What exactly happened to the dispensary bill at Tuesday's Wicomico County Council meeting? Did council president John Cannon abuse his power? Who's diving for political cover?
I watched the thing twice and I can understand how some folks are confused. It was unnecessarily complicated and I have to admit that Cannon was masterful in the way he railroaded the dispensary bill to defeat. Read more ...
I watched the thing twice and I can understand how some folks are confused. It was unnecessarily complicated and I have to admit that Cannon was masterful in the way he railroaded the dispensary bill to defeat. Read more ...
13 comments:
Excellent summary. It was very clear that the majority of the council had no appetite for a real discussion of the issues on the table.I have the distinct impression that thier attitude is one of " maybe if we drag our feet and delay this whole mess will go away". Where is the leadership?
Great synopis. It was obvious that Cannon was trying to kill the resolution. Prettyman was still on target as she normally is when she believes in something is wrong. Understandable that Bartkovich was trying to study it more and Holloway admits that he thought he was voting for Bartkovich's thoughts. My question is why would Sample-Hughes move a resolution forward when she made it clear that she isn't willing to let the people decide. Not any doubt the McCain/McCloud deal, the democrats told them to kill the resolution, reason being, the democrats fingerprints have been on this corruptive dispensary system forever and they don't want the embarrassment of a change.
No doubt our state reps. have told Cannon and Pollitt to can this potential political sinkhole until after the next election, so what's so surprising? Painting RINO John to be like Louise Smith is silly -- she wants to rush things thru without being fully discussed and put in a sound form -- what he is trying to do is look presidential by his posturing.
BTW -- Prettyman's motion was absurd (to make it contingent on fixing it later) -- why not adopt it contingent on McCain winning the election or getting the troops out of Iraq? In essence, her motion was for prevarication, not legislation.
How about a referendum on whether the County should be in the nursing home business?
My take on Bartkovich was that she simply wanted further discussion and research on the variables they would face if this reached the polls. She said she spoke with many at MACO conference that have experienced this change. I won't hold it against her for wanting further information on how to handle this situation. Did I misunderstand her? Possibly.
I agree with Prettyman as well, lets move it along and let the people decide. It's quite obvious the good people at the LCB have gotten to the private clubs in town. Threats of decreased profits and increased licensing costs will sway business owners and managers.
8:21 AM....nice try at an analogy, but you failed in one important respect. The county does not have an unchecked monopoly on nursing homes.
I am prepared to give Cannon the benefit of doubt on this one. For this reason.Think about it.Virtually every debate in this county comes back to the budget and county revenue.The electorate has shown that it will overide common sense in order to keep tax rates down.Can't fix our road?..ok at least my taxes are not going up....can't keep up with schools and other infrastructure...well, at least my tax bill is not going up.
The dispensary proponents have done an effective job of making this a one issue debate...money...and that is one issue that will always sway the electorate in this county. Cannon and others know that without a foolproof plan to replace the revenue, the electorate will wink at what is fair and appropriate and side with the almighty buck.
I spoke with John Cannon and Gail Bartkovich yesterday. I think we are putting the cart before the horse here. We know that the LCB can be abolished and that the business of retail alcohol sales can be placed in the hands of private industry. It's been done in other counties and it is clear that it can work. I personally think the govt. should NOT be in the business of being in "business". But this is a monumental decision that should not be made lightly. A change of this magnitude should be left to a vote of the citizens.
It is obvious that this issue is worthy of consideration so let's put it to a vote of the people BEFORE we expend a great deal of resources (money) laying out the framework on how to abolish the LCB. If the people vote against privatization all of the time and money will have been wasted on a dead issue. If the people vote in favor of privatization.......THEN put forth a 100% effort to get it done. You will then be able to send the entire package forward to state legislature with the full authority of a bonafide vote of the people. This is bound to have the leverage necessary to convince legislature to make the necessary changes allowing Wicomico County to follow the precedence of the various other counties that have privatized.
I thought it was about a referendum to allow the taxpaying citizens a voice in the democratic process. hmmmm
This tangled up mess of government bureaucracy is reason enough to do away with it, plain and simple.
It's time to let this nonsense sink below the surface and turn to the County's real problems.
illegal sales, improper pricing,insider , contracting,improper "contributions" an dother expenditures,stonewalling elected officials inquiries,further forays into the private sector....nah ,none of those a "real" problems...get back to your job at the dispensary.
I think Cannon and Prettyman have their hearts in the right place and will do the right thing when it comes down to it. Plus it doesn't hurt that Prettyman is hossing around a stupendous rack!
Grand Dad for President!
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