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I worked in criminal justice. My concern in small towns or small counties, is that the members of the courts, sheriff's office, prosecutors, probation officers, etc. are too close. They might play golf together, go to the same church, maybe play softball, their kids are friends, might even be loosely related, or have earlier connections. I suspect some decisions are made outside of the courtroom. If some local kid, little Billy, does something stupid, everyone knows it and it stays with them as a black mark. It is too easy to look at Billy if something happens. Those same criminal justice officials are often elected by locals; some voters are friends or relatives, which carries some weight in a small election. Would they pander for votes by increasing arrests or sentences? Billy might be the local suspect by now, regardless of his actions.
So, the moral is... run, Billy, run early and run far if you have any sense.
I always think these offices should not be elected but appointed from a pool based on merit and qualifications.
When I moved to a small town there were about six families that ran things, and they were intermarried, and there were lots of cousins. You needed a family tree to know who you were dealing with. Once the town grew and the county approached 50k people, that network fell apart. The place showed up on corporate radar and big-box places moved in.
I worked in criminal justice. My concern in small towns or small counties, is that the members of the courts, sheriff's office, prosecutors, probation officers, etc. are too close. They might play golf together, go to the same church, maybe play softball, their kids are friends, might even be loosely related, or have earlier connections. I suspect some decisions are made outside of the courtroom. If some local kid, little Billy, does something stupid, everyone knows it and it stays with them as a black mark. It is too easy to look at Billy if something happens. Those same criminal justice officials are often elected by locals; some voters are friends or relatives, which carries some weight in a small election. Would they pander for votes by increasing arrests or sentences? Billy might be the local suspect by now, regardless of his actions.
So, the moral is... run, Billy, run early and run far if you have any sense.
I always think these offices should not be elected but appointed from a pool based on merit and qualifications.
When I moved to a small town there were about six families that ran things, and they were intermarried, and there were lots of cousins. You needed a family tree to know who you were dealing with. Once the town grew and the county approached 50k people, that network fell apart. The place showed up on corporate radar and big-box places moved in.
Sadly, with the demise of local newspapers, I'm afraid the situation is getting worse.
One thing people fail to realize is the town's control of local news. Sometimes in-depth criticism cannot be made because a local paper is dependent on legal notices for its revenue. Mayor and city managers have retaliated against papers which were too active in investigating local government.
The big city papers are not vulnerable to this type of pressure tactics.
One thing people fail to realize is the town's control of local news. Sometimes in-depth criticism cannot be made because a local paper is dependent on legal notices for its revenue. Mayor and city managers have retaliated against papers which were too active in investigating local government.
The big city papers are not vulnerable to this type of pressure tactics.
Where are you at? They did away with newspapers a long time ago when the internet took over on the World Wide Web.
And I hate it because if the very same story was in the newspaper, the story would be alot shorter, brief to the point and not go on and on. Who has all the time to read these long articles?
At least when we had newspapers, it didn't cause eye strain/posture problems like reading on a phone or computer.
They must get paid more $$$ to put in more words for internet news.
Where are you at? They did away with newspapers a long time ago when the internet took over on the World Wide Web.
And I hate it because if the very same story was in the newspaper, the story would be alot shorter, brief to the point and not go on and on. Who has all the time to read these long articles?
At least when we had newspapers, it didn't cause eye strain/posture problems like reading on a phone or computer.
They must get paid more $$$ to put in more words for internet news.
It still happens:
Quote:
In March, the Florida House passed a bill which would have stripped many Florida news organizations of a key source of advertising revenue. After weeks of negotiations between Republican lawmakers and lobbyists for the state’s newspaper industry, that bill, House Bill 35, looks likely to become law. It cleared the Senate unanimously — and the House by a vote of 105-9 — on Thursday. But the current version of the bill looks much different than it did when it first cleared the House. The original bill essentially removed a provision from state law that required legal notices to be published in certain newspapers. (Those notices cost local governments money — at most 70 cents for every square inch of advertisement.)
Even if the court disagrees with this point, the towns still say they can publish their notices where they please based on the “home rule†provision and under the context of equal protection under the Wyoming Constitution.
Mills City Clerk Christine Trumbull said the municipality posts all public notices on the city’s website and physically at City Hall and at the local post office, venues she believes receive just as many local eyeballs as notices published in the newspaper and meet the same statutory requirements. “A lot of people don’t get the paper anymore. It’s all digital,†she said.
