Sunday, October 24, 2010

In his own words

Dear Southwest Ranches Friends and Neighbors:


Good Morning, Good Afternoon, Good Evening and if I do not see you later … well then … Good Night!


Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance. During the Town debate on October 13, Dillard open with the statement that he has no affiliations and has not been on any committees. He that went on for the next hour and a half showing the voters in the audience how little he knew and how poorly he was coached.


When asked what Southwest Ranches number one problem is Dillard said that drainage is the biggest problem. It's sure in the top five depending on where you live. Then he went on to state that drainage was never a problem until the town council made it a problem by raising the water level. And since then the west side of town has been flooding. If Dillard had any experience with our town, he would know that South Broward Drainage District (SBDD) policy decisions and their implementation are responsible for the flooding in the far western portions of our town. Even at meetings Dillard has attended over the last eight weeks since he filed for candidacy, the topic was brought up and if here were listening it would be clear to him that our town and council are working very diligently to reverse SBDD's decision. Do you want a council member who is ignorant of the issue he feels is our town's greatest problem.


Dillard also claimed that taxes in our town are a big problem. Later he goes on later to claim and contradict himself that taxes are our biggest problem. Of course all would like lower taxes but after two years of very minor ad valorem tax increases, the Council instructed the town administrator to come back with a balanced budget that did not require a tax increase and the administrator acheived their goal by cutting salaries and programs. Southwest Ranches is one of the a very few number cities in Broward that did not raise taxes or use its reserves to plug holes in the budget. Dillard did not even recognize that the town is now a smaller government than it was last year. He said that the Council will be raising your taxes in January or February. Dillard's ignorance and lack of citizen awareness showed on this question. According to statute, Florida governments (counties, cities, town and special taxing districts like SBDD) may only adjust their millage and special assessments annually and the timing is dictated by the county and municipal fiscal year beginning in October each year. If the Town attempted to raise you taxes off-cycle and it were legal, it would probably cost more to go through the process than the value of the increase. Someone else must read his trim and tax notices otherwise he would know they are adjusted annually. Again Dillard was just showing how little he knew and how poorly he was coached.


Next an interesting dynamic presented that would continue throughout the debate. When the moderator asked Gary Jablonski a question first, he answered, and Dillard would generally agree and parrot Jablonski's answer with his own down-home spin. When Dillard was asked first, he would fumble or bumble or not answer the question at all. When Dillard was asked first, why he was running for office, he gave all the reasons why he moved to Ft Lauderdale and SWR but never answered the question. Naturally you would not expect for him to disclose Mee's grudge but he could have told the audience what he is telling his immediate neighbors. Those on 170th say that he and his wife are doing this for the fun of it. They thought it would be a "hoot". Do we really want a council member who is serving just for the fun of it?


Maybe it was the lighting but Dillard's deportment at the debate was threaten toward the audience, his behavior was arrogant, and his manner was hostile toward the town's administration and current council. Dillard the bridge-builder, the fence-mender was postured as an intimidator. He want to make his case as the outsider, not connected, with no affiliations. Politics are an arena where you can force your way in as an outside but you cant alienate your constituency along the way. Dillard has pit one side of town against the other, has tried unsuccessfully to discredit the Presidents Council debate, has attached the newsletter editor from Rolling Oaks. These action have cost him very dearly. Is seems that his only support has come from the landscape nursery owners on Griffin Rd and his street. What promises did he make to the Nurseries? What did he tell his neighbors on his street?


Peeking out from under a table in back of the auditorium your Wanch was at times rolling in laughter and at others miserable hearing Dillard's answers.



This missive could be three times as long as last week's communiqué if you were provided the detail just presented above for the first two question. Instead the following is a summary of the Wanch's notes written just after the debate:


Dillard's positions or supports -

  • Commercial development throughout town
  • Sees no problem with the companies that use our neighborhoods as the base of operations
  • Considers himself a volunteer since he is running for office
  • Considers himself an ethical person
  • Thinks Rt. 27 should become commercial before anything else (Has Ronnie given to his campaign?)
  • Thinks all of the cities around us dictate our drainage policy
  • Doesn't think we are rural, "we're a city"
  • Thinks Davie is more rural
  • Has not heard of the Farm Act
  • Supports proactive code enforcement
  • Doesn't under the fill ordinance
  • Claims to have the most successful business in his field but is scraping.
  • Believes we need rules to separate our neighbors.
  • Does not believe the town has a sound financial base
  • Doesn't understand the towns financial situation.
  • Claims that the town lost $2.5 million and cant account for it.
  • Thinks the town throws money at everything that comes it way.
  • Thinks the town is going to have to raise taxes
  • Does not support having parks in town
  • Thinks Rubin got commissions for writing grants (that's illegal and Rubin would already be in jail if true)
  • Made many illusions to being a tea-bagger (could be a plus or negative)
  • Doesn't understand the town's capital investment structure
  • Thinks all grants have a dollar for dollar match
  • Is against the town applying for grants
  • Doesn't think there is a cut-through or traffic problem
  • Is in favor of opening Mather Blvd. and other roads to Stirling and Sheridan traffic
  • Opposed to road closures
  • Seems to think there is a crime wave in SWR, (probably to sell more guns.)
  • Wants to see the towns parks sold to regain the tax base.
  • Wants to further tax the businesses in town.
  • Thinks the Nurseries are responsible for flooding problems in our town.


