Newly obtained information added on Hulse and Johnson on 11/11/09.
While the search for a new City Manager has been going on for a few months, the citizens of Baker City have been pretty much in the dark about the people being considered. The Baker City Herald has been attempting to provide information, bless their hearts, but until their Friday article (http://www.bakercityherald.com/index2.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=79915&pop=1&page=0&Itemid=31 ), we have known little.
The Herald gave their opinion in an editorial over three weeks ago on October 14, 2009--"City should name manager finalists" (http://www.bakercityherald.com/Editorials/City-should-name-manager-finalists ).
Their opinion was "Yet although the Council, as it should, solicits the public’s opinions about all sorts of topics before councilors vote, ranging from water and sewer rates to a monthly fee to pay for new sidewalks, residents are in effect excluded from the similarly vital choice of selecting a city manager. . . . . The bottom line here is that if the choice [about whether to inform Baker City Citizens about the Candidates and finalists] comes down to either sparing a candidate a possible hassle with his or her current boss, or ensuring that Baker City residents have a chance to participate, in a limited way, in the hiring of the person who runs their city and spends their property tax dollars, we side with the residents."
Bravo! The Herald sides with an informed citizenry and a more participatory democracy!
Apparently some cities, like Menominee, Michigan, where candidate Strahl served, hold their interviews in public meetings, so it is not that there is unanimous agreement for the practice of holding them in secret, or for protecting candidates to the detriment of citizens. Further, the city of Menominee has open interviews, where the citizens are given a chance to offer questions that are moderated by the city attorney.
But until this last Friday's Herald article briefly identifying the finalists, we have heard essentially nothing.
"City Council to interview four city manager finalists next week" (http://www.bakercityherald.com/index2.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=79915&pop=1&page=0&Itemid=31 )
That’s too bad, given the glowing reports about the former city manager at the time of his hiring. We now have a short period to consider their choices, even if they are already close to making up their minds. If we remember, former city manager Brocato was hired without a lot of serious research being done. In part, much of the information seems to have been either ignored or not looked for, and in part, it is because Mr. Brocato didn’t have the kind of public record that is available for some of the current candidates.
Unfortunately, in an apparently rushed decision having only some Council input, Mayor Dorrah and City Manager Collins decided on Friday to have the “meet and greet” events described in Monday’s Herald (See “City manager applicants plan visits around Baker” at http://www.bakercityherald.com/Local-News/City-manager-applicants-plan-visits-around-Baker ).
The headline is a little misleading, as it wasn’t the candidates that did the planning. If you read the article, you will also notice that, even though the Herald printed the article on Monday, the “meet and greet” events started on Sunday. There was no schedule of events released on the city website, and the “schedule of events” was apparently “released” to only a few people. My feeling is that all interested citizens should have been invited from the get-go, and I don’t have much interest in going because such events are not likely to reveal much relevant information. Publicly announced public forums open to all citizens are a better way to get to know candidates, if people have some information about the candidates prior to the forums being held.
I am told by a person who should know that Councilor Andrew Bryan released the names to the Herald without conferring with the whole council, but if you read the article, you might see some of the names who belong to a group that Milo Pope once referred to as “the people that matter” in Baker City. Despite whatever differences I may have with Councilor Bryan, I commend him for making the information available. One wonders whether the list of invitees would have come to light if he had not informed the Herald.
I was told by one Councilor that the reason for the “meet & greet” was to have people tell the candidates why they came and how they got to Baker City, and etc. My understanding is that Dorrah communicated with Collins to get invitations out to people. (last sentence changed -clarification 11/11/09) Another Councilor this late afternoon/early evening, just prior to the Sunridge “Meet & Greet,” told me that anyone, including myself, could attend and ask them questions. The problem to me is that most people were not informed at all, or were not informed in a timely fashion, including some Councilors. (last sentence changed -clarification 11/11/09) The invitations were extended to a select few. Reasons offered were that the candidates couldn’t all be here on a single day and that it was sort of rushed and spontaneous. None-the-less, the list appears to be a bit selective, and the venues where the events are being held would normally exclude lower income people who don’t often frequent the places chosen because of financial and other issues. (Oh, that’s right, they don’t matter anyway!) The one exception is the Tuesday event at Inland Café, but the time for that one is not listed. (Why not use the public facilities available like Council Chamber, the High School, extension offices, the Armory, or the library?????) In addition to the statement in the article concerning arrangements for city staff to meet with the candidates on Monday, I am told that they were all issued invites to the Monday evening get-together at the Sunridge.
You may be well acquainted with the folks on the list (I confess, I’ve only been her a little over five years), but here is a brief run down on their positions in the community.
Guests officially invited, according to the Herald article:
City Staff: “Teresa can arrange transportation and/or facilitate meetings.”
Kathleen Chaves: Crossroads Art Center Advisory Committee, co-owner of Chaves Consulting, Inc.; ’08 Chamber of Commerce “Woman of the Year.”
Amy Dunkak: Supported recall, director of communications at St. Elizabeth’s, moved up from Chamber of Commerce (AKA Church of Commerce, or COC)
Ginger Savage: Chair of BAKER SCHOOL DISTRICT 5J; Crossroads; Chamber of Commerce supporter; Formerly of US Bank.
Mary Jo Carpenter: Heads up what may be the most valuable Baker City enterprise--Community Connection
Karen Yeakley: County resident, former mayor of Baker City
Karen Woolard: 1992 Chamber of Commerce “Woman of the Year’ award, Former city employee and city manager
Sheryl Blankenship: Former Oregon “Optometrist of the Year,” Former Baker County “Woman of the Year,” and former board member of the Chamber of Commerce.
Larry Pearson: Former Mayor of Baker City
Joe and Sharon Rudi: Broker/Realtors/Developers, Baker City Planning Commission; Son Mike: Chairmanships--Baker City Planning Commission, Chamber of Commerce, Transient Lodging Tax Committee
Fred Warner: County Commissioner, and more.
Jerry Peacock: Baker High School Principal
Peggi Timm: Committee to Defeat the Inappropriate Recalls, former Councilor; Led effort to create OTEC; former member DNC.
Troy Woydziak: Owner of Baker Aircraft. Flight instructor; Manager, Baker City Municipal Airport; has been on Airport Commission.
Brian Olson: HBC Business of the Year, 2009, CLARK & COMPANY HOME
Matthew Clark: HBC Business of the Year, 2009, CLARK & COMPANY HOME
Ann Mehaffy: Program Director, Historic Baker City (HBC); Currently on Board of Directors, Crossroads Art Center; Class of ’64, Verde Valley High School in Sedona, AZ.
Brian Olson: Again
Debi Bainter: Executive Director, Baker County Chamber of Commerce
Mayor Dennis Dorrah (and of course other Councilors)
Dr. Charles Hofmann: former Mayor
Peggi Timm: Again
Fred Warner: Again
Francis Langrell: Daughter of Rich Langrell. He is the former Councilor who is on the Board of the Baker County Chamber of Commerce.
Mike Nelson: Owner/broker of Nelson Real Estate, Commissioner, Oregon Transportation Commission and a Democratic Party political operator.
Troy Woydziak: Again
Brian Olson: Again!!!!
Matthew Clark: Again
spouses, partners and guests of invited guests
If one take’s a look at the list, and assumes that many of the people that Mr. Pope refers to as “the people that matter” are there, then one begins to understand what Bill Moyers was getting at on his TV show “Bill Moyers Journal” a year or so back, when he said: “We appear to have a government run by remote control from the . . . Chamber of Commerce . . . . To hell with everyone else.”
For the record and your review:
Elitism is defined by the Free Online Dictionary as:
1. The belief that certain persons or members of certain classes or groups deserve favored treatment by virtue of their perceived superiority, as in intellect, social status, or financial resources.
2.
a. The sense of entitlement enjoyed by such a group or class.
b. Control, rule, or domination by such a group or class.
Oligarchy is defined by the Free Online Dictionary as:
1.
a. Government by a few, especially by a small faction of persons or families.
b. Those making up such a government.
2. A state governed by a few persons.
Plutocracy is defined by the Free Online Dictionary as:
1. Government by the wealthy.
2. A wealthy class that controls a government.
3. A government or state in which the wealthy rule.
Democracy is defined by the same source as:
1. Government by the people, exercised either directly or through elected representatives.
2. A political or social unit that has such a government.
3. The common people, considered as the primary source of political power.
4. Majority rule.
5. The principles of social equality and respect for the individual within a community.
Information About the City Manager Candidates:
So, with limited information available from the Council, the Baker County Blog, with a little help from contributors, has compiled web links and other information, in what is admittedly an incomplete and insufficient record, to help provide Baker City residents with at least some information about the four finalists. Because of the lack of information--the incomplete names, little history on the former positions held by some of the finalists--it has not been easy to gather information on all of them. Unfortunately, in a way, those candidates with more experience as a city manager have more information publicly available on Google. Additionally, because City Managers are usually in a tenuous and insecure position, subject to changing political winds, and because they are easily used as fall guys for poor Council decisions, they tend to get terminated a lot-- every two to five years. One article I read put it this way: “There’re two types — those who have been fired or those who will be fired. That’s the nature of this
Game.” (See Sharon PA Herald: http://www.sharon-herald.com/local/local_story_299220343.html )
On the other hand, those who serve in less political positions, may not suffer from the same inherent professional malady, so their record may look better, independent of how well they do. Also, unless you can afford to purchase LexisNexis, or other sources of information, it is more difficult to find information over about 8-9 years old.
