In what appears to be the third editorial calling for the recall of Adam Colby, The World sloppily defends a decision not to support an earlier recall effort against Kevin Stufflebean by misstating facts.

But a key difference separates the two recalls: clarity of purpose.

Stufflebean’s foes never articulated a reasonable al-ternative to the layoffs. Larry Van Elsberg, who led the recall, admitted in a World interview that he had no better solution to the department’s budget troubles.[Emphasis mine]

In light of Stufflebean’s very public and humiliating emails that reveal his incompetence and inability to manage the job, and The World’s own unprofessional participation in his implosion, I can see where they would like to pass the buck. Had The World really done its job during that time they would have known, as should Nikki Whitty, there was no budget problem!

Stufflebean tried to sell the public that the department was operating in the red for eight of the last ten years. This was not only untrue but would have been impossible and illegal if it had. Whitty, who was commissioner during all those ‘red’ years, should have had bells going off but instead fell for it hook, line and sinker, and so did The World. Neither Van Elsberg or anyone else could make judgments about the budget because public information was suddenly very difficult to obtain and explanations from Stufflebean were, in a word, nonsensical.

The road department layoff was not the purpose of the recall, although, it did motivate a lot of people to get involved. The committee to recall Stufflebean was called ‘Citizens for Fair and Open Government’. The push for the recall was because enough people knew then what everyone is starting to realize now, Stufflebean is not competent to manage public resource and provide for public safety.

Citizens for Fair and Open Government showed how the commissioners, Whitty, Stufflebean and John Griffith, technically complied with public meeting laws while at the same time obscuring their intentions from the public. Even The World reporter, along with the workers themselves, did not know there were going to be layoffs. Later Stufflebean, acting as road master, blamed the reporter for his staff not knowing he was laying them off. The recall was never about finding an alternative to a layoff, it was about letting reasonable people allow the public to participate in their own governance about critical matters like public safety.

Other papers covered this travesty and the obfuscation well enough that only those precincts relying predominantly on The World for information voted to keep him. Had The World done their job, the additional 1,800 votes needed would have spared Coos County these recent embarrassments thrust upon us and Sheriff Andy Jackson by Stufflebean.

As to their continual drumming for a recall of Colby, their opinion should have little sway this time after bungling the Stufflebean recall and late night email accusations. Nevertheless, they should stop trying to cover up their poor decision on one by passing it off on a failure to clarify the message – Citizens for Fair and Open Government wanted fair and open government. Hard to get any clearer than that.

The editorial is entitle Why Voters Should Care. The real question is why voters should care what The World thinks?