Unnecessary Waste

Disclaimer:  everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION.  Every attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt;  otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.

It is illegal to transfer Texas park land without a review and approval of Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission.
This was not done before the city transferred half our park to the school district.  The city has now turned this problem over to the city attorney for action.  ROTFLMAO!!!!

Certain authorities seem to be hell bent on having their way, regardless.  It's called abuse of power.
They seem to be intent upon acting secretly so that the townspeople won't know what's going on until it's too late.  All in the interest of wlllfully getting what they want, regardless of any other consideration.   And of course, the idea that Electrans are really too stupid to think for themselves is ever present.  Big Brother knows best.
Or, maybe,  possibly, Big Brother is a dishonest, abusive spoiled brat who regards opposition as a personal insult?
There are many incidents of the same willful and secret nature. They provide highly censored 'information' to the public and then only when forced to and at the very last minute;  many deals appear to be made behind closed doors in violation of the Open Meetings Act.
This was apparent in what seemed  to be the calculated delay of even the highly censored version of the 'facts' finally released in the last few weeks before the school bond vote.   Probably calculated to hide the negative aspects of the deal, the advertising appealed to the emotions, and sent too many people on such a bleeding heart guilt trip that they voted in the huge bond without knowing all they should to make an informed decision.
The confiscation of half the city park seems to have been part of that plan, as it's said that the city manager told people that was "a done deal"  quite some time before the plan was made public-and even before the bond was voted in.  And of course, as noted in last week's Electra Star News, it's the wrong half of the park.
Given the city manager's reported statement, if true, it seems obvious that the EISD had no intention of considering any other options. But practicality and logic didn't enter into the deal even then.  Worse still, neither did the wants of the townspeople.
Instead of deeding the nearly barren, high east half of the park to the EISD, it was given  the west half, which comprises almost all the park has to offer in the way of recreation.  That will be torn down, the creek rearranged, and the last attractive area in the town totally destroyed. At horrendous expense.
It's not only our park, it's our money that's being wasted.
And here's a question or two for you:
Does anyone really believe someone is going to buy a very expensive lot and within the required three years, start building a house in Rattlesnake Acres, also known as ED's Folly, but officially called Saratoga Estates?
Why couldn't the school be put there and save the expense and destruction in the city park?
I already know the answers to those questions, but it's something for readers to think about.

Anita Huguelet McMurtrie

The Fly Goes Up in Smoke

Disclaimer:  everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION.  Every attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt;  otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.

The Fly Goes Up in Smoke-A Fable

Once upon a time, in the village of Silliville, ex-King Yuppy Puppy was in a frantic snit.  He rushed to the mayor's house and shouted, "You have to call an emergency meeting right away!"
Hovering above the lawn, a fly was examining a smouldering cigarette butt.
"What?" said the mayor.
"What?" said the fly, gliding closer to listen in.
"An emergency meeting.  You  have to call one!"
"You do it,"  said the mayor.
"No, I can't do the emergency thing, it's not legal,"  explained Yuppy Puppy.
"But you do illegal things all the time,"  complained the mayor.  "I don't want to call a meeting."
The fly flew in a swirl around the ex-King's head.  *You say tomato, I say tomato;  you say it's lawful, I say it's awful.....*  it sang.
The ex-King wrung his hands.  "You must!"  he cried.
The mayor was indifferent.  "Why?"  he asked.
"Well, you see,"  said Yuppy Puppy snarkily.  "I'm the head of the medical mafia, and that's more important than the city commission.  I have to have a front man so I don't get the blame for anything."
The fly rolled its eyes.  *It's all smoke and mirrors,*  it giggled.
"Oh,"  said the mayor.  "That's different.  Ok."
And an emergency city meeting was scheduled right away.
"Wait," said a commissioner.  " Doesn't this have to be posted for a few hours before we can meet?"
"No, this is an EMERGENCY,"  Yuppy Puppy explained with elaborate patience.  "That means we can do it without telling anyone."
The fly did a barrel roll and grinned.  *Blowing smoke is such fun!*
The mayor strolled in, turned the meeting over to the ex-King, and vagued out.
"Why are we having an emergency meeting, Yuppy Puppy?"  asked another commissioner.
The ex-King sighed loudly.  "I told you to call me KYP,"  he insisted.
"We can't call you KYP now, you're not king,"  protested the other commissioner.
Looping the loop, the fly snickered,  *Where there's smoke, there's fire.*
"Drat!"  said the ex-King under his breath.
The commissioners thought hard for a while.  "I know,"  said one.  "We'll have to call you YP."
"Yip?"  said the mayor waking up.  "Is there a dog in here?"
"Ok, YP, why are we having an emergency meeting?"  asked the commissioner.
"Big Town has just outlawed smoking!"   YP's patience was beginning to fray.
"Um. So?"
YP waved his hands in the air.  "That means they're ahead of us!"  he shrieked.
The other commissioner drew back in horror.  "Watch out, you'll break a nail!"
"Oh, dear, we can't have that,"  said another commissioner.
"Yes.  First they got SUVs for their cop shop before we did,"  YP whined.
The fly started to giggle again.  *That's the smoking gun,*  it tittered.
"Don't forget.  They made the crepe myrtle their town flower, and we had to root a bunch of pear trees out of our sidewalks and plant crepe myrtles just to keep up."
The commission thought for a minute.  "NOW they're having new schools!"  they yelled.
"Well, we've caught up with them on that,"  YP preened.  "But don't you see?"   he reasoned desperately.  "People can still smoke in Silliville!"
"Big Town is ahead of us again!"  they all chorused, outraged.
"That'll never do,"  a commissioner said righteously.  "We have to ban smoking."
"People are not going to let us do that,"  said the other commissioner.
Another commissioner flapped a hand in the air.  "I used to smoke."
*Smoke, smoke, smoke that cigarette...*  the fly hummed happily.
There was a shocked silence in the meeting room.
The commissioner looked around.  "But I had to stop."
They all breathed a sigh of relief.  "See?"  said YP.  "It's unhealthy and we have to force people to stop for their own good."
"Oh, no,"  protested the other commissioner.  "It turned my nails yellow, and I didn't like the color."
There was another silence.  YP chewed his nails.
Finally the other commissioner protested,   "But a lot of people here smoke.  We can't get around that."
YP called his attorney and then snapped his fingers.  "Wait.  I have it!"  he cried gleefully.  "We'll fool them into thinking it's something else.  It'll be like 'rent' instead of 'user fee' and 'information' instead of 'persuasion;' so instead of 'smoking' we'll outlaw the 'human emission of visible vapors!'  They'll never know the difference."
The fly was laughing so hard it was crying;  it sang a few bars of *Smoke Gets In Your Eyes.*
"Let's do it right now,"  YP said, feeling frantic.  "Before the people realize what's happening."
"We can't.  We have to have a public discussion,"  insisted the commissioner.
"I want it! I want it! I want it!"  squalled YP, beginning to drum his heels on the floor.
The fly sat back and blew imaginary smoke rings.  *I see-um smoke signals, kemo sabe,* it chuckled.

