Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Periodically, while perusing my local newspaper, I discover some latest piece of news or what purports to be news that fascinates, startles, or amazes me. Below are two examples of these.
Dany Werfel has recently been sworn in as the new IRS commissioner, and while I’ve never met Werfel, I’d like to shake his hand.
In an article by AP reporter Fatima Hussein, Werfel is quoted as saying, “This is our moment in history to transform the IRS. We have a great deal of work ahead of us to ensure a more modern and high-performing IRS that provides world-class services to taxpayers.”
One of the planned improvements include hiring more people to answer phone inquiries and end long wait times. While this is a noble pursuit, it didn’t really strike me as a “modern, high-performing, world-class service.”
During his confirmation hearing, Werfel did pledge not to expand tax audits on businesses and households making less than $400,000 per year. For this I commend him, as I was audited once while I was an active-duty staff sergeant, making the princely sum of $4,165.20 a year.
Why do I have the feeling that the function of the IRS is to provide “modern, high-performing, world-class service” to the U.S. government in the form of more tax dollars collected?
In other news, I learned that the Los Angeles County coroner’s office reported that fentanyl caused “Gangsta Paradise” rapper Coolio’s death. The story continues with the information that Coolio suffered an accidental death from the effects of fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamines.
Additionally, the county agency also cited cardiomyopathy, a disease that makes it more difficult for the heart to pump blood to the body, as a significant condition.
To complete the trifecta, the coroner also determined that Coolio’s severe asthma and cigarette smoking played a role in his death. How the coroner determined the exact cause of death was fentanyl, remains a mystery.
The item further noted that Coolio’s former longtime manager, Jarez Posey confirmed the cause of death. Posey’s medical certification was not mentioned in the article. Coolio was 59 years old.
Coolio’s story put me in mind of a story several years ago where a motorcycle rider crashed into a bridge abutment. The coroner determined his cause of death was COVID-19. I don’t remember if the motorcycle rider had a manager to confirm the cause of death.
Rube Render is a former Clovis city commissioner and former chair of the Curry County Republican Party. Contact him:
