Orale, Mi Gente!!
Man, the illegalities, corruption, greed, and rip offs from the small Southern Califas town government of Bell continues to open the eyes of the world, making us all hip to the "new" political-financial process of our modern day society....check this out:
It was recently discovered that the wannabe politico kings of the City of Bell were giving themselves — on top of larger salaries than the U.S. President — huge pension funds and loans...AND...were assigning themselves & friends to "commissions" and "committees" that NEVER met...yet were paying themselves over $8,000.00 a month for being on these committees & panels. They even gave themselves travel allowances and per diem for meals....
...AND....the greed & graft washed over to the city of Maywood, a neighboring town that the politicos in Bell were trying to swallow up...and the "process" has been going on there as well. Who do they think they are? Corporate America? Wall Street?
Like one pissed off citizen said on a TV news interview: "This is worse than the gangster days of 1930's Chicago. Back then, the gangsters had the politicians in their back pocket...but now the gangsters have cut out the middleman, and have become the politicians themselves..."
As other news stories across the country keep coming in, showing all kinds of politicians getting busted and exposed, the same defense comes out of their mouths: "We did nothing wrong under the law.."
What does that tell you, besides the fact that politicians have no shame or consideration for the people they were entrusted to serve?
Well, for one, there's a LOT of money to be made in American politics, and there's a lot of money floating around despite this so called recession that has the average working men & women down and hurting.
I mean, if a small burg like Bell, California can come up with MILLIONS of dollars to be taxed and ripped off so easily...what are other, bigger cities capable of taking in?
Secondly, a lot of new laws and policies have come into play in modern-day politics — thanks to crooked and well paid lawyers who manipulate what is wrong or right, guaranteeing politicians and their puppet-masters protection under laws and ordinances that most of us didn't even know existed.
Here's an example just in MY neighborhood of Sylmar in the City of Los Angeles: Recently I received an "assessment" letter stating I owed the City of Los Angeles $39.00 in "fire inspection fees". The letter said they had sent me an earlier letter 2 months ago , explaining their intent to have firefighters "inspect" my property for fire hazard since I lived in an "identified" fire danger zone, and charge me $13.00 for the service ....I NEVER got it, and neither did my neighbors. They also said I had a chance then to "opt out" and not get inspected at that time, thus, not pay the fee.
The letter states that 50 L.A. City firefighters were assigned to "inspect" more than 144,760 properties in the months of May and June.
I never saw a soul! I checked with my local fire station PERSONALLY...they don't recall sending ANYBODY out....that's A LOT of inspection for just 50 guys.
The letter further stated that "If you did not receive a compliance warning citation, your property was probably in compliance and no other action will be taken if you pay the fee".
Well... I live in a HOA community (Home Owners Association) housing tract, where a maintenance crew regularly cuts grass, repairs the street, cuts trees & bushes, and clears brush in the foothills surrounding our community — and we pay them nicely every month for the service, thank you. So who gave the City of L.A. the right to come in and demand a tax for something they didn't do, and was already paid for to somebody else?
And here's the kicker: The original fee was $13.00, and they tacked on a $16.00 "late fee," and now threaten me with collection fee of 34% if I don't pay it in 30 days.
If you consider that 144,760 homes are being "assessed" like this — that's a lot of money!
Whether they're fighting fires, inspecting property, or sitting at the fire station, firefighters are already being paid! It's already in the budget!!
WHAT is the "fee" being charged for, and WHO gets the money?
I called the City of L.A. to ask, and the only answer got was: "We're sorry. The City is undergoing financial problems and are trying to collect all the late fees, taxes and permits we can. If you disagree with the late fees, write a letter explaining your concern along with your original $13.00 fee."
If THAT's not just plain old, manipulative, gangster-style, arm twisting, strong armed robbery, easy money tactics, I don't what is!!!...and more are coming, and they are "not against the law or City Council decisions" I was told....
THAT's where minor leaguers like the misfits and miscreants from Bell who couldn't make it anywhere else in the real world learned how to enrich themselves in modern day politics.
Don't you all hate feeling like a sucker?
Don't forget, elections are coming!
It's time we took our lives, AND our hard earned-dollars back into our own hands. GET OUT and VOTE !!!
WE CAN ALL MAKE A DIFFERENCE!...and it's time.
Si se puede!!
Frankie Firme is the Al Capone of the microphone and the Hitman of West Coast Chicano Soul.
Image from YouTube video.
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