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ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO, TRIUMPHS: 75 – 25%, WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAXSubmitted by Satinder P S Puri on Tue, 11/03/2015 - 23:50.
ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO, TRIUMPHS: 75 - 25%! WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX -- PRODUCT OF A CORRUPT SYSTEM IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO THAT WORKS FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE RICH & POWERFUL!
ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY OHIO, TRIUMPHS: 75-25%. THE ELECTION WAS HELD ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015. THE INEQUITABLE TAX ON THE POOR WILL CONTINUE FOR ANOTHER TEN YEARS: 2017-2026. WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX! PRODUCT OF A CORRUPT SYSTEM IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO THAT WORKS FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE RICH & POWERFUL!
CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO:BALLOT LANGUAGE OF ISSUE 8: Proposed Extension of Excise Tax on Cigarettes for Cuyahoga Arts and Culture County of Cuyahoga A majority affirmative vote is necessary for passage. Shall an excise tax on the sale of cigarettes at wholesale continue to be levied throughout Cuyahoga County for the benefit of Cuyahoga Arts and Culture for the purposes of making grants to support operating or capital expenses of arts or cultural organizations in Cuyahoga County, to defray the costs of acquiring, constructing, equipping, furnishing, improving, enlarging, renovating, remodeling or maintaining an artistic or cultural facility, and to meet operating expenses, at a rate of 15 mills per cigarette, which amounts to 1.5 cents per cigarette, for 10 years?
HOW CUYAHOGA COUNTY VOTED ON ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015: Registered Voters: 840,662 Yes Votes: 228,725 No Votes: 75, 187 Yes & No Votes (filled both bubbles): 11,977 No Preference (did not fill any bubble): 104 Total Votes Cast: 315, 993 (38% of Registered Voters) Registered Voters who stayed home: 524,669 (62%)
HOW DID YOU VOTE ON ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY OHIO, ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015? I, Satinder P. S. Puri, community activist, senior citizen, retired structural engineer, and a volunteer teacher -- voted, NO! Don't smoke but love the Arts. Need fair funding for the Arts where we all pay -- not just taxing cigarette smokers for an activity we all enjoy. This is a Social Justice Isuue.
Unfortunately, for the rich and powerful in Cuyahoga County -- money is more addictive than nicotine and they love the Sin Tax for the Arts -- or to put it directly -- they are in a conjugal embrace with the Sin Tax for the Arts. According to them -- to hell with the poor, young, and uneducated -- who for the most part tend to be cigarette smokers. I campaigned, unsuccessfully, with my $5 VOTE NO ON SIN TAX signs all over Cuyahoga County. I demonstrated 98 times for a period of over 4-months for a total of 339 hours which is the equivalent of walking over 1,000 miles -- and enjoyed every minute of it. The proponents of the Sin Tax waged an estimated $1.6 million campaign with the help of the powerful Arts establishment, the business community, the well-oiled machine of the Cuyahoga Democratic party, and sustained propoganda from The Plain Dealer. Steven Litt, eminent Art & Architectural critic of The Plain Dealer never reported one word I said at the critical Cuyahoga County Council meeting of June 23, 2015 but covered all the five proponents – who for the most part represented the rich and powerful creating the wrong impression that there was no opposition to the Sin Tax. THIS IS WHAT MR. LITT DID NOT REPORT ONE-WORD ABOUT: ONE QUESTION FOR COUNCIL MEMBERS: At the June 23, 2015 meeting, Community Activist, Satinder P. S. Puri who had spoken at six Cuyahoga County Council meetings opposing the 2015 Sin Tax, (VOTE NO ON SIN TAX ON NOV. 3, 2015 Campaign) stated: “Mr. President, I have one question for our