IT’S NO SECRET AGENDA that local government would like you to vote “yes” on a other round of SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax).
In its pure form, SPLOST is basically a good, perhaps great, idea: Use the force multiplier of outside visitors to beef up proceeds from a countywide one-percent sales tax, which will go to capital projects that would otherwise be prohibitively expensive.
When SPLOST was first passed in the mid-‘80s, that’s what it was for the most part: A way to fund necessary infrastructure improvements, such as drainage.
Six rounds of SPLOST later — it comes before voters in six-year increments — the tax has morphed into the second-largest revenue stream for the City of Savannah.
Now, not only core infrastructure gets funded. Neighborhood centers, swimming pools, City Hall renovations, parks, are funded by SPLOST.
Those are nice things, for sure. Some projects, like Tide to Town, are genuinely great and worthwhile.
But much of the project list for SPLOST is well beyond the scope of vital infrastructure that the tax was intended for.
As both mayoral candidate Van Johnson and Savannah alderman Tony Thomas have admitted, smaller, grassroots-level projects are put on the list every six years specifically so that SPLOST will get more voter support in the districts.
In the old days, that was called “pork barrel politics,” though nowadays I’m not sure how many people get the reference.
There’s a lot of pork for everyone, though, not just local politicians.
Private developers, it seems, really love SPLOST as well.
Many of you probably got a mailout from a group called “Citizens for Progress,” urging you to vote for SPLOST.
Citizens for Progress is a Political Action Committee chaired by former State Senate Majority Leader Eric Johnson, lead architect for the Hussey Gay Bell firm.
I’m certainly not saying anything illegal or even unethical is going on. All this is well within legal electioneering bounds.
But ask yourself why a principal in a private architecture firm would want to sway the public’s vote on a sales tax? It belies the notion that better infrastructure is the reason you’re being urged to support SPLOST, and reinforces the idea that SPLOST is now being used more and more to aid and abet private development.
In this year’s round of SPLOST, that would specifically be for improvements to the Springfield Canal, in the so-called “Canal District” being developed in and around the new Savannah Arena.
Now, the City will tell you that drainage improvements are long overdue in that blighted, mostly neglected area of West Savannah. And that is correct.
However, the question begs itself: If such infrastructure improvements are so long overdue, why then did it take the green light for new private development in West Savannah for drainage there to finally be considered important enough to fund?
I said there was nothing illegal in the mailout. But there is something that is arguably intentionally misleading.
The mailout says SPLOST is used for “necessary maintenance” of projects such as roads and sewers.
As the phrase goes, that depends on “what the meaning of is, is.”
By law, SPLOST can’t be used for literal, ongoing maintenance of the projects it funds. While SPLOST funds can be used for so-called “renovation” purposes, the image of a bad road and the word “maintenance” would lead you to believe that SPLOST is how the City fills potholes — which is an almost absurd description of what the tax actually does.
The truth is that private development in the Canal District would benefit greatly from the taxpayers doing the heavy lifting to make the low-lying, flood-prone area more habitable for high-dollar investment.
Many local observers say, not without merit, that it’s useless to speak out against the new Arena project, as it’s a done deal.
But the level of public investment to jump-start private development in the rest of the Canal District is very much still an open question.
And this round of SPLOST goes directly to the heart of the issue of public money going to help private industry.
By one count, over 16 percent of the money collected in this round of SPLOST will go not to necessary infrastructure, but to further enhance the local tourism industry.
(This is arguable, and a lot of that depends on your definition of the tourism industry. For example, Broughton Street is getting another $8 million in streetscaping, mostly to make it look good for tourists — but locals at least theoretically go there too.)
Lest you think I’m picking on Citizens for Progress, they’re far from the only people trying to get you to support SPLOST. The City, the Chamber of Commerce, SEDA, local construction companies, banks and law firms, etc. would like to see it pass again.
And at least we can say the local push for SPLOST is thoroughly bipartisan. The aforementioned Eric Johnson was arguably the most powerful Republican in state government at one point. Another local architect behind several projects benefiting from SPLOST, Patrick Shay, is a former Democratic Chatham County Commissioner.