Bruce Moats, a longtime Wyoming First Amendment attorney representing the Star-Tribune and its parent company, Lee Publications, in the case. He firmly disagrees with the towns’ position. “Studies have shown that newspapers are visited on a much higher average than city websites,†he said.
Still prefer newspapers and you don't have to worry about the link disappearing and or be dependent on power/electricity to power a computer./phone. They made it so now you MUST have a smartphone or computer to do your business. They make cars centered on a cellphone. A newspaper is a hardcopy document that isn't going anywhere as well as you can use that newspaper for other things after you are done reading it. It doesn't need to be upgraded and you can always have it paid off where these electronic instruments last only for so long before the systems are no longer supported then you MUST spend more $$$$ to get back into the game. This digital screen stuff is just ruining a persons posture, eyes and contributes to losing your situational awareness. Bad in all different ways. You will be paying a phone bill for the rest of your life for a electronic device that you will never own.
That's in large part reason why I will only live in major metro areas.
Small towns repulse me, to the point where I won't even stop for gas or food in them during a road trip. No amount of "historic charm" or natural beauty can change my mind.
In other words, you enjoy corruption on a larger scale?
Yes, corruption runs deep in the American governance circus, big or small, most towns are guilty of it to some extent. I lived in a small community that had a long history with the timber industry, the county/cities had so many sweetheart deals going with the largest timber companies that it was beyond the obvious, outright bribery was the norm and woe unto those who dared oppose that systemic thievery. The old "company town" mentality was in full swing, and most didn't really care as they were desperate for work and the industry ran those counties like their personal plantations.
In contrast, I also lived in some big cities that were guilty of various department nepotism issues, Police corruption, and the usual run of the mill political shenanigans that seem tied to human nature more than anything to do with a town/city size. I'd think that it would be obvious that small towns have a much shorter line of info spread than that of the large metro areas.
We've got a growing group of citizens in our small town who are taking down the corrupt council members, mayor and inept, crooked city officials. They're posting issues on Facebook, having groups focused on slowing development that show up at council meetings. They started an online newspaper that details what is happening. They use FOIA to get documents that they post showing misspending of our tax dollars.
Most people don't pay attention until they need to. As a small business owner and president of our neighborhood, I was approached to try to help get the word out. So far on our first special election, we got our candidate in and the good ole boy out. Just got a call from a neighbor yesterday about the new candidate running against our crooked mayor. Most people don't vote in these local elections. Our neighborhood provided way more than the 47 vote difference needed for our guy to win.
But as for judges, that's a tough one. Just try not to go to court.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KaraG
We've got a growing group of citizens in our small town who are taking down the corrupt council members, mayor and inept, crooked city officials. They're posting issues on Facebook, having groups focused on slowing development that show up at council meetings. They started an online newspaper that details what is happening. They use FOIA to get documents that they post showing misspending of our tax dollars.
Most people don't pay attention until they need to. As a small business owner and president of our neighborhood, I was approached to try to help get the word out. So far on our first special election, we got our candidate in and the good ole boy out. Just got a call from a neighbor yesterday about the new candidate running against our crooked mayor. Most people don't vote in these local elections. Our neighborhood provided way more than the 47 vote difference needed for our guy to win.
But as for judges, that's a tough one. Just try not to go to court.
Good for you - that is how you have to do it. They play on the people that do not pay attention. They intentionally withhold information knowing that most will not expend personal effort to seek it out especially if they do not suspect something is afoot. Many assume people have some ethical code so it never crosses their mind, and they would be wrong. The town politicians might post info related to the matter somewhere obscure so when challenged they can point to it and say 'see'. Very, very common tactic. Those seeking influence on the town will assist in bypassing restrictions on elected officials like engaging with lawyers, etc. I have seen some nasty politics where a special interest group went after a volunteer official about his water bill and they were funded by business interests. Politics is nasty - if anything everyone should start doing their part to make it less so regardless of the size of the community.
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Still prefer newspapers and you don't have to worry about the link disappearing and or be dependent on power/electricity to power a computer./phone. They made it so now you MUST have a smartphone or computer to do your business. They make cars centered on a cellphone.
