Bigger and Better....

If your a fan of economic growth, nicer amenities and consumer services, Jeffersonville, In. is the place to be right now. Probably no city in the state is experiencing as much growth as the city of Jeff as of late.

This past week's announcement was a new shopping complex that will feature two large retailers, movie theater as well as other retail shops. When you couple that with the recent ground breaking of the downtown Marriot hotel complex which includes more retail shops and restaurants, along with the upcoming "Gateway project" on the 10th St. corridor you can see why this area is booming.

 It's nice to see amenities like a movie theater which Jeff has been without for over 20 years come to fruition. It looks like in the future Jeffersonville will have all the consumer needs filled with all the new varied retail establishments and varieties of dining choices.Costco is one of the rumored new tenants and The BatBlog thinks that would be a good fit ...Any suggestions from you readers on what you would like ???



 Of course with growth brings additional traffic and traffic problems...the widening of Holman Ln. long needed is a start. Hopefully additional access roads and traffic planning will be addressed in a timely manner.

Mayor Moore and the Redevelopment Dept. need to be congratulated and while the sleepy old days of simpler times are sometimes missed...Jeffersonvillle is poised to be a bustling destination for the future, increasing property values and new opportunities for residents and visitors...

Feel The Bern....Bernie Sanders

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders showed himself as the class act he is at the Dem. Natl. convention. Even though he appears to have gotten a raw deal by Dem. Natl. committee "The Bern" graciously conceded and endorsed Hillary Clinton as the Dem. nominee in a show of unity at the convention.

  Sanders a virtually unknown senator at the start of the campaign has endeared himself and his message to millions of supporters and Democrats with grace and poise. Starting with little support that grew into a force as the primaries wore on. One has to wonder if "The Bern" was just a little bit more known when the primaries started and Clinton hadn't had the support of the Dem. higher ups ,where Bernie COULD have ended up... The BatBlog believes very well that Sanders COULD have been the nominee and ultimately President of the U.S.

 Hillary should be very grateful that Bernie graciously stepped aside in the name of party unity and endorsed her strongly, showing no sign of bitterness his support and that of his supporters will go along way if Hillary is to win in November....The BatBlog salutes Bernie Sanders as a true class act and team player for the Dem party...

2016 Presidential Election...Hillary Clinton

If Democrats lose the whitehouse they only have themselves to blame. There is no doubt Hillary is qualified from her varied experiences to be president, but experience also brings a lot of political baggage. Of course any controversy or baggage is embellished, overreacted to and beaten  to death by Republicans. None the less the uneasiness and mistrust is there. Bernie Sanders  while more liberal would probably beat Trump pretty easily, Hillary's negatives put Trump in the game

  She can overcome the negativity only because her opponent has just as much if not more than she does. The key to the election will be getting the vote out in the numbers that Obama did. If not Trump has a good chance of being elected.  Presidential elections  run in cycles...after two successful Bill Clinton terms, we still  voted in George W. a Rep. So even though a lot feel Obama has been mostly ok many will still vote for change.

 The BatBlog while  not enamored with Hillary Clinton still believes Democratic values and ideals outweigh the hateful , divisive message Trump has thrown to the American people. Numbers alone and Clinton's popularity with minorities give her an edge, but she has to get those minority voters out in numbers and get the Bernie Sanders supporters supporting her with a good turnout as well...If not and The BatBlog predicted this scenario as a possibility months ago...."The Donald" could be president of the United States....and if and when we will all hold our collective breathes ....

Rest in Peace...Charlie Moore

 The BatBlog sends it condolences to Jeffersonville mayor Mike Moore and his extended family. The Moores lost their patriarch Charles "Charlie" Moore this week. Mr. Moore was a well respected, successful, local businessman known and beloved by many in the local community and will be missed by family and friends...May he Rest in Peace...

2016 Presidential Election ...How The BatBlog Sees It....Today Donald Trump

 First of all I have to admit at FIRST I thought The Donald (Donald J. Trump) was cool. A non establishment, non political, shoot from the hip outlaw. As a blue dog Democrat I loved the references to "Lyin Ted" and "Little Marco" and the way he thumbed his nose at the GOP hierarchy and establishment. In a form of protest and the fact Hillary had the Dem. nomination locked up I even went so far as vote for The Donald  in the Indiana primary (first time ever voting Rep. in a primary.)

