The Official e-newsletter of the Philadelphia Libertarian Party - May 2010

News, views, events and more.

Featured Articles:
LP Chair Interviewed on Third Parties in Philadelphia Weekly
Ballot Questions are a direct way to express your opinions!
Death panels are wrong; the right to die is not

Ballot Questions are a direct way to express your opinions!
May 18th Primary Ballot Questions & Lpphilly's Recommendations and comments. Even though we have no primary, registered Libertarians can and should go to the polls on Primary Day to vote on the ballot questions.

Ballot Question #1:
Shall the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter be amended to confirm Council's power to (i) require contractors and financial assistance recipients to submit economic opportunity plans, and (ii) provide that failure to exercise best and good faith efforts to comply with such plans may temporarily prohibit a business from receiving City contracts or financial assistance; and to authorize Council to designate existing City agencies (including Council) or to create new agencies to enforce such provisions?

Plain English Statement*: This proposed Charter change would set out City Council's power to require certain companies to adopt Economic Opportunity Plans. Council could impose this requirement on companies that do business with the City and on companies that receive grants from the City.

LPhilly Stance: The Government should not have the power to REQUIRE any private business to adhere to the Economic Opportunity Plan. This should be something a private company can opt into at their own will. This proposed amendment is spurious and unnecessary.

Recommendation: VOTE NO

Ballot Question #2:
Shall the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter be amended to designate the Commissioner of Licenses and Inspections as an alternate member of the Zoning Board of Adjustment, who may replace any absent or disqualified appointed member of that Board?

Plain English Statement*: The Zoning Board of Adjustment hears and decides appeals in zoning cases, including variance requests. It is a six member Board, with five members appointed by the Mayor. The Commissioner of Licenses and Inspections is the sixth member. A majority of the Board – four members -- must be present to decide an appeal.
The proposed Charter change reduces the size of the Zoning Board from six members to five. As a result, only three members would need to be present to decide an appeal. The Commissioner of Licenses and Inspections would no longer be a member. Instead, the Commissioner would be an alternate member who could serve in place of any absent member.

LPhilly Stance: Reduction in the staff of the Zoning Board would help to make the Zoning Board more efficient while reducing costs. The change of eliminating 1 member is just making it easier to get a quorum, and since many projects are held up waiting for ZBA to decide, making it easier to get a quorum is a small improvement, so hopefully developers will spend less time waiting for ZBA. This is a weak yes, because it is only trying to ease a single bottleneck in a process that adds considerable delay and cost to construction projects.

Recommendation: VOTE YES

Ballot Question #3:
Shall the Board of Revision of Taxes be abolished, and its powers, functions and duties be reassigned to a new Office of Property Assessment (with respect to the making of assessments) and to a Board of Property Assessment Appeals (with respect to appeals from such assessments), with the members of the Board appointed from nominations made by a Board of Property Assessment Appeals Nominating Panel?

Plain English Statement*: Owners of property in the City pay real estate taxes based upon the value of their property. Determining the value of property is now the job of the Board of Revision of Taxes (“BRT”). The BRT is a seven member panel appointed by City judges. Property owners may challenge the value the BRT places on their properties. The BRT hears and decides those appeals.
If the ballot question is approved, the BRT will be abolished. Two new City agencies would take over its duties. One agency would set property values. A second agency would hear and decide appeals. Employees of the BRT would be transferred to one of the new entities, depending on their jobs.

LPhilly Stance: Abolishes the BRT moving towards a more efficient government. Also it separates tax appeals from assessment and allows the new agencies that will take over to be far more accountable.

Recommendation: VOTE YES

Ballot Question #4:
Should the City of Philadelphia borrow Sixty-five Million Five Hundred Twenty Five Thousand Dollars ($65,525,000.00) to be spent for and toward capital purposes as follows: Transit; Streets and Sanitation; Municipal Buildings; Parks, Recreation and Museums; and Economic and Community Development?

Plain English Statement: This ballot question, if approved by the voters, would authorize the City to borrow $65,525,000.00 for capital purposes, thereby increasing the City's indebtedness by $65,525,000.00. Capital purposes means, generally, to make expenditures that will result in something of value with a useful life to the City of more than five years, for example, acquisitions of real estate, or construction of or improvements to buildings, property or streets.
The money to be borrowed would be used by the City for five identified purposes, namely, Transit; Streets and Sanitation; Municipal Buildings; Parks, Recreation and Museums; and Economic and Community Development, all in specific amounts identified in Bill No. 100004 (approved _______, 2010). City Council would have authority, by ordinance, to change the intended allocation of these proceeds.

LPhilly Stance: Absolutely no. We simply do not have the money for these issues. These categories are far to large to even know what this money is intended for.

Recommendation: VOTE NO

*Plain English Statement Prepared By The Philadelphia Law Department.

Death panels are wrong; the right to die is not
by Jonathan R. Reed

Before, and even after, the passage of Obamacare, there was much talk about "death panels" - alleged government bureaucracies that would be established to determine if a person was in the final stages of life, and therefore, decide whether they deserve scarce medical resources to continue life, or allow that person to die (comfortably, of course). From a Libertarian perspective, there is nothing more abhorrent than the thought of anyone deciding the life or death of another human being. However, a recent experience reminded me that equally as immoral are laws that prevent or deter free Americans from ending their lives when and how they see fit.

