The St Louis Contrarian

Providing Independent and Intelligent Insight on St. Louis Public Policy Issues

16 Apr 2021

An Unlooked Factor in Police Reform

There has been much important discussion recently about the need for police to stop pulling people over for minor offenses, particularly, traffic issues. One wonders why this happens when there is little threat to public safety from these issues. An important factor is overlooked. All police departments, large and small derive significant income from traffic fines, interest on those fines etc. Somehow we need to figure out a method of municipal finance that is not reliant on traffic fines. Written by Paul Dribin

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16 Apr 2021

Police Reform in St Louis

www.stltoday.com/opinion/columnists/antonio-french/antonio-french-rare-opportunity-exists-for-police-reform-just-as-many-turn-to-defund-abolish/article_466be1b3-8c90-597a-b1b6-69343d0d0732.html

Good column as always by Antonio French in Post Dispatch

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15 Apr 2021

Page and Clancy Need to Answer

www.stltoday.com/opinion/editorial/editorial-county-taxpayers-must-demand-answers-as-bill-comes-due-for-failed-power-grab/article_9e958d48-7292-54d3-974a-61ac6ede6b20.html

A good editorial from Post-Dispatch. County Executive Sam Page and council member Lisa Clancy mounted in essence a coup to deliver the county council leadership to Clancy. The courts overturned this effort but there are substantial legal fees. Page and Clancy need to be held accountable. written by Paul Dribin

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10 Apr 2021

St. Louis and the Region

A colleague of mine posted on Facebook that he was happy to live in the City of St. Louis because he could vote for the mayor. I replied that to those of us in the county it doesn’t make a difference. He responded that the city drives the region. I disagree. The city makes up a minority of the population of the region and does drive things with regard to culture and crime. We go into the city for concerts, ball games, trips to the zoo etc. But we also hesitate to go into the city because of crime. This also affects where we choose to live where crime and non performing schools drive people out of the city. We have woke people in the city who are living under the illusion that St. Louis could become like Seattle if it only adopted progressive policies. Not true. Written by Paul Dribin

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09 Apr 2021

great Column by Antonio French on Problems Facing St. Louis

www.stltoday.com/opinion/columnists/antonio-french/antonio-french-st-louis-enters-into-a-grand-experiment/article_b15ccdd6-abd0-5e7b-8419-ff7ec7b92ea9.html

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08 Apr 2021

New Mayor in St. Louis 2

I am cautiously pessimistic about the new major of St. Louis, Tashaura Jones. She has run the City Treasurer’s Office in a very personal political manner; hiring contractors to large contractors who were friends and without bidding. I hope she can do better as Mayor and bring people together. The job is very tough for anyone. Crime is rampant, schools are a mess, population has declined, and the city is a mess. Written by Paul Dribin

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08 Apr 2021

Mayoral election in St Louis

www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/jones-meets-with-krewson-as-transition-to-new-st-louis-city-administration-begins/article_4dab390b-4c46-5c7d-b9ee-f43a8b346222.html

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06 Apr 2021

Medicaid Expansion in Missouri

The voters of Missouri last year enacted a constitutional amendment that would expand Medicaid in Missouri in line with the Affordable Care Act. The Covid Relief Act recently passed by congress made this expansion more attractive. The Republican controlled Missouri legislature voted to not spend the funds to enact the law. To me this is unconstitutional and must be challenged in court. In any case the will of the people was ignored. Bad stuff. Written by Paul Dribin

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02 Apr 2021

St. Louis Can Benefit From Biden Infrastructure Plan

www.stltoday.com/business/columns/david-nicklaus/nicklaus-bidens-relief-bill-was-a-short-term-fix-st-louis-should-prepare-now-for/article_f0b46315-8e75-52d4-8b96-cb02b10f29cc.html

An excellent article as always from David Nicklaus of the Post. St. Louis needs to have a well planned program.

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31 Mar 2021

Infrastructure Bill

The proposal from President Biden includes substantial funding for affordable housing. These funds include funds for weatherization, energy efficiency, and public housing improvements. This is certainly a welcome development. Paul Dribin

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