 As time went on I realized pretty quickly that The Donald has no business being or even running for president or any office for that matter. Trump is the definition of and prime example of a demagogue, his picture should be include in any definition of the term.

dem·a·gogue

ˈdeməˌɡäɡ/

noun

1. a political leader who seeks support by appealing to popular desires and prejudices rather than by using rational argument.

   synonyms:

   rabble-rouser, agitator, political agitator, soapbox orator, firebrand, fomenter, provocateur

He has no substance or definitive idea on how he would implement any of his mostly outrageous, undoable  plans (deporting illegals, building a wall, bringing back manufacturing jobs etc.) He has preyed on and manipulated his campaign on bigotry, fear and the public's dissatisfaction with politics and politicians in general. Trump has used name calling, misrepresenting facts and down right lies as a way of punctuating his divisive message,

 If anyone with any intelligence listens closely to Trump the will realize that he is a hypocrite as well...preaching  bad trade agreements and foreign labor which he himself uses to benefit of his business world. Portraying his opponent as "Crooked".... but he has made millions by duping the public with business scams like Trump University. Flip flopping on almost every issue whenever it is to his advantage...

 World leaders and allies are skeptical and in some cases fear a Trump presidency, and to me the biggest most telling thing about the Trump campaign and candidacy is the complete distance prominent  former GOP presidents, candidates and party leaders have put between themselves and Trump. Former presidents George W. Bush and his father George Sr., former candidates John Mc Cain and Mitt Romney along with this years candidates well respected Jeb Bush  and John Kasich not only won't endorse Trump but won't even attend the GOP national party convention this week ....which is unheard of in GOP and national political history....No Trump will NOT make America great again....

Tomorrow: Hillary Clinton

The Missing Funds....The Answer

Posted to The BatBlog from Clark County Commissioner Rick Stephenson is the answer to the funds deducted from the Probation Dept....The BatBlog thanks Commissioner Stephenson for his reply...

 HT,

Let's put this to rest. 

The Commissioners and our insurance company settled a potentially very expensive lawsuit against our county. It was the decision of the insurance company and the Commissioners that settlement was best for the county. In potential litigation the Commissioners as the Executives of the County and named as the lidagants have to act in the best interest of the people of the county. 

The amount is approximately 10k that was taken out of the probation fund. It was to cover the taxes on the settlement. That amount has been replaced in probations account. The process that we followed to complete these transactions was completed after consulting with the State Board of Accounts. Since part of the settlement was back pay it had to come from the account that is was initially allocated. It is true that now the probation office has to come to the council and ask the money be reallocated. Not our rules, just state statute.

This was totally an over reaction by the judges and the probation department that is controlled by the judges. They ask why they were not consulted. That is simple, none of the judges or probation were named in the lidigation. We receive lawsuits against the county weekly and we do not consult every department head.

The judges and probation office say that Indiana is a right to work state and that they can fire someone for no reason. This is true but, that does not stop an employee that is terminated from taking action for wrongful termination or unemployment claims. Personally, I am tired of the way that some individuals have absolutely no regards for their employees and treat them as disposable. 

There is absolutely nothing underhanded going on here. Since litigation such as this is bound by a confidentiality agreement I can not go into details. 

Once again this all is an over reaction and Clark County politics at its best. 

Where's Da Money ???

*************************UPDATE**********************************
The rumors are flying hot and heavy on this one The BatBlog is hearing one name over and over as the responsible party. Legality/Illegality is still undetermined but the ethics of such a move is in serious question here....Will this be another black eye to Clark Co ??? Time will tell but it doesn't look good....

Also here is a link to the Open Meeting statute CLICK HERE.
There are certain conditions where closed door meetings CAN be held. The way the BatBlog understands it these meetings CAN be OPEN as well if the governing body chooses to do so...


*************************Breaking Exclusive Story ****************

In an exclusive story that you will only see on The BatBlog....The BatBlog has been told by sources that it appears former (fired)  employee may be the intended recipient of the missing probation office money. The question remains though who withdrew the money to pay off  the litigant or potential litigant

Apparently the fiscal body Clark Co. council doesn't know where the money went, after being addressed by Judge Carmichael over the $20,000 shortage ....the council tabled the matter. Judge Carmichael stated that none of the judges or the chief probation officer withdrew the money that according to sources was apparently to settle a potential or on going lawsuit  against the county for unlawful firing that happened a couple a years ago.

