ESO has been quietly working on a number of projects over the past four months. More importantly, our Essex County Government, our School System, and our Airport Authority have been very busy opening some of the shutters, cleaning windows, and starting to open the blinds.
The sudden retirement of the Deputy County Administrator and the subsequent announcement of an investigation by the State Police may have been connected to articles and enquiries by ESO. The ESO Publisher addressed a freedom of speech and civil discourse issue which was directed at the former Deputy County Administrator. The subsequent public discussion appeared in the local newspapers. All of these activities are connected to previous articles which appeared in this blog. Therefore, our readers and the citizens of Essex County deserve a brief explanation in the spirit of openness which we strive to provide.
First, the ESO team has been collecting information and working with local agencies in resolving issues. Articles which will soon be published include: The Forfeiture Fund Problems and Its Resolution, Concealed Carry Permits, Voter Fraud, Animal Control Issues, LaGrange Industrial Park Status, Fire Safety, and updates on previous reports.
Second, local government bodies have made significant progress in providing easy access to essential information. Transparency has improved and a number of essential longer term projects have been approved. Future articles will provide the details.
Finally, ESO does not know what specifically prompted the retirement, what are the specific actions or acts being investigated or who initiated the request which led the State Police to conduct an ongoing investigation. We believe that some of the issues raised in ESO articles identified areas which warranted a full investigation. The temporary employment of a very experienced Acting County Administrator led to the identification of several concerns and resulted in several new procedures being established. The recent selection and employment of a new County Administrator created additional occasions for existing practices to be examined and the apparent absence of administrative and financial controls to be questioned.
What we do believe with absolute certainty is that there is a distinct difference between disagreeing with a government official and a deliberate personal attack on that individual. An allegation of possible misconduct or criminal acts is best addressed by law enforcement professionals and the judicial process. It is not a matter to be resolved by an abusive personal attack on an individual.
Any private person has the right to loudly and repeatedly object to bad public policies, to complain about failures to provide information, to make accusations of waste, fraud, and abuse of office, and to speak, write, or post signs about any number of perceived issues. A deliberate public attack of a personal nature is, in my opinion, an attack on society and civil discourse. Unless the person(s) who placed the sign are government officials it isn't a Constitutional issue (Preamble to the Bill of Rights, I Amendment, IV Amendment, and IX Amendment). It was just an instance of poor taste, bad manners, and mean-spirited behavior.
John R. Clickener - Publisher
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