Something ALL Reading PA voters should know

**87th PVI** · January 14th, 2009, 11:13 AM

I just thought you should know where your Mayor's priorities are:

Posted to York Daily Record 1-14-2009

I was at that committee meeting and three out of four on the panel who were invited to speak in support of this proposal were NOT York City residents or property owners. They were not even residents of York County!
Conversely, ALL of the citizens who voiced their opinions were against the passage of this law, with the exception of just one lone woman.
People were not out to protect the straw purchasers, instead they pointed out that passing this law would be breaking the law.
Citizens were genuinely concerned with the proposition of their tax dollars being wasted on civil and criminal litigation against the city and it's council members that could easily be avoided by dropping this issue now.
One Council member stated that she didn't care about having to spend the money to defend this in court.
The Police Commissioner told me that his department does not have enough money & 30% of his budget currently comes from outside sources, so I ask, Why is even one Council member willing to throw away our tax dollars to defend something she knows is illegal?
When I pointed out to Reading's Mayor that this was a matter for the state to decide, he replied that our state legislators are not doing anything so maybe when enough local governments go to the state and say they tried to pass this and now they are financially broke as a result of defending it, maybe then they will listen. So let me get this straight your Honor, you feel it is a good thing to not only pass illegal legislation and risk bankrupting your own city, but to travel to other communities and talk them into doing the same? I'd much rather see more money go to the PD & FD than to lawyers who would be litigating a matter that has already been decided by the supreme court and is a matter of case law. (Ortiz vs. The Commonwealth - 1996)
Thousands of law abiding city residents and property owners work hard to earn their money and pay their taxes, but how that money is spent is determined by a majority vote from a panel of just five.
If this proposition should pass with three or more yes votes, The York City Council, knowing that this is a pre-emption violation of state law, would then have voted to commit a first-degree misdemeanor, which has the same level of legal severity as "involuntary manslaughter."
That would then mean that those thousands of tax payers would be entrusting their money to a panel that was made up of at least three criminals.

**mjfletcher** · January 15th, 2009, 02:01 AM

Looks like its time for me to be a dick and call him at home, on saturday, as soon as i get in from work (which will be about 7:15am). Yes, I know Reading's Mayor personally, I've known him since I was 14 or so, and I guess im gonna have to chew his ear a bit.

**87th PVI** · January 15th, 2009, 09:02 AM

Originally Posted by mjfletcher

Looks like its time for me to be a dick and call him at home, on saturday, as soon as i get in from work (which will be about 7:15am). Yes, I know Reading's Mayor personally, I've known him since I was 14 or so, and I guess im gonna have to chew his ear a bit.

When McMahon said that to me, I was so stunned that my mind didn't have a response. The conversation changed direction and shortly thereafter came to an end. It was not until after I got home that it all sunk in. The next morning I posted the statement in the OP as a comment on the article that was published online at the York Daily Record website. In hindsite, I really wish I'd had a tape recorder!

**mjfletcher** · January 15th, 2009, 06:25 PM

Originally Posted by 87th PVI

When McMahon said that to me, I was so stunned that my mind didn't have a response. The conversation changed direction and shortly thereafter came to an end. It was not until after I got home that it all sunk in. The next morning I posted the statement in the OP as a comment on the article that was published online at the York Daily Record website. In hindsite, I really wish I'd had a tape recorder!

He's done the city alot of good, got rid of the political crony that was our police chief and brought back one that actually knew how to do the job resulting in crime rates dropping, getting a couple businesses into the city creating jobs, showing those outside the city theres more to Reading than just crime and poverty which got us the Reading Classic bike race (which the riders all said they loved because of the change in 'terrain' between the city and the mountain), and getting more people in the city involved in improving it.

I have to give him credit where its due, but he needs to get his head on straight when it comes to guns. Sadly, he is a Democrat afterall.