We’re fully into the New Year now, no turning back! As we forge ahead, what’s on your mind? You did such a good job of evaluating the big stories of ‘o9, what will be the first big public issue of 2010?
January 2, 2010
Happy 2010!
10 Comments
RSS feed for comments on this post.
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=259113708975&ref=mf
What role did politics play in this tragic farce?
Comment by Pariah — January 2, 2010 @ 6:45 pm
Pariah,
Here are some related questions:
“What role will business competition and economics play?”
“Who benefits if Convertec’s business is damaged, regardless of the outcome of Johnson’s criminal prosecution?”
“Who, if anyone, in the City government would benefit if Convertec is financially crippled?”
“Which is the lead agency conducting the criminal investigation of the shooting?”
“If someone in the City government does stand to benefit from Convertec’s being financially crippled, would that person or those persons be able to influence the direction of the criminal investigation?”
Comment by Bill — January 3, 2010 @ 7:19 am
Well, Bill, I don’t know if there is any connection at all, but most folks say that the company for which city councilman Mike Kennedy is President, InterMax, is a direct competitor to Convertec. And rumor is that Adam Johnson was quite openly verbal about his opinion that InterMax does not offer a quality product.
Also remember that InterMax is owned by developer Steve Meyer, NIC Foundation member, who is also close business partners with Charlie Nipp of LCDC. Together they own Parkwood Properties, one of the top 5 private land owners in Kootenai County,(they own the Prairie Shopping Center and much more) and are also owners of many other companies, one of which is the parent company of Mt. West Bank, where they sit on the Board as well. Steve Meyer’s wife, Judy, is an elected Trustee of the NIC Board.
So it goes in the close-knit world of CdA power connections!
Comment by mary — January 3, 2010 @ 4:28 pm
I see that Christy Wood is lamenting that I “hate” her over on HBO. I find it sadly telling that some people in positions of authority in our county misinterpret the right to be critical of our own government as a personal attack. I do not hate Ms. Wood. I don’t know her. I do know her work, though. And I have a right to be critical of her work as I am a taxpayer of both the city of Coeur d’Alene as well as NIC. To claim I “hate” her is to trivialize issues of importance to the community, and avoid the bigger issue of responsibility of our elected officials and public servants.
I shall continue to be critical of government’s shortcomings, as they have a lot of them, despite some people wrongly assuming that means I “hate” them. As soon as the public recognizes how some people trivialize and confuse the two issues, the sooner we can have responsible, accountable government in Coeur d’Alene.
Comment by Dan — January 4, 2010 @ 11:12 pm
Very well written response, Dan! Ms. Wood should be taking notes, not accusing you of personal attacks.
Comment by mary — January 4, 2010 @ 11:38 pm
Dan,
Well said.
Comment by Bill — January 5, 2010 @ 9:09 am
And they fell for it, actually. I see that extremists Thom and Momma took the bait. While I can misquote Ms. Wood, who really pondered why I was “angry” with her (she didn’t not say that I hated her), I am not a paid public official whose duty it is to represent the City. Ms. Wood is. Therefore her words carry more weight than a private citizen’s. Yet they miss the mark in their continued personal attacks on me, which proves the point I wanted to make:
Dissent is not tolerated by our local government.
That should be of concern even to socialists like Thom. Someday I hope that Coeur d’Alene has elected officials who are emotionally mature enough to tolerate people who criticize their actions. That’s the price you pay for being a public official. But instead, we live in a town where people who question policy are viciously attacked and threatened. The attacks against me and others will continue, encouraged (tacitly or not) by elected officials and propagated by their pawns at HBO. That’s because they cannot threaten my job, as they do regularly with others in this town.
It’s a shameful situation and one I’d like to change. But apparently it’s a situation that people like MamaJD are comfortable with. That’s a sad, sad story to tell about this area. It makes me want to vomit.
Comment by Dan — January 5, 2010 @ 9:26 am
RE:Adam Johnson, I do not know anything about him or this situation. But I noticed that he had a PD appointed. In general, a PD is only for indigents or someone without income. This does not seem to be the case this young man. So why a PD at tax payer expense?
A friend told me that, usually these types from Moses Lake are “trouble”. Why was Johnson carrying a gun. Sherman Ave is not the last chance saloon.
Comment by rochereau — January 5, 2010 @ 9:55 am
Rochereau, I don’t know much about Adam, having met him only briefly a couple of times, but he seemed very nice, professional and intelligent. I’ve heard that the tough economy was taking a toll on his business, as it has on almost every business. So he is probably barely hanging on financially, if that, and we can all imagine how massive the legal fees could become in something as major as a shooting.
Many comments on other blogs have said that Adam routinely carries a gun all or most of the time, but I agree with you that it’s dangerous to mix drinking and guns. It’s a sad situation all the way around.
Comment by mary — January 5, 2010 @ 10:13 am
Rochereau,
It is possible that the public defender was appointed to represent him only until he is able to secure counsel for himself. He would want to be represented by counsel for his initial court appearances.
Comment by Bill — January 5, 2010 @ 10:45 am