Anita Huguelet McMurtrie

The Return of The Fly

Disclaimer:  everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION. Every  attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt; otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.

The Fable  of The Fly will soon return on this blog.
Included will be the Giant Ewok, ex-King Yuppy Puppy-"call me KYP"-the Fearless Leader, the Noddy Doll, Mr. Bluster, the Medical Mafia, Super Spender  among others, and a cast of dozens, since Silliville is losing population by the day.
The Fly will not be regularly scheduled, but will occasionally appear at 8 am on Fridays when the new blog is usually posted-unless something so abysmally stupid occurs it won't wait, at which time the blog will be posted outside its usual schedule.

Anita Huguelet McMurtrie

Am I Against a New School?

Disclaimer:   everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION.  Every attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt;  otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.

No, not exactly. I am against the current plans for a new school because I think the whole project was rammed down our throats by a few spoiled brats who wanted their way in order to oil their egos and prove their power in the town.
From what I can discover, the need for a new school isn't nearly as urgent as presented to the public.  It seems obvious-too late- that the whole project just wasn't thoroughly investigated at all levels.  Or if  it was, it appears the plan was to spring the bond on us before we had a chance to ask those vital questions, and to steamroller the voters with tear-jerking persuasion rather than present very much that included the long-range effects of such a project.
What I'm actually against is the lack of ethical behavior, withholding and delay of important  information, and conscienceless manipulation of facts. Too bad this sort of behavior seems to have become the mean rather than the exception in all levels of authority in Electra these days, from school to city to medical complex.


Anita Huguelet McMurtrie

Where, Oh, Where?

Disclaimer:  everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION. Every attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt;  otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.

