Are We All Chuckleheads?
February 10, 2008 Filed in: Bob's
Corner
I admit it.
I find the deal struck by the City Manager and David Bowman utterly mystifying. The handshake agreement allegedly has Mr. Bowman returning as Chief of Police for 6 months and then agreeing to leave the job.
What are citizens, police and taxpayers to make of this "deal"? On its face, it looks like David Bowman will make little more than a symbolic cameo appearance as Chief and be paid generously to just go away.
But, on reflection, should we be surprised? This "deal" is consistent with way the public sector seems to function in this State, County and City. Whatever happens, be it waste, cozy deals, corruption, dysfunction, ineptitude, intra-department fights, lawsuits between government people, document tampering (as in the notorious Englewood Lifetime Free Health Benefits Ordinance...whatever…the cost is simply added to the taxpayers' tab. And, predictably, it is sold as a cost-effective public benefit.
For all the money, controversy and posturing, it is rare that any responsibility is assigned or trusted resolution achieved. No matter what happens, every government official or employee -- be they the whistleblower or the accused, the prevaricator or the truthteller -- seems to get back his or her job and get rewarded.
Case in point: in Mr. Bowman's first term as Chief, neither the whistleblowers who made serious allegations nor Chief Bowman, whom they accused, lost their jobs. In neither case was the truth determined and responsibility assigned. Instead, the taxpayers ended up just paying them all -- and generously -- including the lawyers.
Feeling victimized? Then let's definitely not start on how the public treasury is being used to legally shower our tax dollars on political cronies and donors!
Considering all the taxes we pay, why are NJ budgets increasingly in trouble? Governments at all levels seem to be black holes into which geometrically increasing, yet strangely insufficient, quantities of public money are poured. Government people seem to continue to write huge treasury checks for each other to go away, to shut up, to cover up, to collect more pay, to up their pensions, to continue working or to retire early -- and with more lifetime benefits than any average taxpayer has a prayer of ever getting.
What to do?
First step: we can stop being played for gullible, manipulatable chuckleheads. Let's be skeptical of what government officials say and start paying attention to what they actually do. All we have to do is take a few minutes to occasionally look. If we do, we'll see them kissing each other while we, once again, kiss our money good-bye.
I find the deal struck by the City Manager and David Bowman utterly mystifying. The handshake agreement allegedly has Mr. Bowman returning as Chief of Police for 6 months and then agreeing to leave the job.
What are citizens, police and taxpayers to make of this "deal"? On its face, it looks like David Bowman will make little more than a symbolic cameo appearance as Chief and be paid generously to just go away.
But, on reflection, should we be surprised? This "deal" is consistent with way the public sector seems to function in this State, County and City. Whatever happens, be it waste, cozy deals, corruption, dysfunction, ineptitude, intra-department fights, lawsuits between government people, document tampering (as in the notorious Englewood Lifetime Free Health Benefits Ordinance...whatever…the cost is simply added to the taxpayers' tab. And, predictably, it is sold as a cost-effective public benefit.
For all the money, controversy and posturing, it is rare that any responsibility is assigned or trusted resolution achieved. No matter what happens, every government official or employee -- be they the whistleblower or the accused, the prevaricator or the truthteller -- seems to get back his or her job and get rewarded.
Case in point: in Mr. Bowman's first term as Chief, neither the whistleblowers who made serious allegations nor Chief Bowman, whom they accused, lost their jobs. In neither case was the truth determined and responsibility assigned. Instead, the taxpayers ended up just paying them all -- and generously -- including the lawyers.
Feeling victimized? Then let's definitely not start on how the public treasury is being used to legally shower our tax dollars on political cronies and donors!
Considering all the taxes we pay, why are NJ budgets increasingly in trouble? Governments at all levels seem to be black holes into which geometrically increasing, yet strangely insufficient, quantities of public money are poured. Government people seem to continue to write huge treasury checks for each other to go away, to shut up, to cover up, to collect more pay, to up their pensions, to continue working or to retire early -- and with more lifetime benefits than any average taxpayer has a prayer of ever getting.
What to do?
First step: we can stop being played for gullible, manipulatable chuckleheads. Let's be skeptical of what government officials say and start paying attention to what they actually do. All we have to do is take a few minutes to occasionally look. If we do, we'll see them kissing each other while we, once again, kiss our money good-bye.
