[Vision2020] NSA, taxes, and downtown property

[Joan Opyr]

Donovan writes in response to Betsy (who knows a thing or six about 
downtown businesses):

'No Betsy, the difference is that it is a religion that people disagree 
with. Stop pretending. If it was about paying property taxes you would 
be complaining about the 53 locations in central Moscow that do not pay 
property taxes. And by the way, NSA does pay taxes and contribute to 
the city coffers."

First, the one and only reason NSA pays any property taxes is because 
two local citizens, Rose Huskey and Saundra Lund, petitioned the Latah 
County Board of Equalization to reconsider NSA's and Anselm House's 
tax-exempt status.  Doug Wilson and associates fought tooth and nail to 
avoid paying their fair share to the county coffers and, had Rose and 
Saundra not taken an interest in this matter, Doug would still be 
skating freely on the backs of other downtown businesses.  I apologize 
in advance to my Christian friends for using this expression, but it's 
high time Doug got off the cross and stopped playing martyr.  It's 
disingenuous and unseemly.  He is running a collection of businesses 
downtown; not a church.  The Kirk, Donovan, is not located on either 
Main Street or Washington.  It meets on Sundays in the Logos School 
Field House, not far from your uncle's store, Tri-State.  You might the 
Kirk a visit sometime and perhaps attend a service -- if you haven't 
already.

Second, I suggest, Donovan, that you take your ten fat toes out of your 
very wide mouth and apologize to Betsy Dickow.  She pretends nothing.  
She has worked at Bookpeople for more years than you've been able to 
speak let alone type your drivel, and she knows from downtown business. 
  She also knows quite a bit about religious persecution; she's been 
fighting it all of her life.  And when I speak of religious 
persecution, Donovan, I mean the real thing, not this nonsense Doug has 
manufactured for the convenience of his collection devil-may-care, 
tax-avoiding businesses.

As for those "53" locations that don't pay property taxes -- what, 
exactly, are they?  Why don't you get up off your keister and ask Joel 
Plaskon where he got that number?  Then, once you have a list of names 
and addresses, why don't you get back to us?  You see, I think you'll 
find that Joel pulled that number out of his . . . hat.  He has no idea 
how many tax-exempt businesses are operating downtown, and that means 
neither do you.

Joan Opyr/Auntie Establishment
www.auntie-establishment.com

PS: Donovan objects to Rose involving herself in Moscow city politics 
because, technically, she lives in the county.  Rose lives in the 
Moscow zipcode, but she is not able to vote in city elections.  Neither 
am I.  I would ask Donovan, while he's quizzing Joel about the number 
of tax-exempt businesses downtown, that he also ask him which city 
employees actually live in the city, and which live elsewhere, say, 
across the border in Washington?  Many municipalities require that city 
employees making municipal recommendations/decisions actually live in 
the cities that are affected by their work.  Moscow, I'm sorry to 
report, does not make that requirement.  Perhaps it should.