· The Independence Township Board of Trustees dropped the ball by giving Supervisor Dale Stuart, Clerk Joan McCrary and Treasurer Jim Wenger a five percent raise instead of the normal three percent increase.
The measure passed by a 4-2 margin with McCrary and Wenger voting against it, while Stuart was not at the meeting due to his grandson being born. The trustees pointed out the raises were not in consideration of the individuals, but rather the positions.
Now it may be true the Independence Township elected officials are underpaid, but this was not the time to make the correction. The economy is in a downturn and the state might slash revenue-sharing, which the township board is quick to point out is a major portion of their yearly budget.
If it was really that important to get the Independence officials in the same ballpark as elected officials from comparable townships, this should have been done when our economy was booming. They had ample time to do it.
As our elected officials, the township board should be leaders and set an example for the township. In my opinion, approving these five percent raises was showing poor leadership.
I hope everyone remembers these votes when the revenue sharing budget cuts from Governor Jennifer Granholm become a reality.
· I enjoyed one of the perks of the job this past weekend when the fine people of Saturn North allowed me to drive a new Ion 3.
It was a program in which they allow newspaper reporters to drive their cars in hopes they get some free press and, considering this column, it looks like it is working.
The car was a nice automobile for anyone looking for a smaller car at an affordable price. My only problem was with the speedometer, which was placed above the radio rather than above the steering wheel. It was hard for me, who at times has a bit of a lead foot, to keep track of my speed.
· Our society has become survey crazy. You see surveys on Internet sites, television shows and newspapers. It seems like everybody wants your opinion on every topic under the sun.
Rock bottom for me was a survey I saw on America Online when I logged on several days ago. The question was whether you had gotten a flu shot this year. At the time I saw it, the survey came back 60 percent, yes, 30 percent, no, and 10 percent saying they were not sure. That means more than 15,000 people took time to answer the question to say they did not know whether they had a flu shot just a few months prior. Forget the fact that people can’t remember if they had a needle stuck in their arm in the past few months and you are left with the fact that these individuals have taken the time to complete a survey question just to say that they have no idea.
(Kyle Gargaro is the editor of The Clarkston News. His e-mail address is KyleG44@aol.com.)