Sun Devil 92
Diamond Member
- Apr 2, 2015
- 32,078
- 11,097
- 1,410
- Banned
- #1
Most of you are probably familiar with the Bell City scandal story which broke in 2010. Bell City is a relatively poor area of Los Angeles with a population of 40,000 to 50,000. The city council, utilizing some recent state legislation, managed to vote itself huge salaries (I mean some pretty good stuff). Robert Rizzo, the city administrator was making in the mid 200K a year and received a salary increase to over 400 K per year. Additionally, his pension payment (if I understand it correctly, was going to be almost 1 million per year. All of this funded by the 40 or 50 thousand residents of a fairly poor city.
These members of the city council are not supposed to be partisan. And nothing I've read gives any indication they ran for office in a partisan fashion.
You might know Duke Cunningham as a pilot who flew F-4's in Vietnam and was part of a very famous air engagement.
You might also know him as the guy who spent eight years in some form of incarceration for bribery charges in Souther California. Cunningham was convicted on charges of steering lucrative contracts towards select contractors in exchange for bribes. Cunningham was a Reepublican.
there is the William Jefferson story that would follow. That got Jefferson serious jail time. Jefferson was a democrat.
Now you have stuff going on at DIA. I stress that these are only allegations. However, all of this concerns me and has for many many years.
While I like the idea of government doing some things that far right wingers don't, I do have concerns about the availability of money that can be used to improve ones own standing.
I wonder about controls.
We see this at the federal level in so many different ways.
QUESTION TO BE DISCUSSED:
Do you believe we have a good federal government in terms it's honesty and integrity ?
Do you believe your state government has a managable levle of illegal activities ?
Do you believe the amount of money that flows through the system is just to much temptation ?
Do you believe there are sufficinet controls on our government ?
RULES FOR THIS THREAD:
1. Stay on topic.
2. Define your metrics. But keep in mind it is not necessary to only discuss legal issues. Moral issues are fair game.
3. Provide links for any "information " you wish to provide.
4. Sound logic is welcome.
These members of the city council are not supposed to be partisan. And nothing I've read gives any indication they ran for office in a partisan fashion.
You might know Duke Cunningham as a pilot who flew F-4's in Vietnam and was part of a very famous air engagement.
You might also know him as the guy who spent eight years in some form of incarceration for bribery charges in Souther California. Cunningham was convicted on charges of steering lucrative contracts towards select contractors in exchange for bribes. Cunningham was a Reepublican.
there is the William Jefferson story that would follow. That got Jefferson serious jail time. Jefferson was a democrat.
Now you have stuff going on at DIA. I stress that these are only allegations. However, all of this concerns me and has for many many years.
While I like the idea of government doing some things that far right wingers don't, I do have concerns about the availability of money that can be used to improve ones own standing.
I wonder about controls.
We see this at the federal level in so many different ways.
QUESTION TO BE DISCUSSED:
Do you believe we have a good federal government in terms it's honesty and integrity ?
Do you believe your state government has a managable levle of illegal activities ?
Do you believe the amount of money that flows through the system is just to much temptation ?
Do you believe there are sufficinet controls on our government ?
RULES FOR THIS THREAD:
1. Stay on topic.
2. Define your metrics. But keep in mind it is not necessary to only discuss legal issues. Moral issues are fair game.
3. Provide links for any "information " you wish to provide.
4. Sound logic is welcome.
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