The thinly veiled attempt to unseat Stan Beckham and replace him with an “appointment” of Daniel Shane Reed is very apparent to most of us who attend the Council meetings. Hell, Reed doesn’t even attend those meetings so how does he know what’s going on? The “Gang Of Four” now seated on the Council don’t want any change in how they run the City and their shills at City Hall are all in league to keep the citizens of Tehachapi in the dark? Will the voters wake up to this? I guess we won’t really know intil November. What do you think?

Newspapers Still Bleeding Money

Wednesday 23 April 2008

The Sacramento Bee’s owner lost more money the first quarter this year.

The New York Times may be for sale, after firing hundreds of employees and losing lots of money. The LA Times, the SF Chronicle and other big city papers are losing money faster than the State of California is going into deficit.

I believe the reasons for this is the loss of credibility, inability to expose the massive corruption of government and failures of our schools. Like the Tehachapi News, they are not willing to post the real local news. They are more interested in Ad Revenues and all the space that takes up to wrap your garbage in.

This headline is seen every day. It is a reminder that the world is changing and the media has competition. People trust newsletter and the Internet, some trust newspapers and the network news and the on-line blogs.

Until the newspapers and mainstream media can regain the trust of the people, more will be fired at the Bee, Times and Chronicle….many believe some of these newspapers will be closed. They will not be missed!

Doctors

(A) The number of physicians in the U.S. is 700,000.
(B) Accidental deaths caused by Physicians per year are 120,000.
(C) Accidental deaths per physician is 0.171.

Statistics courtesy of U.S. Dept of Health Human Services.

Now think about this:

Guns

(A) The number of gun owners in the U.S. is 80,000,000. (Yes, that’s 80 million)
(B) The number of accidental gun deaths per year, all age groups, is 1,500.
(C) The number of accidental deaths per gun owner is 0.000188. Statistics courtesy of FBI

So, statistically, doctors are approximately 9,000 times more dangerous than gun owners. Remember, ‘Guns don’t kill people, doctors do.’ FACT: NOT EVERYONE HAS A GUN, BUT ALMOST EVERYONE HAS AT LEAST ONE DOCTOR.

Please alert your friends to this alarming threat.We must ban doctors before this gets completely out of hand!!!!!

Out of concern for the public at large, I withheld the statistics on lawyers for fear the shock would cause people to panic and seek medical attention!

Did you know…

… that today is Loosen Up, Lighten Up Day, a day to remind
people of all the benefits of joy and laughter? Take time
today to experience a little joy and laughter with those you
love. It’s good for you… and for them!

Jim Richards

Many Americans, like you, me and all our friends, simply want to
recognize that the vast majority of

The first thing a soldier says when asked “What can we do to make things
better for you?” is. “We need your support and your prayers.” Let’s get
the word out and lead with class and dignity, by example, and wear
something red every Friday.

THE

I was very pleased to see such a huge turnout at last night’s Council meeting and to view the presentations prepared by Tower Investments and Empire Commercial.

This increased citizen participation clearly shows the degree of involvement all inhabitants of the greater Tehachapi area and their interest in weighing in on the future development of the City’s expansion.

While I spoke in favor of the Capital Hills site, the greater preponderance seemed more inclined to favor the

site. Hey, I’m a team player and if the Council vote goes to the Empire site at Curry, I will jump aboard with great enthusiasm and do whatever I can to make it a big success.

Empire’s artist renderings look very inviting with lots of green spaces and attractive designs. The addition of senior housing would be wonderful since these citizens would actually be able to walk to both City Hall and the adjoining shops and restaurants. It would be a boon to them. Also, with a new supermarket there (Slater’s?) the 3000 plus residents in the immediate area would no longer have to drive the one mile distance to already crowded Albertson’s or Save Mart unless they wanted to and not because they had to.

And, who knows, wouldn’t it be nice to have a Famous Dave’s BBQ and perhaps a Trader Joe’s and Pier One Imports, etc.? Maybe even a Michael’s Art Store and Red Lobster. Yummm! I think we’re on a roll and thank you one and all for standing up for Tehachapi.

Jim Richards

YOUR CHANCE TO WEIGH IN!

On Monday, Oct. 8, 2008 there will be a special meeting of the City Council at 6pm at the Veteran’s Hall on

If you never attend another Council meeting in your lifetime, this is the one you should not miss. This decision will affect us all for generations to come.

Stand up and SPEAK! Robert’s Rules of Order, of which the Council abides, states that a person who wishes to speak must remain seated until someone at the speaker’s podium has finished and then walk swiftly to the podium and speak INTO the microphone. The entire proceeding is being audio recorded and disks are available at City Hall at no charge for anyone who wishes to have them for later replay.

Only by citizen participation can we ensure that this City Council will vote for the will of the PEOPLE and not their own private agenda’s.

Bring your kids and grandma and anyone else you need to but….

BE THERE!

Jim Richards

The Tehachapi “Mayorship” is more than just a photo-op ceremonial position. He/She bangs the gavel at the Council meetings and as the 5th. person in this august body can be the swing vote and/or tie breaker. The “Mayor” also controls the meetings. I shudder at the though of D. Hand being the Mayor-Pro Tem, don’t you?

I wonder how many times Phil Smith, in his 20+ years on the Council has been “Mayor”?

This revolving door to the Mayorship has got to be closed. They just get in line for it and serve their term and go back to the Council when it expires and wait to get “appointed” again. (And again.) If term limits and an election are good enough for the president of the United States it is certainly good enough for the City Council and the Mayor of Tehachapi and if I am elected next year you can be sure these two issues will be high on my priority list. Term limits and elections are what America is all about. That’s called a citizen legislature and precludes the sitting officials from scratching each other’s backs to maintain the status quo.

Jim Richards

It’s very early but I’m taking a tip from the current presidential candidates. I just hope that people will remember me when it comes to voting time (November, 2008) but I’m trying to show the voting citizens the difference between RUNNING for office and STANDING for re-election. Two City Council seats are up for expiration at that time and I respectfully request your vote. It’s time to stop the good old boys/girls from advancing their own personal agenda’s for many YEARS. Let’s let them know who is going to start taking charge of the future of Tehachapi. THE ELECTORATE, that’s who.

I urge everyone to check out my website and click on all the buttons underneath my handsome picture (yeah, right) and see what I have to say about representing YOU and YOUR interest and concerns. And, if you want to help, there is even a Volunteer button!

www.jim-richards-for-city-council.com

Many thanks.

The City Council meeting of Sept. 17th. promises to produce a lot of fireworks with Councilmember Stan Beckham’s 3 Resolution proposals. They are listed as Item #17 on the Agenda and are:

#1. Councilmember term limits.

#2. Commission Appoinments.

#3. Hiring Policies.

It is the latter that addresses nepotism and cronyism in City hiring positions.

This will be heated, for sure. Everyone who can put aside an hour or so should attend and participate. Council meetings are every 1st. and 3rd. Monday of the month at 6pm at the Veterans Hall on F. Street. I’ll be there! Will you?

Jim Richards