Council members pertaining to the issue of Social Justice. I will appreciate a response during your discussion on the subject Resolution: “Is it fair that in Cuyahoga County only cigarette smokers should be taxed to support Arts and Culture – an activity that all of us enjoy and benefit from? “ Two members responded: Councilmen Germana and Schron said that the Sin Tax was not perfect but did not address the issue of fairness as stated in the question. Four other members spoke: President Brady and Council members: Conwell, Simon, and Miller but did not respond to the question. Four members did not speak: Greenspan, Brown, Gallagher and Hairston. Eleventh member was absent: Vice President Jones. UNANIMOUS VOTE: All ten members present voted YES. The entire discussion lasted less than 10 minutes. AND STEVEN LITT, THE PLAIN DEALER REPORTER, NEVER REPORTED ON THE QUESTION AND THE RESPONSES, NOR ANYTHING SAID BY ACTIVIST, SATINDER P. S. PURI AT THE JUNE 23, 2015 CUYAHOGA COUNTY COUNCIL MEETING -- WHERE MR. LITT REPORTED ONLY ON THE FIVE PROPONENTS OF THE SIN TAX -- BUT DID NOT REPORT ONE WORD SAID BY THE LONE OPPONENT (SATINDER P. S. PURI). WAS THE PLAIN DEALER IN BED WITH THE RICH AND POWERFUL IN CLEVELAND, OHIO, TO PROMOTE THE 2015 SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS?
Mr. Litt never recognized my campaign and kept on repeating that there was no organized or no visible and organized opposition to the Sin Tax. So far, Mr. Litt who never reported one word I said at the June 23, 2015 meeting has stated six times on his blog on Cleveland.com: “No formal opposition to the levy has yet emerged.” On June 23 “No organized opposition to the renewal has emerged.” (on July 23 “No organized opposition to the tax has yet emerged.”) (on July 31) “No formal opposition to Issue 8 has emerged” (on September 27) “No visible organized opposition to the levy renewal has emerged.” (on October 15) “No visible organized opposition to Issue 8 has emerged.” (On October 23)
WAS DAN MOULTHROP, CEO CITY CLUB ("CITADEL OF FREE SPEECH") IN CLEVELAND, OHIO, IN BED WITH THE ARTS ESTABLISHMENT AT THE ONE-SIDED PANEL DISCUSSION (NO OPPOSITION) HELD AT THE CITY CLUB ON SEPTEMBER 28, 2015? My VOTE NO ON SIN TAX campaign was denied a seat at the table at the September 28 one-sided panel discussion on the Sin Tax held at the City Club which was recorded and is available on YouTube. You can do a google search to locate the link.
According to Mr. Litt, Dan Moulthrop, CEO of City Club stated on September 28: a. Dan Moulthrop, the CEO of the club, said the nonprofit organized Monday's event as a simple forum with two advocates of Issue 8 instead of a pro-and-con debate because "there's no visible, organized opposition" to the measure. b. Instead, he said the club asked Mitchell to ask questions about the tax that opponents would be likely to ask. c. Moulthrop said the club recently received a $15,000 grant from Cuyahoga Arts and Culture, the political subdivision that awards money from the cigarette tax revenues. None of the above statements are on the YouTube video.
 Dan Moulthrop, CEO of City Club – the citadel of free speech -- cannot explain – despite multiple e-mails and a certified letter how the CEO concluded that there was no visible, organized opposition to the Sin Tax -- consideing that the VOTE NO ON SIN TAX campaign was being reported on twelve different facebook sites and also on my blog at REALNEO; that I had spoken multiple times at Cuyahoga County Council meetings and the proceedings are on Youtube; that Fred Bidwell (one of the panelists) and Karen Gahl-Mills (Executive Director of Cuyahoga Arts & Culture) were aware of my campaign, and that I had campaigned heavily all over Cuyahoga county, and that my VOTE NO ON SIN TAX signs had been seen by thousands. It appeared that both Mr. Litt and CEO of City Club (Dan Moulthrop) were reading from the same notes. DID DAN MOULTHROP, CITY CLUB CEO ("CITADEL OF FREE SPEECH") COLLUDE WITH STEVEN LITT, ESTEEMED ART & ARCHITECTURAL CRITIC OF THE PLAIN DEALER TO DENY A SEAT AT THE TABLE TO THE OPPOSITION -- THE VOTE NO ON SIN TAX CAMPAIGN?