There are many more position that Dillard takes that would be harmful to our Town's future but I promised brevity.


In Dillard's closing comments, probably after realizing he was poorly prepared and ineptly coached for the debate, Dillard took a parting shot at the residents of our town. He felt he is up against a political machine. With the Don Maine's defeat two years ago, the machine was thrown out of town. His comment was in line with his character. His opposition, you know the guy who has been involved for many years, volunteered lots of his time, who has made friends with many people through his good deeds and has never asked for anything in return, in Dillard's words has a machine behind him. No, the folks who know Jablonski and agree with him will vote for him, additionally, the people Dillard alienated along will way will vote for Jablonski, and the people who really know Dillard will probably vote for Jablonski even though they might have an unapproved sign in their front yard.


Once final comment from the debate. Dillard made the strong point during the debate that he has his cell phone on all of his campaign signs. Your Wanch was impressed, the thought occurred, "well that takes courage". The next time a sign was seen it was checked. It didn't have a cell number or any phone number. Next, the benefit of the doubt was given that the lawn signs were just too small, so a large sign was checked. No number. Was Dillard confused by the bright lights and glamor of the debate or was this a bald-face lie to the public at a point that it means to most to be honest? You decide before you color in the dot when you vote at the polls. We got rid of this type of individual last election, do we need another?


Finally, both candidates' financial records are available on the town website (click here) for public review. Dillard has been heard to say that he has raised over $10 thousand dollars, to others he said the has raised over $30 thousand. As last check his records do not indicate those figures. Again he is either lying or not. If he is boasting, do we need that, if not he is breaking the law. In any case his filings are misrepresenting his campaign since they are filled out wrong. Any citizen can file a complaint of they think there is any wrong doing intentional or mistakenly. Someone in our community should look into Dillard's filings and if compelled, file a complaint (click here). Political campaigns are a serious think and cannot be done just for the fun of it. There are serious penalties for misfiling financial information.


Dillard stated he is all for accountability, lets see if he holds himself accountable, the Florida Election Commission will if a complaint is made.


Both of our candidates will bring change to our Council and Town. Do you want your vote to count towards positive change for our town or do you want to vote for ignorance. At the county, state, and federal levels there are new-comers in most elections. Most of the new-comers have had prior governmental experience as volunteers, employees, lawyers or elected officials. In most cases, the uninformed, unknown, unpopular candidate is passed over for the more qualified. The ignorant are ignored.


Can the Town afford a council member who shoots from the hip? Does the Town need another council member that embarks on malicious attacks on the residents and lies? Do the residents really want a representative who doesn't understand the governmental process that makes the Town work and insists on doing things his way? Do you want someone who attacks people with differing opinions? Would you vote for someone who is running for office to settle a grudge? If so, in my humble opinion, vote for Jeff Dillard.


That’s All Folks!!!

Wanch Waggler

To leave comments go to http://wanchwaggler.blogspot.com/


17 comments:

Anonymous said...

Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.
Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance.

Buford T. Justice said...

Some of the residents learned quickly after the commanding, overwhelming ejection of the former councilman Don Maines. Some residents took a little longer to see that Don Maines was ousted for good reason. Now on November 2nd, 2010 we will know exactly how many residents of Southwest Ranches just don’t get it. Count the number of votes that Jeff Dillard is able to procure and we will then know how many village idiots reside in the Town of Southwest Ranches. Support from or an endorsement by Don Maines and his construction buddy is “the political kiss of death”. Dillard supporters would be better served if they just lit their donations dollars on fire; at least that would be fun to watch!

Gary Jablonski will win this election with, by far, the largest margin of victory this town has ever seen.

Anonymous said...

Great Job Wanch Waggler. Damn fine job!

Redrider said...

Well once again, Wanch hit the nail on the head- "just the facts, ma'am" How refreshing! Guess I'm a bottom line kinda person-Can we trust Mr Dillard to do the right thing? Don't think so. And how he & his supporters have upped the stakes and lost friends over this is disappointing. Hey- stand by your candidate if you must, but if you decide you've made a wrong choice- don't multiply it by accusing your friends of wrong doing, when none is there. Yes Mee- I'm talking to you.

Anonymous said...

A hoot? I wanna run if the qualifications are just "it's a hoot!"

