Josephine County Makes Fox News.com

[GOG]

The politicians spend thousands on nonsense, but cut law enforcement. They want tax increases, but who knows where they'll use the money, so tax hikes have been voted down.

Here's some information on one group that's responding to the problem.

Citizens take law into own hands after cash-strapped Ore. county guts sheriff's office | Fox News

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[drew]

I wonder how much nonessential spending the county has in areas that is mandated by the state and unfunded/underfunded.

 

[Oklahomie]

I just read that. Hats off to them for actually doing something.

 

[PopsBdog]

Here in Josephine County we have the lowest taxes in the state.
Josephine County has a reputation for not supporting taxes and services going way back.
When Andrew Carnegie offered to "give us a library" in the 1930's under the conditions we create a tax base to support/maintain it. We refused that free library for many years. It was finally voted for when the offer was about to be taken away in the 1950's.
Later, because of losing the federal subsidies, our library system has been run by volunteers for the last 5 years.
The county park system is maintained by volunteers for the same reasons.
Burglaries have more than doubled since the sheriffs department has been cut back.
Lots of them aren't even reported. Who are you going to report to and what can they do about it?

It was Federal money that used to pay for all this and then some.
Sometimes we don't realize who the "takers" are.

 

[rufus]

I'm in Josephine County and have the upmost respect for the sheriff's department. They have been slammed with senseless budget cuts that go beyond reality. Timber sales were the funding source for most everything until the spotted owl fiasco put a stop to that.

Now I read where the feds are killing owls to save owls. It's all almost as screwed-up as obamacare.

We want our funding source back, not more taxes.

 

[Caveman Jim]

Which party controls the council? Are they willing to give up something (pay cuts, stipends or anything else)? sounds to be the status quo of DC!!!

 

[rufus]

The Board of County Commissioners are your typical county government mess. All three of them. Three! Useless, Clueless, and Worthless. Cherryl Walker is a lib, the other two I don't know or care. They couldn't govern their way out of a wet paper sack.

 

[Mark W.]

Wasn't it timber money that supported these services? And now that the tree huggers, The State, and Federal Gov won't allow cutting timber that this economical nightmare has popped up?

 

[rufus]

Get a load of this:

Feds begin killing barred owls to help save spotted owl

What do ya know, it was not logging after all. Forget about the destroyed livelihoods, the decimated public safety budgets, the lost jobs...

 

[oli700]

tree huggers, The State, and Federal Gov won't allow cutting timber that this economical nightmare has popped up?

No, its just tree huggers tying up everything in court.....in fact the State is selling a big chunk of the Elliott ....because they are so tied up in court over the Marbled Murrelet.
Actually its up for bid because the enviros can only tie up government entities, and they did the State when they wanted to selective log some of the land on the Elliott, it will go to a private logging company because the enviros wont be able to come up with the funds to out bid them. The irony is they will clear cut it , where the State only wanted a selective cut.
The Feds and the State actually want to log for the revenue, its the enviro's that wont let it happen. But they live in a part of the state that couldn't care less about timber recipes, or have a clue how it works, or the history of O&E lands

 

[U201491]

The politicians spend thousands on nonsense, but cut law enforcement. They want tax increases, but who knows where they'll use the money, so tax hikes have been voted down.

Here's some information on one group that's responding to the problem.

Citizens take law into own hands after cash-strapped Ore. county guts sheriff's office | Fox News

Crime creates job security for politicians, but in this case the citizens refused to be blackmailed again. Good for them.
Til now citizens have funded their own totalitarian overthrow. This is a very small but great response.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Citizens take law into own hands after cash-strapped Ore. county guts sheriff's office | Fox News

Even if there is a sitting sheriff, volunteer militia under his guidance are the answer to the federal madness that is bankrupting the USA

 

[Caveman Jim]

Agreed, most small towns are run by the citizens and do not need all the bells and whistles (fancy swat teams and swastika police state). We actually want to be left alone by the state & federal government. We take care of our own...

 

[Bam]

Except when people become overzealous, let their egos get the best of them, and go on a power trip, things will go wrong and real bad quick.

 

[U201491]

Except when people become overzealous, let their egos get the best of them, and go on a power trip, things will go wrong and real bad quick.

They did well a couple hundred years ago and up to about a hundred yrs ago.
Couldn't be as bad as some LE.
It is not as if they had a viable choice. They were pretty much blackmailed to the point they are at.

 

[Fast Eddie]

Congress Went to Denmark, You Got the Bill - CBS News

One of my personal favorites.

They always hit schools, law enforcement and the fire department when it's time to shake down the tax payers.

 

[U201491]

Congress Went to Denmark, You Got the Bill - CBS News

One of my personal favorites.

They always hit schools, law enforcement and the fire department when it's time to shake down the tax payers.

They have the fear an extreme inconvience game down pretty pat.
In a nutshell it is intimidation, extortion and blackmail with a ribbon on it.
They never cut waste or perks. It is always priority services.
If a citizen did it they would lock you up and throw away the key.

 

[The Heretic]

Congress Went to Denmark, You Got the Bill - CBS News

One of my personal favorites.

They always hit schools, law enforcement and the fire department when it's time to shake down the tax payers.

This.

The bureacrats/pols are looking to punish the citizenry when the citizenry are so bold as to say they can't afford anymore taxes. They fool no one, there is usually someplace else to cut other than "emergency services" and schools, but they know these hurt the most.

As for the citizen solution, on the one hand it always has been the case that the citizen is the first line of defense against criminals; there is no way a LEO can be present immediately for every crime, especially in rural areas.

OTOH, I would be more nervous about most private citizens responding to a crime or disturbance than I would LEOs. A little bit of "training" doesn't really match the years of experience a LEO has, and then there is the whole issue of the powers of arrest, liability, etc. - a LEO has his dept. to back him/her up if there is a lawsuit/etc., the private citizen in a response team will have nothing.

Instead of the citizens responding this way, they need to get some new county officials in who won't punish the county for not voting the way they want them to. It sounds to me like a recall election is called for. Use the power of a vote, not a gun.

 

[fuhr52]

It's difficult to vote the liberal elites out of power when the populated cities of most any county control most of the votes. Works that way for the state also. Portland, Salem and Eugene are the three that control state politics.

 

[rufus]

It's difficult to vote the liberal elites out of power when the populated cities of most any county control most of the votes. Works that way for the state also. Portland, Salem and Eugene are the three that control state politics.

I'm all for the State of Jefferson, it would proudly be the reddest state in the union. Bring it !