On April 24, 2010, I helped my father check into a hospice in West Chester, PA. He had spent the last two years fighting cancer, and when his condition had progressed to the point that his only chance of survival (and by survival, I mean he would have only a few months of life) was to be hooked up to feeding tubes, he made the decision that he did not want to live anymore. He was in extreme discomfort and the daily process involved in maintaining the feeding tubes was too overwhelming a prospect.

His plan was to check into the hospice, get hooked up to a morphine tube, and deny himself food and water until his body finally expired. From what my father read, death by dehydration generally takes a few days. Good (as far as he was concerned). The sooner the better. This was not the case, however. He lay in his hospice bed for eight days before his body finally gave up.

During that time, I learned from his close friends that my father had talked to them about suicide - skipping hospice all together and ending his life by running his car in his garage with the door closed. But given the complications related to suicide that would follow for his family, he decided against it. However, I have no doubt that after a few days in hospice, he regretted that decision.

I don't mean that the institution in which he stayed mistreated him or made him uncomfortable. Not at all. The staff couldn't have been more kind and, for the most part, he was pain-free the entire time. He was surrounded by family and friends at all times, which reminded him how loved he was. However, there were several times that the mental anguish of what he was going through became unbearable for him.

I have never been on morphine and I have no idea what heavy doses do to the human brain. Like I said, for most of the time, my father was comfortable and free of pain - and perhaps that means his mind was at ease as well. All I know is that in my father's moments of lucidity, he was clearly agonized by the fact that days had passed and he had not yet shuffled off this mortal coil. I cannot appropriately describe the pain involved when your weak, frustrated father looks to you and asks you to help him end his suffering quickly but let's just say you should wish that you never go through it.

Does that mean that if I had the chance, could I have held a gun to my father's head and pulled the trigger? Probably not. Relieving my father's pain at my own hands would have been something that haunted me for the rest of my life. But if I could have snapped my fingers and had his life end immediately and painlessly, I surely would have.

The reason I burden the reader with this depressing account of my father's final days is not to make anyone feel sorry for me or my family. As I said, with the talk about "end of life" associated with the health coverage debate, it's important to remember that while we don’t want people to die because of a bureaucratic denial of medical care, we should not forget a person's right to end his own life when and how he sees fit.

My father died comfortably and pain-free, but not quickly as he wanted. It was because of the complications our society and government pose to those who take "the easy way out" that he chose the more socially acceptable path toward his demise. Had the services of Dr. Jack Kevorkian been legal and available to him, I have no doubt he would have taken advantage of them.

I go to work in the city of Philadelphia every day, and I know the vast and innovative medical community that we are fortunate to have here (mostly because the city's taxes and regulations are uninviting to most other kinds of businesses - but that's a topic for another article). As such, our medical community should be leading the charge in the right-to-die movement. Or at the very least, they should take a stand to nullify or ignore laws and regulations that impede an individual's right to die when and how they choose. Such an observation of this basic human right might have saved my father and my family days of anguish as we fulfilled our obligations according to what is legally acceptable. Robert Reed died on May 3, 2010 at 9:25 a.m. I will miss him every day.

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Articles reflect the views of the authors and not necessarily those of the Philly LP.

Have a letter to the editor, article, event, or suggestion? Send it along to Vice-chair@lpphilly.org! We want our newsletter to fit the interests and needs of our members.

Quick Links:
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Events:
Monthly Meeting
Volunteer on Election Day!
2010 Libertarian National Convention
PrideDay 2010

Libertarian
Minded Events:

LPPhilly Monthly Meeting

Check out our monthly meetings!
The Libertarian Party is about limited government, lower taxes, and more freedom, but it's also about people! The meetings are a great opportunity to meet other local Libertarians and talk about subjects your are particularly interested in, upcoming events, rallies, and more. There's not many Libertarians in Philly so we have to stick together! Our monthly meeting the 3rd Monday of each month at the Raven Lounge (17th and Sansom) at 8p.

Where: The Raven Lounge, 2nd Floor
17th and Sansom Streets
When: May 17, 2010 | 8:00 PM regular members, If you are new please arrive at 7:45pm and meet with an LP officer so we can answer any questions you may have.
Short Description: Get involved, volunteer, or meet up with fellow
libertarian minded folk.

More Info: lpphilly.org
OR: meetup


Volunteer on Election Day!
When: May 18th, 2010
Short Description: The 2010 Pennsylvania Primary is Only Six Weeks Away: We Need Your Help to Ensure a Clean and Fair Election! Become one of Committee of Seventy's Voter Protection Program volunteers and help us resolve problems at polling places and answer voters' questions on Election Day
More Info: Committee of Seventy Website


2010 Libertarian National Convention

Where: St. Louis
When: Memorial Day Weekend
Short Description: Your Libertarian Party will hold its 2010 National Convention in downtown St. Louis at the Renaissance Grand Hotel the weekend of Memorial Day. You might want to use the trip as a summer get-away and enjoy not only the Convention, but other amenities including the Arch, riverboats, baseball, brewery tours with free samples, dining, and American history. Much of this is within walking distance from the hotel.
More Info: GatewaytoLiberty.com
Schedule: Check out the Schedule!
Speakers: Check out the Speakers!
Registraion: Register Now!


PrideDay 2010
Where: Around 13th and Locust towards Penn's Landing
When: Sunday June 13, 2010
Short Description:One of the ONLY events in Philadelphia where the Philadelphia Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community joins together and celebrates as a whole. This is one of the largest networking days for our entire comuunity.
LPPHILLY will have a table at this years event. If you would like to volunteer please email: Vice-chair@lpphilly.org
More Info: Phillypride.org

If you attend a local event, send a review along to Vice-chair@lpphilly.org.


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