Comments for Cool Town at http://www.theind.com , comment 1 to 21 out of 20 comments http://www.theind.com Thu, 23 May 2013 15:17:26 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-27156 Early on in the Durel administration the fire chief stood before a budget hearing and said Lafayette was short one fire station and around 30 firemen. Now it is two fire stations and over 60 firemen. This year the fire chief said that 75% of our six passenger fire trucks only have three firemen on board and the rest only four. He documented the increase in danger to families and firemen. He noted that Lafayette currently has some injured firemen. Putting firemen at risk to fund the arts and labeling it "Progressive" is disingenuous. I worked fund raisers when my kids were in school. The people behind these NGO's should choose not to put firemen and families at risk now that LCG has run out of money. If voters approve a new tax earmarked for the Police and Fire departments can they trust Lafayette Consolidated Government to spend more on our safety professionals or will LCG divert discretionary revenues to pet projects outside of safety progressively regressing safety spending to levels before the tax? - Chuck Cottrell Tue, 14 Aug 2012 08:08:19 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26362 Those that really understand (I’m not saying that’s me) have great concern. If one is paying attention to the sovereign debt crisis in Europe and the riots in the streets, and extrapolate the debt crises in all the blue states, and the direction of the national, state and local obligations, many see democracy and free markets coming to a critical crossroads. One side trusts free markets with all it’s faults, and the other side trusts the state which never ends well. The ship is taking on water and the band is playing cheerful melodies. - Jeremiah Supple Tue, 03 Apr 2012 11:06:01 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26361 Jeremiah, I'll ignore the stellar job capitalism has done for the world economy over the last several years and simply ask, why in the world are you so obsessed with collectivism? The socialists are not out to get you. Yet. - Walter Pierce Tue, 03 Apr 2012 08:56:40 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26360 Walter, I must confess, I had to go look up a couple of your words. I was not very good in English but I was pretty good at math. Maybe that could be why we see things so differently. I am very familiar with budgets. My business has operation budgets and capital budgets also. What you may be confused with is the games politicians, particularly this administration, play with half-truths. Example: My daughter in school called to say she was out of money for groceries, rent, and utilities. I said “Darling, what happened to the money I gave you at the beginning of the month?” Her response, “I bought this real neat Louis Vuitton purse, all the other girls have one”. Now it would have been easier to just send the check, but as the adult and a loving father, I knew if I did, it would not stop there and it would be irresponsible, so I did not. How un-cool is that? Politicians are no different if left unchecked by the media or worse yet, given cover by the media, being complicit in the charade. Money is fungible. If the operating budget is running in the red, and it is, and the solution is to raise the tax rate, that is more of an indication of bad management and poor planning. If you are spending more than you are taking in, stop, prioritize. That’s what adults do, rather than going back to "mommy and daddy". Taking care of the political contributors (cronyism) seems to be the disease we suffer with today in our nation, state and communities. I wish you would spend more time there. “Spend the money first, create the crisis, then go the tax payer for a bailout” no way to run a business or community. In last week’s LCG council meeting Dee Stanley is already framing the conversation, “We may need a “special tax” for fire and safety”. WHAAT? Isn’t that what the first taxes were for? This is the beginning of a dishonest conversation thats comming. I am absolutely all for the arts, parks, festivals, etc. etc., I have and I do make donations. The honest adult would take care of the bare essentials first and have a “special tax” on the Louis Vuiton purse, which I might vote for if done honestly and responsibly. Walter Pierce calling someone smug and passive aggressive? You might as well add snarky. “If one has to use half truths, insults and misrepresentation to defend ones position and use half-truths, insults and misrepresentation to counter the other side of the discussion, one might be on the wrong side”. My favorite author is Dr. Thomas Sowell. I believe to be one the smartest and wisest men of our time. My favorite quote of his “That’s so stupid only an intellectual would believe that.” And, “It takes a village to raise a child and a village idiot to believe it” Collectivism is a failed model my friend, it is a sinking ship. With all due respect - Jeremiah Supple Mon, 02 Apr 2012 22:14:38 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26356 Jeremiah, You are (self-) evidently an esteemed "adult" businessman who has been wildly successful, yet you confuse LCG's capital and operating budgets. LCG has the money in its capital budget to build the fire stations (and it's two fire stations, not one) so LCG is not $5 million in the red. It's the recurring expense of manning the fire stations, which don't exist, via the operations