It is apparent then, at least to me, that some are at a disadvantage, because more potentially damaging or negative information is likely to turn up on Mr. Patrick and Mr. Strahl, because both served previously as city managers. Mr. Patrick appears to suffer the disadvantage to the greater degree. Those who have not actually served as city managers, i.e., Hulse and Johnson, will likely not have the search exposure of those that do, so one is still left to wonder who they are, given the lack of transparency of the current process. If anything, it gives one a healthy respect for the difficulty of knowing everything one might want to reasonably know about a candidate.
This is what we have found out in an admittedly brief period. More will likely become available if the council decides to release adequate information, which they might do tonight (11/10/09) at the Council meeting. Of course, I would not advise anyone to make decisions solely on the information provided below, and I’m sure you wouldn’t, but I hope that if the Council does not already have it, that they will consider the information in making their decision. It is provided primarily to inform residents of information that has been, thus far, hard for them to come by. You can find more information by using Google or other search engines, and by searching the newspapers whose links have been provided.
Jim Patrick
Jim Patrick was the city manager of Kalispell, Montana, population estimated to be over 17,000. As I mentioned earlier, one of the hurdles Mr. Patrick has, that most of the others do not, is that there is a lot of information available. For example, “Jim Patrick City Manager Kalispell” returns perhaps fewer, but much more specific hits to investigate, than Tim Johnson, Portland or San Diego, where he was reported to have worked for some time as an assistant to the city manager. Patrick has also been applying for a lot of city manager jobs so there are numerous newspaper articles to be found.
Patrick Resumes
Storm Lake City Manager Finalists: Meet the Candidates. Mon., Nov. 9, 2009
http://www.stormlakepilottribune.com/story/1585575.html
* Jim Patrick has served as the City Manager for Kalispell, MT; Vermillion, SD; Plum, PA, Lebanon, OH and New London, WI. Patrick graduated from Wheaten College in Illinois with a degree in Biology. He entered the army after college and retired after 20 years as a Lieutenant Colonel, towards the end of the military career he worked with base operations and base management. After retiring he said it was a natural fit to get into city management.
During his tenure he says the town grew at about six percent a year. The biggest challenge for the City of Kalispel (Sic) was keeping up with the growth and helping the infrastructure grow. The town is a tourist town and sees about 1.8 million tourists a year, he says. The City kept busy trying to keep up with the tourists and accomodating (sic) their needs. "A lot of retail came to the area," he says.
Patrick says he has a very open personality and works well with community and staff and likes to partner with neighbors and the community to get the job done. He says he sees a lot of similarities between the City of Kalispell and CIty of Storm Lake. "The community (of SL) seems to want to grow. Storm Lake is doing a lot of really neat things and is really progressive, it'd be nice to be part of that," he says. Patrick says he really likes the quality of life and the values of the midwest states.
He and his wife Anita have five children.
You can find an earlier resume for Mr. Patrick (photo included), when he had just started working for the city of Kalispell in the following article:
Jim Patrick — Kalispell’s New City Manager (Jan. '05)
http://www.kalispell.com/downloads/newsletter/Vol2Iss4.pdf
While the earlier resume states above that “Patrick says he has a very open personality and works well with community and staff", the next article explains how his stint as Kalispell City Manager ended, and raises some possible red flags.
"Since Patrick took the helm in Kalispell, the city has experienced "phenomenal growth," both in terms of population and business, Kalispell Chamber of Commerce President Joe Unterreiner said.
"Probably the last five-year period has been the highest-growth period perhaps in the entire history of the city," Unterreiner said. "That brings with it both benefits and challenges."
Also, déjà vu?:
"Patrick has been present at closed meetings on transportation impact fees - meetings that, because they are of public significance, should have been open to the public, Flowers said.
"It's very important that the city have a city manager who works well with the public," she said. "We look forward to an open-door, friendly policy with a new city manager."
See Kalispell council, mayor fire city manager:
http://www.dailyinterlake.com/news/local_montana/article_d3959f58-7215-50d0-98a0-a9da1e447cf7.html?mode=print
Another local paper, The Flathead Beacon, has run several articles about Kalispell's problems and Patrick's removal. In an October 17, 2008 article, they had this to say about the termination:
"While Patrick has presided over enormous economic growth and development in his four years as city manager, over the last year and a half he has also had to deal with a number of tough issues, including: moving the city government into a new facility after a renovation project that ran significantly over budget; bitter aggravation in the city fire department between the firefighters' union and former chief Randy Brodehl prior to Brodehl's eventual departure; a city budget shortfall for the current fiscal year that resulted in the elimination of several city positions; acrimonious negotiations with the city employees union over an employment contract that led to picketing outside city hall last year by union members; and difficulty implementing transportation impact fees amid the strenuous objections of Kalispell's business community."
See Breaking News: Kalispell City Manager Fired:
http://www.flatheadbeacon.com/articles/article/kalispell_city_manager_fired/6126/
One Kalispell respondent to my inquiries, who has been an observer to Kalispell government processes during Mr. Patrick's tenure, said that some of the problems were:
"it appears his problems here stemmed from poor communication between him and the city council / city staff, and a sense that he had the right to make decisions to spend city money without consulting the council,
- Overruns in the fire department budget came on his watch. Apparently firefighters who were unhappy with their pay started taking advantage of a provision that allowed them to put in overtime at will, and it basically bankrupted that budget.
- He also made agreements with local artists and a bronze-casting studio for four wildlife statues at Kalispell's primary intersection (U.S. 2 and U.S. 93). One was completed and still is stored in an unused hangar at the city airport. I'm pretty sure that artist has been fully paid. No others have been finished, but I don't know if they received any advance money. None of the statues has been erected at the intersection.
- The city went through a building boom during 2005, '06, '07 and ended up with a pretty healthy budget. But a $1.5 million cash reserve in the FY2007 general fund in 2007 evaporated to what initially was projected to be $130,000. That happened under Mr. Patrick's watch. It now stands to end 2009-10 at $309,000 because the interim city manager and council put in a hiring freeze and drastically cut department budgets.."
A "non-partisan" business oriented organization also raised questions regarding the handling of the remodeling of the building the city had purchased for a new city hall. Due to significant cost overruns for the remodel amounting, according to press reports, to between $400,000 and $500,000 dollars, the city ended up having to arrange a lease/purchase agreement with an out of state financial firm. The agreement turned over actual control of city hall to the out of state firm, but sources indicate that the city will once-again own the building in 20 years if the contract is fulfilled according to plan. Similar criticisms were levied against the former Mayor in the recent Mayoral election campaign that was won by a lawyer and representative of many business interests.
Regarding the city hall remodel, an article in the Flathead Beacon from March of 2008, not to long before he was terminated, stated: “The project’s current price tag, roughly $1.7 million, is $500,000 more than Oswood’s original contract and double the original estimate, which Oswood called “overly optimistic.”
See: Construction ‘Crisis’ Inflates Price Tags
http://www.flatheadbeacon.com/main/print/construction_crisis_inflates_price_tags/
Someone close to and well acquainted with the process in Kalispell told me that they “Probably wouldn’t hire him again because he laid back too much” when certain things needed to be taken care of more quickly. One example given was that the Fire Chief didn’t get along well with some local people as well as some around the state, and that the Council had to ask Patrick to fire the Chief because Patrick laid back and wouldn’t do it on his own. It was also noted that the newly elected Mayor blew some of the issues facing the city out of proportion during her campaign and that nothing “underhanded” was done by Mr. Patrick. An important issue seemed to be that Mr. Patrick “didn’t keep the Council in the loop,” but not intentionally. It was apparently his style that got him into trouble.
As for the depletion of the budget during Patrick’s tenure, the source said that part of the problem was that the economy turned bad in the last part of his relationship with the city. He was said to be “honest” but “got caught up in things that were beyond his control.”
One example given was that the lead architect died in the middle of the remodel for city hall, so change orders were implemented by the new project leader that would not have been implemented if the original architect had not passed away.
