By David Sanchez

Denton County’s U.S. Representative Michael Burgess showed Thursday, that he favors tax breaks for the wealthy over healthcare for seniors. In Thursday's showboating vote on Congressman Ryan's budget, Burgess joined other Republican foot soldiers on a fiscal path that would starve - and one day eliminate- Medicare.

The Ryan budget, which Burgess voted for, cuts half a trillion dollars from Medicare while doling out tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans (who earn more than $150,000 per year.)

Denton County is home to over 30,000 seniors who rely on Medicare. I am shocked that Burgess, an OB-GYN, openly values the wealth of a few over the health of many.

$500 billion in Medicare cuts equates to each Medicare patient losing over a third of per-capita spending. That means larger out of pocket expenses for patients and a loss of access to physicians (who will be forced to take a significant loss on any Medicare patient they see.) Those cuts help finance a tax giveaway for the rich.

Republicans cry, "Regulations kill jobs." to which we reply "el toro poo poo".

Let us look at what President Obama regulating the energy industry has done:

According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics and the Federal Reserve of St. Louis, employment in oil and gas extraction reached more than 186,000 employees, the highest level since 1992. According to the Bureau of Land Management, in just three years President Obama has approved almost as many permits to oil companies to drill on federal land as George W. Bush in eight years. In 2009 under President Obama, there were 4,487 oil drilling permits approved to drill on federal land and in 2010 there were 4,090 permits issued, and finally, by 2011, there were 4,244. This is about equal to President Bush's oil record in his first term.

With the regulation President Obama imposed, the coal industry, topped out 2011 at 87,000 employees, a number we have not seen since 1998.

These energy production records also negate Republicans claims more drilling will reduce gasoline prices. U.S. gas prices are a factor of global energy speculation and will continue to be until we produce a full array of energy. President Obama is trying to accomplish a U.S. energy independence by pushing his "all-of-above" energy program which calls for a full array of energy sources.

Ken Leach
Gainesville

We are amused with Newt Gingrich's total disregard for the facts surrounding the U. S. Department of Agriculture's Food Stamp Program. Former U.S. Senators Robert Dole (R-KS) and George McGovern (D-SD) reached across party lines to reform the federal Food Stamp Program, expand the domestic school lunch program, and establish the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children, WIC. For their work, they were named the co-recipitants of the 2008 World Food Prize. Since 2000, their recognition of the need to feed the hungry has provided meals to feed more than 22 million children and boosted school attendance by an estimated 14 percent overall and by 17 percent for girls through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as the Food Stamp Program.

I hear all these people moaning about Mexican immigrants.  Many of those mestizos (indigenous people mixed with Spaniard blood) had no roots in modern day Mexico until the U.S. government sent their families there in the 1930's. Mestizos whose families had lived in Texas and California for generations and generations were sent to Mexico against their will. Some forget that those people you call immigrants are descendants of indigenous people who were deported from their own homes. The true immigrants to Texas were the ones that pushed mestizos into Mexico.

My grandfather remembers being 7 years old in the 1930's, when the authorities burst into his home with fire arms. My grandfather tells me that the authorities told his family they were not allowed to take any of their belongings. My grandfather claims he saw his father beaten when he tried to protest deportation, explaining that everyone in his family were American citizens. Being an American, owning a home, paying taxes, and being a business owner did not matter. The family was deported for being of Hispanic descent.  

I did some research of my own only to discover that my family was part of the 1.3 million Hispanic Americans deported under the Hoover administration. I attended U.S. public schools and studied history at the University of North Texas. I do not recall ever being taught about this mass deportation. Why are textbooks omitting a huge chunk of history that affected many Hispanic American families?

An open letter to Congressman Michael Burgess

The Honorable Michael Burgess, M.D.
U.S. Congressman 26th District of Texas
1660 South Stemmons Freeway, Suite 230
Lewisville, TX 75067

RE: Keystone XL Pipeline

Dear Dr. Burgess,

Recently you were interviewed for a local Dallas/Fort Worth radio program in which you expressed your support for the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline project. This project would create a pipeline from the Tar Sands of Western Canada to the Gulf of Mexico and other points in between, over 2,000 miles in length. One issue that is of particular concern for me, ¡s that the company installing this pipeline will be given the power of eminent domain, or the ability to condemn private property should private citizens not want to have this pipeline installed on their property. During my service as mayor, I have seen private for profit companies exercise and abuse the power of eminent domain and it is the private citizens that suffer the results.