budget where the shortfall occurs. LCG isn't running a deficit. I'll ask you the same thing I asked Carol Ross: Have you seen the Tea Party of Lafayette website? Are you a subscriber? (Curiously, the "About Us" link on the site has disappeared in recent days but I recall you being identified as a core member.) As for the rest of your passive-aggressive, smug comment, especially you're mind-boggling enumeration of "cool" teapsters -- check for a hernia, Jeremiah, because you clearly strained on that one! -- I'll have to resort to a popular rejoinder of my adolescent kith: whatever. - Walter Pierce Mon, 02 Apr 2012 17:07:26 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26354 Walter, Since you worked so hard on this article and I see you didn’t get too many responses I thought I might chime in. Walter, one can find fault in just about anything if they look hard enough. You have been trying very hard to find fault with the Tea Party, Your articles seem to be more analogous to an infomercial style of journalism, and lacks integrity. Your inaccuracies consistently seem to promote a certain ideology and defame another. A little disingenuous. Additionally for a group that is insignificant as you say, you seem to be spending a lot of time energy and space defaming them. With all due respect, it appears to me you may be bogged down in believing what you perceive to be “cool”. Your perception of “cool” seems to be stuck in a version consistent with someone in high school or junior college. What is cool to an adolescent is very different from what's cool to adults. Believe it or not the teapsters used to be “cool”. Hell, we invented “cool”. Some of us actually went to Woodstock and marched with Martin Luther King. We just grew up. Just a few people teapstes find cool : Dr. Walter Williams Dr. Thomas Sowell Cornel Allen West Herman Cain Rev. C.L. Bryant Star Parker There is a common thread among these people, they are Tea Party advocates. I recommend these names on your reading list. You imply that teapsters are against the arts. This too is disingenuous. My corporation has given over $30,000 to PASA. Contrary to what you have written in the Independent, LCG is actually 5MM in the red. The city investing in a broken down warehouse for “lofts for artists”? And we can’t afford a fire station? Please. I am sure you were great at English but my guess is you may have struggled in math. R. Reagan - Jeremiah Supple Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:16:12 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26346 Now why would the nouveau artiste community want to leave picturesque, unspoiled Arnaudville, and move to the corruptive city of Lafayette, known as " Fightingville. Sorry, to all but farther back than the number of morning dew years on these Johnny come lately commentators, it was always " fightingville. " - chano leal Fri, 30 Mar 2012 22:56:42 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26345 Everyone is entitled to his opinion The liberal Arts Major, and the lowliest minion - chano leal Fri, 30 Mar 2012 22:49:50 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26337 Just to clarify my comments about tea party groups opposing school choice in the state legislature, I do not want anyone to think my words "local tea party groups" was referring to groups within Lafayette. I have not seen any of the groups within Lafayette Parish take an official stand either way. By "local", I meant localized groups. Example, two groups, Tea Party of Greater New Orleans and The People, LLC, testified in Education Committee against the school choice legislation. They are against the bills because of education agendas of the U.N., Agenda 21, and the Obama Administration. I know many conservatives, some who even consider themselves "tea party conservatives", who were not happy those two groups took such stances in the Education Committee and are trying to convince their members of the "evils" of school choice. - Nicholas Bouterie Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:09:34 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26336 Responding to Nick Bouterie, The position of the TEA Party of Lafayette on the Education Reform Bill has not been published. We have sent the following document to our members for their review. It is information directly from Rep. Nancy Landry who serves on the Education Committee. THIS INFORMATION WAS OBTAINED THROUGH A CONVERSATION WITH REP. NANCY LANDRY, WHO SERVES ON THE EDUCATION COMMITTEE IN THE STATE LEGISLATURE. The School Choice Bill (HB 976) provides three choice models: I. SCHOLARSHIPS (also called Vouchers) would allow the public funds designated for that student’s education to follow the child. 1. Would be available to students in public schools rated F, D, or C · 2. Income must be less than 250% of federal poverty ** THE PRIVATE SCHOOL SYSTEM DOES NOT HAVE TO PARTICIPATE** Participation by Private schools is completely voluntary. If, and only if, a private school chooses to participate, it would tell the school district how many students it is willing to accept. Those students would be chosen by lottery from among the students requesting to enroll in that participating private school. A school could allow one voucher student or 200. It is totally up to the school. The public school student would be chosen by lottery and not by the charter or private schools admission tests….NO cherry picking allowed. However, if the student did not perform and or had a discipline problem, they could be removed. The remaining funding, which is paid twice a year, (working on 4 times a year) would be returned to the public school system…following the child, if that student is expelled or leaves the private school. II. ON– LINE COURSES Public school students (in F, D, C schools) as long as enrolled in at least one class at a public school would be allowed to take up to five BESE approved on-line classes for the other courses. 