The North Miami City Council Screws Up Big Time

Actually, this photo has nothing at all to do with the story. Todd posted the photo, and then I had this political rant to get off my chest. Councilman Scott Galvin and I founded the North Miami Historical Society a few years ago, and this is history in the making...LOL This is my email to Scott. Here goes:

Hi Scott,

I just got a phone call about paying my dues in the Historical Society. I said that I couldn't afford it because the self-centered North Miami City Council gave themselves a ten-fold raise, health insurance, a nice expense account, etc., etc. while refusing to increase board "salaries" from the ten bucks a meeting that we were paid way back in 1961. How that doesn't even cover the cost of gasoline for looking at the properties we have to vote on variances for. How on months when they decide to not have a meeting there's no pay at all.

Then there's the fact that it was recently decided to buy us all expensive memberships in professional organizations that cost as much or more than our annual pay, but the city won't pay for us to go to any of the seminars or the conventions. The memberships? All just for show. A total waste of money.

This is fun. It gets worse!

It's amazing how everybody just seems to make the connection with that huge water rate increase.

Yeah, I know. It's different pools of money, different budgets, but the "man in the street" doesn't see it that way. He just see the skyrocketing water bill. He reads about your ten fold salary increase. He hears about your new health and retirement package. Better than anything he has!

Some of them see the row of new shiny black SUV's parked in the council parking places out back, behind city hall, as they walk across the street from the municipal parking lot when going to meetings. It no doubt fills them with that warm fuzzy feeling just knowing that their elected officials are so well taken care of that they rush out and buy themselves those pretty new gas guzzling monsters. That's a great way to set an example of conservation! It's cool if the citizens can't afford to drive anyplace. The elected officials will make enough greenhouse gasses for them.

But let's distract the masses, set up showmobiles, have festivals along West Dixie Highway, and have live rock and reggae music next to city hall, the same sort of diversions the Romans used twenty centuries ago. Entertain the masses!

Cheers,

Al