In response to Time is Now's message:

RE: The Queen
Taxes haven't been raised for decades in Connellsville and the town reflects this. I feel that taxes should be raised (in comparison with other area towns) so that it can be put back into the city so we, the citizens, can be proud of where we live! What is wrong with raising taxes? That is the only way to move forward. There are people in this town who don't pay their fair share; they should be held accountable to the city. Their names should be posted for all to see. Maybe if they paid their fair share, taxes wouldn't have to be raised so drastically. If you look at any progressive area, you will see a higher tax base. Connellsville attracts the kind of people it has due to the fact the taxes aren't high enough to keep the riff-raff out.

This post is from a Reed of one of her few remaining supporters.

In response to Sad's message:

RE: Is Joe Hardy selling Nemacolin Woodlawns?
Have you ever been and stayed there? Have you seen the small business' that thrive on the Resort? Have you seen the PandL statement to backup your never no profit statement? Do you have both a CPA and Law Degree and an MBA to really defend your statements? I didn't think so.

No CPA, No MBA, but how about an ARC? I have one of those. A$$hole Recognition Certificate and I can determine you are one.

In response to Realist's message:

RE: The Queen
The trend in gasoline prices you predict will not be a boom for Connellsville but will be its fatal death blow. There is no employment base in Connellsville like there was before the automobile made driving 20 miles to work convenient. No one working will be able to afford living in Connellsville and driving to Greensburg or even Pittsburgh like many in the city do now. The very concept of a bedroom community 30 miles away from an employment area will be history.
I can guarantee you that if gasoline jumps to 9 dollars a gasoline and holds no promising of dropping back, the last straw will have broken for all of those people in Connellsville that commute 20 - 50 miles to work each way. The "FOR SALE" signs won't go up fast enough. And if the city raises taxes, the good kind of people you want living there will scurry ever faster. It's common sense, what moron would choose to live in Connellsville when they could have a better piece of property in Bullskin or Dunbar Township cheaper and WITHOUT the risk of more tax hikes and the community around them collapsing. When you next neighbor is an acre or two away, you don't need to concern yourself with the condition of their property like you do in a city like Connellsville.
The Wal-Mart you won't step into will remain just as convenient for the area's residents even if gasoline passes $11 a gallon. It's the every day drive to work and back that drains the gas tank, not the 3 mile trip to the store once a week. The only change to people's habit with Wal-Mart is to buy more in a single trip.
A disproportionate number Connellsville's homeowners are retired and barely able to afford the CORRUPTLY run school district's taxes, now you want to sap the last vestige of community minded people's social security check? To do what with the higher taxes?? The city is poorly run with more cops than its larger Uniontown on the payroll. Look how much money is paid in benefits to the city's fire department that is only active M - F 9 - 5 PM. Giving more money to government just leads to more waste. All your tax will be doing is pushing the old retired folks who worked their lives to buy their home off into the nursing care home or old folks home ever faster. To replace them will be a HUD rental tenant. They won't mind the tax your charging because they won't be income taxes anyway.
Sure when you raise taxes you'll enjoy a boost the city's revenues initially, but that will quickly degrade. And with how poorly the city's finances have been managed historically, no net positive will come from the extra revenue. No doubt they'll hire a city marketer to try to market those obsolete brick buildings downtown, but no sane business will even consider owning them as owning property in Connellsville will become a liability following the higher taxes.
You want a revival in Connellsville? Convince the military to bomb the city's old buildings in the downtown area to oblivion. Start over with some nice flat empty land. Then downsize the city's government and reduce services so you can lower taxes.
With the future energy prices going higher and higher, Connellsville's future is looking ever more bleak. Raising taxes will only serve to make the suffering residents suffer more with no net benefit to anyway except for a individuals on the city's payroll (or will be as a result of a larger budget).

That is one of the truest and most well thought out posts on here in months. Amen!