15% of the public funding associated with that child would be available to pay for each course. This choice would also be available to students in A and B schools but only if their public school does not offer the course they want to take. For instance, if a student is attending a public school that does not offer Advanced Math, then that student can participate in an on-line class and it would be funded by state dollars. This choice would also be available to private school students, home-schooled students, and those at A and B schools (that do offer the course), but they would have to pay for the course. III. CHARTER SCHOOLS Charter schools, are essentially public schools that operate with a different governing board (not the school board). They are not subject to some of the rules and regulations (and red tape) of public schools in exchange for accountability standards. If they don’t perform, their charter is revoked. We currently operate several different types of charter schools. This would be the third choice a student would have under this reform bill. Charter schools already exist. There are currently several different types of charter schools (school board authorized and BESE authorized among others). This bill would provide a new type of Charter school created by a BESE approved “Charter Authorizer”, such as a University of Community Foundation. Like other charter schools, this type would lose its charter if it did not produce results. (The benefit of Charter schools is that the charter is revoked if the school is not performing). Notes: We currently have a pilot scholarship program in place in New Orleans. We also have a pilot Special Needs scholarship program in place in Baton Rouge for autistic students. Louisiana appears to be patterning School Choice after Florida, (other states, including Indiana and Wisconsin have also implemented school choice) In Florida, one study showed the overall satisfaction rate has risen from around 8% for public schools to 97% for those participating in the scholarship program and Charter schools. CONCERNS Some common concerns we are hearing are that the Private schools are not graded and the non-voucher students are not required to take the LEAP test; therefore, the parents can’t really make an accurate comparison or a meaningful choice. Gov. Jindal opted not to require the testing to be done in the participating Private Schools even if they accept the voucher students. However, the Voucher Students will be tested. Also, parents of special ed students have concerns that the private schools would not be required to accept their students or accommodate their children’s special needs. Those details are still being negotiated, but currently there are separate rules dealing with special needs kids. For more information on School Choice, please check out the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice at http://www.edchoice.org/School-Choice/What-is-School-Choice.aspx This information was gathered through a telephone conversation with Nancy Landry who sits on the Education Committee on March 16, 2012 by Joyce Linde--I sent the document to Rep. Landry and she resent with corrections and specificity - Teaparty Lafayette Fri, 30 Mar 2012 08:54:15 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26333 Didn't get to finish my comment. I accidentally hit the enter key. - Ted Broussard Thu, 29 Mar 2012 23:33:38 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26329 i agree with money better spent. All of these neighborhoods were improving without city intrusion and money. I'm sure the city money could go to better things. The LFPTA could pay for fire stations on the other end. I would rather have better schools and roads than a government subsided housing project. No, it wasn't pretty, now jdv is just an expense to the city - Krista Fontenot Thu, 29 Mar 2012 19:54:35 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26326 As for political animosity towards President Obama, mine stems from his insistence on continuing to demonize our oil & gas industry. - Nicholas Bouterie Thu, 29 Mar 2012 18:50:24 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26325 I'm not going to get into any back and forth spitting match. What I will say is one should be VERY CAREFUL in linking the tea party groups with all conservatives. Take for example Tea Party of Louisiana. They aren't even claimed by the other local tea party goups. Basically a blogger and a handful of other opportunists just jumped up and called themselves that. Even local tea party groups don't necessarily represent even the strictist of conservatives among us. I agree with TP of LAF in being against government subsidizing NGOs, especially when state and local governments are currently short of cash for REAL governmental responsibilities. However, I find many of these tea party groups have veared a bit too far in the Agenda 21 business. Yes, I know the UN and leftists goups have such an idea, but last week, we found local tea party groups opposing school choice legislation because of this A 21 stuff. - Nicholas Bouterie Thu, 29 Mar 