Bedford Incumbents Bully Citizens!

by Ron West

        It is a rule closely followed by insensitive politicians that:

"Always cut programs and services in the areas that hurt the most people and create the greatest outcry - in order to not have to reduce taxes."

    Looking at the recent reports in the Star Telegram, it is obvious that the ruling majority in Bedford not only supports this position but has taken on the task of punishing the citizens who denied them the 27% tax increase.  With an astounding display of disregard for the city, Mayor Rick Hurt and his 3 cohorts on the council thumbed their respective noses at the citizens of Bedford and showed that they could truly make them pay for denying them their big tax increase.  Reason and compromise went out the window.

    I am having a hard time understanding their actions.  By cutting and closing the items they choose, they are trying to hurt the people who they believe hurt them.  A tit for tat that is totally unwarranted.  Notice that none of the bureaucracy at city hall was impacted at all.  Notice that none of the "brass" in city management took a hit. 

    I hope that all the citizens of Bedford - both those for and against the tax rollback - look at the actions of these elected officials and find them unacceptable.  Reasonable government would have looked at minimizing the impact rather than creating the greatest hurt for the greatest number of people possible.  Apparently, Mr. Hurt and the others think that intimidation and pain is the way to remove future opposition to runaway spending. 

    The City of Bedford is a great area with great schools and location.  Petty politics - as evidenced by the actions of the council - are more deserving of a third class city with an uncaring populace.  Runaway spending and runaway taxation are not problems just in Bedford but across Texas.  The legislature wisely implemented a cap that allows active citizen groups to seek a roll back to an 8% increase if the local politico's get too greedy.  Bedford demonstrated that the system works and the folks in power decided to make the citizens pay for it.  The library and senior center were in the original budget that called for only an 8% increase - but the power brokers want it all.

    My hat is off to all the citizens of Bedford and I would encourage all to continue to have faith in the bright future of Bedford.   My bet is that if you elect reasonable people to your local government, you can quickly correct these flagrant abuses of power and move Bedford forward.  Prime locations develop without payoffs to developers.  The quality of citizens and the strategic location of Bedford make it a real place of choice for all future development in the mid cities area.  Lower taxes are an incentive to locate in a city for businesses as well as new citizens.  Growth in an area should benefit all citizens by lowering the need for more taxes rather than increasing the tax burden on all.

    Is there a connection or relationship to NRH?  Should we as citizens of NRH expect the incumbents - if re-elected - to punish us for passing the Senior Tax Freeze?  Would they dare to outlaw the RV's again?  Would they take more private property rights away?  Would they write more illegal ordinances and practice selective enforcement?  I would like to think that this is neither likely nor even a possibility.  I feel certain that the citizens of Bedford could not have foreseen this massive abuse of power in such a manner either.

    From an outside standpoint, it looks like the real problem in Bedford was not the roll back - rather the runaway spending by the bullies on the City Council under the direction of Rick Hurt.  We do seem to have a relationship to the runaway spending under the direction of a tyrannical Mayor.

    The choices facing Bedford also face NRH.  If they reelect the incumbents - what happens next?  Are these mean spirited folks the kind of representation Bedford wants and needs?  If we reelect our incumbents, we know we will continue to see the practices of the past and ever higher taxes because they have put all that in writing. 

    It is said that we get the kind of government we deserve.  I really don't believe that the citizens of Bedford actually got the kind of government that they deserved with the recent actions of their majority on the council.  For NRH, we have a clear choice in May as to the type of government that we want for our own future.   The issues are clear and the differences between the incumbents and challengers are clear.  For your own future and that of NRH, please take the time to be informed about this election!  What happened in Bedford could happen here.