Sunday, January 27, 2008

Clean the SlateVOTE!VOTE!VOTE!VOTE!VOTE!

If only all the terms of Knox County Government lasted 2 years.
Of course it's not feasible but IF there was ever a time, this is it.

Friday -on the WWW, and in Saturdays Print, the KNS reported a troubling story.

"Knox County's top death investigator contends her efforts to blow the whistle on the misuse of taxpayer money went ignored for months and ultimately have cost her a private job and her health."

I get a head ache trying to figure out the arrangement with the "whistle blower" but apparently Dr. Sandra Elkins has stepped down from her position as "Knox County medical examiner" for undisclosed Medical Reasons.
She's cited stress from the job encountered as a result of her trying to expose mis-spending.
She's been trying to point to wasting of Knox County Taxpayers Money since 2006.

Apparently, (from the story)
"

Elkins said in her letter that she met with Ragsdale, ex-finance chief John Werner and Senior Community Services Director Cynthia Finch in August 2006 to make her allegations. Ragsdale promised an audit by Richard Walls, who performs financial reviews at the behest of Knox County Commission.

Walls said he, in turn, sought approval from Commission Chairman Scott Moore, who gave the audit a green light. Walls set an October 2006 meeting with Elkins, a date she confirms in her letter.

"In the meantime, I got a message from Cynthia Finch to hold off," he said. "We were ready to go then. We are ready to go now. We've not heard anything from anybody."

E


Rags promised.
Finch Squashed.
Finch squashed after Walls had approval from Scoobie-BobbleHead Moore.

Now the questions start piling up.
Did Finch Squash on her own or did Rags ask her too?
Warner's gone-will he be to blame?
BobbleHead Moore 'green lighted' it for Walls.
Why didn't BobbleHead follow up? He had to know there were allegations? Sure he did.
IS Finch so powerful, her word overrides the County Mayor AND the County Commission Chairman Bobble?

I've said it before and I'll say it again.

We can't fix our own problems, they have gotten too large!

What we have is an accumulation of years of 'it's the way we do it'.
Some of our problems are years old and some are relatively new.

Ms Betty Bean has a 2 part story she's done about Scoobie, months ago.
Part One.

Part Two.
(scroll down about half a page. THEN go back to the top for another of Ms Beans nice work)

John Schmid:
“Scott wants to be so much more, but he’s way above his pay grade. He unfortunately doesn’t have the intellectual capacity to realize how he’s being used; that he is a pawn in a larger game. His nickname up at the courthouse is ‘BobbleHead.’ He has that little vacant smile – speaks to his ambition and lack of intellectual capacity. Makes you look back and think about how good we had it with Leo.”

The article if full of people Scoobie has tricked on his rise to power.
I've noticed, like many people have, 'that vacant smile'.
Some think it's him being smug, pompous, or just plain stupid.
It's ALL!

I've written about Finch and Rags. You could go back and my opinion hasn't changed at all EXCEPT that I think Finch may have more power than I thought before.

Her word overrides our County Mayor and our County Commission Chairman.
Now thats power!
Kind of like a cross between Hillary and Barrack.
Only in a RINO Administration.

BTW, as I mentioned in a comment on the story concerning Dr. Elkins,
Mr Walls may be the next to go .
He's the "County Auditor" and is bound to know some bad things are going on PLUS I think he may have spoke out of line with his quote in the KNS.
I don't think he had direct orders for how to address questions from Rags.

Where was Rags? Shopping? Conference?
I heard he was in ATLANTA with a member of his staff working on something.
On our dime, no doubt.
BobbleHead and Co maybe about to do something right (for the wrong reason I bet.)

"Knox County Commission Chairman Scott Moore Tuesday proposed cutting the remainder of County Mayor Mike Ragsdale's auto allowance - a fund that started the year at $20,000."
OUCH!
"If we take the $20,000, he's still got the $50,000," Moore said"
"Moore noted that the mayor has $50,000 budgeted as an expense account and drives a county vehicle."
"Finance director John Troyer told Moore he would provide details of where the item is in the budget and how much money remains in that $20,000 fund by Monday's full commission meeting.
"Whatever is left should be cut to zero," Moore said."

Moore knows he has that County Mayor's Job for 90 days IF Rags is thrown out or just leaves.
Then the CC votes on it.


There's so much going on! Maybe I'll be able to post another one soon.
Don't forget to comment if you'd like to. I care!