Many Thanks to Advance Indiana.
Advance Indiana: Smart Mailer From Ed Angleton
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Indianapolis Star Gives Credit To Ed Angleton, Libertarian Candidate for District 100 State Representative, Endorses His Opponent
From the Indianapolis Star, Saturday October 25th, 2008.
District 100
Here he comes again. First elected to his Eastside district seat in 1976, Democratic Rep. John Day has made a career of patiently building consensus for legislation with practical impact on working families.
Cracking down on negligent absentee landlords, raising the Earned Income Tax Credit and ending lavish perks for legislators have been among his causes.
As he runs for re-election, Day is pushing for such measures as state-funded pre-kindergarten, bonuses for teachers working in poor areas and a mediation program to encourage homeowners and lenders to renegotiate mortgages and avoid foreclosures.
Challenger Ed Angleton, a biochemist with Eli Lilly and Co., is another strong example of how far the Indiana Libertarian Party has come in recruiting credible candidates. Angleton favors the elimination of township assessors and wants to abolish property taxes, replacing them with a simplified income tax system. He also favors caps on the growth in government spending. Republicans did not field a candidate in this district.
Day's knowledge and initiative are invaluable to his constituents and to the General Assembly's sense of mission. He earns The Star's endorsement.
District 100
Here he comes again. First elected to his Eastside district seat in 1976, Democratic Rep. John Day has made a career of patiently building consensus for legislation with practical impact on working families.
Cracking down on negligent absentee landlords, raising the Earned Income Tax Credit and ending lavish perks for legislators have been among his causes.
As he runs for re-election, Day is pushing for such measures as state-funded pre-kindergarten, bonuses for teachers working in poor areas and a mediation program to encourage homeowners and lenders to renegotiate mortgages and avoid foreclosures.
Challenger Ed Angleton, a biochemist with Eli Lilly and Co., is another strong example of how far the Indiana Libertarian Party has come in recruiting credible candidates. Angleton favors the elimination of township assessors and wants to abolish property taxes, replacing them with a simplified income tax system. He also favors caps on the growth in government spending. Republicans did not field a candidate in this district.
Day's knowledge and initiative are invaluable to his constituents and to the General Assembly's sense of mission. He earns The Star's endorsement.
Recommended Reading: Bill Brooks Column in the Nov. Urban Times
Bill Brooks, editor and publisher of the Urban Times, writes a monthly editorial column in his newspaper. This month's column is entitled, "Where Now The Fury Over Property Taxes?", in which Bill muses about the lack of anger over the current property tax system. The same system that brought disgruntled taxpayers into the streets in 2007. The same anger that helped bring down a heavily favored incumbent Mayor, even though he had no direct responsibility for the flawed system.
Bill Brooks understands where the real blame lies, the Indiana General Assembly and that it is not a partisan issue, it's not a Democrat or Republican issue, it's an incumbency issue.
Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy as soon as possible. It's a very interesting read. The column is on page 58.
Oh, and by the way be sure to look at page 24 also.
Bill Brooks understands where the real blame lies, the Indiana General Assembly and that it is not a partisan issue, it's not a Democrat or Republican issue, it's an incumbency issue.
Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy as soon as possible. It's a very interesting read. The column is on page 58.
Oh, and by the way be sure to look at page 24 also.
Monday, October 13, 2008
An Open Letter to The Republicans Living in Indiana House District 100
To all the Republican Taxpayers and Citizens of Indiana House District 100,
My name is Ed Angleton and I am the sole opposition to 32 year incumbent Democrat John Day.
I should like to point out two salient facts about Representative Day.
My name is Ed Angleton and I am the sole opposition to 32 year incumbent Democrat John Day.
I should like to point out two salient facts about Representative Day.
- If elected to another term Representative Day will work to increase the state income tax by 1% for any household (either unmarried single or married couple) earning more than $75,000. (source Project Votesmart), while lowering income tax for those earning less than $75,000, creating a de facto "progressive" income tax. This change will not be used to offset any existing taxes.