Patrick’s final salary was $93,000 plus $400/mo vehicle allowance. His severance package amounted to about $75,000. (http://www.flatheadbeacon.com/articles/article/kalispells_severance_strains/7224/)
Eric Strahl
Strahl, like many city managers, including Patrick, had been asked to leave his position in Menominee, Michigan, a town of about 9,000 people. For story and photo, see: Strahl out as city manager, 4/17/09, http://ehextra.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=4594&SectionID=12&SubSectionID=35&S=1
also:
http://ehextra.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=5812&SectionID=12&SubSectionID=35&S=1
In the article about his termination, no substantive reasons were given for his termination. A person I spoke with in Menominee, who follows city politics fairly closely, stated that they never had heard or experienced anything with or about Eric that would have raised a red flag, but that due to closed sessions the council held regarding the termination, the specific reasons for it remain secret. In contrast to charges made about our former city manager, the source indicated that it wasn't because he had difficulties in his relationships with citizens or had any openness issues. He was described as open, accessible, polite, professional, and as a person who doesn't dodge questions--whether from the Council or the public. According to the article:
"[Mayor] Krah said he has worked closely with Strahl since he was hired in June of 2006. 'I think we had a good relationship,' he said. 'There were things that it just didn't seem we could get on the same page as a council and as a manager. Those things were discussed in his reviews. I think it's just as well those things stay there. Overall it was just time for a change.'"
Not everyone was in agreement. Council members Don Hudon, Don Mick, Ernie Pintarelli and Arnie Organ were opposed to letting Strahl go.
"We have no cause to get rid of him," said Organ. "He's done the job, he's balanced the budget every year. The one major thing he's done is he's cut our medical costs way down. And he's eliminated personnel and still runs the city." The decision required just a majority vote.
In a prepared written statement Strahl said, 'Throughout these discussions the employment relationship has remained cordial and professional and will continue to remain so...'".
Mr. Strahl did not sue the city. He made $74,970 a year and was given six months salary and benefits after termination. My view, from the information gathered, is that Mr. Strahl is the antithesis of Baker City’s former city manager because he let the Council lead and he just implemented their policy (source: “he followed Council’s decisions” and he was accessible and polite to all—both business interests and common citizens.
My assessment: Not flashy, no "Rock Star," not an “economic developer," not an overly assertive personality, just a professional public servant who knows his job , balances budgets, and does what the Council wants him to do, despite what he might think personally.
Clarence Hulse
I was unable during the last few days to accumulate much information about Mr. Hulse. The following article provides some information from May, 2001, with a photograph.
As the article states, he was then the new Assistant City Manager of Cocoa, Florida. He, like two other candidates, has an economic development background, and in 1988, he moved from Belize, South America, to the U.S. For a resume at that time, see: A Warm Welcome to Cocoa’s New Assistant City Manager, p. 2 at http://fl-cocoa2.civicplus.com/DocumentView.aspx?DID=107.
He graduated Magna Cum Laude (“with great honor”) with a B.A. in Public Administration from Harding University. He has a masters in Economic Development from the University of Southern Mississippi as well. He was the national 1999 recipient of the prestigious “Outstanding New Developer of the Year” Award presented by the American Economic Development Council.”
New information received after the original article was posted states that Mr. Hulse was business development manager for Pinellas County, FL from 1994 to 2000 and was deputy city manager of Cocoa, FL, where he managed more than 400 employees, from 2000 to 2004. (Added 11/11/09)
His business contact page is here: http://resources.imreintel.com/emails/fiberon/2008_show_list.xls
It is pretty extensive and shows that his interest is definitely in the business world.
A search on Belize Real Estate Development Group, LLC, with which he is said to be associated, turns up:
"Incorporated by Clarence L Hulse, Belize Real Estate Development Group, LLC is located at 11558 Thurston Way Orlando, FL 32837. Belize Real Estate Development Group, LLC was incorporated on Friday, June 08, 2007 in the State of FL and is currently active. Dwight Hulse represents Belize Real Estate Development Group, LLC as their registered agent." See: http://www.corporationwiki.com/Florida/Orlando/belize-real-estate-development-group-llc-5173855.aspx
It also turns up the pages of Hulse Apartments, in Belize, (http://hulseapartments.yolasite.com/ ) and many pages concerning real estate and resort investors.
He is also associated with Belize Real Estate Development Group, LLC:
"Incorporated by Clarence L Hulse, Belize Real Estate Development Group, LLC is located at 11558 Thurston Way Orlando, FL 32837. Belize Real Estate Development Group, LLC was incorporated on Friday, June 08, 2007 in the State of FL and is currently active. Dwight Hulse represents Belize Real Estate Development Group, LLC as their registered agent." See: http://www.corporationwiki.com/Florida/Orlando/belize-real-estate-development-group-llc-5173855.aspx
It appears that Mr. Hulse, like candidates Johnson and Patrick, would fit right in with the Chamber of Commerce and development interests. (Changed--new info 11/11/09)
Timothy Johnson
Initially, it was difficult to get any information about Tim Johnson, because the information released by the Herald simply said, “Timothy Johnson of Portland,” and “Johnson is a consultant and assistant to the city manager of San Diego.” San Diego is estimated to have a population of around 1.3 million people.
Well, the job in San Diego was prior to sometime in 1999, when he went to work for the Yuba-Sutter Economic Development Corporation (YSEDC) in Yuba City, California, several miles north of Sacramento. Yuba City is estimated to have a population of around 43,000. Johnson was in the Yuba City area during a period of increasing population growth and median income, but, there are many factors involved in that growth, as it occurred during the economic/housing bubble.
Information on his tenure in San Diego prior to mid 1999 is difficult to find although it may yet turn up. From 1999 to December 29, 2006, he worked as Executive Director of the development corporation. According to what information I have been able to turn up, he decided for his own reasons to leave that position.
See: Johnson to find own replacement, http://www.appeal-democrat.com/common/printer/view.php?db=marysville&id=7350
New information I just received fills in some of the blanks prior to 1999. Mr. Johnson received a BA in economics and business at the University of Oregon and Portland State University and did post-graduate work in economics and international affairs at Stanford University.
I was told that from 1983 to 1986 he also served as Executive Director of Bend Incorporated, "the original program to redevelop Bend when it was on it's knees with 23% unemployment,[but] he is the first to say that they 'lost the vision', lost their authenticity and sold their soul to big box development."
Additionally, from 1998 to 1994, he was the Director of Economic Development for the city of Sacramento, California, where he "establish a sustainable economies agenda, and used 'smart growth' polices to preserve and enhance the neighborhoods / commercial districts." (Last three paragraphs added 11/11/09--New info)
Thus far, all indications are that he is a bright and competent economic development specialist, so he will join a growing crowd of this sort, perhaps the most experienced in Baker County, if he is hired. (I wonder if he would have applied for Andrew Bryan’s job, if it had actually been put out to bid.)
A person who had a working relationship with Mr. Johnson during the time he was there, confirmed to me today that Johnson, with others, helped attract the Global Hawk project, an emerging manufacturing autonomous remotely controlled technology to the Yuba-Sutter area in the mid 1990’s.
See: Building on Beale victory, http://www.bakercityherald.com/index2.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=79915&pop=1&page=0&Itemid=31
My source also said that the Mr. Johnson helped with the attempt to develop the California Innovation Center Initiative of Beale Air Force Base, which is still partnering with Yuba County to bring the initiative to fruition. The source indicated that Mr. Johnson has a house in Elk Grove, California, and has been a consultant in the area after he left YSEDC. The 35 member multi-jurisdictional board of YSEDC was said to appreciate his leadership. In common with our former city manager, the commenter said that “He has a very strong personality, and if you can live with a very strong personality, he’s your guy.”
(Clarification & Editorial Comment --no shortage of the latter here, 11-11-09) Living with a strong personality can be a good thing or a bad thing, depending upon what you would like to accomplish. If, for example, your goal is to tame a strong-willed city administrative staff and employee unions, an equally strong, intellectually talented personality in the city manager, might be just what the doctor ordered, to the extent that the city manager kept those attributes in line with the wishes of the Council, which hopefully is doing things in the best interests of, and in accord with the desires of, the citizens. On the other hand, a more accommodating personality might be run over by the will of city staff. One of the problems we face in our city administration is that "term limits" for Council members often gives the advantage in administrative experience to city administrators, because the elected representatives are changing so often, with steep learning curves for the uninitiated. Staff can then use their experience, even if unintended, to control the agenda, out-maneuver, or in some cases, "hoodwink" the Council, as I personally think has been done far to often here in Baker City.
Conclusion:
City Council will chose someone that they think will fulfill their agenda, which for the most part, is an economic development agenda. There are many in Baker City, not particularly well represented, who, although they would like to see some limited growth, think that economic development promoters are but another name for snake oil salesmen. For me, my fear is that they will be too successful, and all of the benefits we now enjoy with our quality of life here in Baker City will be destroyed. If I was a little more disappointed and vindictive, I might tell the growth folks “May you find what you are looking for.”
