|
so, I'm over here doing my voting research, right? make-believing that democracy works, like a good prole as usual, there's not much info on the offices nobody gives a poo poo about, especially the non-partisan positions, so I have to do some of my own research and, I want to tell you guys, about what I found, when I looked into the election of the Alameda County Assessor ‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗ f.a.q. what's a county assessor? they assess property values for tax purposes in california ok cool. yw i didn't say thank you but ok sorry ‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗‗ so we've got Jim Johnson– some dude who's been working in the assessor's office for 20 years, and pretty much looks like it:  and Phong La– a property tax attorney, former community college real estate professor, and small businessman, with no direct experience working in the assessor's office (to which Johnson has made certain to respectfully draw polite criticism):  boy, do these two ever look like men who would professionally assess the values of property in their county for tax purposes I read through their candidate statements, which, of course, are seldom to be taken at face value, but might lend some insight, by, for example, the candidate alluding to known dog whistles, or revealing that they seriously give so little of a poo poo that they didn't even bother to submit a candidate statement, or, in some fun cases, displaying a mildly concerning disconnect from reality, such as Rudy Peters, candidate for united states congress, who took the time to let voters know that for the "Security, Solvency, and Sustainability" of this country, he supports "Stopping intellectual property theft by foreign countries", and "Alternatives to Type 1-7 plastics". what the gently caress are you talking about, Rudy? those aren't real political issues. you're an insane person: stop running for congress. but Phong and Johnson just seemed like they're incredibly boring dudes, who might legitimately just be concerned with making sure property values are assessed fairly, for tax purposes these are boring, I include them for completion's sake: quote:JAMES “JIM” JOHNSON quote:PHONG LA so I checked out their websites Jim Johnson is endorsed by:
Phong La is endorsed by... a... collage?  ? are those firemen? what does fire have to do with assessing? why... any of these groups? I've never even heard of most of them. I found statements from the fire fighters, but no reason WHY they endorse him  they just sort of do, I guess to put it in perspective, most of the candidates I looked into today don't even have websites, facebook pages, or even candidate statements, because nobody gives a poo poo voter information websites, where candidates can express their platforms to potential constituents on a neutral platform, generally look like this:  nobody gives a poo poo and the video of the candidate forum for the Alameda County Assessor, hosted by the League of Women Voters has a total of 28 views, including me, in a county of more than 1.5 million people, because, and I can't emphasize this enough, nobody gives a poo poo but that's not the weird part I dug a little deeper, and checked the campaign finance contributions campaign finance contributions for the office of the county assessor are a matter of public record, but they're not collated, and they're unlikely to be reported on by even a local news outlet. you have to personally go through the county database and retrieve the contribution filings but, as with any matter put to a democratic vote in this country, following the money gives you a little window into who's actually invested in a candidate's success, or, to put it more cynically, who they'll really be working for if they're elected. so it can be a pretty good barometer when reliable sources are thin or contradictory, if you're willing to invest the effort, which you're probably not, and corruption in the office of the county assessor, while laughably petty, is not unheard of, Jim Johnson, the regular guy, who the other assessors like, has contributions from pretty much who you would expect– friends, family, or colleagues, chipping in a couple hundred bucks to their boring friend's campaign, to pay for mostly lawn signs   names like Ron Thomsen, and John Scott– the above-mentioned county assessors who endorsed him. the kind of people, in other words, who you would actually expect be interested in the election of the county assessor. largest contribution? $5,000 from a guy called Grant Mulligan, owner of ParcelQuest. what's ParcelQuest? ParcelQuest is a middleman company that collates, organizes, and resells data from the county assessors offices... which is kind of hosed up! Jim Johnson's getting my side-eye now. surely that's one of the only people who could possibly have a vested financial interest in being in the good graces of the county assessor, right? and he's just lining this motherfucker's pockets. would just about figure, wouldn't it? so I take note of that and check out the other guy I am going to split this op into parts for pacing and ease of navigation, please do not interrupt, you'll know when I'm done because the last word will be "Arizona"
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 09:46
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 20, 2024 02:12 |
|
|