- As a 32 year veteran of the Indiana legislature, he was present during the voting that established the current assessment procedures for determining property tax, voting yea for many of them. Yet he wants to be rewarded for his voting in favor of 2008's anemic property tax relief package.
Do you want to return this Representative to office so that he and the Democratic majority in the Indiana House can continue to wreck havoc on Hoosier Taxpayers?
Your Party has chosen to not field a candidate in the race for District 100. A straight party vote without a scratch vote for ballot line 29C, is effectively a vote for Mr. Day and the continued control of the House by the Democratic Party.
Ed Angleton
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Trouble, oh we got trouble, right here in Circle City!
That's trouble with a capital "T" and that rhymes with "B" and that stands for Bonds.
With gratitude to Meredith Wilson
This post is an open letter to my fellow bloggers. The time has come to back off the posts about Obama and the Bailout and things we have very little control over. I understand the need to vent, truly I do. But we have let local politics slide to such an extent that we are in danger of loosing focus on the things we can affect.
Two examples come to mind.
- The abolition of the township assessors. We have a golden opportunity to remove one often incompetent, level of government. Yet I see nothing on the blogs calling for a full grassroots push. I have posted on the subject. See my post of September 3, 2008, but I have yet to see anyone willing to step forward and take up the mantle of this cause. If I weren't so busy trying to oust a democrat who wants to raise your income taxes without lowering or eliminating any other taxes, I'd do it myself.
- The IPS bond issue. Doesn't anyone other than myself and David Orenitlicher have an opinion on this? He, a resident of Washington township living in an MSDS Washington township district wrote an op-ed piece in last Sunday's Indy Star. My rebuttal is posted here on this blog. Again am I the only one who cares? Will not some one step forward and spearhead the fight against the bond issue
These are the issues we should be blogging.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Vote ‘no’ on the IPS ballot referendum.
It was with great interest and a very sore lip that I read soon to be former State Representative Orentlicher’s opinion piece in October 5th’s Sunday Star. The great interest was due to the fact that I acknowledge the problems facing IPS and the need to correct them. The sore lip came having bitten it repeatedly to prevent myself from screaming at some of the opinions expressed and disturbing the peaceful quiet morning that my neighbors were experiencing.
Let us look at his arguments and the rationale behind them.
It is true that students will be more inclined to focus on learning, and not how hot and miserable it is, in a properly lit and air-conditioned classroom. But he misses the mark when he states that it is the lack of air-conditioning that prevents IPS from hiring the brightest and best teachers. The true drawbacks are pay and a perceived lack of discipline (both educational and behavioral) on the part of students, too little of the former and too much of the latter. Having taught at the college level myself many years ago, I can say that teachers want and need students that are motivated to truly seek knowledge and not just occupying a seat. Add to this the fact is that inner city schools can induce a fear for one’s safety, if not directly from the students, then from the surrounding neighborhood, you see brilliant young teachers seeking employment elsewhere.
Proper lighting, functional restrooms and roofs that don’t leak are absolutes. There is no debate that these are must have.
The biggest question regarding the ballot issue and the completion of the 2001 plan is the continued relevance of the plan in light of steadily decreasing enrollments. Part of the Phase 3 plan calls for the construction of two new elementary schools, I feel that we must request IPS to delay their construction until a comprehensive review of their necessity is conducted. Additionally, we must ask if all the buildings scheduled for renovation are and will be fully utilized in the next 10-20 years; if not, then the renovations for those buildings must be delayed until a review of the possibility of consolidating schools is completed.