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Cole Update: Revisiting a Rumor
(Edited 11/6/09)
When is a Rumor Much More than Just a Rumor?
4 quick answers (among several possibilities):
1) When its a Vicious Rumor that tends to blame a victim or victims, or
2) When it draws attention away from the primary relevant issue(s), or
3) When it can bias a community and contaminate a jury pool, or
4) When it is untrue.
I reported earlier on what I believed to be a false rumor that started going around shortly after the "cite and release" arrest of Brian Cole for furnishing alcohol to a minor. I have since learned that the rumor has seemingly been disseminated into most of the social nooks and crannies of our relatively small community, and that is really too bad. Even if the part of the rumor saying the victim was also one of Dean Barnes' victims is true, it is essentially irrelevant to the case, as explained below.
The version I first heard might fit in all four categories above, and goes like this:
"I heard the person Cole gave alcohol to was one of the girls who got Dean Barnes in trouble."
After having been prodded by a friend into deeper consideration of the effects of such a rumor, I decide to write this short column.
- The rumor is vicious because it blames the victim.
Juveniles don't get adults into trouble. Adults get themselves, and sometimes juveniles, into trouble. Even if the juvenile in the recent case was also involved in the Barnes case, (and I have to confess, despite my earlier claim, there is no way for me to know, even if I was given good reason to doubt it, but I have recently seen documents which indicate she was) any previous contact with Barnes would be irrelevant. The adult, Youth Pastor Barnes, was responsible for abusing two 16 year old juveniles, not the other way around, and that is why he was sentenced to 15 plus years (See: http://www.bakercityherald.com/Editorials/A-valuable-lesson). If the 17 year old in question, had in fact been abused by Barnes, that couldn't possibly be an excuse for a 47 year old sometime Sunday school teacher to give her alcohol and park with her in an out of the way place on a country road. The rumor is completely illogical in that it tries to justify further victimization of a juvenile once victimization had started. At best, it just points out the skewed mindset and archaic value system of some folks who might be taken in by it.
Blaming the victim though has long been a tried and true strategy for distorting the true power in relationships and has been a way to turn the truth about social realities on their head. One recent case that was brought to my attention was that of a 26 year old 6th grade teacher who had sex with one of her 12 year old students. The attorney for the teacher tried to suggest that it was the 12 year old's fault for being a "Latino machismo teenager." See:http://jezebel.com/5021881/kelsey-petersons-attorney-blames-child-rape-victims-latino-machismo
- The rumor draws attention away from the main relevant issue or issues.
The issue isn't one of whether or not there is a troubled teenage temptress on the loose in Baker City, wreaking havoc upon those that some people like to think are law-abiding and decent adult males with strong spiritual values and moral character. The primary issues are whether a 47 year old civic and spiritual leader, and family man, broke the law by serving alcohol to a minor in a parked vehicle out at the Pocahontas Station, and whether or not other crimes related to the juvenile have been committed. That's it.
- Because it blames the victim and draws attention away from the main relevant issue or issues, the rumor can bias a community and contaminate a jury pool.
The Sixth Amendment to the U. S. Constitution says, among other things, that "In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed." (emphasis added) So we have a constitutional guarantee to unbiased juries, to the degree that finding one is possible. An impartial jury implies that the jury is not only unbiased against the accused, but is also unbiased against an alleged victim of the accused as well. If the legal defense team, or members of the community that were associates of Mr. Cole's, were to spread a rumor blaming the victim and besmirching her character, it is possible that in a small community like Baker City and County, that it could bias many members of the community against the victim and in favor of Mr. Cole.
We know that a story, even a highly misleading and irrational one, which is told often enough, can become accepted as truth. We also know that people want to uphold their beliefs, especially about those they see as near-saints who are held to be beyond reproach. Many want to defend their beliefs so badly, no matter how erroneous, that they will enter into denial and rationalization, creating the most fantastic tales to do so. When these processes occur in a small town, with people repeating a vicious rumor over and over, an impartial jury may be difficult to find, because the potential jurors may have been contaminated with the incomplete, misleading, or irrelevant information contained in a rumor.
That is why this subtly, or not so subtly, vicious rumor, is so dangerous. Due to both this widespread rumor, and to Brian Cole's extensive contacts within our groups and institutions, if a trial is to occur, one wonders whether an impartial jury could be found in Baker County. In that event, perhaps there should be a change of venue.
When is a Rumor Much More than Just a Rumor?
4 quick answers (among several possibilities):
1) When its a Vicious Rumor that tends to blame a victim or victims, or
2) When it draws attention away from the primary relevant issue(s), or
3) When it can bias a community and contaminate a jury pool, or
4) When it is untrue.
I reported earlier on what I believed to be a false rumor that started going around shortly after the "cite and release" arrest of Brian Cole for furnishing alcohol to a minor. I have since learned that the rumor has seemingly been disseminated into most of the social nooks and crannies of our relatively small community, and that is really too bad. Even if the part of the rumor saying the victim was also one of Dean Barnes' victims is true, it is essentially irrelevant to the case, as explained below.
The version I first heard might fit in all four categories above, and goes like this:
"I heard the person Cole gave alcohol to was one of the girls who got Dean Barnes in trouble."
After having been prodded by a friend into deeper consideration of the effects of such a rumor, I decide to write this short column.
- The rumor is vicious because it blames the victim.
Juveniles don't get adults into trouble. Adults get themselves, and sometimes juveniles, into trouble. Even if the juvenile in the recent case was also involved in the Barnes case, (and I have to confess, despite my earlier claim, there is no way for me to know, even if I was given good reason to doubt it, but I have recently seen documents which indicate she was) any previous contact with Barnes would be irrelevant. The adult, Youth Pastor Barnes, was responsible for abusing two 16 year old juveniles, not the other way around, and that is why he was sentenced to 15 plus years (See: http://www.bakercityherald.com/Editorials/A-valuable-lesson). If the 17 year old in question, had in fact been abused by Barnes, that couldn't possibly be an excuse for a 47 year old sometime Sunday school teacher to give her alcohol and park with her in an out of the way place on a country road. The rumor is completely illogical in that it tries to justify further victimization of a juvenile once victimization had started. At best, it just points out the skewed mindset and archaic value system of some folks who might be taken in by it.
Blaming the victim though has long been a tried and true strategy for distorting the true power in relationships and has been a way to turn the truth about social realities on their head. One recent case that was brought to my attention was that of a 26 year old 6th grade teacher who had sex with one of her 12 year old students. The attorney for the teacher tried to suggest that it was the 12 year old's fault for being a "Latino machismo teenager." See:http://jezebel.com/5021881/kelsey-petersons-attorney-blames-child-rape-victims-latino-machismo
- The rumor draws attention away from the main relevant issue or issues.
The issue isn't one of whether or not there is a troubled teenage temptress on the loose in Baker City, wreaking havoc upon those that some people like to think are law-abiding and decent adult males with strong spiritual values and moral character. The primary issues are whether a 47 year old civic and spiritual leader, and family man, broke the law by serving alcohol to a minor in a parked vehicle out at the Pocahontas Station, and whether or not other crimes related to the juvenile have been committed. That's it.
- Because it blames the victim and draws attention away from the main relevant issue or issues, the rumor can bias a community and contaminate a jury pool.
The Sixth Amendment to the U. S. Constitution says, among other things, that "In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed." (emphasis added) So we have a constitutional guarantee to unbiased juries, to the degree that finding one is possible. An impartial jury implies that the jury is not only unbiased against the accused, but is also unbiased against an alleged victim of the accused as well. If the legal defense team, or members of the community that were associates of Mr. Cole's, were to spread a rumor blaming the victim and besmirching her character, it is possible that in a small community like Baker City and County, that it could bias many members of the community against the victim and in favor of Mr. Cole.
We know that a story, even a highly misleading and irrational one, which is told often enough, can become accepted as truth. We also know that people want to uphold their beliefs, especially about those they see as near-saints who are held to be beyond reproach. Many want to defend their beliefs so badly, no matter how erroneous, that they will enter into denial and rationalization, creating the most fantastic tales to do so. When these processes occur in a small town, with people repeating a vicious rumor over and over, an impartial jury may be difficult to find, because the potential jurors may have been contaminated with the incomplete, misleading, or irrelevant information contained in a rumor.
That is why this subtly, or not so subtly, vicious rumor, is so dangerous. Due to both this widespread rumor, and to Brian Cole's extensive contacts within our groups and institutions, if a trial is to occur, one wonders whether an impartial jury could be found in Baker County. In that event, perhaps there should be a change of venue.