In response to Connellsvillian's message:

RE: The Queen
I tend to disagree with your statement. With the way tax prices are, I think the downtowns are going to be thriving areas once again. The prediction of $9.00 a gallon will surely keep everyone either on foot or bicycle. Personally, I have never set foot into a Walmart because they are the ruination of the downtown districts. They get huge tax breaks, don't contribute to the local economy, and discover areas where they can get away with anything they want (Dunbar Township) while buying property cheap. All these poor people with either have to support downtown businesses or carpool to Walmart. My choice is "let's bring back the downtown"!

I love walmart. I will love them even more when gas hits $9 an hour. I am so grateful that there is a store out there that looks out for the working family and offers us good products at a good price. Taxes keep going up and our lawmakers are wringing us like sponges trying to get that last drop of taxes out of us. I am about ready to give up my citizenship and get a green card so I can live here but pay no taxes and I won't even have to give up my custodian job with the school district. I will have to google "give up US citizenship" to find out how to live the American dream without paying the Pennsylvania tax on American dream.

In response to Realist's message:

RE: The Queen
The trend in gasoline prices you predict will not be a boom for Connellsville but will be its fatal death blow. There is no employment base in Connellsville like there was before the automobile made driving 20 miles to work convenient. No one working will be able to afford living in Connellsville and driving to Greensburg or even Pittsburgh like many in the city do now. The very concept of a bedroom community 30 miles away from an employment area will be history.
I can guarantee you that if gasoline jumps to 9 dollars a gasoline and holds no promising of dropping back, the last straw will have broken for all of those people in Connellsville that commute 20 - 50 miles to work each way. The "FOR SALE" signs won't go up fast enough. And if the city raises taxes, the good kind of people you want living there will scurry ever faster. It's common sense, what moron would choose to live in Connellsville when they could have a better piece of property in Bullskin or Dunbar Township cheaper and WITHOUT the risk of more tax hikes and the community around them collapsing. When you next neighbor is an acre or two away, you don't need to concern yourself with the condition of their property like you do in a city like Connellsville.
The Wal-Mart you won't step into will remain just as convenient for the area's residents even if gasoline passes $11 a gallon. It's the every day drive to work and back that drains the gas tank, not the 3 mile trip to the store once a week. The only change to people's habit with Wal-Mart is to buy more in a single trip.
A disproportionate number Connellsville's homeowners are retired and barely able to afford the CORRUPTLY run school district's taxes, now you want to sap the last vestige of community minded people's social security check? To do what with the higher taxes?? The city is poorly run with more cops than its larger Uniontown on the payroll. Look how much money is paid in benefits to the city's fire department that is only active M - F 9 - 5 PM. Giving more money to government just leads to more waste. All your tax will be doing is pushing the old retired folks who worked their lives to buy their home off into the nursing care home or old folks home ever faster. To replace them will be a HUD rental tenant. They won't mind the tax your charging because they won't be income taxes anyway.
Sure when you raise taxes you'll enjoy a boost the city's revenues initially, but that will quickly degrade. And with how poorly the city's finances have been managed historically, no net positive will come from the extra revenue. No doubt they'll hire a city marketer to try to market those obsolete brick buildings downtown, but no sane business will even consider owning them as owning property in Connellsville will become a liability following the higher taxes.
You want a revival in Connellsville? Convince the military to bomb the city's old buildings in the downtown area to oblivion. Start over with some nice flat empty land. Then downsize the city's government and reduce services so you can lower taxes.
With the future energy prices going higher and higher, Connellsville's future is looking ever more bleak. Raising taxes will only serve to make the suffering residents suffer more with no net benefit to anyway except for a individuals on the city's payroll (or will be as a result of a larger budget).

Born and raised in Connllsville and growing up in the 50's and 60's I could not have stated it any better. WELL SAID!

