Since I've gotten several emails, not to mention about 50 people telling me in person, "You need to update your site, because we miss it", I figured maybe I'd better do it LOL
Well, the most talked about subject around Miller County right now HAS to be the public hearing that took place a couple of weeks ago. I have to tell you, that was a night I won't soon forget (and I doubt most people who were there will either). We saw the true colors of our elected "leaders", and let me tell you some of them were NOT pretty!
The commissioners honestly didn't think anyone would show up, and were hoping they wouldn't. When more and more people came through the doors of the court room, you could see the fear. And, as it turned out, there was very good reason for this. Oh, Barbie and the rest had their supporters. I think there were about 10 in the audience who admitted to being on the commissioners' side, and most if not all of them were related to one of them (in other words, they were potential county employees who had to keep their job options open LOL).
As the "pending litigation" part of the meeting got underway, it became apparent to me and several others that both attorneys had a good working relationship. I believe if it were left up to the two of them, this whole mess could be resolved without anyone's feelings being hurt, and without a lot of monetary loss to the county. I think what's happening is the commissioners' attorney keeps working out solutions with Mr. Stone, only to have Barbie and the others do the absolute opposite of what he has in mind. It was obvious the other night that he has NO control over his clients.
Barbie sat there and told her little tale, and answered a few questions, and then the biggie was asked. A reporter from WALB News in Albany asked about the deputy that had been fired by the county commissioners. For those of you who aren't aware, the county commissioners have NO LEGAL STANDING in hiring or firing the people who work for the sheriff (including the deputies). This is under full control of Sheriff Glass. Barbie, Frankie, Bo, Clyde and Wallace don't seem to understand this (or just don't care), so they did indeed fire DEPUTY Melanie Williams, who is the county's sole SRO (school resource officer). She is assigned by the sheriff to the school, but is a sworn deputy.
Anyway, in response to the question, Barbie said that no deputy had been fired by the commission and that none had any interruption of benefits. Well, there was quite a course of "that's not true!" from those of us who knew what was going on. It just so happened that DEPUTY Williams was in the audience. She was asked by the reporter for an interview and agreed. During the interview, which was shown later that night, she produced her separation papers and explained that she went to get medicine at the pharmacy, only to be told that since she was no longer employed, she no longer had insurance. This, Mrs Womble, is an example of FIRING AND INTERRUPTION IN BENEFITS. She said after about two weeks, she was rehired and told it was all a "misunderstanding". Yeah, I guess you could call it that. Bet they didn't have any trouble understanding Mr. Stone when he told them they WOULD rehire her LOL. One good thing did come out of it though. At least now everyone sees what I've been saying all along... Barbie is a liar.
Getting back to the meeting: I had told my mom when we went in that if any person were to ask questions or make a comment that wasn't going along with what Barbie wanted, they would shut down the question and answer portion of the meeting. Sure enough, as soon as the truth started coming out, the commissioners' attorney nearly had a stroke, and they shut it down. The damage had already been done. There was a quick intermission and then they started the board of elections portion.
Well, if Barbie thought this was going to be less controversial, she was wrong AS USUAL. People were MAD! We do NOT want any of the five getting their hands on our election process. I mean, let's look at history... Nearly every person who has been hired since these people took over has either been a close personal friend or a family member of a commissioner. This means that the people they put on the board would be a close personal friend or a family member of a commissioner. There would be no way in hell we would ever have a fair election (in my opinion). Everything these people have control over, they screw up. I do NOT think we need to give them any more power. Actually I think we need to give them less... a LOT less.
It seems that during their excitement of taking over our elections, they decided to mislead Gerald Greene too. Apparently he had been led to believe that a public hearing had taken place, and we were all falling over ourselves in anticipation of this "wonderful" board that would be created. Hard to be excited, when they didn't let anyone know about it. When he and John Bulloch found out they had been mislead, they pulled it and started checking. GUESS WHAT? Mr. Greene even ended up publically apologizing to Mrs. Brenda McNease. Didn't look good for the BOC!!! Barbie still stands behind her hairbrained idea though. When asked about it at the meeting, she let everyone know she didn't care what her constituents thought, she still wanted it. Clyde said pretty much the same thing. So did Frankie and Bo. Wallace had withdrawn his name in order to kill the bill because he had gotten so many angry phone calls. After it was revealed they could still push to have it passed unless at least one more commissioner took their name off, Clyde and Barbie both did, but you could tell they didn't want to. The issue is dead.... for now.
But don't get excited... They are planning to put it on the ballot in November for a "straw vote". Barbie says it is just to see how people feel about it, since she doesn't feel the people at the meeting was a fair representation. If you don't want this, you'd better vote it down. I can almost guarantee you if you don't, it will be the LAST election you will have any fair vote in. We do NOT need the commissioners controlling our elections!
I was so proud of our citizens that night. They all came out and let the BOC know they were mad and sick of the way things are being handled. I talked to several who went into the meeting supporting the BOC, only to come out with their eyes open wide and completely on the side of the MCCO. Most of our citizens banded together that night in a way I have not seen in a long time. We were one unit, joined in a common cause. I just hope we stay that way during the upcoming county election, and the next one in two years (or recall petitions if what I've heard is true). It's time for a change in this county. Let's all stick together and make it happen!