Representative Bentz Responds on Local Stimulus Jobs
In the Sunday, November 1st blog http://bakercountyblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/obama-stimulus-and-anybody-seen-rep.html, I posted a letter to Representative Cliff Bentz that outlined the concerns of a friend in the neighborhood (as well as some my own observations) concerning local stimulus jobs going to people who didn't live in Baker County or even in adjoining counties. The briefest drift of the issues raised was "We thought the stimulus money was supposed to help stimulate the economy and put people to work in the areas where the projects were taking place--not people from cities several hundred miles away or people in neighboring states. To the best of our knowledge, the people just referenced don't shop much in Baker County.
Do you think these projects should be putting more local people to work? Would it be possible for your staff to look into this?"
Mr. Bentz has responded, and he is in fact looking into the matter to see if he can get some changes made. He asks that if people have other examples that they get those concerns to him soon. You can send them to Representative Bentz at the address and e-mail at the bottom of his letter, or you may e-mail them to me at refugee2000@gmail.com, or phone 541-523-2376.
Here is his response:
Dear Mr. Christie,
I raised the issue of ODOT's contracting and hiring practices with ODOT Director Matt Garrett yesterday during my radio show here in Ontario. He was my guest. He indicated that ODOT was making an effort to "unbundle" the project so that local contractors would be hired. I also asked him if ODOT was aware of the approach Idaho and Washington were using (in other words, are Idaho and Washington discriminating against Oregon contractors). He indicated he had heard nothing like this. I have, and I will be following up with him in this regard also.
I have also spoken with the local ODOT personnel regarding the hiring of more local people.
I will be traveling to Salem for the Legislative Transportation Committee meeting on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2009. I will raise the issues that you have shared with me once again at that meeting.
If you have any other suggestions (or examples that I could share) could you please get them to me sometime next week so that I can use them in my conversations with ODOT.
Thank you very much for your help.
Very Truly Yours,
Representative Cliff Bentz
District 60
Eastern Oregon Office:
258 S. Oregon St., Ontario, OR 97914
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 1027, Ontario, OR 97914
Phone/Fax:
541-889-8866
E-mail:
rep.cliffbentz@state.or.us
________________________
Do you think these projects should be putting more local people to work? Would it be possible for your staff to look into this?"
Mr. Bentz has responded, and he is in fact looking into the matter to see if he can get some changes made. He asks that if people have other examples that they get those concerns to him soon. You can send them to Representative Bentz at the address and e-mail at the bottom of his letter, or you may e-mail them to me at refugee2000@gmail.com, or phone 541-523-2376.
Here is his response:
Dear Mr. Christie,
I raised the issue of ODOT's contracting and hiring practices with ODOT Director Matt Garrett yesterday during my radio show here in Ontario. He was my guest. He indicated that ODOT was making an effort to "unbundle" the project so that local contractors would be hired. I also asked him if ODOT was aware of the approach Idaho and Washington were using (in other words, are Idaho and Washington discriminating against Oregon contractors). He indicated he had heard nothing like this. I have, and I will be following up with him in this regard also.
I have also spoken with the local ODOT personnel regarding the hiring of more local people.
I will be traveling to Salem for the Legislative Transportation Committee meeting on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2009. I will raise the issues that you have shared with me once again at that meeting.
If you have any other suggestions (or examples that I could share) could you please get them to me sometime next week so that I can use them in my conversations with ODOT.
Thank you very much for your help.
Very Truly Yours,
Representative Cliff Bentz
District 60
Eastern Oregon Office:
258 S. Oregon St., Ontario, OR 97914
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 1027, Ontario, OR 97914
Phone/Fax:
541-889-8866
E-mail:
rep.cliffbentz@state.or.us
________________________
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Brian Cole Update, 11/04/09
1:53 PM
Brian Cole "will not be announcing at this point in time."
Plus: More Cognitive Obamatherapy--Obama One Year Later
______________________________
A few minutes ago, in a phone conversation with Baker City High School Athletic Director Mike Sullivan, he said that Brian Cole "will not be announcing at this point in time." Mr. Cole has been the regular announcer at high school sporting events for a number of years. While not specifically asked, Mr. Sullivan volunteered that the high school has "No comment on what has happened to Brian." An hour earlier they had thought they would issue a statement about Mr. Cole's future involvement with high school athletics, but they changed their minds and decided not to write a statement, at least for the time being.
_______________
Update: 11/4/09 6:30 PM
Also of interest:
Baker City Church of the Nazarene
Sunday School
Sunday School is offered at 9:30 a.m. every Sunday, from age 3 through 103.
If you see a need for a new Sunday School class, contact Pastor Jon.
Teens' Classes
Youth Sunday School Director: Matt Wilson
Class
9th & 10th grades Brian and Suzi Cole
http://www.bakercitynaz.com/SundaySchool.html
________________
While I am aware of events related to the investigation, Baker County Blog is just not going to report those details until public documents become available or until the investigators have been able to do their job, with the investigation having run its course. The prosecutors do not want to try the case in the press, and that makes sense to me.
For background on the case, see the article below from yesterday.
______________________________
Obama One Year Later: The Audacity of Winning vs. The Timidity of Governing
Arianna Huffington: David Plouffe has written the most important political book of the year. The Audacity to Win arrives at a crossroads moment for the Obama administration -- exactly one year after the election. While reading it, I found myself wondering what Candidate Obama would think of President Obama. Would he wonder how the candidate who got into the race because he decided "the people were getting hosed" became the president who decided that the American people can only have as much change as Olympia Snowe will allow? How did the candidate who told a stadium of supporters in Denver that "the greatest risk we can take is to try the same old politics with the same old players and expect a different result" become the president who has surrounded himself with the same old players trying the same old politics, expecting a different result?
See: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/obama-one-year-later-the_b_343209.html
Brian Cole "will not be announcing at this point in time."
Plus: More Cognitive Obamatherapy--Obama One Year Later
______________________________
A few minutes ago, in a phone conversation with Baker City High School Athletic Director Mike Sullivan, he said that Brian Cole "will not be announcing at this point in time." Mr. Cole has been the regular announcer at high school sporting events for a number of years. While not specifically asked, Mr. Sullivan volunteered that the high school has "No comment on what has happened to Brian." An hour earlier they had thought they would issue a statement about Mr. Cole's future involvement with high school athletics, but they changed their minds and decided not to write a statement, at least for the time being.
_______________
Update: 11/4/09 6:30 PM
Also of interest:
Baker City Church of the Nazarene
Sunday School
Sunday School is offered at 9:30 a.m. every Sunday, from age 3 through 103.
If you see a need for a new Sunday School class, contact Pastor Jon.
Teens' Classes
Youth Sunday School Director: Matt Wilson
Class
9th & 10th grades Brian and Suzi Cole
http://www.bakercitynaz.com/SundaySchool.html
________________
While I am aware of events related to the investigation, Baker County Blog is just not going to report those details until public documents become available or until the investigators have been able to do their job, with the investigation having run its course. The prosecutors do not want to try the case in the press, and that makes sense to me.
For background on the case, see the article below from yesterday.
______________________________
Obama One Year Later: The Audacity of Winning vs. The Timidity of Governing
Arianna Huffington: David Plouffe has written the most important political book of the year. The Audacity to Win arrives at a crossroads moment for the Obama administration -- exactly one year after the election. While reading it, I found myself wondering what Candidate Obama would think of President Obama. Would he wonder how the candidate who got into the race because he decided "the people were getting hosed" became the president who decided that the American people can only have as much change as Olympia Snowe will allow? How did the candidate who told a stadium of supporters in Denver that "the greatest risk we can take is to try the same old politics with the same old players and expect a different result" become the president who has surrounded himself with the same old players trying the same old politics, expecting a different result?
See: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/obama-one-year-later-the_b_343209.html
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Halloween Happenings: Brian Cole Cited for Furnishing Alcohol to a Minor
Last update 8:50 PM, 11/3/09.
Baker City has been abuzz since former Economic Development Director and former County Commissioner, Brian D. Cole, was cited by Baker County Sheriffs Deputy, Gabe Maldonado, for Furnishing Alcohol to a Minor on Halloween evening, 10/31/09. Officer Maldonado was checking on the presence of a parked vehicle at the rural fire station on Pocahontas Road. Inside the vehicle, officer Maldonado found Cole, 47, and a juvenile female under the age of 18. According to the Sheriff’s press log, Cole was cited for furnishing alcohol to the minor and released. While there was no mention in the press log of a citation being given to the juvenile, both Officer Maldonado and Baker County District Attorney Shirtcliff confirmed that the 17 year old was cited for Minor in Possession (MIP). The incident occurred just two driving miles from Cole’s home, which is situated overlooking Baker City, on Deer Park Loop, off Western Heights Lane.
