Stunned!

From Keep the Commandments Idaho:

City of Boise cannot account for thousands of dollars spent fighting a ballot initiative giving Boise citizens the right to vote on the public display of the Ten Commandments.

In a letter sent to the Keep the Commandments Coalition, the city says, “There is no record of costs associated with the legal action related to the ballot initiative…”

The Keep the Commandments Coalition is stunned that the City of Boise cannot document and account for taxpayer funds spent on fighting the ballot initiative. KCC calls the practice negligent and troubling…

Legal experts believe that as much as $100,000 in taxpayer dollars could have been wasted on legal fees by the City of Boise.

I’m not stunned that the city may have spent $100,000 defending their position on the monument, I’m stunned they can’t even give an account.

This is what has truly bothered me about the actions of the Boise City Council and Mayor in this. If the issue were the Ten Commandments alone, that’d be one thing, but it’s far more than that.

They knew the issue was generating public interest and media coverage and they went ahead and removed the monument without a public hearing in 2003. They didn’t just disagree with citizens in Boise, they utterly dissed the faith community in our town by not even holding a hearing. Had they held a hearing and then voted to remove it, I think we wouldn’t have nearly the strength in the movement. I probably would have said my piece and gone home. While I’m personally richer for the experiences that have come out of this arrogant majority on the council’s actions, (who know if I would have gotten to know Bryan Fischer, Brandi Swindell, and a lot of other people) the same can’t be said for the City of Boise.

Now, they can’t even keep track of where the money goes. This is a basic function of the City. Minding the money.

On all kinds of issues, the city has shown a lack of concern for citizens and their input; from the airport parking lot they tried to ram through, to relations with the County. Our city government majority is arrogant, out of touch, and unconcerned with the people. A public comment period isn’t even an item on their agenda.

The monument vote is important, but as a citizen of Boise, I’m concerned that I’ve got elected representative who don’t give a rip about the people. It is my opinion that both Mayor Bieter and City Councilman Alan Shealy have got to go. I don’t think David Eberle’s done a great job either, but Shealy and Bieter have been key players in creating controversies and generally being arrogant. Getting rid of those two and replacing them with those who actually care what the people think will be a great start to making Boise a better city.

For more on this story from the pure 10 Commandments side, read Clayton Cramer’s thoughts, as usual most enlightening.

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