I don't often agree with Newt Gingrich, but maybe this is a good idea for Lewisville.

Newt Gingrich is pushing LSS (Lean Six Sigma) for government. I have worked in organizations that have seen profound improvements in service and cost reduction using these methodologies. This is new for city governments, but several have done it:

Adequate police protection and fire services are the cornerstones of an outstanding community. Lewisville is an outstanding community. After several years of doing more with less in tight budget times, more help is needed. That is why now is the time to approve the propositions for Crime Control and Fire Prevention/EMS Districts. These proposals will allow your public safety departments to continue to provide you with the outstanding service to which you have become accustomed and deserve. Early voting has already begun. I urge you to vote YES for all propositions authorizing these districts.

Joni Eddy
Retired Assistant Police Chief
Lewisville, TX

To my friends and neighbors in the City of Lewisville, the propositions for Crime Control and Fire Prevention / EMS districts are a VERY GOOD thing!

I can tell you first hand after serving as your fire chief that your City does everything they can to be good stewards of the taxpayer's dollar.

That being said, this is a means for protecting our residents, businesses, and visitors just that much better.

Your Police and Fire Departments have put together these two programs through a lot of hard work, planning, and justification to our City Administration and the Citizen's Oversight Committee.

We have always felt that it is an honor to serve you all and have always treated everyone like family.

Now we need your help and support. Please come out for early voting and support this initiative.

I promise you, you'll be doing something pretty special for your community and you will have had a hand in protecting the property of your neighbors and saving lives!

Please vote YES and help us help you!

Rick Lasky
Retired Fire Chief
Lewisville, TX

Lewisville is one of only 16 cities in Texas with a AAA credit rating from both of the major ratings firms. The city has achieved this over many years of strong fiscal stewardship.

Part of this stewardship has been to ensure that the city provides excellent services for our tax dollars. Our Police and Fire Departments win numerous grants, awards and recognition year after year for their innovative policies.

While reviewing the best ways to enhance our public safety over the next several years the City Council determined that we could leverage an additional 1/4th cent sales tax, of which we are one of very few cities in North Texas to not have the State allowable limit of 8.25%, to fund these Police and Fire enhancements. Because it is a sales tax increase it must be voter approved.

Lewisville has a strong track record of using these types of voter approved funds. Facilities like Railroad Park, the MCL Grand Theater, our portion of the A-Train, and our water parks have all been funded by these types of elections, bringing our citizens a better quality of life.

The proposed Public Safety District districts would raise approximately $4.6 million annually and would be evenly divided between our Police and Fire Departments. This would last for five years at which point the citizens vote to maintain the funding or remove it.

This money doesn’t just go into the operating budgets. A group of citizens have spent the last several months refining the proposed expenditures of this funding. Police would provide 10 additional patrol staff and automated dispatch tools to ensure continued police operation in the event of a disaster. It would also fund additional code enforcement. Fire would enhance our emergency medical service and provide funds for a new fire station to reduce response times. Detailed plans are available at City Hall and in a mailer delivered to residents shortly.

Election Day is Tuesday November 8th from 7am to 7pm. Voters would have to vote at their local polling location. Early voting is on October 24th-29th October 31st-November 2nd, 8am to 5pm, and November 3rd-4th 7am to 7pm. All early voting is at the Lewisville Municipal Annex at 1197 W. Main St. or the Denton County Elections Office in Denton.

I’ll be voting for this increase in services for our police and fire departments. The city has proven to be a good steward of our tax dollars; this will be an effective way to improve our quality of life and safety. Please join me in continuing to make Lewisville a strong community on November 8th.

T.J. Gilmore,
Council Member, Place 3
Lewisville

Recently a gentleman in Lewisville was quoted in this blog. What he had to say was interesting, informative and enlightening. And it needs to be shared.

Neil Ferguson, a candidate to fill the seat formerly held by David Thornhill on Lewisville’s City Council alerted LISD that there was a Section 37 filing that would impact LISD’s mineral rights. Mr. Ferguson’s actions allowed our school district to take the steps necessary to protect the rights and property of all of the citizens within LISD’s boundaries.

How it came to happen that LISD failed to receive or read the notice needs to be explored and examined. What we do know is that the diligence and actions of one person mattered.

Neil has been involved with the City of Lewisville and the Arts for years. He was an active participant during Lewisville’s review and strengthening of its gas ordinances. His actions and those of others were instrumental in convincing Titan to cancel plans for a site across from Memorial Park and Senior Center.