in government's attempts to control our lives. So we can all be "healthier". I am not a smoker so the ban didn't affect me directly. But I knew it was just the first step in the march towards the end of our freedom as citizens. Apparently, the next step has arrived.

A task force created by Louisville's health department is expected to recommend that the Metro Council ban the use of unhealthy trans fats in Jefferson County restaurants.

Louisville Metro Council President Tom Owen, D-8th District, notified fellow council members by e-mail Monday that Mayor Jerry Abramson's office is expecting the recommendation.

The official recommendation to the council will come from Dr. Adewale Troutman, director of the Louisville Metro Public Health & Wellness Department.

Yup. You are no longer capable of deciding what you should or should not eat. Only a faceless bureaucrat on some task force for the Public Health & Wellness department can make that determination for you. Unbelievable.

We need to put an end to this foolishness now. It is ludicrous that we will allow the government the power over what we can and can't eat. If we don't put our foot down now, then it will become more difficult in the future to stop the state from "protecting" us from ourselves. It will become harder and harder to stop the erosion of our freedoms. The nanny state must end now. Hopefully the Louisville Metro Council will agree and squash this recommendation.

Posted by brians at 8:36 PM in Louisville Politics
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Friday, 20 November 2009

King's St. X Fundraiser Called Out... By St. X

Yesterday a fund raising letter from the King campaign was sent out to a number of St. X grads. Asking them to attend a special "St. X Fundraiser". Below is the content from the email.

Special St. X Fundraiser Wednesday December 2, 2009 at the Saints

Skybar located at 131 Breckenridge Lane from 6 - 8 pm. Appetizers and
Beer will be provided! RSVP at
http://www.jimkingformayor.com/stx/stxfund.html -- Or if you cannot
attend but would still like to donate visit  http://www.jimkingformayor.com/contribute

Jim King - Class of 1969 - A Son of St. X and our next Mayor.
    
Like many  kids living  in Louisville's  St. Joe  neighborhood in  the early 1950s, Jim King was one of eight children born to working class parents. In his childhood  years, Jim's mother took  care of the  home and family while his father drove a laundry truck to make ends meet.

Because the family constantly struggled financially, Jim began  mowing lawns in the neighborhood during  the summer before his freshman  year at St. Xavier. Jim used all the money he had saved over the summer  to help pay tuition and for bus fare to and from school.

Though he made good grades, after completing his freshman year at  St. X, Jim resigned himself to the fact that, even with his mother's help, he could  not afford  to attend  St.  X the  next year.  Instead,  Jim focused that summer on expanding his budding lawn mowing business  and gave little thought to what the future held.

After coming home from  Atherton High School on  the first day of  his sophomore year, Jim was met on the front porch by his mother who  told him Brother Conrad from St. Xavier had called wanting to know why  Jim had not come  to class. When  his mother explained  to Brother  Conrad that she simply  couldn't afford  to send her  son to  St. X,  Brother Conrad encouraged her  to bring  Jim by  his office  when he  returned home.

That afternoon, sitting in Brother  Conrad's office, Jim King  learned an important lesson that  he still carries with  him today - extend  a helping hand to those in need.  Brother Conrad gave Jim a chance  that day by waiving the  tuition fees in return  for Jim's promise to  give back to  his  school and  church  if the  opportunity  ever  presented itself. This is a promise Jim has kept many times over.

Now Jim King has an opportunity to lead Louisville as its next Mayor. He's ready to listen  and ready to  lead, but needs  your help to  get there.  Join us for our very  special fundraiser for Jim at Saints  on December 2nd.
What does St. X think of Jim King using the school as part of his fund raising effort? Check it out in an email from St. X titled "Unauthorized Email Usage"
Important Notice

You may have received an email from jimkingformayor.com regarding a fundraising event which APPEARED to be authorized or sent by Saint Xavier High School and/or its Alumni Association.

Neither Saint Xavier High School nor its Alumni Association authorized the use of its logo or individual alumni email addresses, nor were they provided to Mr. King.

