(via ExtremeTech)

What is Home Rule? Home Rule is basically forming a new township charter, or constitution, instead of using the existing governance rules set down by the state. Instead of the normal 3 person township supervisor committee, any number of permutations can be decided upon, and the main selling point, allows lots of issues to be placed on the voting ballot as initiatives or referendums.

Why are we voting on Home Rule? Basically, because the township supervisors voted to allow Walmart to Build a Super Center on Capehorn Rd. This is about 4 miles from my house. There are already 3 Walmarts within 20 minutes driving distance from my house, one of which is only about 10 minutes away. An article in the York Daily Record earlier this year outlines a lot of the complaints about Walmart. The article doesn’t appear to be on YDR’s site anymore, but the google cache is available.

What the Home Rule group wants, is since we can’t vote out current supervisors for a few more years, we can change the rules of the game and take a lot of the decision making away from them.

The meeting tonight was conducted by Ken Johnson, a representative from the Governor’s Center for Local Government. He gave a very good overview on what Home Rule does and does not allow. Home Rule does not allow law changes that would change or conflict with state laws. Home Rule does not give the Township any say over school board matters. Home Rule does not allow for recall or removal of Elected officials. Home Rule does not govern changes to zoning rules.

So, with all those restrictions, what is it good for? Home Rule’s main benefit as opposed to the tradition manner that a type 2 township is governed, is adding more community hearings and formally add petitions as direct method of adding a referendums to the ballot.

The ballot question I’ll be voting on in 2 weeks is this: Should the township form a commission to study the possibility of home rule, and submit a recommendation to form a charter in 9 months. If the commission does not recommend the township proceeds with looking at home rule, the issue is dead for the next 4 years. If they decide that the township should proceed, a number of public hearings will result in the drafting of a town charter, eventually a vote on that charter, and a transition period to the new rules.

Will all those changes prevent the Walmart from being built? No. The current supervisors could stop the Walmart development if they wanted. Home Rule won’t even get rid of the current supervisors. Even if the new charter eliminates the supervisor’s positions, they will still carry out their full term of office. The person from the state that gave the presentation on Home Rule indicated that it’s the electorates job to vote for people who they trust to do what is in the community’s best interest. Changing to a Home Rule charter won’t change that responsibility. That said, a charter with a formalized petition and referendum process would allow a bit of a end-run around whatever elected officials want, assuming you can get the votes.

The lawyer that is working with the Home Rule committee spoke a little at the meeting. He came off as a little rude, but I think that’s because he was having a bit of fight with the Township solicitor. He made some very good points and his website has a lot of good public works information.

So, what do I think of Home Rule? I really am not sure at this point. Home Rule allows the possibility of more referendums and petitions, which I think is a good thing. But if we elected competent Supervisors to begin with, there wouldn’t really be a need for a Home Rule Charter. Do I think the Walmart can actually be stopped, I sure hope so. I’d rather they build a business park so their would be some more white collar jobs in the area. Most of my neighbors and I commute to Baltimore for decent jobs. I definitely need to research this some more.

Relevant Links:

• More than you ever wanted to know about PA township regulation
• York Dispatch article on tonight’s meeting
• YDR article on earlier Home Rule committee meeting

The normal Orange terror signs were on, asking people to report ” suspicious” activity… but i also noticed a non-descript chevy sedan with 2 guys in military fatigues driving up to, and slowly passing box trucks. It looked like they were noting license plates and looking under body carriages…

Odd, huh? I wonder if there was a tip, or is this normal “Orange Terror” behavior?

– posted from my t3

The statistical risk of humans getting wiped out in the next 100 years due to a super volcano or asteroid or comet impact is 1 in 455. How does that relate? You’re 10 times more likely to get wiped out by a civilization-ending event in the next 100 years than you are getting killed in a commercial airline crash.

The most dangerous thing we do in Houston, of course, is drive our automobiles to work every day, so you know how dangerous that is and how many people get killed doing that. But wiping out civilization. …

It’s not the point that we should move (to another planet). It’s the point that the technologies that we need to live and work in other places in the solar system will help us survive on Earth when these bad things happen.

(via /.)

(via BoingBoing)

(via, you guessed it, Hork)

And next, we have what’s got to be the geekiest thing I’ve seen on Jeopardy.

F*ck The South: wow, he’s angry.

and a little more on the motivational side: Get Your War On.

PS: Mom, if you reading this, don’t click on those.

PSS: I warned you.