Cole Home on Deer Park Loop
Pocahontas Station, Rural Fire Protection District
Furnishing alcohol to a minor is a Class A misdemeanor in Oregon, and, if convicted, Cole could receive the maximum penalty of one year in jail and a $6,250.00 fine. A minor convicted of MIP faces a minimum fine of $299.00 and a maximum fine of $427.00. A person convicted of MIP may also lose their driving privileges for up to one year, depending on the circumstances. These fines may have been increased by recent legislation.
According to District Attorney Shirtcliff, due to Mr. Cole’s extensive contacts in Baker County, the case has been turned over to the Oregon Department of Justice for investigation. Sean Riddell from the Attorney General’s office will handle the case, and he will take it to Circuit Court for trial on the misdemeanor charge, if he thinks there is sufficient evidence to warrant it. Mr. Riddell, an ex-marine, was appointed by Oregon Attorney General John Kroger to lead the Oregon Department of Justice’s Criminal Justice Division on July 23rd, 2009. Mr. Riddell said that the case would only go to the Grand Jury if the investigation turned up evidence of a possible felony, in which case the Grand Jury would look at the evidence to decide whether an indictment was appropriate. In either case, he indicated the case would be tried in Circuit Court. (For information about Sean Riddell, see: http://blogs.wweek.com/news/2009/07/23/john-kroger-names-kroger-like-criminal-chief-for-oregon/#more-32205) When asked if any sobriety tests had been administered, the DA simply said he could not get into the facts of the case. There are currently no other charges, pending investigation.
Sheriff's Press Log Entry
Brian Cole has been a respected and active member of the community, and until about a month ago, had been regularly attending the Baker City Church of the Nazarene on east Hughes Lane in Baker City. Another member of the Nazarene Church, Youth Pastor Dean Barnes, was convicted of three felonies having to do with the sexual abuse of two 16 year old female parishioners, after his arrest by the Baker City Police Department on October 20, 2008.
In addition to his work in community and hydropower development, Mr. Cole has long been the announcer for Baker High School sporting events, and an avid supporter of the women’s high school sports teams coached by his revered wife, Suzy. His two children are also involved in high school sports and sometimes the family entertained or attended outings with members of the women’s teams. These are thought to be the conditions that brought Mr. Cole into contact with the minor he is charged with furnishing alcohol to.
My information indicates that Mr. Cole was not under consideration for the City Manager job opening in Baker City, despite his work in economic development and his stint as County Commissioner.
One rumor that has been going around is that the juvenile involved in the Brian Cole case was also involved in the Dean Barnes case. My information indicates that the juvenile involved in the Cole matter was not involved at all with the Barnes matter. We must all withhold judgement until the investigation in completed, and the case has gone through the courts. [Public documents later revealed that she was in fact a victim in the Barnes case.]
You can find information concerning Mr. Cole's civic involvement and resume, along with his photograph, at Orbis Group, Inc. (http://www.orbisgroup.org/overview_about.php), Symbiotics LLC (http://www.symbioticsenergy.com/company/principals/brian_cole.html),
and in numerous articles to be found in a search at the Baker City Herald (http://www.bakercityherald.com).
For a discussion of Oregon Alcohol Laws and Minors, See:
http://www.oregon.gov/OLCC/docs/publications/oregons_alcohol_laws_and_minors.pdf
Baker County Blog has been updating this article today, and in any event, will post more relevant information as it becomes available. Last update 8:50 PM, 11/3/09.
Baker City has been abuzz since former Economic Development Director and former County Commissioner, Brian D. Cole, was cited by Baker County Sheriffs Deputy, Gabe Maldonado, for Furnishing Alcohol to a Minor on Halloween evening, 10/31/09. Officer Maldonado was checking on the presence of a parked vehicle at the rural fire station on Pocahontas Road. Inside the vehicle, officer Maldonado found Cole, 47, and a juvenile female under the age of 18. According to the Sheriff’s press log, Cole was cited for furnishing alcohol to the minor and released. While there was no mention in the press log of a citation being given to the juvenile, both Officer Maldonado and Baker County District Attorney Shirtcliff confirmed that the 17 year old was cited for Minor in Possession (MIP). The incident occurred just two driving miles from Cole’s home, which is situated overlooking Baker City, on Deer Park Loop, off Western Heights Lane.
Cole Home on Deer Park Loop
Pocahontas Station, Rural Fire Protection DistrictFurnishing alcohol to a minor is a Class A misdemeanor in Oregon, and, if convicted, Cole could receive the maximum penalty of one year in jail and a $6,250.00 fine. A minor convicted of MIP faces a minimum fine of $299.00 and a maximum fine of $427.00. A person convicted of MIP may also lose their driving privileges for up to one year, depending on the circumstances. These fines may have been increased by recent legislation.
According to District Attorney Shirtcliff, due to Mr. Cole’s extensive contacts in Baker County, the case has been turned over to the Oregon Department of Justice for investigation. Sean Riddell from the Attorney General’s office will handle the case, and he will take it to Circuit Court for trial on the misdemeanor charge, if he thinks there is sufficient evidence to warrant it. Mr. Riddell, an ex-marine, was appointed by Oregon Attorney General John Kroger to lead the Oregon Department of Justice’s Criminal Justice Division on July 23rd, 2009. Mr. Riddell said that the case would only go to the Grand Jury if the investigation turned up evidence of a possible felony, in which case the Grand Jury would look at the evidence to decide whether an indictment was appropriate. In either case, he indicated the case would be tried in Circuit Court. (For information about Sean Riddell, see: http://blogs.wweek.com/news/2009/07/23/john-kroger-names-kroger-like-criminal-chief-for-oregon/#more-32205) When asked if any sobriety tests had been administered, the DA simply said he could not get into the facts of the case. There are currently no other charges, pending investigation.
Sheriff's Press Log EntryBrian Cole has been a respected and active member of the community, and until about a month ago, had been regularly attending the Baker City Church of the Nazarene on east Hughes Lane in Baker City. Another member of the Nazarene Church, Youth Pastor Dean Barnes, was convicted of three felonies having to do with the sexual abuse of two 16 year old female parishioners, after his arrest by the Baker City Police Department on October 20, 2008.
In addition to his work in community and hydropower development, Mr. Cole has long been the announcer for Baker High School sporting events, and an avid supporter of the women’s high school sports teams coached by his revered wife, Suzy. His two children are also involved in high school sports and sometimes the family entertained or attended outings with members of the women’s teams. These are thought to be the conditions that brought Mr. Cole into contact with the minor he is charged with furnishing alcohol to.
My information indicates that Mr. Cole was not under consideration for the City Manager job opening in Baker City, despite his work in economic development and his stint as County Commissioner.
One rumor that has been going around is that the juvenile involved in the Brian Cole case was also involved in the Dean Barnes case. My information indicates that the juvenile involved in the Cole matter was not involved at all with the Barnes matter. We must all withhold judgement until the investigation in completed, and the case has gone through the courts. [Public documents later revealed that she was in fact a victim in the Barnes case.]
You can find information concerning Mr. Cole's civic involvement and resume, along with his photograph, at Orbis Group, Inc. (http://www.orbisgroup.org/overview_about.php), Symbiotics LLC (http://www.symbioticsenergy.com/company/principals/brian_cole.html),
and in numerous articles to be found in a search at the Baker City Herald (http://www.bakercityherald.com).
For a discussion of Oregon Alcohol Laws and Minors, See:
http://www.oregon.gov/OLCC/docs/publications/oregons_alcohol_laws_and_minors.pdf
Baker County Blog has been updating this article today, and in any event, will post more relevant information as it becomes available. Last update 8:50 PM, 11/3/09.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Obama, Stimulus, and Anybody Seen Rep. Bentz?
As part of my continuing effort to provide cognitive therapy for struggling Obamakins, I'm posting the following segment from Saturday Night Live. Some will have already seen this as I am not one to keep up with what's playing in the boob-tube waste land, but it might be worth a second look.
Change We Can Believe In: Nothing!
______________________________
Obama Stimulus: How Many Dollars per Job Saved/Created????
Link on stimulus job creation in Baker County:
http://www.recovery.gov/transparency/pages/home.aspx?ZipCode=97814&datasource=recipient
Ah ha, $4,279,471 spent for 19.37 jobs. Hmmmm--That's $220,933 per job. Oh well, at least there is a new sidewalk in front of Commissioner Warner's place on Main Street at "D" and Main.
Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis calculates "Obama creates 640,329 jobs at a cost of $323,739.83 per job" for the entire stimulus thus far. See http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2009/10/obama-creates-640329-jobs-at-cost-of.html
__________________________
Has Anyone Seen Representative Bentz?
A month ago I sent the following e-mail to our state Representative Bentz:
from Christopher Christie
to Rep Bentz
date Fri, Oct 2, 2009 at 10:55 AM
subject Stimulus not putting locals to work?
mailed-by gmail.com Oct 2
October 2, 2009
Dear Representative Bentz:
I am taking time to write you this letter on behalf of a friend in my neighborhood, and other qualified workers here in Baker County, who are struggling to make ends meet.