On behalf of the Alumni Association, we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you.  We have communicated with Mr. King our surprise and great displeasure, and requested that he cease usage of the Saint Xavier logo and the illusion that these events are approved and sponsored by Saint Xavier High School.
Apparently, Mr King was trying to capitalize on his association to St. X and has been officially called out by the school. I am sure he will apologize and say it was accidental. He didn't mean anything by it. Just like he did when he gave the inappropriate money to his daughter's campaign. Once is an accident. Twice is the beginning of a pattern. A pattern of shady dealings. Apparently he will do just about anything in order to get what he wants. Is that the type of person people want to be mayor of Louisville?

Update: More fallout on the story- Looks like King is going to cancel the fund raiser.

Update 2: The story has now made the Courier Journal
Posted by brians at 1:14 PM in Louisville Politics
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Thursday, 19 November 2009

The Kings In The News

Mayorial candidate Jim King's divorce information continues to leak out into the media. Today, we learn that Mr King's ex-wife got a restraining order in 1988 while seeking the divorce.
in seeking the restraining order in July 1988, she alleged that he had been “emotionally and verbally abusive” to her and her children. The file also alludes to a “physical altercation” between them a week earlier, though there are no details on either allegation.....

....An affidavit by Rebecca King's sister, Donna Roman, details an incident in August 1988 in which King berated his wife and told her she was so “stupid and ignorant that he doesn't know how the children have survived in her care.”
Why does this information not surprise me? I imagine this story will win him lots of friends with the feminist movement in Louisville. Do we really want this man serving as mayor of Louisville. I think a bill board in Louisville sums it up best. I want a mayor not a king.

Unfortunately, Mr King isnt' the only King in the news. Turns out his daughter may have been playing favoritism with the judgeship he bought her.

Ed Springston, a blogger and former mayoral candidate, has filed a complaint with the Judicial Conduct Commission against Jefferson District Court Judge Katie King, claiming she gave preferential treatment to a friend arrested for driving on a suspended license after drunken driving offenses.

In his complaint Friday, Springston said Jacob Isaac was arrested Jan. 8 and charged with driving on a suspended license after pleading guilty to a second DUI and a felony charge of theft of a motor vehicle registration plate. But after his bond was set at $1,000 cash, Springston alleges, someone called King — even though she was not the on-call judge — and she reduced his bond and released him.

On May 21, Isaac pleaded guilty to driving on a suspended license and King sentenced him to 180 days in jail that was conditionally discharged, or set aside as long as Isaac stayed out of trouble. King also did not revoke the conditional discharge of a sentence from a previous DUI conviction.

“She let him off with literally nothing,” said Springston, who included in his complaint what he says is a Facebook picture of King and Isaac together at a bar.

What was Katie King's defense?

King told WLKY that “I showed up there and met numerous people and this gentleman asked me to take a picture. I think he was just a fan, so I don't know him personally.”

In her statement Wednesday night, King said: “As a public figure, I come into contact with many people with whom I am photographed on a regular basis.”

You see she is just a rock star. She gets her picture taken with so many people that she has no idea who any of them are. Are you freaking kidding me? Does anyone really believe that she is some major celebrity and this was just some groupie hoping to get close to her radiance? Or is it more likely that she helped out one of her 20 something friends in a tight spot? I'll let you decide.

Posted by brians at 5:22 PM in Louisville Politics
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Tuesday, 3 November 2009

UAW Members Reject Contract Changes

The union members at Ford are an interesting bunch. The economy is in the toilette. The car industry is looking at a slump the rest of this year and early next year. Especially after the cash for clunkers program distorting the market to get people who would be buying in the next 6 months to buy now.  With such a poor outlook on the economy, what do the workers at Ford do? They reject an agreement between the union leaders and Ford. An agreement that will help Ford be more competitive in the market place.

I have to ask are these people stupid? Ford had a good quarter. Mainly due to the stupid cash for clunkers program, but when things go sour the rest of this year and early next year then what? Ford may have to do more downsizing. If they do, I wouldn't be surprised if Louisville ends up on the chopping block. It really defies logic.

