Playing with marble
This piece by Jane Claymore first ran on the op-ed page of the Charleston Gazette on June 29, 2006. Blogged here, comments are invited below
West Virginians are being kicked off the home assistance roles in record numbers, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Elevators don't work in two high-rise office buildings in the Capitol Complex, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Big Pharma has seduced state government regarding drug prices and advertising, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Children in poverty don't receive dental care, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Women are being killed in record numbers due to domestic violence in West Virginia, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
The state museum at the Cultural Center is still an incomplete mess, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
The state's natural beauty is under assault on all fronts: watersheds, viewsheds and lightsheds, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
ATV deaths look to pass last year's record, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Better miner safety laws have been defanged on the federal level, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
I reckon you get the picture. What I want to know is, where'd he come from that he learned the people of the state owe him a life of luxury in office? This governor of ours, whose wife has been so voluble about how ashamed she is about living in the Governor's Mansion, as ragged as she allegedly found it, has a habit of living beyond the taste and means of the state: the biggest boat on the river, request for a bigger airplane than anything in the current fleet (which cannot be maintained adequately as it is.) He says he's parked his big SUV since gas prices shot up.
Call me a snob. (I've been called worse and those epithets weren't true, either.) This outfit in the mansion is tacky, vulgar, ostentatious and outrageous beyond belief - $29,000 in plasma TVs was, I thought, the worst it could get. Proves I'm an optimist. Busting contracts to elude purchasing rules to a local draper (Wallpapers in Stock) who also supplies booze for parties, and has been held up and fined in front of the attorney general, shows that Manchin gets lousy advice. Tell me: Is the pseudo-bankrupt who did not declare her interest in the governor's yacht still crashing at the mansion? The Gov declared: "This poor girl has nothing." Reckon he forgot about the yacht she forgot in her bankruptcy filing. He took her in. How much is that bit of charity costing taxpayers?
Myself, I'll be darned if I want to pay $1.8 million more than the $1.5 million declared necessary to fix up the mansion. Nor do I want to pay for a banquet hall on the mansion's back 40, since it'll wind up costing 150 percent more than he says. And his wife, the first lady, should be terribly ashamed now about bath requirements. What's next, 40 gallons of ass' milk, like Cleopatra?
--- By Jane Claymore
West Virginians are being kicked off the home assistance roles in record numbers, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Elevators don't work in two high-rise office buildings in the Capitol Complex, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Big Pharma has seduced state government regarding drug prices and advertising, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Children in poverty don't receive dental care, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Women are being killed in record numbers due to domestic violence in West Virginia, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
The state museum at the Cultural Center is still an incomplete mess, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
The state's natural beauty is under assault on all fronts: watersheds, viewsheds and lightsheds, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
ATV deaths look to pass last year's record, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
Better miner safety laws have been defanged on the federal level, but the governor needs marble bathtubs.
I reckon you get the picture. What I want to know is, where'd he come from that he learned the people of the state owe him a life of luxury in office? This governor of ours, whose wife has been so voluble about how ashamed she is about living in the Governor's Mansion, as ragged as she allegedly found it, has a habit of living beyond the taste and means of the state: the biggest boat on the river, request for a bigger airplane than anything in the current fleet (which cannot be maintained adequately as it is.) He says he's parked his big SUV since gas prices shot up.
Call me a snob. (I've been called worse and those epithets weren't true, either.) This outfit in the mansion is tacky, vulgar, ostentatious and outrageous beyond belief - $29,000 in plasma TVs was, I thought, the worst it could get. Proves I'm an optimist. Busting contracts to elude purchasing rules to a local draper (Wallpapers in Stock) who also supplies booze for parties, and has been held up and fined in front of the attorney general, shows that Manchin gets lousy advice. Tell me: Is the pseudo-bankrupt who did not declare her interest in the governor's yacht still crashing at the mansion? The Gov declared: "This poor girl has nothing." Reckon he forgot about the yacht she forgot in her bankruptcy filing. He took her in. How much is that bit of charity costing taxpayers?
Myself, I'll be darned if I want to pay $1.8 million more than the $1.5 million declared necessary to fix up the mansion. Nor do I want to pay for a banquet hall on the mansion's back 40, since it'll wind up costing 150 percent more than he says. And his wife, the first lady, should be terribly ashamed now about bath requirements. What's next, 40 gallons of ass' milk, like Cleopatra?
--- By Jane Claymore
13 Comments:
Okay, why not have a "Bust on the Manchins" blog. Seemingly, that is what the Local Art Blog has become.
I personally agree with all of the criticism of the Guv here and am glad to see him taken to task for his outrageous behavior.
But, can we have some discussion of Art here?
