Two weeks ago I was surprised at the lack of public fuss concerning the six county commissioners who ignored the county mayor's budget and voted themselves a $900,000 slush fund that they seem to believe is an entitlement. I assumed there was no outcry because that's the sort of thing we have come to expect from politicians, and most of us don't figure it does any good to complain.
Then the county mayor cut them off, which was a commendable and perhaps even courageous act.
But once again those six hogs have told us what they will have in their trough whether we like it or not, and they seem to have won this particular battle. Commissioners, 1; citizens, -$900,000.
Here's a word of advice for the three thoughtful commissioners (Joe Graham, Greg Beck and Marty Haynes) who refrained from this thievery:
If you three gentlemen want to prove your intentions and principles concerning this annual $100,000 per district nonsense, why don't you just refuse to play the game? Don't spend that $100,000, not one dollar of it, even on/in your own districts. Oh, some of the folks in your district will holler that they have been cheated, that you gave away their $100,000 this year. But I suppose your original argument, when voting no to the program, was that it represented stealing money from everyone in the county, and you refused to do that. Even if six of nine commissioners approve of the practice, that still doesn't make it right. Stick to it, fellows; don't cave in.
Just don't spend that money, and prove your point. Show us what you're made of. I doubt that District 6, where I live, will lose much on the deal. The county as a whole will be $300,000 ahead by some methods of accounting, and three districts will also be ahead in the quality and character of their leadership--on this point, anyway.
Then we'll wait a while, to see when the six original hogs decide they might as well divide that unused $300,000 among themselves, having even more selfish fun and hoping to buy themselves even more votes in the next election.
Larry Cloud
Lookout Valley