We just spent a weeks vacation as a family. I'm no longer a Scoutmaster and this is the first week long vacation we've had as a family in five years and it was great. I have no regrets spending the last few years vacations with the Scouts, they've all turned out great and there are no gang members among them. (Not all me, they and their mother's should receive most of the credit.)
We can fight the gang problem in West Valley best with prevention. Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting stated if we want to keep a boy out of trouble, we need to give him something better to do. Scouting is one way, sports are another and there are many more. We can do this.
I took a couple days of our vacation to attend the annual National Conference of the United States Fencing Coaches Association. I learned much about coaching in general and instructing fencing in particular. The best three things of the conference, (not necessarily in order),
1. We received instruction from Muriel Zagunis, two time Olympic gold medalist in women's sabre.
2. I made some great new friends.
3. I tested and became nationally certified as a fencing coach by a fencing master.
May I repeat this, I'm a nationally certified fencing instructor. I'm striving to better my life and I'm pleased with this one.
I'm striving to better West Valley. This is why I'm running for City Council. Police response to crime is an average of seven minutes, if we can prevent crime and prevent gang membership by giving our youth something better to do, seven minutes will be fine.
Let's support our law enforcement by giving them less criminals to chase, let's support our youth by giving them something better than gangs.
Jeff White
31 July 2011
23 July 2011
District 3 and Gooseberry Pie, Part I
Do you remember Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Snow White made gooseberry pie for one of them. Well we just had gooseberry pie last night from gooseberries we picked in our back yard. So let me tell you about gooseberries.
They are on a beautiful medium green bush that is roundish. All the berries are on the underside of the limbs. This inviting plant has thorns, inch long thorns, thorns that are needle shaped and as sharp as any sewing needle and there are a lot of them.
If it wasn't for the delectable berries (they are really tasty), we'd have saved our skin and left them for the birds (but I believe the thorns keep the birds away as well.) I have little thornprick marks on my hands.
The pie tastes great!
If we work and overcome the thorns, we get something wonderful, gooseberries. I see problems as an opportunity in disguise, just waiting to be solved. One just has to go to work and find a solution.
When I worked in a distribution facility we had an obsolete system. It was a nightmare for whomever was assigned to fill the orders. I looked at the "problem" and thought of ideas for a solution. After many ideas, I imagined how each would work and thought of every consequence, good and not so good of each idea.
When the best idea had surfaced and I felt confident, I explained and showed the Superintendent the "problem" and explained the opportunity of my idea to him. He decided to implement my idea (actually a merging of three I'd worked through) and we went with it.
Order filling efficiency improved at least 15% and when your moving tens of thousands of items each day, 15% is gold. As a side, a friend who was in constant hot water with management for poor efficiency and had been threatened with termination was still there last we spoke. It wasn't him, it was the system.
Problems are opportunities in disguise. I find hidden opportunities.
I work past the thorns, pick the berries and we have gooseberry pie.
Stay tuned for part II.
Jeff
They are on a beautiful medium green bush that is roundish. All the berries are on the underside of the limbs. This inviting plant has thorns, inch long thorns, thorns that are needle shaped and as sharp as any sewing needle and there are a lot of them.
If it wasn't for the delectable berries (they are really tasty), we'd have saved our skin and left them for the birds (but I believe the thorns keep the birds away as well.) I have little thornprick marks on my hands.
The pie tastes great!
If we work and overcome the thorns, we get something wonderful, gooseberries. I see problems as an opportunity in disguise, just waiting to be solved. One just has to go to work and find a solution.
When I worked in a distribution facility we had an obsolete system. It was a nightmare for whomever was assigned to fill the orders. I looked at the "problem" and thought of ideas for a solution. After many ideas, I imagined how each would work and thought of every consequence, good and not so good of each idea.
When the best idea had surfaced and I felt confident, I explained and showed the Superintendent the "problem" and explained the opportunity of my idea to him. He decided to implement my idea (actually a merging of three I'd worked through) and we went with it.
Order filling efficiency improved at least 15% and when your moving tens of thousands of items each day, 15% is gold. As a side, a friend who was in constant hot water with management for poor efficiency and had been threatened with termination was still there last we spoke. It wasn't him, it was the system.
Problems are opportunities in disguise. I find hidden opportunities.
I work past the thorns, pick the berries and we have gooseberry pie.
Stay tuned for part II.
Jeff
21 July 2011
I've researched
I asked a City Councilmember last night about the 3500 South widening I wrote about a couple days ago. He didn't know anything about it.
He stated 35th South is a State road and it could be a UDOT project and that UDOT doesn't always inform the City Council about it's projects.
So what part of 35th South needs widening? I asked and still don't know.
Well, tonight's blog is in part to say oops in my being bothered the city has another 35th South project (although the City Planning Commission seems to know about it) and to inform you about what I'm hearing as I hit the streets.
I've been talking to people in the City and I hear this, they're concerned about crime and not what their neighbors yard looks like. There are a lot of concerns about graffiti, but not yards.
Always searching the "bigger picture."
Jeff
He stated 35th South is a State road and it could be a UDOT project and that UDOT doesn't always inform the City Council about it's projects.
So what part of 35th South needs widening? I asked and still don't know.
