December 20, 2007
I just passed by a church today that had a sign posted on its building….
“JESUS IS THE ONLY REASON FOR THE SEASON.”
Of course, we have all heard “Jesus is the reason for the season.” Yes, it is not only a catchy phrase that is easy to remember amidst the holiday hustle and bustle so that we keep everything in perspective BUT it is so true…”He IS the reason for the season. On the other hand, I had to pause and think for a moment about the ONLY part of it with this new found phrase today. At first, the secular side of me came out, thinking of those time honored traditions like Santa (see, I even elevated santa’s status with upper case “S” without thinking about it) and chestnuts roasting on the open fire, etc. etc.. The list goes on and on to take our mind off off the reason for the season. I finally came to the conclusion, unless I think Jesus is the ONLY reason, then I will cheat myself from fully experiencing everything I should get out of Christmas. I don’t want to cheat myself, so from now on I keep reminding myself tht Jesus is TRULY the ONLY reason for the season. I am thinking of myself and it sounds self-serving but in this case I don’t care. I wish you the greatest of spiritual blessings too this Christmas if you choose to follow my example.
Happy New Year! Look for more on the Daily Grit starting the week of Jan. 7.
Sincerely,
Dave Huffman
Editor
The Daily Grit
December 3, 2007
I stopped by a city radio station last week to talk politics and made the following points on these topics:
1. Republican State Committee:
As a member of the committee I explained that I was elected in the Republican primary to represent Republicans in Lycoming County.
Communication is critical. I return home after attending state meetings in Harrisburg to communicate party business, give direction and support for core values (lower taxes, less government spending,
smaller government, etc…). There are 365 members from across the state. Membership is based upon population. Lycoming County with a relatively small population has only 4 members but almost one-third of the counties have only 2. Allegheny County (Pittsburgh) and Montgomery County (Philadelphia) have the most with 22 each. Carol Sides and Harry Rogers are the other 2 members. This is a total of 3. We never filled a vacancy created when Rogers was elected to County Chair from state committee. The meetings take place on weekends and the organized agenda is fairly consistent starting with committee meetings, campaign updates and general business the afternoon of the first day. I WAS APPOINTED TO THE STATE BYLAWS COMMITTEE. THIS YEAR THE COMMITTEE RECOMMENDED AND THE STATE COMMITTEE APPROVED A CHANGE IN THE TERM OF OFFICE FOR COMMITTEE MEMBERS FROM 2 TO 4 YEARS. A banquet then follows that evening with keynote speakers of national prominence (ie Karl Rove and Tony Snow in ‘07). Hospitality events following the banquet are sponsored by candidates. The next morning the regions meet before the full committee meets. Finally, the full committee meets and hears reports from the regions, state legislature, attorney general office and state/national party people. Often the weekend meeting ends with endorsement procedings where verbal role call votes are required by all members. DAVE HUFFMAN REPRESENTING LYCOMING COUNTY INTERUPTED THE PROCEEDINGS WHEN THE PROMISED NUMBER OF VOTES DETERMINED BEFORE THE MEETING DID NOT MATERIALIZE. HUFFMAN WAS ASKED TO LEAVE THE ROOM WITH THE PARTY LAWYER BUT, IN THE END, THE RULING WOULD STAND.
HOWEVER, THIS WAS NOT WITHOUT SOME DRAMA WITH HUFFMAN FIGHTING FOR VOTES FOR LYCOMING COUNTY.
2. Endorsements:
Speaking of endorsements, oftentimes these are misunderstood and can be controversial.
An endorsement is simply what the majority of people decide on a given day.
It DOES NOT mean to exclude people and it DOES NOT mean that any one candidate is the best choice. It has + and -.
+ : Gives idea of what party activists think.
Serves as a gauge for candidates about where they stand.
- : It’s not about what activists think. What matters is the voter.
It’s hard to take the politics out of politics!
Advice is to do your best. When Dave Huffman ran for school board 4 years ago, he ran as a Republican only (did not cross-file) out of principle. He also worked very hard on the campaign and was acknowledged with an official endorsement, something that rarely happens for this kind of local office. Of course, Huffman went on to win by a big margin.
3. School Board.
Speaking of School board….
Yes, it was a rewarding experience but not without challenges.
It is not necessary to raise taxes every year, even with the unfunded mandates. Dave Huffman never voted to increase taxes in a district whose enrollment continues to decline. Huffman listened to his constituency who said “don not raise my taxes!” The quality of education does not have to suffer when costs are contained. Huffman continued to support teachers and district programs while emphasizing fiscal responsibility. The finance committee does not have a role in containing costs, something that should be a primary goal of this committee. Huffman recommends more local control and taking small steps in cutting costs ( a little across the board…)
4. GOP in Lycoming County:
We need to continue to try and bring people together. It’s not about me or any ONE individual. It’s about what we can all do together.
We have some big competitive races next year for state house, state senate, etc.. It should be exciting in ‘08!
PLease provide comments now. What do YOU think?
Sincerely,
Dave Huffman
Editor
The Daily Grit
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