While personally I’m suspicious of any tax which needs its own well-funded advertising campaign, I’m not saying SPLOST is always necessarily bad.
What does need reform is the state law surrounding SPLOST, to make sure that the public can get ample measurable benefit from anything funded by it.
Even if you usually vote for SPLOST, you can send a message with a “No” vote, and the powers-that-be can simply come to us again next year with newer, better ideas this time around.
You don’t have to fall for scare tactics, and you don’t have to settle for less.
This article appears in Oct 23-29, 2019.
Locals probably pass through Broughton Street on the way to someplace else. The only affordable places for them to shop are: McDonald’s, Subway and CVS. I do not exactly see a lot of tourists leaving the other stores with shopping bags in their hands. The only exception being Leopold’s whereas they can consume ice cream on the property or they can take it home or back to the hotel. I did not get a mailout urging me to vote for SPLOST. Then again, I’m not feeling SPLOST and the proponents for it have not done that great a job marketing it. Besides I’m all “SPLOSTED OUT”. If the city, the county and the school system were worth a hill of beans, they would have taken turns with collecting the pennies. School system one year, City the next year and then the County. The ones who say tourists pay some of the SPLOST, do the tourists get a tax write off in their perspective states for helping Savannah out?
I agree with you… great read!
THE FOLLY OF OVER TAXING THE TAXED
Our western world have went a long way, in figuring their economies strictly upon the backs of international tourism. Black gold, oil, due to its universal marketing
social and political tirades vs religions, with the structuring of financial gain
being more profitable. Several months past, the Mayor broadcasted that Savannah
entirely depended upon tourist industry, in keeping the city afloat. This whole system is being torpedoed through the uncontrolled inflation and housing investors flooding this part of Georgia. Over taxation goes back to NOAH. Christians, infidels
and complete fools preach for further over taxation–: this system should be handled according to due process toward the middle and Bourgeois ruling elites.
Here comes file 13.
Hogorina specific dog lovers
Several presidents had dogs for utilaterian concealments. One should not hang this perception, if it would have actually existed. However, consider roosevelt and hitler. Masochism is aimed towards both of these characters. Why should it not be directed towards political whores too. Arnt many of them our neighbors? This in it self, is hard to swallow. Awful! Inject your favorite political whore into the canine affair.
We have a mania spreading out through America tied to the craze in owning dogs. Searching back in the past to Vienna, Austria in the mid eighteen hundreds, one meets with the identical situation surrounding, the dangers of these animals, as being used for various personalities, for transitional implications of individual anti-social inadequacies. The Late Doctor Sigmund Freud and cohort, Karl Jung, along with Max Nordav, made lengthy studies of split personalities and their relationships with specific canines.
In the last several decades hundreds of dog fighting clubs were abundant i America. Psychiatrist long ago persisted that individual masochism was the actual reason for collective canine fighting. Masochism is discovered throughout humanoids as natural outlet for the release of pent up anti-social repressions. In it self, man instinctually harbored aggression as a survival weapon against weaker individuals, to obtain food and shelter. With contemporary existence, a concealed anti-social predisposition to literally satisfy mental instability, through torturing others, or the self, by civilized means, in a legal manner, masochism, self-hatred and getting artificial sexual highs
Considering the love for canines in normal family life is not categorised, as some what mentally suffering from a personality suppression complex syndrome. Self-abasement in being surrounded by one or several barking dogs gradually stamps out any noticeable impediment, distractions that might thwart opposing the subconscious release of hidden sexual inhibitions.
Considering the love for canines in normal family life is not categorised, as some what mentally suffering from a personality suppression complex syndrome. Self-abasement in being surrounded by one or several barking dogs gradually stamps out any noticeable impediment, distractions that might thwart opposing the subconscious release of hidden sexual intuitions, that are needed for an artificial high. This sudden release of forbidden sexual infatuation qualms a disturbed mind, reversed back into the real world, until masochism is to be daily released by Hollyweirds subimatiog flicks.
The dog-loving masochists cleaves to have several dogs and their racket for long periods at night, and By indirect satisfaction, to worry neighbors, that brings on self-torture of reverberating masochism.