This loose cannon would be interested to know which direction you wish me to roll/crash. The entire point of art crtics taking the Gov to task is because he has proven no interest in either Fine Art or Craft.
Dear Action Jackson,
We are a full-service blog provider at thegazz.com and are hoping to roll out another arts-related blog soon called "OnLocalArt": reviews of shows, chats with artists, news of exhibits, contests, gallery impressions, etc. I am looking for potential candidates (1 to 3 people) to write that blog. Must have good and varied taste in art, able and willing to get out to shows and cover the arts locally, but without favor and advocating on behalf of the local arts scene health. Or lack thereof. Interested folks should email gazz@wvgazette.com with the Subject line: gazzblog: OnLocalArt, and write a sample blogpost or two. Details: call douglas imbrogno at 348-3017
If Jane Claymore represents the interests of Kanawha County schoolchildren, I truly feel sorry for the next generation of West Virginians. But what makes her article so, truly, laughable is that the thing she attacks the Manchin's for is exactly what she wishes she had. She is a member of the WVEA which asks for a raise every 7 days from the legislature. Now the way I understand it is that every time they do receive an undeserved raise, it comes out of the taxpayers' pockets in this state. And to Jane Waldo Claymore, this is perfectly fine. Just tax people so I can have more money. But if the Manchin's use private money (do the research and you'll see that no tax dollars were spent for their private quarters) well, that's just ostentacious and tacky. No, what this comes down to is petty jealousy. I don't have it, so you shouldn't either. Grow up! If you want to make more money to purchase a marble bathtub, stop being a teacher. It doesn't pay enough! I always thought teaching was a labor of love, but after reading poor Jane's article I understand that sentiment couldn't be farther from the truth.
That's right Jane - quit being a teacher if you want expensive things. Instead, you should run for Governor and then get "donations" from people wanting to buy their way into your favor. The Manchin's are a disgrace.
Typical southern west virginia mentality. If I don't have it, you shouldn't either. Forget about working hard and I am excluding teachers from this statement (only part time job with full time benefits I know of.) Oh, I just read where they're asking for another raise. I'll take the Manchin administration anyday over the past 33 governor's this state has had. The outside world is finally noticing and listening to us and it surely wasn't due to people like Claymore. Jealous people of this state are the true disgrace.
The budget on the renovation project is already up to $3 million. But Mrs. Manchin says they never could have predicted the true cost. "Until they really got back in to the wall to look at the surface of things, they was no way to indicate the depth and breadth of the problems."
From crumbling chimneys to a rotten roof, fire code violations to a security system that didn't always work, the First Lady says she and Governor Joe Manchin had to make a choice. "Put back the house in the shape it should be in. And we opted to do what we felt was the best thing to do for the home."
Mrs. Manchin says they've faced many challenges and have gotten quite a few surprises during the renovation like finding out what was behind one of the upper floors. "They added a vanity and to do that they had ripped out the back of a fireplace. And that's not a safe thing to do because they were still using the fireplace."
The mansion was built 81 years ago and the First Lady says unfortunately it hasn’t seen many updates or TLC in the last 50 years. The Manchins felt it was imperative the renovations were done immediately and without cutting corners to protect the structure. "It's a beautiful, beautiful home. It's part of West Virginia. We want to be sure during this administration everything we do is to protect, preserve for future generations, the beauty the architects envisioned."
Hey Jane,
Can I have some ass' milk? I just like to say ass' milk. I think Cleopatra was hot!
(do the research and you'll see that no tax dollars were spent for their private quarters)
The Governor's mansion is not "private quarters." It's a public building.
The executive mansion is being built with public money. The governor donated some money left over from his campaign, but the bulk is public money. However, the house really needed redecorating - it really wasn't that nice on the inside. But Jane, yours, surely, is not to complain continuously, yours should be to promote the arts. You sound way too bitter.
The first floor is open to the public. The second floor is for the family and is not open to the public.
The first floor is open to the public. The second floor is for the family and is not open to the public.
That's not what I meant. It's a government building, not privately owned by the Manchins, so it's entirely valid to examine how much they are spending and what they are spending it on, even in the portion of the mansion that is not open to the public.
You might disagree that they are spending too much money or spending money on the wrong things, but the basis of your disagreement can't be that it's their "private quarters" and they should be able to do as they please.
Whenever an elected official moves into to a "Government" residence they are afforded the opportunity to decorate to their liking. In the Manchins' case, no Governor before ever cared enough to perform any preventive maintenance and the house is in the state it is today. I, personally applaud them for doing the job correctly. It is so easy to piece meal, but they're contractors are going to root of every problem and this grand ole house is going to be restored to truly showcase this as West Virginia's Home. I can't wait to tour the mansion once it is complete.
Post a Comment
<< Home