IS IT TRUE? September 27, 2011 “The Worst of Times”

IS IT TRUE that the Evansville City Council passed the proposal to go to a referendum of the voters to let them decide of the governments of the City of Evansville and Vanderburgh County should be merged into a single unified governing body?…that this vote was by a margin of 8 – 1 with the only “nay” vote coming from the heart surgeon on the City Council Dr. H. Dan Adams?…that Dr. Adams toiled all weekend with his decision and when coming to the conclusion that the hard work of identifying and proposing real tangible savings had not been done casted his “nay” vote stating that he could not vote “aye” to a “PIG IN A POKE”?…that often the most knowledgeable among us are often the ones who stand up to obsolescence, laziness, and just ill defined resolutions?…that passing the buck to the voters in this particular case is an abdication of duty of the City Council, the County Commissioners, and the hardworking well-meaning committee that worked many hours to bring this to a vote?

IS IT TRUE that the Reverend Adrian Brooks who was a member of the consolidation committee stood before the Evansville City Council tonight to urge them to pass this to the voters?…that Reverend Brooks did this as he was advising the City Council that he does not support the proposal and will be working to help defeat it at the ballot box?…that the Reverend Brooks and Dr. Dan Adams both put up a good fight and asked for tangible value that this proposal will bring?…that finding neither the Councilman Adams chose to vote “nay” to this “pig in a poke” but the Reverend Brooks pledged to work hard to gather hundreds of “nay” votes for next year’s referendum?…that if the will of the voters of unincorporated Vanderburgh County and the will of the realm of Reverend Brooks’ influence align that this proposal is destined for defeat?

IS IT TRUE that this did not have to be this way?…that most everyone is on board with the proposition that consolidation is a good concept and that savings are there to be realized?…that the committee under political pressure failed to tackle the hard realities that sacred cows would have to be slaughtered in order to realize the potential savings?…that succumbing to this pressure and giving in to the powers behind the committee that a great opportunity to transform Vanderburgh County has probably been wasted and set back for another decade or more?…that the last line of defense from sending a flawed document to the voters was the Evansville City Council?…that eight of them washed their hands of the obligation to send their best work with significant impact to the voters?

IS IT TRUE that Pontius Pilate once did such a thing?…that Pontius Pilate knowingly chose the cowards way to govern and knowingly sent a decision to “the people” that he should have made himself?…that when leaders refuse to lead and learned work is sent to the masses by referendum that the best of times is not served?…that through emulating the decisions of Pontius Pilate and sending a decision to “the people” that is not ready for “the people” to have a positive choice that our City Council has washed their hands of this decision just as Pilate washed his hands of his decision to appease a mob in the street?…that this is the Worst of Times”?…that the people of Evansville deserve better than this?

IS IT TRUE that in another example of the “Worst of Times” City Councilman Dan McGinn concurred with Evansville Controller Jenny Collins that the legal services contract for the City of Evansville could not be predicted well enough to become a line item in the budget?…that what was passed is a open ended opportunity for whatever law firm that our next Mayor of Evansville selects to write their own check when it comes to liability and worker’s comp insurance?…that Attorneys bill at a rate of $150 per hour for such work and PARALEGALS are billed to the City of Evansville at a rate of $95 per hour?…that one would think that such services could be reviewed on a month to month basis as opposed to handing a law firm a blank check as has been the practice of the Weinzapfel Administration?