Hogorina
COMMUNISM
BACKGROUND OF REVOLUTIONIONARY MUD SLAPPERS
Beginning in 1812 floods and thousands of immigrants from eastern Europe swamped New York City via Ellis Island. Originally, their ancestors, progenitors, came out of Asia settling south of the Black Sea. After hundreds of years as no-mads in the Ukraine these roaming hoards slowly invaded what is now known as Russia. After the failing revolution in Russia of 1792, wealthy settlers and their allied revolutionaries fled to New York from eastern Europe. This was better than being jailed or hanged. All of these immigrants settled in the eastern end of New York City. Here a major ghetto was formed. In fact, liberal socialism under the mental subversion of Ferdinand Lassale, founder of communism, took root here. Karl Marx denounced Lassale.
communism was developed in New York City and went into Russia. Several major bankers gave Leon Trotsky money. Trotsky and his revolutionaries were sent into Russia. And now, This world menace houses its universal scheme of a one world devised proletarian movement right here as its agents, as cells, or moles, completely dominate all national news media. In an alliance with the various connected important agencies of national security and intelligence watchdogs, our republic has actually been overthrown. The Bolshevism of America is at a fast age.. It is now or never, ready for the satanic rule of global Bolshevism. There is a question as to the origin of the people known as Khazars. This is a joke being palmed off on stupid people. Napoleon in his then known war through the eastern world was a tool in the hands of financiers. He established the first Synagogue in south east Arabia, It does not matter as to what social structure people are drawn from, for this has no bearing on a global movement using religion as a means to implant a well developed an anti-social structure thousands of years in the past ! Lets get it straightGentile and Jewish bankers have created a monstrous structure called investments, and of which a majority of gangsters have control over the Stock exchange. These illicit investors would marry the devil to make a fast buck. If we are going to attack a people in flawlessly, putting them in hand baskets, then take a look at the gentile bastards that borrow their money to do dirty things to make a fast buck. The dirtiest bastards are those who borrow Jewish or gentile moneys to commit criminal acts in the commercial industries, and creating ghettos through slum mastering, desire to blame money loaners, because they failed in some corrupt transaction, and hate to repay interest.
Our Lord speaks of the spirit of iniquity. The battle here is between Jacobs Israel and Esau of whom God hates. Joseph Stalin is Bolshevism. He sleeps in his grave but hundreds of tax-free man-made religions preaches Bolshevism while Beezlebub and his band of devils lead a once free nation right down to the very depths of hell !
DR. IRENE BONNEY FAULKES
Reply: to Hogorina
Actually, according to Icke and I think it could be very true, many at the top of the hierarchical change he mentions the Queen who is still in the running as Queen of U.S.A. are shape changers in person, on occasion, on account of their occultist performances. As to collective Freudian concoction of mental disturbance, The Personality Suppression Complex Syndrome he is very wrong but right in that those at the top are imbued with his named Satanic impulses and thus behavior. His evil philosophy has led society astray along with other factors. The toilet is an artful deification you say and indeed that is true of a minority of those at the top, it being part of the cabalistic doctrine that came out of Babylon/Egypt. The Illusionists were in existence then and their blood-lines along with other segments of society, control billions today. This is allowed of our God, the I Am That I Am, the Lord, the Lord of Glory, even as God manifest in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ. The heavenly program will in the end, totally prevail. In this God and His Son, we trust and not in any other. SOCIAL ENGINEERING IS ADVOCATED HERE!
( BALLOT MANIA )
No one knows just what goes into ones unknown subconsciousness. Personality disorders are perpetually shoved back into this little under stood mental cataloging through repressions. Anyone who goes on a ballot-box rage are definitely running from a twisted personality, in attempting to elude guilt by association, with their own pathological struggle, to shadow surroundings that are pre-calculated via listening to fraudulent political prostitutes spreading lies. Such pin-headed squirts are squats during Presidential facades becoming part and party to split personalities, as pimps for an invisible arm of galvanized hoodlums plat-forming several puppets as psychological misanthropes.
