With the mid-term election on us, the Dog would like to offer up some insight on some of the ballot language you’ll see next Tuesday at the polls. While most of the language is straightforward, voting for this candidate or that, some of the resolutions can be a little confusing.

This Dog’s ballot didn’t reflect a red wave or a blue wave either way, as some would assume. We cast a vote for the incumbent Congressman here in the 5th District for a variety of reasons, most notably Congressman Cleaver and his staff have been immeasurably helpful in assisting us in navigating the labyrinth of ridiculousness and stupidity that is the Internal Revenue Service over the past 15 months. For that, the Dog and his family are eternally grateful. We also cast a vote for Ingrid Burnett in the Missouri House race for the 19th District. Representative Burnett is a stalwart champion of public education in Missouri.

On the County level however, there is some sneaky ballot language to look out for and nobody in any media we know of has spoken of these little gems tucked away into an already long and confusing ballot. In Questions 1, 2, 3 and 4, be sure to look for the specific language that states: “shall provide a salary increase for…” in the question. That specific wording is strategically placed in different areas of the previously mentioned County questions and it is done so by design. Whoever is responsible for this ballot language is depending on you, the voter, to be too cross-eyed from reading all the rest of the prior ballot language that you’ll give them carte blanche with a Yes vote by not reading any of the county amendments.

For the record, that pay raise in mentioned in those questions, if approved would be doled out as follows. County Executive pay would go from $145,350 to $158,848, a roughly 10% increase. County Prosecutor pay would go from $133,432 to $158,848, a roughly 16% increase. The Sheriff’s annual compensation would go from $103,771 to $158,848, a hefty 35% pay raise and County Legislator pay would soar from $34,881 to $49,907, roughly a 70% pay raise. Do you know anyone in the private sector getting this kind of an increase? Yeah, we don’t either.

If you think the present pay grade is enough for a Public Servant, then you need to vote No on the above questions. On the other hand, if you think Public Service is a way to feather your own nest, kind of like present Sheriff Forte did at the Police Department with his mid-six-figure golden parachute, then by all means, vote Yes on these questions.

Additionally, two Court Judges to give a No vote to are Judge Mary Francis Weir and Judge Richard T. Standridge. Judge Weir, as you might recall, is the judge who rolled our ol’ buddy Tyler Sutton out of jail back in 2014, allowing him to continue to terrorize the Scarritt neighborhood from his base of operations at 426 S. Gladstone Blvd. Also deserving of a No vote is Judge Richard T. Standridge. Judge Standridge last summer thought it was okey-dokey to grant a bond reduction to Deandre Buchanan. Buchanan is the notorious burglar who, along with his alleged girlfriend Taylor Murrell, burglarized dozens of homes in Pendleton Heights and Scarritt during the spring and summer of 2018. Once the Judge approved his bond reduction, he quickly made bail, cut off his monitoring bracelet and went right back to his old ways and haunts in Northeast. The Dog doesn’t think either of these Judges deserve a Yes vote. send ‘em packin’.

The last question on Tuesday’s ballot is the Library question. The Dog recommends a Yes vote on this one despite the fact a permanent fix lies in the hands of our give-away Council and Mayor who continue to approve TIF project after TIF project that continues to rob public education and public libraries of funding, then with a look of faux-shock on their face proclaim their innocence. Sadly, the question is necessary at this point and we certainly don’t look for any paradigm shift from the 26th floor in the near future. The Dog votes “Do Pass” on this one.

Now, this is an editorial and this is just one dog’s opinion. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, and the most important thing is that we all show up at the polls on November 6 and exercise our right to vote.