But I know why they decided to vote against it. First Ford had a good quarter. The first time in a while, but it is a start in the right direction. I am sure the union members don't want to cut back when they see the company doing well. Secondly and probably the biggest reason they rejected the deal is because they saw what happened at GM. It was a company that was deemed "too big to fail". The union members there got a sweet deal out of the government bail out and I am sure the Ford employees are thinking the same thing will happen to them if Ford fails.

Personally, I think they are acting very shortsightedly in the decision. They are assuming that Ford will continue to have good quarters and they are assuming that the people of this country will bail them out if not. The next six months look bleak for Ford (and all car manufacturers for that matter) and I am not sure the people of this country will be as generous next time a company is deemed to big to fail. I hope it works out for these people. I don't want anyone to lose their jobs, but I have to wonder at their decision making skills.

Posted by brians at 9:18 PM in Louisville Politics
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Monday, 28 September 2009

The Purchase of a Kingdom

Jim King likes to buy things. Not only does he like to buy things, but he likes to buy things that aggrandize himself and his massive ego. First he bought his son a spot on the bench of U of L's basketball team. How else can a young man who couldn't start for St. X end up on the team at U of L? But how glorious that must have been for Mr. King to see his son on the sidelines of all those televised games.

Seeing that he can buy things for himself, he moves on to buy himself an elected position. Unfortunately for him, his reputation proceeded himself and he was defeated numerous times. Rather than give up, he moves to a new part of town and he discovers much to his delight that he can buy an election and thus became a member of the Metro Council. How glorious. Now he was a person of great importance.

Once he saw that he could buy a political office for himself, he decided to illegally buy his daughter a judgeship.
an adverse ruling last week from the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance. It found he had violated state election law by giving his daughter $135,000, most of which she used for her own campaign last year.
The results brought him two things. First, it gave him another cap in his feather. But it also gave him a trial run at a county wide election. Seeing his success, he has decided to turn his wealth towards the purchasing of the position Abramson is stepping down from. Yes he is trying to buy himself the title Mayor of Louisville. As his first step he has decided to buy up all of the political consultants in town.
King, a Democrat who represents District 10 on the Louisville Metro Council, recently sent out an invitation to a fundraiser scheduled for Wednesday. In the invitation, he lists no fewer than six political consultants as co-hosts of the event.

And he's looking for more.

Democrat Danny Briscoe said King called him recently wanting to hire him.

King already has four Democratic consultants and two Republican ones on his team.

Yes, one is not enough for our majesty, Mr. King. He needs to have a plethora of advisors to call upon at a whim. Of course I doubt the only reason he is trying to snarf up all of the consultants in town is just for his ego. I imagine it is a calculated plan to starve the other campaigns from political leadership. For how will the other campaigns be able to operate without consultants to help with their strategy?

To be honest, I find the strategy more than a little sleazy. I mean come on, how many consultants do you really need? I only hope it backfires. I hope he learns the lesson that too many cooks spoils the broth and is left to choke down the foul soup.

Posted by brians at 3:30 PM in Louisville Politics
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Tuesday, 22 September 2009

Economically Illterate Metro Council

Sometimes, I wish we could force people who want to run for political office to pass a basic economics test before they are allowed to enter. Then we wouldn't get the stupid resolutions like the one encouraging the city to buy American.
The Louisville Metro Council will vote on a nonbinding resolution Tuesday night that “encourages” the city to use its federal stimulus money only on purchases of goods and services that are American made.

Councilman Rick Blackwell, D-12th District, said the goal is to ensure, as much as possible, that the stimulus money is being used to benefit American workers......

Jim King, D-10th, a member of the council's Labor and Economic Development Committee, said stimulus money being spent on American-made products has a “multiplier effect,” meaning that it helps the contractor and companies that do business with the contractor.

“It makes sense to me because it's important to keep the money in the U.S.,” King said.

This is ridiculous. While such a resolution may benefit people who are doing work for the city, it totally screws the taxpayer. Instead of getting goods for the lowest possible price, the tax payer is forced to subsidize American companies by accepting fewer services for their tax dollar.  How is that a good deal for the taxpayers?

This is before we even talk about the protectionism being espoused by Jim King. Earth to Mr. King: protectionism doesn't work. All it does is cause other countries to NOT buy our goods. So while you are helping some "American" companies you are hurting other American companies who are trying to sell their goods overseas.