In response to Time is Now's message:

RE: The Queen
Taxes haven't been raised for decades in Connellsville and the town reflects this. I feel that taxes should be raised (in comparison with other area towns) so that it can be put back into the city so we, the citizens, can be proud of where we live! What is wrong with raising taxes? That is the only way to move forward. There are people in this town who don't pay their fair share; they should be held accountable to the city. Their names should be posted for all to see. Maybe if they paid their fair share, taxes wouldn't have to be raised so drastically. If you look at any progressive area, you will see a higher tax base. Connellsville attracts the kind of people it has due to the fact the taxes aren't high enough to keep the riff-raff out.

seems like my property taxes were raised were you missed. the 'ville is strapped for coin and raising taxes again will probably ring the good bye bell for many with a waiting list for the High Rises. Do you know that very young people qualify for at least one of the High Rises and the noise, drugs, vomit and disgrace they create is driving the built for residence plain nuts. what we need is a person of vision and a hammer hand to clear out the disease in town. i am tired of it all. are you.

In response to Ole Joe's message:

RE: Is Joe Hardy selling Nemacolin Woodlawns?
Nemacolin Woodlands was never meant to make one penny of profit and guess what, it never has. It has operated at a loss every single year since Hardy has had it. It might be in Maggies name but Joe owns it. Joe owns Maggie and everything Maggie owns, just not on paper. When you have Ole Joes and 84 lumbers money you had better have some kind of business operating at a loss like Nemacolin or uncle Sam would have taken uncle Joe and 84 to the cleaners.

Have you ever been and stayed there? Have you seen the small business' that thrive on the Resort? Have you seen the PandL statement to backup your never no profit statement? Do you have both a CPA and Law Degree and an MBA to really defend your statements? I didn't think so.

In response to Connellsvillian's message:

RE: The Queen
I tend to disagree with your statement. With the way tax prices are, I think the downtowns are going to be thriving areas once again. The prediction of $9.00 a gallon will surely keep everyone either on foot or bicycle. Personally, I have never set foot into a Walmart because they are the ruination of the downtown districts. They get huge tax breaks, don't contribute to the local economy, and discover areas where they can get away with anything they want (Dunbar Township) while buying property cheap. All these poor people with either have to support downtown businesses or carpool to Walmart. My choice is "let's bring back the downtown"!

You sound exactly like a teacher or government employee with zero knowledge of the business world and accustomed to have tax money to spend but not responsible for creating profit....just tax and spend. I for one do not like you.

In response to Connellsvillian's message:

RE: The Queen
I tend to disagree with your statement. With the way tax prices are, I think the downtowns are going to be thriving areas once again. The prediction of $9.00 a gallon will surely keep everyone either on foot or bicycle. Personally, I have never set foot into a Walmart because they are the ruination of the downtown districts. They get huge tax breaks, don't contribute to the local economy, and discover areas where they can get away with anything they want (Dunbar Township) while buying property cheap. All these poor people with either have to support downtown businesses or carpool to Walmart. My choice is "let's bring back the downtown"!

The trend in gasoline prices you predict will not be a boom for Connellsville but will be its fatal death blow. There is no employment base in Connellsville like there was before the automobile made driving 20 miles to work convenient. No one working will be able to afford living in Connellsville and driving to Greensburg or even Pittsburgh like many in the city do now. The very concept of a bedroom community 30 miles away from an employment area will be history.
I can guarantee you that if gasoline jumps to 9 dollars a gasoline and holds no promising of dropping back, the last straw will have broken for all of those people in Connellsville that commute 20 - 50 miles to work each way. The "FOR SALE" signs won't go up fast enough. And if the city raises taxes, the good kind of people you want living there will scurry ever faster. It's common sense, what moron would choose to live in Connellsville when they could have a better piece of property in Bullskin or Dunbar Township cheaper and WITHOUT the risk of more tax hikes and the community around them collapsing. When you next neighbor is an acre or two away, you don't need to concern yourself with the condition of their property like you do in a city like Connellsville.
The Wal-Mart you won't step into will remain just as convenient for the area's residents even if gasoline passes $11 a gallon. It's the every day drive to work and back that drains the gas tank, not the 3 mile trip to the store once a week. The only change to people's habit with Wal-Mart is to buy more in a single trip.
A disproportionate number Connellsville's homeowners are retired and barely able to afford the CORRUPTLY run school district's taxes, now you want to sap the last vestige of community minded people's social security check? To do what with the higher taxes?? The city is poorly run with more cops than its larger Uniontown on the payroll. Look how much money is paid in benefits to the city's fire department that is only active M - F 9 - 5 PM. Giving more money to government just leads to more waste. All your tax will be doing is pushing the old retired folks who worked their lives to buy their home off into the nursing care home or old folks home ever faster. To replace them will be a HUD rental tenant. They won't mind the tax your charging because they won't be income taxes anyway.
Sure when you raise taxes you'll enjoy a boost the city's revenues initially, but that will quickly degrade. And with how poorly the city's finances have been managed historically, no net positive will come from the extra revenue. No doubt they'll hire a city marketer to try to market those obsolete brick buildings downtown, but no sane business will even consider owning them as owning property in Connellsville will become a liability following the higher taxes.
You want a revival in Connellsville? Convince the military to bomb the city's old buildings in the downtown area to oblivion. Start over with some nice flat empty land. Then downsize the city's government and reduce services so you can lower taxes.
With the future energy prices going higher and higher, Connellsville's future is looking ever more bleak. Raising taxes will only serve to make the suffering residents suffer more with no net benefit to anyway except for a individuals on the city's payroll (or will be as a result of a larger budget).

