Independent and thorough news, video, and opinion from Silver Persinger with especial focus on Richmond, Virginia City Council, Free Speech, Free Press, and Open Government.
This was one of the longest meetings in quite a while. 3 1/2+ hours! I left at 9:45 PM and the introduction of papers had just started, and it was a thick packet, thick with budget related papers from the Mayor.
Maybe I don't know what I'm talking about? But what if I'm saying is true? Is something wrong here?
I have written a letter to members of Council about this situation. I think it stinks, I don't understand how this is OK, good, or desirable and not self-serving, cronyism and corruption. And yet, with the exception of Councilwoman Reva Trammell, all the rest of them are acting like this is completely fine, it's not in the newspaper, and if I didn't mention it, it wouldn't be public information -- even though it is "PUBLIC INFORMATION."
If something wrong is going on here, I hope to help to bring it to the attention of the public and the proper authorities.
If I am wrong, I will be greatly embarrassed, and will crawl back under my rock. And learn from my mistakes. I am motivated to speak out because NO ONE IS AT CITY HALL, there are no citizens. I don't believe Council members even know as much as they should about what the government is doing, Cronyism is real. And if all this business is done in the open and they are never called out on it -- they are free to continue to play their little insider game of appointing friends and campaign contributors.
I'll be posting the entire meeting over the next few days. There were several big stories at tonight's meeting. Mayor Dwight Jones presented his budget to Council, Citizens spoke during the Citizen Comment Period in Opposition to the Stormwater Fee recently enacted by the City, and the Rezoning of Manchester was a surprisingly popular topic.