WAS DAN MOULTHROP, CEO CITY CLUB IN CLEVELAND, OHIO, IN BED WITH THE ARTS ESTABLISHMENT? COMPOSITE PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE VOTE NO ON SIN TAX CAMPAIGN! DID VOTE NO ON SIN TAX CAMPAIGN LOOK LIKE AM ORGANIZED OPPOSITION TO THE 2015 SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS?
WAS DAN MOULTHROP, CEO CITY CLUB IN CLEVELAND, OHIO, IN BED WITH THE ARTS ESTABLISHMENT? ACCORDING TO MR. MOULTHROP, THE COMPOSITE SLIDE FROM THE VOTE NO ON SIN TAX CAMPAIGN WAS NOT "VISIBLE, ORGANIZED OPPOSITION" TO THE 2015 SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS?
CLEVELAND ACTIVIST, SATINDER P. S. PURI, ON THE RADIO! IDEASTREAM WCPN 90.3 SOUND OF IDEAS, WED., NOV. 4, 2015 ELECTION WRAP UP WITH HOST MIKE MCINTYRE. ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO, PASSED BY A VOTE OF 75 TO 25% ON NOVEMBER, 3, 2015. LINK: http://ideastream-production.s3.amazonaws.com/audio/2015/11/1104soi.mp3 NOTE: Discussion of Issue 8 starts after 23:40 with Karen Gahl-Mills, Executive Director of Cuyahoga Arts & Culture. TEXT OF MY COMMENTS: “Good Morning! I was actively opposing the Sin Tax for the Arts. I demonstrated for nearly 350 hours all over Cuyahoga County with my sign which is the equivalent of walking nearly a thousand miles. I was treated very unfairly by the media – not recognized by The Plain Dealer – never reported anything I did about my campaign. I was not given a seat at the table at the discussion held at City Club. What I am saying is – this whole issue is a disgrace to our community – it’s providing support for the Arts on the backs of the young, poor, and uneducated. This is definitely not something that is good for our community.”
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HOW THE PROPONENTS OF ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, WON ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015 IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO? WITH AN ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND AN ARMY OF VOLUNTEERS! WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX! HOW THE PROPONENTS OF ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, WON ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015 IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO? WITH AN ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND TONS OF MATERIAL! WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX! HOW THE PROPONENTS OF ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, WON ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015 IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO? WITH AN ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND THOUSANDS OF YARD SIGNS! WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!
HOW THE PROPONENTS OF ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, WON ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015 IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO? WITH AN ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND THOUSANDS OF YARD SIGNS! Photograph is outside the Cleveland Museum of Art. WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!
HOW THE PROPONENTS OF ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, WON ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015 IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO? WITH AN ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND THOUSANDS OF YARD SIGNS! Photograph is outside the Cleveland Orchestra. WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!
HOW THE PROPONENTS OF ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, WON ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015 IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO? WITH AN ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND THOUSANDS OF YARD SIGNS! Photograph is outside the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!
HOW THE PROPONENTS OF ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, WON ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015 IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO? WITH AN ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND ADVERTISING IN PLAYHOUSE SQUARE. WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!
HOW THE PROPONENTS OF ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, WON ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015 IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO? WITH AN ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND ADVERTISING IN PLAYHOUSE SQUARE. WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!