Well, tonight's blog is in part to say oops in my being bothered the city has another 35th South project (although the City Planning Commission seems to know about it) and to inform you about what I'm hearing as I hit the streets.
I've been talking to people in the City and I hear this, they're concerned about crime and not what their neighbors yard looks like. There are a lot of concerns about graffiti, but not yards.
Always searching the "bigger picture."
Jeff
20 July 2011
Wow! Really? You've Got to Read This.
According to a member of the City Planning Commission (I just read this on his Blog), the city is going to widen 3500 South.
Again? Really? How many times has this road been widened in the last ten years, or been ripped up to provide a different drainage system? It seems constant.
How many businesses are no longer on 3500 South because of this? Is this thoroughfare always going to be picked on? If we have such great planners, why is this street in constant upheaval? Did the businesses on 35th South request this, again? Let's get this done right and leave these businesses and the surrounding neighborhoods alone. Give them peace.
Here's a "link" from the past regarding 35th South. An idea to help the businesses on this street or any businesses in a similar situation. http://jeffwhiteforcitycouncil.blogspot.com/2009/09/lets-help-35th-south-businesses.html
I'm stunned. Really stunned.
We all make mistakes, I know I do and I know how to correct them when I make them. Let's correct this mistake of constant destruction (oops, I mean construction) and move on, let's correct this constant rebuilding of 35th South and leave it alone. I drive it regularly because it's well designed as it's currently constructed.
Wow! I'll fight for you 35th South. I'll fight for you.
Jeff White
Again? Really? How many times has this road been widened in the last ten years, or been ripped up to provide a different drainage system? It seems constant.
How many businesses are no longer on 3500 South because of this? Is this thoroughfare always going to be picked on? If we have such great planners, why is this street in constant upheaval? Did the businesses on 35th South request this, again? Let's get this done right and leave these businesses and the surrounding neighborhoods alone. Give them peace.
Here's a "link" from the past regarding 35th South. An idea to help the businesses on this street or any businesses in a similar situation. http://jeffwhiteforcitycouncil.blogspot.com/2009/09/lets-help-35th-south-businesses.html
I'm stunned. Really stunned.
We all make mistakes, I know I do and I know how to correct them when I make them. Let's correct this mistake of constant destruction (oops, I mean construction) and move on, let's correct this constant rebuilding of 35th South and leave it alone. I drive it regularly because it's well designed as it's currently constructed.
Wow! I'll fight for you 35th South. I'll fight for you.
Jeff White
19 July 2011
Emancipate Your Property Against Tax Increases
Here's the promised idea based on lifetime hunting/ fishing licenses Utah used to offer. I'm not sure how to work this logistically, but if we could...
We're facing an 18.15% property tax increase depending on a vote by the City Council on August 9th. How does this effect those among us on fixed incomes, what about those struggling to survive paycheck to paycheck.
I understand a City needs money to operate. I also understand some of our neighbors (and perhaps even you) are struggling as well.
The idea: We could pay the City say $10,000 to $20,000 and emancipate our property against property taxes for the lifetime of the homeowner. Emancipate before retirement and your fixed monthly income will never be effected by a tax increase. (We may be able to apply this to the County, School District, and the Library also.)
If you look at how the property tax pie is split up, it may take a little negotiating with the other entities who have their fingers in the pie, so to speak. Follow this link to see what I mean. http://www.wvc-ut.gov/index.aspx?NID=1115
This property tax calculator is on the West Valley Cities home page and it's enlightening.
I don't know how to do it, but lifetime memberships are nothing new. The United States Fencing Association offers this, the State offered it with hunting/ fishing licenses, why not our City. Emancipate your property and never see another tax increase as long as you own the home (at least the WVC portion.)
We could then say, "The only constants may be death and taxes; but not in West Valley City."
Perhaps this idea is workable, perhaps not, perhaps it'll lead to an idea that's better. As Alfred Nobel stated, "If I have a 1,000 ideas a year and only one of them works, I'm satisfied."
Jeff White
We're facing an 18.15% property tax increase depending on a vote by the City Council on August 9th. How does this effect those among us on fixed incomes, what about those struggling to survive paycheck to paycheck.
I understand a City needs money to operate. I also understand some of our neighbors (and perhaps even you) are struggling as well.
The idea: We could pay the City say $10,000 to $20,000 and emancipate our property against property taxes for the lifetime of the homeowner. Emancipate before retirement and your fixed monthly income will never be effected by a tax increase. (We may be able to apply this to the County, School District, and the Library also.)
If you look at how the property tax pie is split up, it may take a little negotiating with the other entities who have their fingers in the pie, so to speak. Follow this link to see what I mean. http://www.wvc-ut.gov/index.aspx?NID=1115
This property tax calculator is on the West Valley Cities home page and it's enlightening.
I don't know how to do it, but lifetime memberships are nothing new. The United States Fencing Association offers this, the State offered it with hunting/ fishing licenses, why not our City. Emancipate your property and never see another tax increase as long as you own the home (at least the WVC portion.)
We could then say, "The only constants may be death and taxes; but not in West Valley City."
Perhaps this idea is workable, perhaps not, perhaps it'll lead to an idea that's better. As Alfred Nobel stated, "If I have a 1,000 ideas a year and only one of them works, I'm satisfied."
Jeff White
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