Isn't that how Don Maines got elected in the first place?!

You go Jeffy ... you keep turning people into internal affairs like your boy Don Maines did. Go Jeffy Go!

Anonymous said...

Hello Mr.Gnome,
this is an interesting thread for sure, any chance you could be a little easier to read to some of the older readers by making your color combinations on your fonts a little less harsh. It is a little hard on the eye's I am afraid to say.

redrider said...

So I went on the Town Website- interesting reading...Jeff Dillard has 1 (!) contribution for a SWR resident, and 6 (?) from far as Kildeer, Ill, Lighthouse Point, Deerfield, Pompano, Dania, Plantation...None of these people have any assocation with SWR///Gary Jablonski has all contributions from SWR with the excution of Miami Shores, Coconut Creek & miami, where is company is based. Interesting!

Wanch Waggler said...

@Anonymous at 7:12 - Would a lighter color for the text be easier to read?-WW

Anonymous said...

No, Wanch. Leave the fonts / colors / etc., as they are. If it ain't broke don't fix it. It's what we've come to know and enjoy.

Bob Cratchit said...

According to the financial reports, I think box # 9 is supposed to tell the story of contributions received to date. Dillard is showing $1,560.00

Jablonski is showing $11,325.00

Something wrong with this picture? Where is the boasted 20K to 30K Dillard’s War Chest contains?

If Dillard is taking advice from Maines, it makes sense; remember Don Maines was fined by the Elections commission during his failed run for re-election in 2008.

Elections are a serious business. If 30K pops up in the G4 report, oh what fun will be had by all!

Anonymous said...

Hello Gnome;
Try A lighter color text on your next entry and see if its better.

Anonymous said...

@ Anonymous with the font color issues. At the top of the comments page (this one, the one you're on now) is a link that says "show original post". If you cannot read the blue font, go to comments, click on the link "show original post" and your problem will be solved. The second option would be to ask Wanch Waggler to put you on his mailing list. Every blog entry is mailed out to his/her email list within a day or two of posting. Good Luck.

Frightened Elf said...

Seriously? I just got my Sunshine Ranches Waggler … Is there really going to be a “Ranches Holiday Bash” at that address? Is the Sunshine Ranches Homeowners Association footing the bill on that? Have they written the check yet and if so how much is being spent on the bash?

Just an observation here, but you Sunshine Ranches folks may want to reconsider the amount needed to cover this holiday bash. I know it’s the Holiday’s and it’s time for Peace on Earth and Goodwill towards men, but maybe in this case the timing may be a bit off.

Buford T. Justice said...

Voting for Jeff Dillard is a vote for ignorance, arrogance and despicability.



"Please forward this to everyone in town.

I was at Rolling Oaks park yesterday morning taking down the tents and cleaning up from the Halloween event when I heard that Debra Goff-Rose got a visit from BSO. She was taking down the Jeff Dillard campaign signs that were illegally placed on the right-of-way in front of Rolling Oaks Park when Jeff Dillard saw her. Jeff Dillard CONFRONTED her and then placed a call to BSO to see about having her arrested for theft. After BSO visited Debra Goff-Rose, Jeff decided not to press charges.

No only did Jeff Dillard litter our park entrance with his signs all weekend, but then nearly has one of our citizens arrested after she attempts to perform a civic duty of picking up those illegally placed signs.

I was unaware that only code enforcement has the legal authority to pick up those signs. Deb also thought that she was legally authorized to do so too. I have been picking up signs at the entrance to Rolling Oaks for over 5 years now. I hope I don't get arrested for doing that.

I spoke with our code enforcement officer for Southwest Ranches and asked if we can get the town's authorization to police our own communities of these signs if they become an eyesore. I'm hoping that I get an answer soon so that we don't have to look at these signs until code enforcement can get out and pick them all up.

It's really a shame to see politics doing this in our town. I think Jeff Dillard has a lot to learn and can't see how he ever expects to get elected to town council. I don't think we'll be seeing much of him after this election."

Anonymous said...

Gary Jablonski 63.63% 1,216


Jeff L. Dillard 36.37% 695





nuff said!!!!!!!!

Buford T. Justice said...

"Gary Jablonski will win this election with, by far, the largest margin of victory this town has ever seen."



TOLD YA SO! Congratulations Gary.


"Count the number of votes that Jeff Dillard is able to procure and we will then know how many village idiots reside in the Town of Southwest Ranches."

Well, 695 village idiots!

Anonymous said...

c'mon Wanch ... a year between postings?

I heard that at the last SRHOA meeting they said you were to "negative". Are you going to stand for that? You got every swinging di%k that holds a position in the SRHOA AND were personally responsible in getting one councilman ousted in 2008 and getting elected three (3) councilmen elected since then and you just fade away? Hand it over to someone else. We need some piss and vinegar not yearly posts!!!!!!!!