July 20, 2009: City Council: Sometimes you just get tired of the BS!

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April 7, 2009: Catching up on Council | April 17: You might be a right wing extremist.... | April 17, 2009: Tea parties not about taxes...but about Big Government | April 20: City Council | June 10: Here's what I think | June 16, 2009 The Council Meeting Another no bid contract | June 17 -- Picking our pockets, one no-bid contract at a time | June 22, 2009 SCS Voice is back | June 22, 2009: Retired chief runs for Council. Can we afford him? | June 27, 2009 -- 'Bidding?...We don't need no stinkin' bidding!' | June 30, 2009: EPA Coverup on Climate Change | June 30, Guest Column...Letter Shows Stabenow believes health care a "right" | June 30, 2009: House energy bill a piece of S***T | July 3, 2009: Forget Socialism --we're racing toward Totalitarianism | July 4, 2009: Independence Day | July 6, 2009 Letter to Editor - Climate Change Not Real | July 6, 2009: Seniors Beware! Government run health plan might just kill you | July 10, 2009: Bill Clinton would be proud...it depends on what your definition of a 'bid' is...business as usual in the Shores | July 10, 2009: Minutes of Special City Council -- Ahearn and Activities Committee, 2006 | July 20, 2009: City Council: Sometimes you just get tired of the BS! | July 21, 2009: You decide | July 23, 2009: ‘‘America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009’’ is anything but. | August 3, 2009: VOTE TOMORROW | August 3: Shocking things from Health Care Reform Bill! | August 3: Look at Frederick's property on Elizabeth | August 12, 2009: Bev, get a life! | August 12, 2009: President's rigged town hall | October 11: Teddy Boys' support should be kiss of death | November 3, 2009: Now comes the hard part | November 11, 2009: Wahby distances himself from losers; Veteran's Day and other matters | November 16, 2009 A new day | November 19, 2009: A personal message | November 17, 2009: Socialized medicine failing in Germany | City -- Some Pension Costs, Oct. 2007

Well, the good news is that I am not in jail. The bad news that I totally lost my temper at last night's council meeting, but you can only stand so much bull s*** and last night was my tipping point. I was just sick and tired of the Mayor calling everyone who comes before that body with a position contrary to what he thinks things should be telling us that we are "misinformed" or that we did not hear what we heard or see what we saw. In the world of government, the only thing that matters, remember, is the written record and in an act of self-preservation, governments have ruled that only the 'approved minutes' of a meeting constitution the official records. So, if it ain't in the record, even if you have it on tape (wonder how they deal with that reality) is ain't so! And of course, as Mayor he always has the last word. There is no rebuttal permitted from us.

Mayor Hison's exact word which set me off was "Untruthful". What I heard was "liar". Forgetting all the 'drama' , the question everyone should be asking themselves is just what did I say that was "untrue"?

Following is the speech I intended to deliver, which I was unable to finish. During council, I did have to edit some of it out: Let's only pray that soon "time will be up" for Hison, Ahearn, Frederick and McFadyen!

My comments about the pension costs (see Wall Street Journal, page A3, July 20, 2009) was ad-libbed, so if you want to know what I said about that, you'll have to watch the meeting but the basic thrust was to thank Mr. Walby for bringing what the Journal calls "pension spiking" to the forefront. Pension spiking was probably what was used to allow Frank Troester to show as his base pay before retirement about $154,000 and resulted in his retiring with a starting pension of $118,000. Today, due to contract language, he is receiving about $122,000 a year, plus benefits of about 13 to 14 thousand dollars a year. Pension spiking involves allowing employees to basically "sell back" to the system, their unused vacation days, uniform allowances, etc.

So, while it is true that employees do contribute to their pensions, when you can spike in the last year or months of your service, that additional money being paid out is not money the system has provided for and represents an additional financial burden on the municipalities. This spiking results in the municipalities not having set aside enough money to cover the costs and the employee has not contributed to the increased amount of his pension.

First, I want to thank council members Rubello and Walby. They have consistently fought for the taxpayers of the city. There is no one on this body who had a clearer grasp of the budget and what the future costs to residents are apt to be than Mr. Walby. So, when he speaks, residents should listed.

Council member Rubello has been a welcome addition and has tried to save residents money starting with -- and this is something I hope he will continue to push for -- the competitive bidding process.

But as we all know, it has been an uphill battle. In fact, I have been astounded by some of the actions of the majority on this council because in spite of all evidence to the contrary, they have totally ignored the possibility of cost savings being achieved by putting contracts out for bids. Starting with the waste hauling contract and continuing through to the engineering contract -- now at a million a year and never bid out in 15 years -- to the more recent insurance contract a majority on this council -- and that would be you Mr. Ahearn, you Ms. McFadyen, you Mr. Hison and you Mr. Frederick and some of our employees have done everything but stand on your heads to insure that the companies whom you favor -- for whatever reason -- get these bids.

Some of the actions revealed during the insurance proposal have really shocked me and an e-mail from Mr. Podolski defending the practice of using a competitors numbers -- of actually showing them to the 'favorite son' - - to drive down cost (which only proves we were being gouged in the first place) defies any sense of ethics and morality and is not something I am particularly proud of for my city.

Mr. Podolski, in response to an e-mail from me wrote:

Ms. Scruggs,

Mr. Haney and Mr. Smith did not violate the Standards of Conduct in the cities Purchasing Policy. Section B states: Employees shall be prohibited from furnishing to any prospective bidder information that would give any vendor an unfair advantage over other prospective vendors. The key word is “bidder”. the city did not seek sealed bids for insurance, instead we issued a Request for Proposals which allows for open discussion of information with any person submitting the RFP. If we had solicited sealed bids, I would agree with your assertions.

Sincerely,

Kenneth R. Podolski

City Manager

St. Clair Shores

586-447-3311

Fax 586-445-4313

Now, I'm sure Mr. Podolski had Mr. Ihrie do legal research on this e-mail before sending it, but as I replied to Mr. Podolski: "You can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig". Just because something may be "legal" does not make it ethically or morally correct. If you want to know why so few vendors choose to bid or offer proposals to our city, maybe this 'policy' is the reason. Why spend all that time and effort to put together a bid, when you know that your numbers are going to be used to allow the competition to sweeten their deal. I've been in business for over 30 years and have never, to my knowledge, come across anything like this policy. Of course, I have never had a contract with any 'municipality' either.

Even Adolph Hitler had the "law" on his side!

This insurance contract stinks like one big fat pig.

I remind residents that it is the majority on council who sets or allows these dubious policies and practices to exist. It is the majority of council who votes for no-bid contracts and extensions; it is the majority of council who votes to approve pay and benefits increases; it is the majority of council who votes to approve new equipment, new water meters, new GPS systems. It is that majority of Ahearn, McFadyen, Hison and Frederick, who apparently have never seen a spending program they did not like!

Too, I've been distressed that week after week, month after month, we have had a resident stand up here and berate those who have come before this body, suggesting that because he has not seen them 'donating' to this or that -- or attending the many committee meetings HE attends -- that they somehow have no right to be here.

I remind him, and this council, that it is no one's business to whom I -- or anyone else who comes before this body -- donates our time or our money and that the first amendment to the constitution -- at least for the moment -- guarantees that we do not have to pay 'tribute' to or agree with those in power in order to speak out.

So, I congratulate those who have come forward and urge them to keep doing it. You have made a difference. Because in spite of Ahearn and Frederick's fear that the two minutes and five minute rule would lead to a "mob" mentality, I would say to them what Thomas Jefferson said, "When a government fears its people, you have liberty. When a people fears its government, you have tyranny."

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