HOW THE PROPONENTS OF ISSUE 8, SIN TAX FOR THE ARTS, WON ON NOVEMBER 3, 2015 IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO? WITH AN ESTIMATED $1,6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND GET OUT THE YES VOTE ON ISSUE 8! SLIDE SHOWS VOLUNTEERS FROM THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA AND THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART WORKING THE PHONES. BOTH THE ORCHESTRA AND THE MUSEUM CONTRIBUTED TO THE ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION CAMPAIGN AND EXPECT TO MAKE A KILLING ON THEIR INVESTMENTS. THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM CONTRIBUTED $145,000 AND EXPECTS TO MAKE AROUND $12 MILLION -- A RETURN OF OVER 80 TIMES. NOT BAD! THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA CONTRIBUTED $25,000 AND EXPECTS TO MAKE AROUND $15 MILLION -- A RETURN OF OVER 600 TIMES. NOT BAD! WHAT ABOUT PLAYHOUSE SQUARE? PLAYHOUSE SQUARE CONTRIBUTED $155,000 AND EXPECTS TO MAKE AROUND $13 MILLION -- A RETURN OF OVER 80 TIMES. NOT BAD! THE ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME CONTRIBUTED $40,000 AND EXPECTS TO MAKE AROUND $8 MILLION -- A RETURN OF OVER 1900 TIMES. NOT BAD! NOTE: IDEASTREAM HAS RECEIVED $7.9 MILLION SINCE 2007. NO INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE, AT PRESENT, IF THEY MADE A CONTRIBUTION TO THE PRO-SIN TAX CAMPAIGN. WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!
CORPORATE WELFARE TO CLEVALND'S ARTS' ESTABLISHMENTS (2007-2016) PAID BY THE CIGARETTE SMOKERS OF CUYAHOGA COUNTY -- WHO FOR THE MOST PART TEND TO BE POOR, YOUNG, AND UNEDUCATED! For the ten year period: 2007-2016, the Cigarette Smokers of Cuyahoga County will have provided a total of $125 million for Arts & Culture. Of this total -- $57.4 million – nearly 50% was distributed to five organizations. These five organizations had assets totaling nearly $1.4 billion. . The five organizations with their assets and grants received are listed below: *The Cleveland Orchestra with assets of $250 million received $15.3 million. *Playhouse Square with assets of $99.2 million received $12.7 million. *The Cleveland Museum of Art with assets of $896 million received $11.8 million. *Ideastream with assets of $43 million received $7.9 million. *The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with assets of $88 million received $7.7 million. Note: The Sin Tax revenues for the next ten years (2007-2026) are projected to be around $100 million so the payments may be less. As the listed Arts' Establishments are very powerful. they may not settle for reduced payments. Nevertheless, most of the establishments listed above made contributions to the estimated $1.6 million campaign. So they will be making a killing on their investments at the expense of the cigarette smokers who for the most part tend to be poor, young, and undeucated. The Arts's establishments in Cleveland, Ohio, have no shame because money is more addictive than nicotine. WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!
WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX! A disgrace to our community, it's providing support for the Arts in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, for another ten years (2017-2026) on the backs of the poor, young, and uneducated.
WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX! EXPLOITATION OF THE POOR CONTINUES! FUNDING ARTS & CULTURE IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO, FOR ANOTHER 10-YEARS (2017-2026) ON THE BACKS OF CIGARETTE SMOKERS -- WHO FOR THE MOST PART TEND TO BE POOR, YOUNG, AND UNEDUCATED. 
 PARTY TIME!
PROPONENTS OF THE SIN TAX
CELEBRATING THEIR VICTORY AFTER SPENDING AN ESTIMATED $1.6 MILLION ON THEIR CAMPAIGN!
WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!
EXPLOITATION OF THE POOR CONTINUES!
FUNDING ARTS & CULTURE IN CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO, FOR ANOTHER 10-YEARS (2017-2026) ON THE THE BACKS OF CIGARETTE SMOKERS – WHO FOR THE MOST PART TEND TO BE POOR, YOUNG, AND UNEDUCATED!
  ARTS & CULTURE WORKS,
in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, on the backs pf the young, poor, and uneducated -- who are much likely to be smokers.
This is a Social Justice Issue.
WELCOME JIMMY DIMORA SIN TAX!  
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