By Fred Kirby
Dear Coos County neighbors:
Are you “uneducated”, “uninformed”, or unable to make decisions regarding your county government as some Commissioner candidates, and their spokespersons, believe that we are? It was Adolf Hitler who said, “What good fortune for governments that people do not think.” Are we about to prove Dolf correct? Is the citizen owned county government about to be captured by a few? This is frightening! But, it’s not too late to prevent this from happening.
Do you know about the mysterious group that calls itself Coos County Alliance for Progress (CCAP), that was founded by some of the so called county Structure Committee members, that is headed by and operating from the SCDC leaders home; that is comprised of and funded by foreign owned local companies and the sovereign nation Coquille Tribe and by a few well off merchants who are determined to get their candidates elected? Are you aware of more than $6,000 that some of those funding CCAP have funneled directly and indirectly to the campaign of candidate Messerle; at least $1,500 to Sweet; and almost $3,000 (including tribe and tribe member’s monies) to Cribbins? Apparently this group is prepared to wager more than $14,000 to get their people elected. Are you aware that $5,000 of the CCAP monies intended for candidates is compliments of the local foreign owned company that needed significant tax relief from us; or $500 compliments of an individual who recently received thousands of “façade” dollars from local taxpayers? Shouldn’t that unneeded $5,500 be sent to the taxpayers and not to the campaign pocket of three favored candidates?
Don’t believe for a nanosecond that the people spending big bucks to influence this campaign don’t expect something in return. Is all of this big bucks spending intended to guarantee the hiring of a costly county administrator? Messerle, along with Sweet and Cribbins, wants to hire a county administrator (and attendant staff), at an annual cost that may approach $600,000 (including perks and PERS) (maybe more), to do the job that we would be electing and paying him to do. Say what! Are Messerle and the wizard behind the curtain who is leading him trying to create a position for an unqualified local friend?
The county employs three lawyers now. Do we need another (current) political appointee with little more than five years’ experience as a lawyer, most in tribal law, a person with zero relevant large government or industry organization and leadership experience? Can Cribbins really abandon the sovereign Coquille nation that she has served as counsel and lobbyist for so many years?
It’s a scary thought to this pro – business, former aerospace and high tech leader, that we may soon have two neophyte commissioners being led by a trainee. Perhaps the reason why the chosen ones need to hire an experienced county administrator? If Messerle, Sweet and Cribbins are elected, if they follow through as promised and change county government, and in all likelihood raise your taxes to pay for their wish list (and you won’t get a vote in the matter), kiss the independent elected Sheriff, County Clerk, Treasurer, Assessor, and Surveyor who are presently accountable to you, good bye. These would soon be political appointees, not elected positions. The power of the people will be lost. If the wrong person is hired as county administrator, you will not be able to fire (recall) your employee; of course you could be paying a large “golden parachute” settlement to get rid of a stiff.
It was the constitutionally elected Sheriff, along with two others, all part of the seven member structure committee, who attended the same meetings, interviewed the same county employees, studied the same department operations, who told us that the hiring of a county administrator is not required. We are hiring commissioners to fill the job as officially described today – not what may be described tomorrow. Of 15 candidates, only Bob Main meets or exceeds the job description as it is written. Please send a loud message with your vote – this is your county!
The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions of MGx.
Im proud to say I have taken no special interest money
Mark likes it “at the table’. His platform is the same as Fred’s. Mark had a choice to go to bat for the Elliott, but he chose instead to believe the timber beasts. When faced with Sandy Messerllie lying about her “open process” which was by invitation only, Mark chose to believe Sandy. That and spraying plastic over the top of coal trains was about all I needed to know. He also believes the Port is our salvation, anyone believing that today is choosing to believe a lie. They’ve had forty years to move the county forward, they did not. They never will, as too many of these SCDC,Chamber types are themselves sucking the life blood of Coos County. It’s an amazing thing to see.
MarkM still doesn’t get it. He will show this same lack of understanding, while focusing on unimportant technicalities. If any issue has even minor errors for his brain to adjust to, he will get so distracted with the unimportant parts, that nothing else will get through to any sense of logic or common sense.
His position to support LNG and coal are indicators of how far in reverse he really is.
He needs to quit hanging with that SCDC and port crowd. They won’t support him, he’s a late-comer to their feast, but they will be OK if he wins, because he has their back on the issues that are important to them.
Two corrections:
The BOC cannot raise your taxes without a public vote. Neither can it change the status of the Sheriff, Clerk, Treasurer, Assessor, or Surveyor to appointed at all.
Both of these things can only be done under Home Rule.
Unfortunately the Main part is correct. The job description as authored favors incumbents. Another year and Meserle will meet the requirements.
Good piece, except for the Bob Main part. Thank you. Don’t forget, it was Bob Main who brought Messerlie to the board.