Neither of these imbeciles have any business being in elected office. They don't understand the first thing about basic economic principles. How the heck are they going to decide what's best for the city when what they think is best is actually detrimental? Sigh.

Posted by brians at 3:08 PM in Louisville Politics
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Thursday, 17 September 2009

Wasting Taxpayer Money

Times are tough in Kentucky. The unemployment rate in August was 11.1 percent.  A rate which matches Kentucky's all time high for unemployment. The poor economic environment will take its toll on government's revenue streams from taxation. With such slim pickings, one would think that local government would tighten its belt and look for ways to save money.

Apparently, Louisville wants to party like its 2007. Mayor Abramson has decided to continue with the construction of a downtown bike hub. A bike hub that will cost taxpayers a hefty $338,400. Do we really need a "bike hub" when the economy is doing poorly and budget's are stretched thin? Can't we wait a few years until times get better before building such a facility?

On top of this, Abramson has decided to cancel the four day work furlough this year as a mechanism for saving money. So where is all of this money to pay for these initiatives going to come from? All I can say is it must be good to be in city government. Apparently it is the only place where economic forces don't exist. And just think! King Jerry might be our next Lt. Governor. While that might be good for the city, it doesn't bode well for the state which is facing its own economic crisis.

Posted by brians at 3:11 PM in Louisville Politics
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Wednesday, 2 September 2009

Yarmuth! Exposes Himself As A Die Hard Liberal

Rep John Yarmuth! came out of hiding and held a town hall meeting tonight. What did we learn from the spectacle? That Yarmuth! supports the health care plan that Pelosi and other hard core liberals in the house are trying to pass.

Obama and leading Democrats want a plan that would penalize businesses that don't help provide health insurance for their employees and create a government-run health insurance plan for those who aren't eligible for or choose not to take part in a group plan.

Yarmuth favors such a proposal.

One more tid bit from Yarmuth!
Yarmuth noted that while Congress isn't considering a single-payer health system now, in which private insurance companies help administer a government system, he believes that is where the country eventually is headed.
Am I missing something? Has Louisville turned into San Francisco? I imagine that a majority of people from the 3rd district are opposed to ObamaCare and would be opposed to the idea of government controlled health care. Yet that is what Yarmuth! supports and that is what he is going to vote for when he returns to D.C. Do the majority of Louisvillians really want such a hard core liberal representing them in D.C.? For some reason, I tend to think no.

Next year will be the ideal time to send Yarmuth! packing. All the Republicans need is a solid candidate who can raise money and he or she should be able to ride vote anger all the way to a victory next November. The only question remains is who will that candidate be?

Posted by brians at 8:50 PM in Louisville Politics
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Tuesday, 1 September 2009

Where Are The Louisville Republicans?

Where are the Louisville Republicans? That is the question Joseph Gerth asks today in the Courier Journal. Unlike the Democratic primary, the Republicans still don't have a candidate for mayor. On top of that they don't have a candidate for Congress. Personally, I think it is still too early to start worrying about quality candidates for either race. Here is why.

The Democratic side is teaming with candidates for mayor because it is the first race in a generation that will actually be an open race on the Democratic side. The Democrats have come out of the wood works for the opportunity. With that many candidates it is important to get in early and start raising the money necessary to compete in such a wide open field. The Republicans on the other hand get to compete every year in Jefferson County. Thus they are likely to only have 1 or 2 candidates in any given year.

Besides, there is still plenty of time to file and begin raising money. Especially without a competitive primary. I imagine those who are interested are taking their time and trying to get everything in order before entering the fray. I imagine once one of the major candidates declare for mayor the Congressional candidate will soon follow. Now if we get to December and top candidates for both offices are not declared, then you will have a major story. Then you can start talking about the dearth of Republican candidates and the incompetence of the Republican party in Jefferson County. Until then, there really isn't a story. It is nothing less than Joseph Gerth doing what he loves. Throwing fireballs against the Republicans,

Posted by brians at 6:01 AM in Louisville Politics
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