So now what?
A reader wrote to ask:
My concern was in reading Madaffer’s interview in which he made the comment that he ignored Ms. Shipione because City Staff said it wasn’t so. How do you think we can change the ‘Culture of Corruption’ when Councilmembers refuse to accept that City Staff don’t work for them, that they have an agenda pushed on them by their superiors, and have no incentive to tell the Council the whole truth. While honest people speak out and are ignored, will we ever get out of this mess?
The quick answer is probably not, but we have to keep trying. The only answer is to elect people who are willing to ask the tough questions and then check and see if they get correct answers – people who demonstrate that they are willing to move beyond the comfortable faith-based politics of personality and into a world of facts, figures and accountability.
Instead, the existing culture is based upon “everyone seemed comfortable” (Jim Madaffer’s Kroll interview summary) and that’s their standard – as long as everyone they feel is important to insiders is “comfortable” then it must be OK.
Outrage and anger from anyone is dismissed as a personality disorder or related to a political agenda – without of course addressing their own political agendas.
The comfortable standard.
Not the law, not the facts, not what they read or any question they ask – nope
it’s who is comfortable … while dismissing anyone who is not.
Makes me wonder how comfortable Duke Cunningham is at the moment.
What this city needs is some uncomfortable standards – along with the capacity to enforce them.