Now that the school bond has been pushed through apparently without considering all the problems surrounding it, it seems there's the question of where to put the new school.
First of all, certain people were assured that annexation of part of the city park was a "done deal" according to a city authority.
People of the town, to whom the park belongs, weren't informed in advance of the proposed annexation, nor were they asked if this was ok.  It's not.
Next, a member of the city commission  says the new school should be out on the highway. The 'reason' for this? Everyone else is doing it.
Copycatting is not a good reason for anything.
I travel a lot and I've seen the mess caused by schools out on a highway. They slow down  traffic, and the highway was built, presumably, to avoid just that.  The kids, who think they're nine feet tall and bulletproof, peel out of the parking lots without a thought except to get where they want to go.
Putting a school out on a highway is dangerous and impractical.
Then there's the idea of tearing down First Ward and putting the new school there.
Not such a bad idea, since a school has already been there, but what about the traffic and the noise for residents? When First Ward was built, parents didn't bring kids to school, nor did the kids drive themselves. Now they do.
If I owned a house bordering that block, I would have a walleyed fit if the EISD proposed to build an active school there.
There's also the notion that the new school could be built next to the junior high school.
Does anyone remember the problems created when over the citizens' protests, the school built a softball field there?
Many of those problems still exist:  minor vandalism of yards and houses by kids who are bored with the game; damage to cars and houses by softballs, trash left in yards and gutters by people who attend the games; the slowdown of traffic on the highway, and the ever-present danger of kids and a lot of cars.
But, the primary problem is that the streets between the school grounds and private homes aren't wide enough.
People parking cars to watch the games park them on both sides of the street, virtually blocking it. Emergency vehicles such as firetrucks, ambulances, and law enforcement vehicles are hard put to get to anyone living in a house bordering the school grounds.
Finally, there's the area around the high school.  Presumably the new school would be built before the additional bond for a sports complex is floated, which means the football stadium area can't be used for the site.  If the city park can't be acquired (and it is to be hoped that it can't), then that leaves the houses on the north side of the street, and the houses and vocational building and greenhouse on the west.  No doubt the school would carelessly write off the vocational building and greenhouse, but it seems the people in the houses don't want to sell.
Were any of these problems even considered in the mad rush to ram the school bond through before the townspeople were aware that there might be a lot of complications which hadn't been taken into account?

Anita Huguelet McMurtrie

D-Day

Disclaimer:  everything contained in this blog is MY OPINION.  Every attempt is made to present the truth through actual facts or to identify statements which are in doubt; otherwise there will be no deliberate presentation of gossip, rumor, or innuendo which can't be proven as factual.

D-Day the 6th of June.
Actually, I remember that day, just as I remember the day the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor.
I was pretty little, but enthusiastic patriotism wasn't politically incorrect in those days, and I provided my small support for America quite vigorously.  That usually consisted of stamping my feet and chanting, "Brrrrt! (raspberry sound) Brrrrt! Brrrrt!  Right in Der Fuhrer's face!" Or drawing the American shield and putting Admiral Tojo behind the stripes on it as if they were bars on a jail cell.
There was pretty strict food rationing then, and I still have my ration book.  Quite often, since my father was in an essential service-the oil field-meat was reserved for him.  The rest of the family ate a lot of biscuits, cornbread, and vegetables-it never occurred to me that I was being 'deprived.'
On D-Day my grandmother Nomy came up from Forreston, which was south of Dallas. 200 long miles on a bus which took all day. She brought a cardboard suitcase and lugged one of the big 5 gallon metal cans which originally held lard. In the suitcase was a side of bacon, wrapped in waxed paper and cheesecloth to keep it from greasing up her clothes.  I always looked forward to the lard can. Inside were dozens of eggs.
She would pour 'drippings'-usually bacon and ham fat-about half an inch deep in the bottom and wait for it to set.  Then she'd put down a layer of eggs and pour drippings over them.  She repeated the process to the top of the can. My mother thought it was all very illegal because of the rationing, and perhaps it was, but we ate the eggs and used the grease from the drippings anyway.
The bacon that trip was such a treat!  Everyone had bacon and eggs for supper.  Special for D-Day.
Our first news of D-Day came over the radio on the 6th of June.  In those days that was our first source of news and we spent hours crouched over it,  listening to reports of the war.  We had known something was going on because for weeks we'd had no letters from my Uncle Bill, who was a belly gunner on a B-29,  and we'd heard nothing from relatives in Europe.  For sure something was up;  we just didn't know what.
Things were tense around the house because my other grandmother OmaD, and Uncle Bill's wife Aunt Rowena were here.  Kids pick up on strain even though they don't know the reason for it; we had no real concept of death. The tension altered once we found out about D-Day.  It was still there, but different.
One of my dearly loved friends who was a high schooler when I was 3 years old, was killed in that invasion. I was upset and hid under the fig tree in the back yard and cried, but I didn't know what his death meant.  I just knew I'd never see him again.
There were so many men from Electra in the military, many of them my mother's ex-students.  She worried about them, and often they would write to her from overseas.  Sometimes the letters would come with great strips cut out of them; that's what censorship amounted to in those days, and it meant that the soldier had mentioned something that might constitute a danger to himself and his comrades, or that would reveal some plan to the enemy.
I thought that was perfectly understandable;  I still do.
Our town Japanese, Mr Fujita, was voracious in his support of America.  He had sons in the military.  One of them, a former student of my mother's,  had been captured with the Texas Army National Guard in Java in the early days of the war.  I remember Mr. Fujita was worried that American prisoners of the Japanese would be killed in retaliation for D-Day.
But everyone celebrated our invasion of Normandy, not knowing at the time the dreadful casualties which would result.
That day is now long ago and far away, and there are fewer each year who fought in it.  Also fewer are the people who, even as children, remember it.
We should teach our children and grandchildren not to forget.  It was a terrible sacrifice for a good cause.
Well done, America's fighting men.

Anita Huguelet McMurtrie