2012 18:18:34 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26321 Bravo, Walter! - Colin Miller Thu, 29 Mar 2012 17:35:23 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26320 WHO WE ARE The Tea Party of Lafayette is comprised of a group of citizens in pursuit of truth who have joined together because of a mutual belief in the need for preservation of liberty, freedom and promotion of limited government as put forth by our Founding Fathers in the Constitution. MISSION STATEMENT The mission of TEA Party of Lafayette is to promote the principles of liberty, freedom and limited government. GOALS Facilitate citizen education and awareness of public affairs, public policy and legislation Encourage active involvement in governmental processes by citizens Provide education on American founding principles The Tea Party of Lafayette is comprised of a group of citizens in pursuit of truth who are joined together because of a mutual belief in the need for preservation of liberty, freedom and promotion of limited government as put forth by our founding Fathers in the Constitution. We promote the principles of liberty, freedom and limited government. Our goals are stated above. . We do not cast dispersion or malign others who do not believe or feel like we do. We do get much of our information from internet sources since Mr. Pierce thrives on creating division and on provoking those who do not agree with his liberal ideology. Of course, many of us do look to the internet for truthful information and articles that are not inflammatory. I worked as an artist for over two decades and believe strongly in the enrichment that comes with a strong and viable artistic culture. It is my feeling that the arts of all kinds should be supported just as those who are less fortunate receive assistance in so many ways. Our group is made up a broad spectrum of individuals who work together for the reasons stated above in our mission statement and goals…we do not have to agree on every single issue. However, when money is tight and over-budget than cuts have to be made… the necessities come first…that is true in your family life, in business or in government. There is not an inexhaustible supply of tax payer dollars to fund every dream or good idea that comes along. It is beyond my comprehension, why a publication, such as The Independent would allow or promote the continued disparagement and division of citizens who have different goals and values than that which they share. It is hurtful, painful and serves no good purpose other than to create division and hostile feelings. Surely an educated person, such as Walter Pierce, can find a better more civilized manner in which to express his thoughts and feelings than to continually malign others who live and work in this wonderful community. Joyce Linde - Teaparty Lafayette Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:32:14 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26313 Carol, Your “intellectually lazy” gambit is a threadbare rhetorical device. Although I don’t see your name on the list of “core” Tea Party of Lafayette members at TPL’s website, you are listed as a “friend” at TPL’s Facebook page, and a simple click tells me you’re a fan of Rush Limbaugh. If you are a member of TPL, are you willing to “own” the content on the group’s website, not the least of which is the array of videos along the left rail of the home page brimming with conspiracy theories about Agenda 21 or the tiring exclamations about Marxism in America — videos that cast American civic life in terms of “us,” the Constitution-loving patriots and “them,” the liberal America haters? To what extent are you a subscriber? If you’re not a card-carrying Tea Party member, surely you’ve been to a TP town hall meeting or two. I have not attended one myself, but I’ve gotten firsthand accounts from my “partisans” — you know, the less patriotic among us — and I’ve seen enough videos and news accounts of TP gatherings to deduce it is a movement that is overwhelmingly white and aged. And angry. Is it merely coincidental that the Tea Party movement blew up in the U.S. on the heels of Barack Obama’s inauguration? I’ve witnessed enough iconography on TP signs at rallies to glean a strong current of racial resentment in the movement. Not a swirl. A current. Of course I understand much has to do simply with having a Democrat in the White House — I well recall the militia movement of the Clinton years punctuated by Timothy McVeigh — but the reaction this go-round has been much more wrenching. Let me leave you with an email I received yesterday. It’s especially germane to this conversation as I’ve been told you were at one time an eloquent and outspoken proponent of locally generated tax dollars subsidizing the arts: Seems you should change your publication’s name to The Liberal for better truth in advertising. We’re not Berkeley, California (thank God!). Your use of the term “Progressive” is merely another name for “Liberal”. Unlike the ultra-Liberals of the north-west part of our nation, we here actually respect our nation’s military. Lafayette can’t be a “Cool Town” for long if we continue to spend beyond our means, especially on the arts. Our city and parish has more important things we should be spending money on,...little things like drainage, replacing struts killing roads, and extremely necessary repairs of our school buildings. I look forward to the next presidential election when your favorite president is voted out of office,...whatever alias he uses