Recent comments from 'herefornow'
| Audit reveals Gregg Township errors | |
| herefornow Saturday, November 6, 2010: 5:05 pm | One in the same, but I don't know about the Madison Township money. If the audit is anything like the Gregg Township one and the reporting is as accurate, the money was probably there and the intrepid state auditor couldn't read a calendar or check register. The bottom line in both cases is the ciitizens of both townships don't have the fire and EMS protection they deserve. Cowardly politicians at the county level need to finally grow up and follow the Kernan-Shepard report and fix this problem. It's in the news in every township at some point during each year. Hopefully Governor Daniels will get the elimination of township government through so we don't have to read stories like this every week (or see families wait 20 plus minutes for an ambulance). |
| Audit reveals Gregg Township errors | |
| herefornow Saturday, November 6, 2010: 1:21 pm | Eric Reedy. The trustee may want to give some thought to replacing him if he truly erred here. I read the complete response on the Channel 6 website since the audit isn't posted yet. It looks like the State took a single look at the current state of the accounts, but didn't look back to when checks had cleared. The ridiculous part of the audit was the township getting dinged for not paying the full fire contract by the state when the state ended up denying the funds to fulfill the contract. Another effort by Dora and company to get the money denied, and then claiming some wrongdoing when the contract wssn't paid!! Also, the state complained about when a deposit occurred even though it was the state that made the deposit! Look at theindychannel.com for the township's response. I don't think the Reporter-Times made the effort to put it in. If they did, Mea Culpa Culp. |
| Audit reveals Gregg Township errors | |
| herefornow Saturday, November 6, 2010: 11:07 am | Wow, robbing the taxpayers blind. How much have you and Sonjia spent robbing the taxpayers blind? How much have you spent on attorneys, trips to the State Office Building, and even showing up at Gregg Township fire department incidents? Dora, you and your cohorts have fought every emergency loan, the ambulance purchase, and even the replacement of a soon to be 20 year old fire engine. That's with two trips to the State Tax Court at the expense of taxpayers. You and the rest of your "concerned citizens" have increased taxes (to pay for attorneys and accountants) by your continued shenanigans and at least two township residents have died long before they could reach a hospital. That's is most certainly due to a lack of ambulance service. But, you don't care and that's why you weren't elected as trustee when you ran. |
| Prosecutor: No Gregg Township investigation | |
| herefornow Friday, November 5, 2010: 6:15 pm | The elected official is a she. Opinion 1, your rant shows a real lack of knowledge of the situation or how screwed up township government is in general. Carole Snyder has spoken at the State level to eliminate township government and effectively eliminate her own trustee job. Sonjia Graf and Dora Brown have filed an incredible number of remonstrances, lawsuits, public information requests, and other things a reasonable person would consider harassment. Perhaps challenging them to put their legal bills on the table over the past five years and how that's impacted Gregg Township's legal and accounting costs is a reasonable request than accusing Trustee Snyder of impropriety. Go ahead, Google Sonjia Graf and Dora Brown. It will be enlightening for you. |
| Prosecutor: No Gregg Township investigation | |
| herefornow Friday, November 5, 2010: 12:41 pm | Yep. They're like a bunch of juvenile delinquents who run around your house, break all your windows and then criticize you for spending the money to fix them! |
| Green Township seeks Rural Metro contract | |
| herefornow Tuesday, November 2, 2010: 1:43 pm | Momof4, some people just can't pay. Rural Metro sends their money back to Arizona and they are very aggressive in collections. Just drive up SR37 and see how many people work at the local billing office. They are a business and will charge you substantially more than a comparable fire department because they are making a profit. You don't pay squat in property taxes in Morgan County compared to anywhere else in the Metro Indianapolis area. As a result, you seem to like rolling the dice to see if an ambulance even shows up if you need to call 911. Those emergency loans you whine about are the only way the legislature allows townships to increase their Fire/EMS tax levies because of a tax cap from the 1970's. The loans aren't living beyond one's means as many "Concerned Citizens" say; they are simply the way the legislature allows township fire departments to get the money they need to operate without the legislators saying the unpopular "if you need the money, you can raise taxes." |
| County approves public safety appropriations | |
| herefornow Tuesday, November 2, 2010: 1:31 pm | Gee Councilman Prather maybe the answer is to look at the budgetary requirements up front. Aren't I paying a 911 surcharge on my phone every month that helps provide that money. If the public safety agencies need that money to do their jobs, give it to them. |
| Brown Township firefighter reprimanded | |
| herefornow Sunday, October 31, 2010: 11:40 am | Don't know about that Spanky, but I do know she has benefited from tax dollars when her husband was employed by the Gregg Township Fire Department. He left right before she suddenly complained about tax dollars used to fund the ambulance in Gregg Township. Is hypocrisy a disease or a condition? |