It was our understanding the the federal stimulus projects were meant, in part at least, to stimulate the local economies, and to put people to work in the local areas where the projects took place. While our "D" St. and Birch Street projects have helped one of our local crushed rock producers, as well as a local campground, and probably a bar or two, my friend tells me that probably 85 to 95% of the on-the-ground Knife River workers here in town and on the I-84 project are their own people from Bend. He told me that he had referred several qualified young people to them for the work, but none of them were hired. I myself have driven the by the local projects to witness several spanish speakers. To the best of my knowledge they are not local people. He also says many of the truckers working on the freeway projects are from Idaho, even though there are local truckers available and willing to do the work. He says he knows this because he was working as a trucker on one of the projects and was placed well back in line behind Idaho truckers. This meant that he was unable to work many days when they only needed 20 trucks instead of, say, 40.
When he called the State to see if they could do something to get more local people working on these stimulus projects, they essentially told him that there was nothing they could do about it.
Is that right? We thought the stimulus money was supposed to help stimulate the economy and put people to work in the areas where the projects were taking place--not people from cities several hundred miles away or people in neighboring states. To the best of our knowledge, the people just referenced don't shop much in Baker County.
Do you think these projects should be putting more local people to work? Would it be possible for your staff to look into this?
Thank you for any help in this matter.
Sincerely,
Christopher Christie
No reply a month later, will keep you posted.
_______________________
Obama Goes Wobbly Over More Stimulus
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article23852.htm
By Mike Whitney
November 01, 2009 "Information Clearing House' -- The recession is over. Yesterday's report from the Commerce Dept. confirmed that the economy expanded in the third quarter by 3.5 percent, better than most economists estimates. GDP had contracted in the four previous quarters in the longest and deepest recession since the Great Depression. Massive government stimulus, cash for clunkers, and inventory restocking accounted for most of the surge in economic activity. Consumer spending grew at 2.36 percent while consumer credit continued to contract at a near-record pace of 4.5 percent. Unemployment swelled to 9.8 percent, "with nearly nearly 26 million workers—17 percent of the workforce—unemployed or underemployed," according to economist Mark Zandi. The economy remains extremely weak and is expected to lapse back into recession if the Obama administration fails to provide a second-round of stimulus.
But President Barack Obama hasn't requested more stimulus and recent polls indicate that a majority of people are against more deficit spending. The administration has done a poor job of explaining the advantages of reducing the output-gap or--for that matter--the overall objectives of Obama's economic recovery plan. Many people heap the bank bailouts (TARP) with the fiscal stimulus. This is a mistake that's easy to make. But the point needs to be clarified so more people don't needlessly suffer. It's up to Obama to articulate the differences in policy so the country can muddle through the tough days ahead. The problem is, Obama is afraid to use his skills as a communicator, because he thinks his message will offend financial industry constituents who wield tremendous power at the White House and on Capital Hill. The bankers and brokerage mandarins are more than happy with the present arrangement, which means that the conveyor-belt connecting the US Treasury to Wall Street will continue to operate at full-throttle diverting ungodly sums of money to broken banks and financial institutions rather than for unemployment benefits, work programs, and state aid.
Obama supporters who think that the president is right to treat the banks with kid gloves, should consider how Franklin Roosevelt dealt with the same situation 70 years ago. His first Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933, sums it up pretty well:
"Practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men....Faced by failure of credit they have proposed only the lending of more money. Stripped of the lure of profit by which to induce our people to follow their false leadership, they have resorted to exhortations, pleading tearfully for restored confidence. They know only the rules of a generation of self-seekers. They have no vision, and when there is no vision the people perish." (Source: Franklin D. Roosevelt, Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933)
Or, this from FDR:
“Appraising the situation in the bitter dawn of a cold morning after, what do we find? We find two-thirds of American industry concentrated in a few hundred corporations…We find more than half of the savings of the country invested in corporate stocks and bonds, and made the sport of the American stock market. We find fewer than three dozen private banking houses, and stock-selling adjuncts of commercial banks, directing the flow of American capital. In other words, we find concentrated economic power in a few hands…We find a great part of our working population with no chance of earning a living except by grace of this concentrated industrial machine; and we find that millions and millions of Americans are out of work, throwing upon the already burdened Government the necessity of relief…We find the Republican leaders proposing no solution except more debts, more conferences under the same bewildered leadership, more Government money in business but no Government attempt to wrestle with basic problems…I believe that our industrial and economic system is made for individual men and women, and not individual men and women for the benefit of the system.” (Thanks to counterpunch contributor Pam Marten for FDR quote http://www.counterpunch.org/martens10312008.html)
Clearly, FDR understood the type of people he was dealing with.
Obama needs to stop pussyfooting and toughen-up. This isn't the time for grandiloquent oratory or Utopian claptrap. People have lost their jobs, their homes, their savings. The shelters are bulging, the food banks are maxed out, and the unemployment lines are stretched from one coast to the other. Here's a clip from the New York Times making the case for more stimulus:
"The economy is going to need more government support, or it is bound to be very weak for a very long time — and vulnerable to a relapse into recession. Unemployment is expected to worsen well into next year, exceeding 10 percent. Foreclosures are expected to rise, which will push home values down further. Hundreds of small and midsize banks are likely to fail in coming years. State and local governments face budget shortfalls in 2010 that are as bad or worse than this year’s.
Yet Washington is not providing a coherent plan for effective stimulus. The Senate has been hamstrung for nearly a month over the most basic relief-and-recovery boost: an extension of unemployment benefits. ... Lawmakers in both parties fret that large budget deficits preclude more stimulus, lest the burden of debt outweigh the benefit of deficit spending. ... Deficits are a serious issue, but the immediate need for stimulus trumps the longer-term need for deficit reduction. A self-reinforcing stretch of economic weakness would be far costlier than additional stimulus." ("The Case for more Stimulus", New York Times editorial)
Sure, the public is worried about the ballooning deficits; they should be. But that shouldn't stop Obama from doing the right thing and making the case for another round of stimulus. His job is to strengthen demand and put the country back to work. The rest is just politics.
Change We Can Believe In: Nothing!
______________________________
Obama Stimulus: How Many Dollars per Job Saved/Created????
Link on stimulus job creation in Baker County:
http://www.recovery.gov/transparency/pages/home.aspx?ZipCode=97814&datasource=recipient
Ah ha, $4,279,471 spent for 19.37 jobs. Hmmmm--That's $220,933 per job. Oh well, at least there is a new sidewalk in front of Commissioner Warner's place on Main Street at "D" and Main.
Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis calculates "Obama creates 640,329 jobs at a cost of $323,739.83 per job" for the entire stimulus thus far. See http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2009/10/obama-creates-640329-jobs-at-cost-of.html
__________________________
Has Anyone Seen Representative Bentz?
A month ago I sent the following e-mail to our state Representative Bentz:
from Christopher Christie
to Rep Bentz
date Fri, Oct 2, 2009 at 10:55 AM
subject Stimulus not putting locals to work?
mailed-by gmail.com Oct 2
October 2, 2009
Dear Representative Bentz:
I am taking time to write you this letter on behalf of a friend in my neighborhood, and other qualified workers here in Baker County, who are struggling to make ends meet.
It was our understanding the the federal stimulus projects were meant, in part at least, to stimulate the local economies, and to put people to work in the local areas where the projects took place. While our "D" St. and Birch Street projects have helped one of our local crushed rock producers, as well as a local campground, and probably a bar or two, my friend tells me that probably 85 to 95% of the on-the-ground Knife River workers here in town and on the I-84 project are their own people from Bend. He told me that he had referred several qualified young people to them for the work, but none of them were hired. I myself have driven the by the local projects to witness several spanish speakers. To the best of my knowledge they are not local people. He also says many of the truckers working on the freeway projects are from Idaho, even though there are local truckers available and willing to do the work. He says he knows this because he was working as a trucker on one of the projects and was placed well back in line behind Idaho truckers. This meant that he was unable to work many days when they only needed 20 trucks instead of, say, 40.
When he called the State to see if they could do something to get more local people working on these stimulus projects, they essentially told him that there was nothing they could do about it.
Is that right? We thought the stimulus money was supposed to help stimulate the economy and put people to work in the areas where the projects were taking place--not people from cities several hundred miles away or people in neighboring states. To the best of our knowledge, the people just referenced don't shop much in Baker County.
Do you think these projects should be putting more local people to work? Would it be possible for your staff to look into this?
Thank you for any help in this matter.
Sincerely,
Christopher Christie
No reply a month later, will keep you posted.