In response to Realist's message:

RE: The Queen
May the last one out remember to close the door on their way out.
If you believe higher taxes are the answer, you are truly naive. Take a drive, about an hour and a half, to Ross Township that borders Pittsburgh. Though only a sign on the road marks the change, you can see it with your eyes. On one side of the road are dilapidated houses that aren't taken care of, and poor people who mostly don't have jobs and hang out on their porches all day. The other, in Ross Township, are maintained homes and the people on a work day are away. The difference??? Pittsburgh's local wage tax is over 3%, Ross Township is 1%. There are shootings occasionally a mile or two south of the Pittsburgh city line, and yet you can feel safe at any hour walking on the Ross Township side. NIGHT AND DAY difference is so striking even a naive person such as yourself should be able to see it.
Raise Connellsville's taxes and decent homeowners will scurry from the city fast. Leaving only a pit of deteriorated homes and welfare recipients who will never pay the higher local wage tax anyway.
Then what businesses will invest money in the city of Connellsville? NONE. None invest there now to avoid the city's taxes. Wal-Mart isn't two hundred yards safely outside the city's borders because the view was better you know, they smartly stayed outside the limits of a dying city's reach.

I tend to disagree with your statement. With the way tax prices are, I think the downtowns are going to be thriving areas once again. The prediction of $9.00 a gallon will surely keep everyone either on foot or bicycle. Personally, I have never set foot into a Walmart because they are the ruination of the downtown districts. They get huge tax breaks, don't contribute to the local economy, and discover areas where they can get away with anything they want (Dunbar Township) while buying property cheap. All these poor people with either have to support downtown businesses or carpool to Walmart. My choice is "let's bring back the downtown"!

In response to Time is Now's message:

RE: The Queen
Taxes haven't been raised for decades in Connellsville and the town reflects this. I feel that taxes should be raised (in comparison with other area towns) so that it can be put back into the city so we, the citizens, can be proud of where we live! What is wrong with raising taxes? That is the only way to move forward. There are people in this town who don't pay their fair share; they should be held accountable to the city. Their names should be posted for all to see. Maybe if they paid their fair share, taxes wouldn't have to be raised so drastically. If you look at any progressive area, you will see a higher tax base. Connellsville attracts the kind of people it has due to the fact the taxes aren't high enough to keep the riff-raff out.

May the last one out remember to close the door on their way out.
If you believe higher taxes are the answer, you are truly naive. Take a drive, about an hour and a half, to Ross Township that borders Pittsburgh. Though only a sign on the road marks the change, you can see it with your eyes. On one side of the road are dilapidated houses that aren't taken care of, and poor people who mostly don't have jobs and hang out on their porches all day. The other, in Ross Township, are maintained homes and the people on a work day are away. The difference??? Pittsburgh's local wage tax is over 3%, Ross Township is 1%. There are shootings occasionally a mile or two south of the Pittsburgh city line, and yet you can feel safe at any hour walking on the Ross Township side. NIGHT AND DAY difference is so striking even a naive person such as yourself should be able to see it.
Raise Connellsville's taxes and decent homeowners will scurry from the city fast. Leaving only a pit of deteriorated homes and welfare recipients who will never pay the higher local wage tax anyway.
Then what businesses will invest money in the city of Connellsville? NONE. None invest there now to avoid the city's taxes. Wal-Mart isn't two hundred yards safely outside the city's borders because the view was better you know, they smartly stayed outside the limits of a dying city's reach.