 The BatBlog wonders who has the authority to take money out of County offices like in this case ??? It seems to us this would be a duty of the Council and the Auditor and on the public record. With the county always in financial straights this appears to be a poor way to do business.... Also The Batblog has heard there is an interesting story behind who represented the litigant in their lawsuit ??  Stay Tuned....

Where'd Da  Money Go ???

Here's a news video of the story...

New Orleans, Minnesota, and Dallas

 

The last few days produced three more tragic events, more senseless deaths in these dangerous times we live in. The BatBlog won't sugar coat it ....as far as racial relations have come in the last century there is still a major distrust and tensions among races in America. As well there is a lesser but still a distrust of police  in both the black and white communities. This  is a time where there are more people, more guns, more publicity and news reports and social media that all feeds into what appears to be a never ending cycle of violence and killing.

 Both black men and the police feel they are unfairly targeted by the actions of a few, which is true. Everyday thousands of police officers quietly do their job as well thousands of black men go about their daily lives without incident. The isolated incidents where a police officer makes a mistake or over extends his authority are rare but disturbing.

 The news media fuels these tensions as well,  in these days of 24 hour news coverage these isolated incidents are magnified by repeated showings of violence, protests and videos that appears to incite and increase the mistrust and tensions among races.

Racism , mistrust and violence among us isn't going away... while in a minority there are too many people that perpetuate it in various ways every day. The BatBlog has no answers only hope that these feelings and violence directed toward different races, religions and ethnics  could someday end. Sadly though these hopes are rooted in deep skepticism...

Jeffersonville's Kangaroo Court

     Looks like in the process of eliminating Jeffersonville City Court by last years Jeff City council they forgot one thing... how to process violations and traffic citations...Duh !!!
That's right in the  stupidest decision in the history of Jeffersonville politics ,  the council  has allowed violators of city ordinances to get off scott free by eliminating the court.

 In what must have been a light bulb moment Matt "LapDog" Owen  (who authored the move to eliminate the court) has come up with a new "violations bureau" in order to collect fines from violations and traffic tickets. In an interesting ironic twist this new "violation's bureau" will be headed up by Vicki "The Judge" Conlin who many feel responsible for the political hatchet job that eliminated Judge Pierce and the court.

 Vicki "The Judge" assures us that all monies and fines will be now be collected. The thing is this new "Kangaroo court" will be lacking one minor detail ....called due process. Where in the past you could contest a citation or ticket ....in "Judge" Conlin's new Kangaroo court you are guilty unless you want to create another step and I assume go through the process of appealing to Clark Circuit court. Which will clog the already overburdened Circuit courts with frivolous traffic citations and violations that was in the past taken care of by Jeff city court.

 Already "The Judge" Conlin has asked for additional help and funding and when you add the 10's of thousands of dollars of lost revenue from fines that couldn't be payed because there was no entity to pay them to. You have a monumental stupid move by the former council that was supposed to be for fiscal considerations. Everyone knows it was a political hack job and moves like this keeps Jeffersonville  looking like idiots ....Thanks again "LapDog" and of course Moe Zastawny....

Hillary Clinton

Locals for Hillary ???

Lots of long faces today by GOP leaders and Clinton haters as the FBI released their findings with no charges to be filed. While Hillary made a poor judgement with the use of a private e-mail server. The FBI investigator/director who has served both parties with honorable service and is said to be beyond reproach is now being be accused of playing politics by Trump and other GOP bigwigs.

 This appeared to be a political witch hunt from day 1 and with "The Donald" struggling for support,  the GOP was hoping this could somehow bring Ms. Clinton down. No such luck and the GOP is stuck with an unpopular, hated in some circles candidate who has gotten very little support even from his own party.

With all the political baggage one gets with being in the public eye and service for over 30 years Hillary holds up pretty well. With Obama riding a wave of popularity and out on the campaign trail hitting the stumps for her, the election looks like Hillary's to lose...

 A long way to go but Nate Silver of the 538 website CLICK HERE gives her a nearly 78% chance of winning and Mr. Silver has been uncannily accurate in prior elections...

Turn out the lights...the party's over ???