AN OPEN LETTER TO W.VA. SENATE PRESIDENT MITCH CARMICHAEL:
Last year, it was charter schools despite public opinion. This year? In an election year?
Let’s see …
- A “Heartbeat” bill;
- Something involving guns like the rejected campus-carry legislation;
- Tax cuts for the private sector likely to fall back on residential property owners;
- Continued expansion concerning voter identification requirements at polling places, and;
- Cutting off the remaining residents, a number that has continued to leak over the last decade, from benefits and services by requiring work requirements, volunteer efforts, and increased income standards.
It’s all predictable based on the political talking points distributed by the American Legislative Exchange Council and by the Republican National Committee, but the initiatives fail horribly to improve the quality of life for West Virginians and to retain residents.
And then there’s the greyhound racing industry. For some reason, Senator, you apparently believe it was a solid idea to launch a misinformation campaign about the breeders’ business, the definition of a government subsidy, and the injuries that occur during racing sessions just after our community lost more than 1,200 jobs with the closures of two hospitals and a pair of mental health facilities.
Bad optics? Or lack of caring about a region of the state that supplies the most severance taxes on gas and oil and coal?
You and your lobbyists also have spread untruths about the numbers of jobs erased if the legislation gains full approval this time around. You have counted only the positions paid by the two racetracks in the state that offer the attraction, but you have not recognized the living-wage jobs supplied by the kennels owned by the breeders. If you lead that lynching, sir, you will kill those jobs, too.
Quick question: how do you pay your bills, Senator? Paychecks, right? Well, the same is true for the folks you insulted while delivering your FAKE NEWS. You do not have greyhound racing in your district, sir, so I would not expect you to understand a portion of the culture here in the Northern Panhandle. Generations of families have procured lives loving and raising greyhounds, and your intentions would destroy a tourist tradition that is a revenue-generating industry for the state coffers. With $100 million in cuts expected during the regular session beginning in January, taxpayers would love to know why killing a money-maker is a solid solution to, well, what? To fulfill a promise to a lobbyist?
That’s the issue, Senator. It just doesn’t make sense. The greyhounds are not abused, the alleged “subsidy” is generated only by dollars ONLY spent inside two casinos that feature greyhound racing, and the money grab is not a guaranteed theft.
You’ve heard of a recall referendum, right?
So, not to take up any more of you time, I will end this correspondence with an invitation to you to visit Wheeling, and to feel free to ask to lodge in our guest room. I know I would enjoy our conversations, especially the one during which I remind you how many derogatory terms just so happen to rhyme with your first name.
Sincerely,
Me
P.S. RSVP can be emailed to stevenovotney@ledenews.com