In response to Time is Now's message:

RE: The Queen
Taxes haven't been raised for decades in Connellsville and the town reflects this. I feel that taxes should be raised (in comparison with other area towns) so that it can be put back into the city so we, the citizens, can be proud of where we live! What is wrong with raising taxes? That is the only way to move forward. There are people in this town who don't pay their fair share; they should be held accountable to the city. Their names should be posted for all to see. Maybe if they paid their fair share, taxes wouldn't have to be raised so drastically. If you look at any progressive area, you will see a higher tax base. Connellsville attracts the kind of people it has due to the fact the taxes aren't high enough to keep the riff-raff out.

I have been saying this for years. The only way to pick up the city would be to put more money into it. That can only come from its residents. We should look for ways to tax the renters who live here and use all the resources without paying anything. Sure, the landowner pays taxes on this run-down property with no value. How does the city expect to move forward with this kind of mentality. I have always said: "You get what you pay for"---Pay more and you will get more.

In response to Time is Now's message:

RE: The Queen
Taxes haven't been raised for decades in Connellsville and the town reflects this. I feel that taxes should be raised (in comparison with other area towns) so that it can be put back into the city so we, the citizens, can be proud of where we live! What is wrong with raising taxes? That is the only way to move forward. There are people in this town who don't pay their fair share; they should be held accountable to the city. Their names should be posted for all to see. Maybe if they paid their fair share, taxes wouldn't have to be raised so drastically. If you look at any progressive area, you will see a higher tax base. Connellsville attracts the kind of people it has due to the fact the taxes aren't high enough to keep the riff-raff out.

You're an idiot.

In response to Buffo's message:

The Queen
Right from Queen Judy's mouth
"We are letting our elected representatives know that if they are setting laws for exemptions, we need reimbursed," Reed said. "Everyone is taking a good, hard look at taxes. There is a movement afoot."
Yes your Royal Highness, you do have a movement afoot, the only problem is any tax movement afoot you have anything to do with will involve increasing taxes.

Taxes haven't been raised for decades in Connellsville and the town reflects this. I feel that taxes should be raised (in comparison with other area towns) so that it can be put back into the city so we, the citizens, can be proud of where we live! What is wrong with raising taxes? That is the only way to move forward. There are people in this town who don't pay their fair share; they should be held accountable to the city. Their names should be posted for all to see. Maybe if they paid their fair share, taxes wouldn't have to be raised so drastically. If you look at any progressive area, you will see a higher tax base. Connellsville attracts the kind of people it has due to the fact the taxes aren't high enough to keep the riff-raff out.

Right from Queen Judy's mouth
"We are letting our elected representatives know that if they are setting laws for exemptions, we need reimbursed," Reed said. "Everyone is taking a good, hard look at taxes. There is a movement afoot."
Yes your Royal Highness, you do have a movement afoot, the only problem is any tax movement afoot you have anything to do with will involve increasing taxes.

In response to ahem's message:

RE: Is Joe Hardy selling Nemacolin Woodlawns?
Joe Hardy doesn't own Nemicolon Woodlands. His daughter does.

Nemacolin Woodlands was never meant to make one penny of profit and guess what, it never has. It has operated at a loss every single year since Hardy has had it. It might be in Maggies name but Joe owns it. Joe owns Maggie and everything Maggie owns, just not on paper. When you have Ole Joes and 84 lumbers money you had better have some kind of business operating at a loss like Nemacolin or uncle Sam would have taken uncle Joe and 84 to the cleaners.