Phong La... Phong loving La Jim Johnson had ten (10) finance filings on record, of which only seven were records of contributions. that's on the high side– most filing lists for county-level poo poo top out at around five so why, one might wonder, would Phong La have forty loving FOUR???  because he is receiving an absolutely ridiculous amount of money in contributions, of course Jimmy Johns received monetary contributions totaling a perfectly sensible $9,425– not even enough to cover the loving filing fee for running for this godforsaken office– he made up the rest of it in a loan from his own personal savings. that's not unusual. La also lent himself some money. what is unusual, is Phong La received monetary contributions totaling  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFy0hQ3lY-w  who are these people? well, they're all over the place– venture capitalists, lawyers, realtors, democratic members of the state assembly and u.s. congress, doctors, engineers, business owners, and a couple from La and his family. also, the firefighters show up again who is Phong La? why would so many disparate people donate thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars to somebody in this race that most ballot recommendation lists forget to even mention? but that still isn't the weird part maybe Phong La just has a large extended family, stupid ambitions, and more money than he knows what to do with most of the money, he doesn't even seem to have ever actually gotten around to spending  his biggest expenses, with the exception of the filing fee, were $4,500 to the League of Women Voters marked as "campaign literature and mailings", which... n-no? The League of Women Voters is not a printing or distribution company, so that's strange, aaand $12,000 in consulting fees, paid to a guy who I'm not going to link to because he seems like the kind of guy who'd be abnormally lovely about being written about on an internet forum but just trust me he comes off a little sketchy. I don't know how much campaign consultant fees for somebody running for county assessor should be... because I've never seen a paid consultant in the pipeline for a County Assessor. it's just not... really a thing that happens? I've been doing my homework on these minor ballot things since I've been old enough to vote and I've never seen this. I have no idea what I'm looking at. this position should not be that important. but that, is also, not the weird part the weird part is as such and thusly:
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 09:47
|
|
|
why the gently caress do so many of these donations end with the number 41?   what, fuckin, weirdo, 41... cult, poo poo, did I stumble onto here? is there some significance to that number that I don't know about? is it like a good luck number in vietnam or something? what secret, nefarious power does the Alameda County Assessor hold? uh Arizona.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 09:48
|
|
|
hell yeah this is good poo poo
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 09:56
|
|
|
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:07
|
|
|
i like how one photo has the most boring man against the most boring background possible, while the other candidate appears to be surrounded by a powerful halo of tax assessment energies
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:08
|
|
|
this is the best ever cspam thread
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:13
|
|
|
this is definitely some sort of money laundering scheme and some cartel is gonna buy sa for millions just to delete the thread
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:15
|
|
|
and I'd bet if someone contacted the people with 41 numbers none of them are aware they've contributed to an Arizona county assessor campaign
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:18
|
|
|
Arizona is a hellish, unholy ground, and this is simply a cult making blood sacrifices to prevent a great evil from swallowing our devil nation
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:21
|
|
|
This is fuckin cool.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:25
|
|
|
aw poo poo buddy
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:33
|
|
|
I have greatly enjoyed this thread but to my broken commie European brain this seems like an office that shouldn't be elected but instead manned by civil servants.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:42
|
|
|
Cubone posted:why this is the funniest fuckin post i've seen on this website also, condolences to your family when you're found in 5 pieces in the bay
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:53
|
|
|
quote:The numerology number 41 is a number that tends to express its innate sense of personal freedom with building a secure foundation for the future.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:58
|
|
|
forkboy84 posted:I have greatly enjoyed this thread but to my broken commie European brain this seems like an office that shouldn't be elected but instead manned by civil servants. We elect coroners too! don’t forget to donate to NaturalCausesPAC 2018
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 10:58
|
|
|
oh sorry for clarification this is in California I picked "Arizona" as an arbitrary code word because there was an Arnold Palmer on my desk. in retrospect I should have known that would be confusing
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 11:21
|
|
|
forkboy84 posted:I have greatly enjoyed this thread but to my broken commie European brain this seems like an office that shouldn't be elected but instead manned by civil servants. California decided to recreate the aristocratic class in the form of property tax being static from when you buy the property and onward, so long as its only inherited and not sold. So a tax assessor is probably more powerful than they could be otherwise. Not that I've ever heard of a tax assessor running mad with power somehow. TBH pretty much anything thats not legislative should be filled by sortition anyway.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 11:37
|
|
|
Cross check the donors with the largest landowners in the county. Checkmate libs!