Representative Orentlicher’s assumption that taxes will be lower, due to tax caps, in 2010 assumes that local assessors will not be pressured by local governmental units to raise assessed values to meet the levy since tax rates will be effectively frozen at 1, 2 and 3%. What he also does not state in his opinion is that IPS has assumed that the average priced house is worth $75,000. Statistics like this can be misleading without a full disclosure of all the statistical parameters and the assumptions that went into their generation. The average, or mean if you prefer, is $75000. What is the standard deviation of this number? The standard deviation is a measure how widely the individual values that went into determining the average differ. For example, let’s look at two cases. Case 1 has 6 homes valued at $10000, $20000, $30000, $60000, $125000 and $200000. The average is about $74000, but the standard deviation is also about $74000 indicating that there is wide variation in the values. Case 2 also has 6 homes but the differences in price are much less, $59000, $64,000, $69,000, $79,000, $84,000 and $90,000. Again the average is about $74000, but the variation is much less and the standard deviation is only about $12000. In the first case the tax burden is going to be born mostly by the two higher priced properties, whereas in the second case the burden is more evenly distributed. Which case is the most democratic (the philosophy not the party)?
Another measure often looked at is the median. The median is a value that divides the highest 50% of the values from the lowest 50% of the values. In Case 1 it is $45000, half the values are above $45000 and half are below it. $45,000 is the value that is exactly halfway between $30000 and $60000. In Case 2 the median is $74,000 the value exactly halfway between $69,000 and $79,000. Here we see that the median is a better reflection of the true distribution of values than the average when the values are highly different.
Finally, I should like to add that, although Representative Orentlicher’s motivations are noble and sprout from a concern about the need to adequately educate our children and comply with all federal and state requirements, he does not reside within the area served by IPS. He is in fact a resident served by MSDS Washington Township, and he should direct his concerns towards the lavish wasting of taxpayer money by that district’s unrealistic and grandiose building plans.
We, as taxpayers and citizens residing in the IPS district should reject this bond referendum and ask IPS to go back to the drawing board and develop a different plan to accomplish these much needed renovations, a plan that best serves the students and the taxpayers who must provide for them.
On November 4th find the referendum question on the reverse side of your ballot and vote “No”.
Let us look at his arguments and the rationale behind them.
It is true that students will be more inclined to focus on learning, and not how hot and miserable it is, in a properly lit and air-conditioned classroom. But he misses the mark when he states that it is the lack of air-conditioning that prevents IPS from hiring the brightest and best teachers. The true drawbacks are pay and a perceived lack of discipline (both educational and behavioral) on the part of students, too little of the former and too much of the latter. Having taught at the college level myself many years ago, I can say that teachers want and need students that are motivated to truly seek knowledge and not just occupying a seat. Add to this the fact is that inner city schools can induce a fear for one’s safety, if not directly from the students, then from the surrounding neighborhood, you see brilliant young teachers seeking employment elsewhere.
Proper lighting, functional restrooms and roofs that don’t leak are absolutes. There is no debate that these are must have.
The biggest question regarding the ballot issue and the completion of the 2001 plan is the continued relevance of the plan in light of steadily decreasing enrollments. Part of the Phase 3 plan calls for the construction of two new elementary schools, I feel that we must request IPS to delay their construction until a comprehensive review of their necessity is conducted. Additionally, we must ask if all the buildings scheduled for renovation are and will be fully utilized in the next 10-20 years; if not, then the renovations for those buildings must be delayed until a review of the possibility of consolidating schools is completed.
Representative Orentlicher’s assumption that taxes will be lower, due to tax caps, in 2010 assumes that local assessors will not be pressured by local governmental units to raise assessed values to meet the levy since tax rates will be effectively frozen at 1, 2 and 3%. What he also does not state in his opinion is that IPS has assumed that the average priced house is worth $75,000. Statistics like this can be misleading without a full disclosure of all the statistical parameters and the assumptions that went into their generation. The average, or mean if you prefer, is $75000. What is the standard deviation of this number? The standard deviation is a measure how widely the individual values that went into determining the average differ. For example, let’s look at two cases. Case 1 has 6 homes valued at $10000, $20000, $30000, $60000, $125000 and $200000. The average is about $74000, but the standard deviation is also about $74000 indicating that there is wide variation in the values. Case 2 also has 6 homes but the differences in price are much less, $59000, $64,000, $69,000, $79,000, $84,000 and $90,000. Again the average is about $74000, but the variation is much less and the standard deviation is only about $12000. In the first case the tax burden is going to be born mostly by the two higher priced properties, whereas in the second case the burden is more evenly distributed. Which case is the most democratic (the philosophy not the party)?