| Brown Township firefighter reprimanded | |
| herefornow Saturday, October 30, 2010: 8:59 pm | Sorry, that was "saw" the overhead video that played on at least two of the news stations. |
| Brown Township firefighter reprimanded | |
| herefornow Saturday, October 30, 2010: 6:51 pm | Dora, can you please post your Brown Township tax bill? "Our trucks?" Now didn't you help your husband outfit even younger teenagers in fire gear when he ran Gregg Township's cadet program- including former cadet Ricky Tankersley? The only thing more ridiculous is the Reporter-Times again giving her the name recognition she seems to crave. Captain Reed, anyone who say overhead video from this fire would understand the exigent circumstances involved in placing your son behind the wheel. |
| A difference of life or death | |
| herefornow Wednesday, October 27, 2010: 5:35 pm | I guess some people would rather spend several thousands of dollars on attorneys to shut down ambulance service rather than a few dollars to keep it. Perhaps allowing a couple of houses on Kivett Road to secede from the township is the answer. |
| Fire cuts blamed for man’s death | |
| herefornow Saturday, October 23, 2010: 6:28 pm | Elelady, you are exactly correct about moving the funding base for emergency services to a county level. Unfortunately, the county politicians are afraid to touch it. That would put everybody with the same level of service and both Mooresville and Martinsville could be exempted. If what Larry Hayes, the Fire Chief, states is accurate, the average Gregg Township homeowner pays about $130 a year to support the fire department with 24 hour service. For ambulance runs in other townships, the ambulance bill is twice that of a township resident for the same service. So, if the ambulance is transporting someone from Jefferson Township, that patient is paying the equivalent of entire tax bill for 4 to 5 average Gregg Township homeowners. If the ambulance and paramedic service was for Gregg Township only, the cost would be the same to keep those three employees in the firehouse 24/7 (the concept of fixed and variable costs). However, the ambulance billing would be far less and the tax impact higher on the Gregg residents. Basically, that's saying, "Sure, you live outside the township and we'll do the RIGHT thing and help you, but it will cost you a lot more than if you lived in Wilbur." In addition, the paramedic in the chase vehicle can ride in the back of the ambulance for more serious emergencies and one of the EMT's can take the chase vehicle back to the station and remain in service for the next run. That means even if the ambulance is on another run, one of the personnel can use that chase vehicle or a fire engine to respond and render aid immediately- within 4 minutes to most places in Gregg Township. The reason I and others place this blame on the three people who have hired three separate attorneys to fight fire department funding is multifold. First, one of the women did not complain about paid ambulance coverage until her husband was no longer a paid ambulance staffer for the Gregg Township Fire Department. Her husband even supervised the fire department cadets, including Ricky Tankersley, and ironically fought to assure he had no second chance at prompt emergency medical care. The other woman fought against the fire department and even against a commercial shooting range in the township (which would have paid taxes, reducing her own) many miles from her house. The range would have been built to national standards, UNLIKE THE RANGE IN HER BACKYARD WHERE HER SON FIRED A GUN, KILLING A NEIGHBOR WHILE HE SLEPT. She and her cohorts had fought to eliminate funding for ambulance service so this man waited many minutes for help as well. Efforts to consolidate fire and EMS services in the county as you have suggested were fought by these two as well. Along with their current suit to prevent the fire department from purchasing a new fire engine to replace one twenty years old and a maintenance nightmare. It is glaringly evident to anyone familiar with this situation that their efforts are singularly responsible for the lost of prompt fire and emergency medical response in Gregg Township. |
| Fire cuts blamed for man’s death | |
| herefornow Saturday, October 23, 2010: 8:22 am | Your last blogt would have been nice for your sole comment to this sad situation. |
| Fire cuts blamed for man’s death | |
| herefornow Friday, October 22, 2010: 9:01 pm |
Look at the Channel 6 website. Mr. and Mrs. Tankersley have let their feelings be known. Is your opinion of yourself so high you can be offended on their behalf. Read the comments of a grieving family. They're no less harsh than mine. Zealots of all religions twist the Bible, Koran, and Torah to meet their personal agendas. That's the plane on which I place your comments. |
| Fire cuts blamed for man’s death | |