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 11:51
|
|
|
what on earthforkboy84 posted:this seems like an office that shouldn't be elected but instead manned by civil servants.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 11:58
|
|
|
Cubone posted:why hell yeah, ground floor on this. Oakland is a fuckin crazy town
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 12:16
|
|
|
This thread is cool as hell but I have to chime in with my fellow commie Europeans in saying you probably shouldn't elect tax assessors.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 12:55
|
|
|
don't you crazy bastards elect sheriffs too?
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 13:05
|
|
|
Eox posted:don't you crazy bastards elect sheriffs too? yep. we also elect district attorneys, who are the ones who actually bring charges against people on behalf of the government. the cops cant actually do anything if the DA doesn't want to press charges, so between the two of them, law enforcement and the justice system is WILDLY variable depending where you are. also, some counties have elected judges. lmfao.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 13:12
|
|
|
Silver Nitrate posted:We elect coroners too! don’t forget to donate to NaturalCausesPAC 2018 Yo, this is bonkers
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 13:19
|
|
|
You have to elect the coroner because the coroner is the only person with the legal authority to arrest the sheriff and thus must represent the will of the people
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 13:28
|
|
|
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 13:31
|
|
|
twoday posted:the coroner is the only person with the legal authority to arrest the sheriff 
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 13:56
|
|
|
so alameda county is one of the largest counties in california, part of the filthy bay area, and set up for enormous growth, and property value assessments are a big loving deal in the state. the only thing that surprises me here is that the position wasn't bought more thoroughly already
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 13:57
|
|
|
frankenfreak posted:How did your country last a hundred years, much less 242? I believe that part is a holdover from Napoleonic code in the Louisiana territory that got grandfathered in in some parts of the West, they don't do that on the east coast
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:06
|
|
|
Prav posted:so alameda county is one of the largest counties in california, part of the filthy bay area, and set up for enormous growth, and property value assessments are a big loving deal in the state. Also how do the firefighters figure into this?
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:11
|
|
|
ahahaha what the gently caress DEMOCRACY
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:21
|
|
|
This is the best thread Regards, carol from hr
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:25
|
|
|
This owns, ty cuboner (USER WAS PUT ON PROBATION FOR THIS POST)
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:26
|
|
|
Sidda posted:This owns, ty cuboner how dare you (USER WAS PUT ON PROBATION FOR THIS POST)
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:27
|
|
|
Considering this guy has control over the taxes major corporations and their shareholders pay onproperty, it's probably old fashioned corruption,
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:28
|
|
|
The .41 might be a sign of a bundler
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:29
|
|
|
OP is following the money!!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShWe-4mtV8w
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:30
|
|
|
frankenfreak posted:What bothers me about this that the recorded expenses don't seem to be doing much to get his name out. This seems like an election where people go "Oh, I heard this name before!" when in the voting booth. (We don't know what exactly that consultant did, though.) the bay area has a long history of "mysterious" fires when developers don't get their way and want some low income housing to disappear
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:30
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 20, 2024 02:12 |
|
|
also you should email this stuff to the chronicle or the east bay times
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2018 14:31
|
|