In response to classof54's message:

RE: Gramps (John McCain)
Jack, you are probably right in your assessment of most presidents. Most would be considered to be just ordinary men in any environment other than the oval office. However, once in a while, history throws a moment in time at one of these ordinary fellows that allows some amount of greatness to attach to them. Winston Churchill made many mistakes in his lifetime but find a more suitable person for his place in history. I thought JFK was more talk than substinance until the Cuban missle crisis. Could anyone other than Reagan have handled the Russkis better? Maybe, but he seems to have been the right man at the right time. Are there any giants among men? Or just fairly ordinary men who by some stroke of fate find themselves at a point in time where their decisions and actions separate them from those never given the opportunity. By the way, the cold war is not over as the new found oil wealth in Russia allows Putin to get even for past embarrassments. At this moment, he is probably the most dangerous man in the world. Time marches on and the last few years have not been exactly banner years for this country with substantially worse to come. To answer my own question, yes there are a few giants among men. Will they be here at the right time? As a representative democracy, we certainly hope so. But more likely, we will have some fairly ordinary men that perform at an extraordinary level when required. Meanwhile, best wishes and God bless.

as always 54 a good reply . enjoy the day hey look the arabs have so much money they are building real estate on the water . they have an indoor fully climate controlled skiing area for their very limited elite . and once again i tell you it only costs about a dollar to pull a barrel of oil out of the ground . and also remember the federal tax on gas is almost a dollar dont know what the state charges . they all get rich and we all get fked .

In response to James R's message:

RE: Gramps (John McCain)
great men are few and far between . : Jack, would you say that FDR was a great president ? Would you name me a great past president ?

actually no hav not researched past presidents . i do believe kennedy was one of the better ones since there was no need for him to be bought since he had craploads of money . there was written somewhere and supposed to be a quote by him that when he returned from dallas he was going to reveal what was really going on and of course he never made it back . dont know or care what the report said they made sure he wasnt going to come out of dallas alive . you can bet your ranch that if anyone in government was going to do any cart upsetting to any great extent they would be dead in no time . like i have said before the president is a figure head and has no real power unless the others /military cia nsa and the rest of what me may not know about . oh yes i forgot the nsc . national security council . its all bullsheit in my opinion . anyone who thinks bush alone m ade the decision to invade iraq is in my opinion living in a world of fantasy . no more talk about this im n ot going to research more and more to make a point i have thrown enough links and info form other sources aside from the evening news on here . im outta here . have a nice disneyland day all !!!!!!!!!!!!1

In response to classof54's message:

RE: Gramps (John McCain)
Jack, you are probably right in your assessment of most presidents. Most would be considered to be just ordinary men in any environment other than the oval office. However, once in a while, history throws a moment in time at one of these ordinary fellows that allows some amount of greatness to attach to them. Winston Churchill made many mistakes in his lifetime but find a more suitable person for his place in history. I thought JFK was more talk than substinance until the Cuban missle crisis. Could anyone other than Reagan have handled the Russkis better? Maybe, but he seems to have been the right man at the right time. Are there any giants among men? Or just fairly ordinary men who by some stroke of fate find themselves at a point in time where their decisions and actions separate them from those never given the opportunity. By the way, the cold war is not over as the new found oil wealth in Russia allows Putin to get even for past embarrassments. At this moment, he is probably the most dangerous man in the world. Time marches on and the last few years have not been exactly banner years for this country with substantially worse to come. To answer my own question, yes there are a few giants among men. Will they be here at the right time? As a representative democracy, we certainly hope so. But more likely, we will have some fairly ordinary men that perform at an extraordinary level when required. Meanwhile, best wishes and God bless.

Excellent message .

In response to jack's message:

RE: Gramps (John McCain)
small error in last post it is the drudge report . and yes well said 54 as ususal . helped to make my point to an extent . most do fall into greatness have it thrust upon them or however you wish to quote it . great men are few and far between . reagan sure as hell wasnt one of them .

great men are few and far between . : Jack, would you say that FDR was a great president ? Would you name me a great past president ?