Individual presidential neurosis and Ballet-Box psychosis somewhat hinges, or develops, through an earlier manhood of repressed voting, party Hatred, Theoretically, anxiety is the most damaging . We witness numbers of people swarming into theaters, as heading for ballot sheds, owing loyalty to a politician and Bat Man. Here we witness, as individuals are in social communion and not distanced from wish-to-be-peers all in the family. Mob collectivism displays mans hatred for love ( attention ), as witnessed presumptuously falls into Dr. Sigmund Freuds Personality Suppression Complex Syndrome. The struggle against deep inhibited suppression and depression, over rides the ID, and the alter Ego settles for a pathologically developed loner, an intellectual drifter, to explode with Freuds Personality Suppression Gravitational Syndrome. In essence, an unrecognized wish was fulfilled: Collectivized individual mob stultification rests upon an impulsive nature to bathe with political syphilis through several candidates. Seemingly, a nest of traitorous hyenas becomes a joystick to be rotated upon the base of mobocracy. Progressive flippancy.
It has become fast and furious for independent voters, citizens, to actually weigh individual perceptions, as to the social qualities respectfully of two ruling gangs holding national office. Of course, this is combined pseudo Democracy and a discordant Republican representation. These twin gangs of infatuated liberalism have their roots feeding back to in house intertwined anti-social guilt complexes, in opposing conservatism. The only analytical presumption is that national political welfare is grappling with an insidious nest of elected servants under the spell of ever incipient Orientalism. Here, a massive double-minded party, one-eyed cyclops, has developed a two-party one-glove cult, congealed into a massive neurosis and cultivated ( Personality Suppression Gravitational Complex Syndrome ). This is the elevated level of mass political neurosis. The iron grip of universal communism is the back screen of our failing society. Our Republic is in the dangerous paws of approaching socialism. Here, in fact, repetition is the best teacher!
Transitional professional sycophants are a front for their silent and ruthless masters, as presidential aggregates are robotized mechanisms through the magnetic funds of invisible magistrates, of which cleave their tentacles into all levels of national government. We discover their influence within the State Dept., CIA, FBI, federal reserve, treasury Dept,and supreme bench, NATO, FEMA, SWAT, Home Land Security,CIA, FBI, and every major influential dept in our national jurisprudence. Most of all, ruthless intellectually coordinated imps with poisoned minds undermines our republic as moles from within. Social engineering via post globalism hijacks Congress and their main weapon is a mover and shakers idealistic machine of psychological warfare.Through the grip on national medical and psychiatric industries social engineering is in the hands of high priests on mental gymnastics, and in cahoots with controlling agriculture outlets, such as the national farm bureau. Poisoned foods and drinks are allotted to our national people, so that as cattle, through linguistics, millions of citizens are lobotomized. Here, various sports, especially football, soccer and Hockey, . imitating ancient Roam Circuses, are offered as a bleed off voter anxiety and repressed masochism. Pseudo Democracy revels in this ! Notably, after a selected pasmaster wins his race all ballot is to be stacked nation wide. Within the center will be placed a massive flywheel. The gang in office pushes a button and them bull manure is openly spread across a nation of which had been bamboozled as dirty bastards return to their roots as rotated scoundrels. IT IS FREEDOM, LIBERTY, and JUSTICE FOR ALL ! COMMUNISM HAS A HOLD ON OUR DWINDLING REPUBLIC ! GOD HELP US.
Equal values
HOG plus!
Patrick J. Buchanan
.. And so our rulers, marinated in the myths that we are a nation of immigrants and our diversity is our strength, continue to embrace mass immigration, the more the better. But are the myths true? How can we say diversity is a strength, when the most diverse nations of Europe, Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union, shattered into 22 nations as soon as they became free, and Slovaks and Czechs divorced? This generation is witnessing the Deconstruction of America. Out of one, many.
Hog says that the throw off of world-rabble rousers are flooding our country. This composition is composed of political incendiaries & Marxian revolutionaries. Vladimir Lenin has lain the roots of hate, and a deep seated disgust for Gods people. Many invading America are agents of Satan, and harbor a deep seated hatred for Christianity.
Actually, this type are mud-slappers, sewer dwellers, beggars, thieves, & liars. This gang are Satans followers and global wanderers, and most likely are shape-shifters, in the hands of a soulless posterity. This is a collective observation not individually !