| herefornow Friday, October 22, 2010: 8:56 pm | I don't know the exact finances, but if somebody took $70,000 out of my pocket very unexpectedly, I think I'd be broke too. They only had 3 on duty at a time, so let's do the math: 2 times $11 times 24 hours = $528. That's for the two EMT's. The paramedic, at $15 an hour adds another $360 for a 24 hour shift. That makes $888 per day before payroll taxes and whatever else has to be paid. So, after that's added in, that makes about $1,000 per day for payroll. The ambulance service stopped around October 7th according to Channel 6. That means 24 days left in October; 30 days in November; and 31 days in December. At about $1,000 per day, that means $85,000 just in salaries and $70,000 was taken away. Odds are the other $15,000 would have been made up by ambulance bills which were always twice as much for people outside of Gregg Township. That money is now gone too. Placing all the people at minimum wage (I think that's $7.25/hour) would still be about $45,000. But, would dadof4 (if that's your significant other's screen name) be able to feed himself, those 4 kids and you on $15,080 per year (before taxes) while risking his life, or would he look for other employment? Rest in peace Ricky. These are the people you volunteered to help. May God forgive them. |
| Fire cuts blamed for man’s death | |
| herefornow Friday, October 22, 2010: 7:07 pm | I don't think any volunteers lost their positions and I don't think any volunteers disliked the fact fire engines and ambulances arrived quickly. What the article doesn't say is it took 14 minutes for a defibrillator to reach Ricky- at least 10 minutes longer than it would have with the ambulance service. Potentially lifesaving medication took much longer. For one who has stated he does not judge, how can you judge mismanagement has occurred in Gregg Township Fire Department? Actually, the Indiana Department of Local Finance wrote a legal brief and fought FOR the Gregg Township Fire Department in the Indiana Tax Court. It was simply the judge who could not understand the concept of mutual aid. Of neighbors helping neighbors, that caused the reversal of a PORTION of the emergency loan. The money that was lost and caused the closure of the ambulance and paramedic services. Liberty, if you are laying in your bed, bleeding because your neighbor recklessly fired a bullet through your wall, your family watching you as you wait, WWJD? |
| Fire cuts blamed for man’s death | |
| herefornow Friday, October 22, 2010: 4:51 pm | I agree Auntie. It saddens me on so many levels. I'm still very much in that angry phase though. I can't understand how such a basic government service that can truly mean the difference between life and death is denied to our young and old alike. What utter uncaring buffoons we must look like to think $2 a month is more important than a second chance for a 20 year old young man- born and raised in Gregg Township. |
| Fire cuts blamed for man’s death | |
| herefornow Friday, October 22, 2010: 4:22 pm | I'm not the chief nor am I a firefighter. The Tankersley family is angry and I think their anger will be heard soon as well. The firefighters are angry because they are sick of watching what may be needless deaths occur because of the all the things $2 a month in taxes will buy for those who have saved it- while spending thousands in legal fees not to pay. Pseudo-Biblical quotes and references aside, people don't volunteer like they used to for anything. Not when people like you, Liberty, expect them to use their time, health, and even lives to save the lives and property of others. Go ask a car manufacturer to give you a free car just to test the "heart" of the auto workers. John 3:16 |
| Fire cuts blamed for man’s death | |
| herefornow Friday, October 22, 2010: 3:10 pm | Oh, Liberty, where do you volunteer since you feel others should be available to volunteer to come to your aid? There's a lot more people like you out there than the few that volunteer as firefighters. |
| Fire cuts blamed for man’s death | |
| herefornow Friday, October 22, 2010: 3:07 pm | Liberty, No, you apparently haven't followed this controversy. First, these were part-time people with only 3 working (two to man the ambulance or fire engine and one paramedic) at a time. The $70,000 amount would have made the payroll through the end of the year and into the first portion of the next one. I don't think the fire chief owes anyone an apology. Liberty, you can do a little research and see that the American Red Cross, American Heart Association, and any other group involved in resuscitation medicine and training state Basic Life Support (CPR, defibrillation) should be started within 4 minutes of cardiac arrest to prevent irreversible brain damage and Advanced Life Support (medications, etc.) within 8 minutes. This would have occurred if Ms. Henkel's clients had not spend tens of thousands of dollars to fight funding for basic emergency services. Plus, one of these remonstrators, Mrs. Graf, worked to ensure ambulance service wasn't available in the community when her son fired an errant .45 caliber bullet into the bedroom of a neighbor while he was sleeping. He bled in his own bed while an ambulance responded from Martinsville. The surviving family doesn't live there anymore. Not because of high taxes, but because the breadwinner of the family died- just like Rick Tankersley. To Ms. Henkel: You were fully aware the ambulance service would not continue if funds were not available. The paramedic service, by law, has to be manned 24/7. There is no legitimate claim of innocence that can be made by Ms. Henkel in regard to the motives of her clients. |
» more
TABLE OF CONTENTS »
NEWS
Today
Obituaries
Local
Police
Court news
Weather
Business
Property transfers
Area salaries & stats
Education
State
Nation/World
Photo galleries
Videos
SPORTS
Sports
MD-T sports
IU sports blog
Martinsville
Mooresville
Decatur Central
Eminence
Indian Creek
Monrovia
Tabernacle Christian
Fantasy racing league
BLOGS
All blogs
Quit Smoking...Do It
Sci-Fi Sojourns
The Hoosier Scoop
Hoosier Wine Cellar
Gaming Guru
Mellenblog