for he’s lived under several different names. Perhaps your staff would be more at home in Berkeley, San Francisco, Portland, or Seattle. - Walter Pierce Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:23:02 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26307 Walter: It's disappointing that a person of your obvious intelligence would take the intellectually lazy route of demonizing a diverse group of people with such a broad brush - very uncool. There are many Tea Party groups with a variety of issues but one core set of beliefs: That the Constitution is still the foundational document on which our government is based and that the federal government, starting in the mid-20th century, has begun to exceed the enumerated powers set forth in that lovely, concise, elegant piece of work. Yes, the Constitution is still very cool, but what's not cool is when local government attempts to establish very large taxing districts whose lines are drawn to exclude "qualified electors" to assure there would be no vote on the issue. Is it cool to ask the taxed enough already property owners to shell out more money -- a whole lot more money -- to fund a failing school system when the new superintendent (a very cool guy by all accounts, including mine) has said he would not ask for more funding until the LPSS proves it is making smarter use of the funding they're getting now. There's a really cool concept for you. How cool is it when the local government pushes for a special taxing district to benefit one developer - you know who he is and he's not very cool is he? And here's one more very un-cool thing -- LCG trying to set up a "redevelopment district" ostensibly for the purpose of dealing with blighted properties but slipping language into the legislation giving an LCG appointed board the power to "...plan, develop, regulate, operate and maintain activities and planned land uses to foster...health care, general public and social welfare, commerce, manufacturing, tourism, relocation of people and businesses to the area, shipbuilding, aviation, military warehousing, transportation, offices, recreation, housing development and conservation." HUH??? I thought this was about blighted properties -- not cool guys. And finally Walter, the most un-cool cut, intimating that the color of the President's skin is what motivates the unwashed uncool among us, when in reality it is the content of his policies with which we disagree. In fact, many of us spoke out against his predecessor's expansion of federal power under No Child Left Behind and the prescription drug act. Anticipating a snarky response would be very un-cool of me, wouldn't it? - Carol Ross Wed, 28 Mar 2012 20:08:18 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26302 Thanks for writing something nice about my neighborhood, but please stop calling it Fightingville. It has negative conatations. The edge of the area, nearest downtown and congress is the Mills Addition, it's from 1859 or 39, can't remember exactly. Just north of the is the Hopkins and the OB Hopkins addition from 1903. Dr. Thomas Hopkins began buying property prior to 1874,( The Railroad was already there!) and references to describe property still use the reference "north of Vermillionville". Dr. Hopkins has family correspondence in the Dupre library. I intend to get there as soon as I can. Most of this area was property of of the Mouton Family, as in Alexander Mouton. Pierce St. was originally Jefferson Street and Simcoe was Hopkins. One of the houses on Pierce in the first block belonged to Mary Regina Mouton, an heir of Alexander Mouton. My husband and I bought the Thomas B. Hopkins house 8 years ago, not knowing what it was. We knew it was in a neighborhood we could see ourselves spending our life in and more importantly, we could afford the house and it was big enough to house moms and dads and family if the need arouse. There is so much more history here. The first bowling ally was here, and torn down by jdv. Just down the street in the 20's was a grocery store that sold fresh pasta. The first High School was approximately in the area of Oliver and S. Pierce. The sidewalks went in in 1915, I found the sidewalk lien in the courthouse. In 1903 there were 4500 residents. There was a bicycle repair shop between Madison and Lafayette St. on Congress. A Photographer at the Junction of Pierce and Jefferson. The Renaissance was beginning to happen when we got here. Ken and Ty came along about the same time, and soon after Andrea and Ken. We got to know June, who owns several houses here. currently she rents them out,(One to Jillian's brother) but will be retiring here in a few years. Sonya was already here and knew what we had. This neighborhood is full of beautiful, yet scruffy houses. Some need more love and care than others. Some are occupied by great renters and some are owned by absentee landlords. But the change was happening prior to Joie De Vivre. I'm afarid it will be a setback and flood the neighborhood with traffic it can't handle and an increase in crime. - Krista Fontenot Wed, 28 Mar 2012 16:19:27 +0100 http://www.theind.com/cover-story/10185-cool-town#comment-26301 and by the way, renovation of Laf. Wholesale building is beyond ridiculous. It useful life is over, period. and it never was built to be apartments. the cost to renovate will be much greater then it would cost to build new. It would be much cheaper to just pay their rent wherever they are now. And that's why that ain't cool. - Tim Supple Wed, 28 Mar 2012 16:13:50 +0100