_______________________
Obama Goes Wobbly Over More Stimulus
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article23852.htm
By Mike Whitney
November 01, 2009 "Information Clearing House' -- The recession is over. Yesterday's report from the Commerce Dept. confirmed that the economy expanded in the third quarter by 3.5 percent, better than most economists estimates. GDP had contracted in the four previous quarters in the longest and deepest recession since the Great Depression. Massive government stimulus, cash for clunkers, and inventory restocking accounted for most of the surge in economic activity. Consumer spending grew at 2.36 percent while consumer credit continued to contract at a near-record pace of 4.5 percent. Unemployment swelled to 9.8 percent, "with nearly nearly 26 million workers—17 percent of the workforce—unemployed or underemployed," according to economist Mark Zandi. The economy remains extremely weak and is expected to lapse back into recession if the Obama administration fails to provide a second-round of stimulus.
But President Barack Obama hasn't requested more stimulus and recent polls indicate that a majority of people are against more deficit spending. The administration has done a poor job of explaining the advantages of reducing the output-gap or--for that matter--the overall objectives of Obama's economic recovery plan. Many people heap the bank bailouts (TARP) with the fiscal stimulus. This is a mistake that's easy to make. But the point needs to be clarified so more people don't needlessly suffer. It's up to Obama to articulate the differences in policy so the country can muddle through the tough days ahead. The problem is, Obama is afraid to use his skills as a communicator, because he thinks his message will offend financial industry constituents who wield tremendous power at the White House and on Capital Hill. The bankers and brokerage mandarins are more than happy with the present arrangement, which means that the conveyor-belt connecting the US Treasury to Wall Street will continue to operate at full-throttle diverting ungodly sums of money to broken banks and financial institutions rather than for unemployment benefits, work programs, and state aid.
Obama supporters who think that the president is right to treat the banks with kid gloves, should consider how Franklin Roosevelt dealt with the same situation 70 years ago. His first Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933, sums it up pretty well:
"Practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men....Faced by failure of credit they have proposed only the lending of more money. Stripped of the lure of profit by which to induce our people to follow their false leadership, they have resorted to exhortations, pleading tearfully for restored confidence. They know only the rules of a generation of self-seekers. They have no vision, and when there is no vision the people perish." (Source: Franklin D. Roosevelt, Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933)
Or, this from FDR:
“Appraising the situation in the bitter dawn of a cold morning after, what do we find? We find two-thirds of American industry concentrated in a few hundred corporations…We find more than half of the savings of the country invested in corporate stocks and bonds, and made the sport of the American stock market. We find fewer than three dozen private banking houses, and stock-selling adjuncts of commercial banks, directing the flow of American capital. In other words, we find concentrated economic power in a few hands…We find a great part of our working population with no chance of earning a living except by grace of this concentrated industrial machine; and we find that millions and millions of Americans are out of work, throwing upon the already burdened Government the necessity of relief…We find the Republican leaders proposing no solution except more debts, more conferences under the same bewildered leadership, more Government money in business but no Government attempt to wrestle with basic problems…I believe that our industrial and economic system is made for individual men and women, and not individual men and women for the benefit of the system.” (Thanks to counterpunch contributor Pam Marten for FDR quote http://www.counterpunch.org/martens10312008.html)
Clearly, FDR understood the type of people he was dealing with.
Obama needs to stop pussyfooting and toughen-up. This isn't the time for grandiloquent oratory or Utopian claptrap. People have lost their jobs, their homes, their savings. The shelters are bulging, the food banks are maxed out, and the unemployment lines are stretched from one coast to the other. Here's a clip from the New York Times making the case for more stimulus:
"The economy is going to need more government support, or it is bound to be very weak for a very long time — and vulnerable to a relapse into recession. Unemployment is expected to worsen well into next year, exceeding 10 percent. Foreclosures are expected to rise, which will push home values down further. Hundreds of small and midsize banks are likely to fail in coming years. State and local governments face budget shortfalls in 2010 that are as bad or worse than this year’s.
Yet Washington is not providing a coherent plan for effective stimulus. The Senate has been hamstrung for nearly a month over the most basic relief-and-recovery boost: an extension of unemployment benefits. ... Lawmakers in both parties fret that large budget deficits preclude more stimulus, lest the burden of debt outweigh the benefit of deficit spending. ... Deficits are a serious issue, but the immediate need for stimulus trumps the longer-term need for deficit reduction. A self-reinforcing stretch of economic weakness would be far costlier than additional stimulus." ("The Case for more Stimulus", New York Times editorial)
Sure, the public is worried about the ballooning deficits; they should be. But that shouldn't stop Obama from doing the right thing and making the case for another round of stimulus. His job is to strengthen demand and put the country back to work. The rest is just politics.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
How Refreshing! Center for Biological Diversity and Kieran Suckling Tells It Like It Is!
Apocalypse Soon: Halloween Interview on Overpopulation with Kierán Suckling
Scared of ghosts, goblins, and jack-o-lanterns? None of those are on the Santa Fe Reporter's list of the top five environmental horrors. But human overpopulation is. "Apocalypse Soon: Today's Environmental Horrors Could Lead to a Scary Sci-Fi Future" interviews Center for Biological Diversity director Kierán Suckling. Click below to read the whole article. Here are few excerpts:
"Virtually everything that is destroying wildlife habitat and the environment is driven by overpopulation," Kierán Suckling, executive director of the nonprofit Center for Biological Diversity, says.
"Whether it's too many people diverting water out of the Rio Grande or too much wood use leading to the logging of old-growth forests…the bottom line is there are too many people using too many resources to be able to have a healthy environment."
"It's great to focus on reducing our carbon footprint, but...unless we start reducing the footprints to begin with, we and other species are not going to survive on this planet."
"The majority of environmental groups avoid addressing overpopulation like the plague…I think that's largely because they lack the courage of their convictions… they are fearful that in saying that [we are overpopulated] they will be viewed as being anti-human somehow--as if squalor and overpopulation is somehow pro-human."
Read the Santa Fe Reporter interview and learn what the Center's doing to confront theoverpopulation crisis head-on:
(http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/center/articles/2009/santa-fe-reporter-10-28-2009.html)
OVERPOPULATION
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/overpopulation/index.html
The human population doubled from 1 to 2 billion between the years 1800 and 1930 — an unparalleled event in the planet’s history. No large mammal had ever grown to such numbers or commandeered so many resources. The impact on North America’s native species was devastating:
Driven extinct by hunters, the last eastern woodland bison was seen in West Virginia in 1825.
Undulata delissea, a Hawaiian plant, was driven extinct in 1865 by domestic cattle.
The beautiful Falls-of-the-Ohio scurfpea, which existed on a single island, was drowned by U.S. Dam No. 41 in Kentucky in 1881.
The Whiteline topminnow was last seen Alabama in 1899, its spring habitat repeatedly pumped dry by the growing human population.
The Culebra parrot was hunted and collected to extinction in Puerto Rico by 1899.
The Rocky Mountain grasshopper was purposefully driven extinct — a bounty was even placed on its head — by 1903.
Merriam’s elk was hunted to extinction in Arizona in 1906.
The Tennessee riffleshell disappeared in 1930 due to pollution and dams.
The human population doubled again by 1975, this time taking just 45 years. The rate of extinction also increased. Today’s population stands at 6.8 billion and, if it continues on course, will reach 8 billion in 2020 before leveling off at about 9 billion in 2050. If it doesn’t level off, the worldwide population could theoretically reach 15 billion by 2050, but that is unlikely due to the insurmountable economic, political, and ecological crises that would likely ensue.
By any ecological measure, Homo sapiens sapiens has exceeded its sustainable population size. Just a single human waste product — greenhouse gas — has altered the chemistry of the planet’s skies and oceans, causing global warming and ocean acidification.
In the United States, which has the world’s third-highest population after China and India, the fertility rate is rising again after leveling off and declining in previous decades. Our rate of reproduction is now at its highest level since 1971. At 2.1 children per woman, the birthrate is the highest of any developed nation and well above the developed-world average of 1.6. Our current population tops 300 million and is projected to grow by 50 percent by mid-century, eventually approaching 450 million.
Discussion of overpopulation has become somewhat taboo in the environmental movement. To change this dynamic, more than 200 conservationists and scientists, including the Center for Biological Diversity, pledged during the February 2009 Global Population Speak Out to promote awareness of the problem.
The Center’s primary mission is to stop the planetary extinction crisis that’s wiping out rare plants and animals in every nation, ocean, and ecosystem on earth. Explosive, unsustainable human population growth is an essential cause of the extinction crisis.
Through the empowerment of women, education of all people, universal access to birth control, and a societal commitment to ensuring that all species are given a chance to live and thrive, we can reduce our own population to an ecologically sustainable level. This will decrease human poverty and crowding, increase our standard of living, and sustain the lives of plants, animals, and ecosystems everywhere.
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