Another measure often looked at is the median. The median is a value that divides the highest 50% of the values from the lowest 50% of the values. In Case 1 it is $45000, half the values are above $45000 and half are below it. $45,000 is the value that is exactly halfway between $30000 and $60000. In Case 2 the median is $74,000 the value exactly halfway between $69,000 and $79,000. Here we see that the median is a better reflection of the true distribution of values than the average when the values are highly different.
Finally, I should like to add that, although Representative Orentlicher’s motivations are noble and sprout from a concern about the need to adequately educate our children and comply with all federal and state requirements, he does not reside within the area served by IPS. He is in fact a resident served by MSDS Washington Township, and he should direct his concerns towards the lavish wasting of taxpayer money by that district’s unrealistic and grandiose building plans.
We, as taxpayers and citizens residing in the IPS district should reject this bond referendum and ask IPS to go back to the drawing board and develop a different plan to accomplish these much needed renovations, a plan that best serves the students and the taxpayers who must provide for them.
On November 4th find the referendum question on the reverse side of your ballot and vote “No”.
Friday, October 3, 2008
The Angleton Campaign For District 100 – The District In A Day
Join me on Oct. 25 for a whirlwind tour of the district as I hearken back to the days of campaigning without all the modern methods when candidates took to the “Stump” to get their message out. I intend to campaign from the back of a truck stopping at various places in the district to give a speech, pass out literature, and answer questions. This will be all the more impressive if we can organize a caravan of supporters to follow along and be present at the stops. The more of our own people we have, the more voters we should attract.
The exact itinerary for the day will be posted later, but if you plan to come out and show your support let me know as soon as possible (like before Friday Oct 10). I’m going to order Styrofoam skimmer hats for everyone to wear that day.
I really urge as many supporters as possible to come out that day. It's going to be a blast.
The exact itinerary for the day will be posted later, but if you plan to come out and show your support let me know as soon as possible (like before Friday Oct 10). I’m going to order Styrofoam skimmer hats for everyone to wear that day.
I really urge as many supporters as possible to come out that day. It's going to be a blast.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Now Is The Time For All Good Men And Women To Come To The Aid Of Their Party.
This post might be better entitled, "Where have all the Libertarians gone?"
In the 2007 Municipal election there were 1118 straight Libertarian Party votes, 3787 voters supported Fred Peterson and 12,275 voters selected Tim Maguire. This year we have several strong candidates who need all the help, both financial and volunteer, they can get. Where are these people who supported our candidates at the polls last year? How many times have we heard someone say, "I always vote Libertarian", and yet none of us who are active in the party knows them?
My friends it is time to put your money and your time where your heart lies. If even 10% of those who voted for Fred Peterson were to volunteer and make a $25.00 commitment, we can raise almost $9500 for the local party to use in candidate support.
Libertarians, your party needs you.
In the 2007 Municipal election there were 1118 straight Libertarian Party votes, 3787 voters supported Fred Peterson and 12,275 voters selected Tim Maguire. This year we have several strong candidates who need all the help, both financial and volunteer, they can get. Where are these people who supported our candidates at the polls last year? How many times have we heard someone say, "I always vote Libertarian", and yet none of us who are active in the party knows them?
My friends it is time to put your money and your time where your heart lies. If even 10% of those who voted for Fred Peterson were to volunteer and make a $25.00 commitment, we can raise almost $9500 for the local party to use in candidate support.
Libertarians, your party needs you.
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