Rural Tompkins County

“Cornithaca County” Book Preview – “Crocodile Tears” Hopscotch

The Victim’s Fault of “being in the wrong place at the wrong time” could very well refer to Cornithaca County in 2020: where the elite of Revealed Church of Secular Self-interest believe that goodness is not a way of life, but a way to make a very good living.

In a county that practices outreach as a way take, not to give, the poor rural families are being forced out by high property taxes and repressive municipal codes while its government concerns itself with creating a template for How People Must Live. Cornithaca County is a New Religion dictatorship, and as its full extent is revealed, you may be frightened to see how much of it is already being put into place where you live.

You know you live in a Cornithaca County: When the public can’t ask questions at a public meeting.

“Cornithaca County” Book Preview – “Non-Profits of the Caribbean” Movie Poster

People in Cornithaca County will climb anything to look down their noses at others, and what better way than working in a non-profit — they’re recession proof and smug in an “I’ve got a giving sticker on my BMW” way.

And whether you see it as pirated giving or the big dog gets the prize; today’s biggest non-profits have become so powerful and venerated, they seem more important than the causes they wave. A perfect match for Cornithaca’s “vibrant community” façade.

“Cornithaca County” Book Preview – “Monolithic Monsters” Movie Poster

If you grew up watching and loving science fiction B-movies, I hope this poster brings back memories. Just as in many of those films, atomic bombs were discovered to cause monstrous mutations, politicians and bureaucrats have taken the crack that Affirmative Action put in our protections and blasted it into a life threatening fissure — Cornithaca County residents have no meaningful participation in its “monolithic” government, and no protection from its all-inclusive policy decisions.

As this corporate-political “vision” of how everyone must live expands it control, local governments that have been taken over are now instituting “ethics” probes that reimagine the 50’s Congressional witch hunts.

If you remember those old movies, you’ll remember that things did not always end well.

You know you live in Cornithaca County: When you’re told not to write this book.

“Cornithaca County” Book Preview – “Pin the Tail on the Media” Game

This is a revision of the “Pin the Tail on the Legislator” game in the Family Farm Fun book, in color, with a little more bite, and just clean satirical fun. [I have a number of pieces on media shortcomings planned — they are truly deserving of our lack of respect.]

You know you live in Cornithaca County: When “journalistic integrity” is an oxymoron.

After I sent documentation of rural social injustice to the local newspaper a few years ago, and urged them to write about this issue, I was told it would “confuse” their readers — an odd comment for a University Town newspaper. It’s the same town where the cooperatively owned, “independent bookstore” refused to even consign the Family Farm Fun book.

“Cornithaca County” Book Preview – “Escape from Cornithaca County” Game

This simple 2-page board game satirizes a place where the community has country club aspirations and sitcom sensibilities, and the cultural festivals are filled with people stuffing their faces and listening to free music. In Cornithaca County, it’s all beneath the surface [and sometimes in the cookery.]

It’s a game that even your young children can play — just don’t buy them anything from the food tents.

“Cornithaca County” Book Preview – “Fundraising Professional’s Motto” Sampler

“Cornithaca County” Book Preview – Easy Maze – “Lake HAB Maze”

“Cornithaca County” Book Preview – Easy Maze – “Salt Mine Maze”

“Cornithaca County” Book Preview – “Predacious Paper-Pushers” – Five Species

These are five of the Predacious Paper-Pusher sign boards that will appear throughout the book.

The humorous presentation belies the actual seriousness of the situation in Cornithaca County. The second part of this book will present incidents and issues of misconduct that show, even though a citizen has “dotted all the i’s,” and persisted through a discouraging bureaucratic accountability pass-a-round, that in the end the government will do nothing because — they don’t want to.