windshawne

I had forgotten about the compass on the enchanted voyage building-and honestly, I think that is the only pic I have seen of rotor-I dont think we ever took a pic on any of our family trips.

We shall see. This is the new way-buy a company, shake it up, and move on. Makes my head spin. What next?

Me either-and its horrid you're starting your life in this economy. I really hope I'm wrong about all this.

I represent the personal side of acquisitions-and their track record of turning the numbers for a profit is at a high cost to the employees left behind. Trust me on this one. I go against the grain daily and will take the time to walk the patient through going back to the states. Someone has to take a stand, and when my pink slip comes, I'm going down fighting.

Me too.

Blackstone bought the company I work for. Our IT department, and as of Monday our billing dept is now based in India, where they don't speak good English and where they dont have a snowball's chance of understanding a complicated medical billing system, where we struggle with it onshore. They are also centralizing our operations and laying people off right and left nationwide. Today we received an email to send the calls over there, and only if elevated to Level II can they be transferred to America. To add insult to injury, they reps over there have the audacity to say they have an American name. Bull****. This is the reason our jobs are all gone. You gotta look at the big picture-I never understood all this when I was younger, but boy I do now. I dont verbally abuse the reps I am forced to talk with, but I have a lot of anger toward firms like Blackstone for creating situations like this.

Working for a company that was bought and I assume to be sold again in 5 years (at our health and high personal costs for the big boys profit) I dont know if this will be a good thing or not. All this buying and flipping by corporations is disgusting. Cedar Fair bit off more than they could chew buying the parks, but at least it isn't Blackstone making the offer. Did I read that right that Apollo was behind such companies as Linens N Things and Harrah's? There's your sign.

I bet that was fun-I would have enjoyed that. Isn't it funny the way things are now compared to then? As a kid I was a little scared of coasters but never the height-although I have never been skydiving either-not sure how I would react in that situation.

I would like to see KI go to single ownership, not part of a big chain. Bigger is not always BETTER. Worst case scenario, if this tax goes through, that will make it even harder to find a buyer.

I have been gone-has the final complaint been settled in court yet?

It's all about appearances.....

Did he really think I was gonna support this because I live in Mason? I didn't really appreciate his attack outside the building. My thought is....if the council votes this in, I will not be buying a condo in mason like I originally planned, since the city leaders don't have any integrity to keep their end of the agreement. Western row needs improvement? Bull****. That will just create a two year (or longer) construction headache. Even after the Knievel jump, where I believe we had record attendance, I had no trouble leaving the park. Patience..... From the looks of his house, Mr. Bradburn has more than his share of the pie $1.7 Million in free tickets to the kids and family of A Kid Again...kudos to you Kings Island-I had no idea.

It was all very well executed on the part of city council. What I found interesting is several members of the community opposed to the tax kept asking exactly what the money is going to be used for-and not a one could give a straight answer. The city manager stated since the vote was not yet decided, the money had not been allocated for a specific fund. Excuse me, this reeks. When we discussed the issue with Mr Bradburn outside, he could not give a specific answer to that question either. He floundered looking for support from the lone Mason resident in the group, myself. I had nothing to say until I heard all the facts, and kept quiet then as well. I also noticed Mr. Bradburn looked at the floor the duration of the meeting. Someone who cannot make eye contact has something to hide... I will be going back Feb. 8th.

Ryan, the link doesn't work-anyway, I noticed the signage on my way home from work tonight. I think this is going to be a really big deal and could get a little interesting.

I tell ya what. I was fairly angry this spring about some of the things that have been going on this year, but I gotta tell ya-in light of this issue, I am understanding a bit more of the big picture-and it makes me mad over a different issue. I am going to be thinking about this all weekend.

For myself, if this passes, I'm voting all their asses out next election.

Thanks for the tip-luckily I live around the corner, so even if I am stuck at work late, that shouldn't be a problem.

From what I understand, people will be invited to address the council first -- before business gets going. I have never heard of people being asked to leave, though. They work for us-I'm not leaving. I have a right to hear what is going on if its going to affect me and my wallet.

Calling is a good idea, however a personal visit is pretty effective too I'm in!!

I think someone needs to ask him what the tax money will be used for..a perk for the council? Even if the original agreement was made on a handshake, that is still binding-you lose integrity with me if you turn around on a previous agreement. Isn't that a form of LYING? Im sure folks my age and older can relate to this sort of agreement. It meant something back in the day.

I'll be there-this is bull****. Did I read right that when KI agreed to be part of Mason there would be no admission tax? This stinks all the way around. And KI-Orig-Emp-I agree with the Mason force sitting in the lot-that is just WRONG. Yep -- that's the story. They had a handshake agreement with Mason that they would not impose an admissions tax when they were annexed. Apparently Kings Island still possesses the letter. However, Tax Man's response is that it was an agreement between two different entities -- the council has turned over since the agreement and Kings Island is no longer owned by Paramount. So yeah, on top of everything else it's just an absolute lack of integrity on his part. I also want to point out that a lot of people are blaming the city of Mason for this. They have done nothing wrong yet. It's Tony "Tax Man" Bradburn that has proposed this -- more than once. That's why it's important to be there this Monday and help us convince the rest of the council that he's wrong. Remember -- he only needs 4 votes for it to go through. A successful business that he wants to cash in on-without crossing the line, that has made our current situation what it is. If this goes through, they will be biting the hand that feeds them. Things are different now, and they would do well to remember that. I'm really glad that you plan on being there. Are you going to address the council? Only if I totally understand what is happening and can contribute to make a difference. This is a first for me, so its educational as well. I'm going to wing it

I'll be there-this is bull****. Did I read right that when KI agreed to be part of Mason there would be no admission tax? This stinks all the way around. And KI-Orig-Emp-I agree with the Mason force sitting in the lot-that is just WRONG. Yep -- that's the story. They had a handshake agreement with Mason that they would not impose an admissions tax when they were annexed. Apparently Kings Island still possesses the letter. However, Tax Man's response is that it was an agreement between two different entities -- the council has turned over since the agreement and Kings Island is no longer owned by Paramount. So yeah, on top of everything else it's just an absolute lack of integrity on his part. I also want to point out that a lot of people are blaming the city of Mason for this. They have done nothing wrong yet. It's Tony "Tax Man" Bradburn that has proposed this -- more than once. That's why it's important to be there this Monday and help us convince the rest of the council that he's wrong. Remember -- he only needs 4 votes for it to go through. A successful business that he wants to cash in on-without crossing the line, that has made our current situation what it is. If this goes through, they will be biting the hand that feeds them. Things are different now, and they would do well to remember that.

I'll be there-this is bull****. Did I read right that when KI agreed to be part of Mason there would be no admission tax? This stinks all the way around. And KI-Orig-Emp-I agree with the Mason force sitting in the lot-that is just WRONG. Why not let the park stimulate job growth by hiring enough officers to cover it by themselves?

Just curious, what happened to the old trains? I think retracking son would be more expensive than just letting it go. It's been a money pit and a liability up to now. Besides, there's no guarantee that will fix the problems and then you're out x million for that...

So....after 9 years, a few incidents and lawsuits, it finally comes out...the ride is flawed. Well, duh!! I say the writing was on the wall long before the news had to point that out. Particularly disturbing was the loose bolt not even in the area of the failure. After all this, it would be stupid to reopen it. As much as I dont like any coaster to be destroyed, admit it-it was a failure and needs to go. I doubt this much money was spent on Bat, and they didn't keep it going nearly as long.