Dog Days Humor
Here’s a shocking headline from The Taos News (Aug. 23) in a story about county government, written by J.R Logan “Report: Housing authority in disarray– Consultant finds nepotism and mismanagement.” By golly, an outside consultant, called in to audit and check allegations of embezzlement and systemic fraud at the Taos County Housing Authority (TCHA) discovered that “staff has claimed to be connected” and “showed indifference to toward the presence of an outside reviewer.” (Editor’s translation: If you’re not from here, you can’t tell us what to do!)
Reporter Logan also mentions that Commissioner (Pipi) Sanchez “who sits in on the housing authority meetings appears to be in a violation of state law.” According to Friction sources, Sanchez allegedly got a stipend from the former director of TCHA for attending same—contrary, also, to state law. Since the scandal broke, sources say the board has trouble coming up with a quorum to carry on the official business.
Commissioner Chavez is quoted as saying, “We’ve given the public the impression we don’t know what’s going on over there and that we have no plan. We need to make some decisions and we need to make them fast” (Bold added). Chavez would seem to be the ideal candidate for director: he’s from here, is well connected, and he’s got a background in finance. Plus, he’s unafraid to terminate employees whom he perceives as incompetent or otherwise not fitting into the program. Eh Jake, Willie, Mary?
Former Secretary of State Mary Herrera is a finalist for county manager. Prior to Herrera’s creative mish-mash as secretary of state, she, according to muckraker Greg Palast in his book, The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, served as county clerk in Bernalillo and was responsible for the “undercount” of some 6,000 votes in the 2000 presidential election. Her incompetence, allegedly, helped turn New Mexico red and ensued in worldwide devastation and perpetual war. She should fit right in to the mix.
Herrera’s experience is a mirror of the report on the TCHA, which summarizes the problem of micro-managed government at the county, saying, “they have no way to truly hold the staff of the Housing Authority accountable for following through with their directives.”
(Editor’s Note: Conspiracy and incompetence are the twin-principles of governing.)
At the town the staff tried to satisfy the Mayor’s vendetta against the sign man, per the sign code but couldn’t quite squeeze by the courts and the protester himself because he had thoroughly immersed himself in the code–contrary to the Mayor’s enforcers. Now the Mayor’s new bright-eyed MIT trained manager has threatened to rewrite the code and train the staff. Say what?
Meanwhile the Mayor is still pushing booze at his restaurant, using a distasteful sandwich board to announce barely legible deals on tequila. McDonald’s is beginning to look like a model of restraint in comparison to local businesses that flaunt specials on tacky homemade signs up and down the paseo. At least Jeff’s message, though phrased in garish letters, is highly legible about so-called “Corruption.”
A number of laid-off employees at the county are consulting attorneys. Perhaps the courts can combine all the employment lawsuits in a mini class action case about the movida makers. The commissioners seem intent on driving the town and Coop off the front pages in their pursuit of headlines re: “The Taos Hug,” etc.
When are the Taos Municipal Schools going to make public an audit of the last two years, an audit which, according to rumor, confirms what former board members and consultants said about the crazy quilt bookkeeping system at TMS? There’s a federal court case scheduled for early 2013 to try and sort out issues of incompetence and conspiracy. Public tax dollars are being used to defend current and former school board members from administrators, who are using their taxpayer salaries to sue the board.
After voting to raise taxes for the new football stadium et al, we hear, the schools still haven’t figured out how to build an “indoor plumbing facility with running water” as replacement for the porta potties. Hey it only took the town thirty years to figure out the public bathroom issue on the Plaza but, by golly, the town learned and installed bathrooms with running water at the Eco Park.
Most of us can’t wait to attend the PRC hearings this fall about KCEC’s deceptive practices regarding the broadband project and the wishful thinking about community development, paid for by the members and collateralized by the members assets. Currently, a number of Coop members are refusing to let the Coop install fiber optic lines on their private property.
Ladies and gentlemen: the Coop might have a lawful easement regarding the installation of electric infrastructure but, according to our sources, KCEC does not have the right to come on your property and lay down broadband lines or install poles, etc. for same. Several members are consulting with attorneys in an attempt to correct or prevent property damage by their own rubber stamp coop board of trustees and management.
And that’s the way it is this last weekend of the August in 2012.