Walworth County Administrator David Bretl writes a column at Walworth County Today. His latest offers this observation on municipal spending — The public has become desensitized in recent years regarding the true meanings of the words freeze and cuts. Tax rates for counties, for example, have been “frozen” for many years at 1992 levels. While that…
City
City
Whitewater-Area League of Women Voters Candidates’ Forum
by JOHN ADAMS •
City, Police
Whitewater’s Search for a New Police Chief (Update 2)
by JOHN ADAMS •
At last night’s Police Commission meeting, the Commission unanimously chose a non-resident as interim chief. For an earlier post on the topic, see Simple and Reasonable Compliance with the Law. Simple’s not always so simple, but then years of the wrong direction work a powerful distortion and departure from simple and reasonable.
City, Police
Whitewater’s Search for a New Police Chief (Update)
by JOHN ADAMS •
City, Law, Police
Simple and Reasonable Compliance with the Law
by JOHN ADAMS •
To enforce the law, one must observe the law. Conversely, one cannot credibly enforce the law by ignoring portions one does not like. This principle is so simple and clear that stating as much states the obvious. Whitewater has a lawful requirement that senior city leaders live within the city limits, among them nearly a…
City, Police
Whitewater’s Search for a New Police Chief
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a story over at the Gazette that mentions the departure of Whitewater’s Chief Coan, an amount of money that he may owe Whitewater under contract, and the selection of a new police chief. (That process begins, but only begins, tonight.) I’d be surprised if he doesn’t request to keep the ten thousand; there will…
City, Wisconsin
Consensus, Compromise, and Opposition
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here, in America’s Dairyland, a place of astonishing beauty, one finds a political preference for consensus, leading to frequent and sensible compromises, but occasionally requiring opposition. That’s true in Whitewater, too. Consensus. Of all America, I know of no place that favors consensus more than Wisconsin does. There’s speculation of how she has come to…
City
More than a Crock-Pot
by JOHN ADAMS •
Whitewater, Wisconsin, population 14,454, is many things. A Crock-Pot is not one of them. When a bureaucrat sees a community, but no individuals other than a few town fathers, he makes himself a cook, and actual people mere ingredients in a slowly-cooked stew. Chop up this, mash up that, throw in the spices of self-promotion…
City
Of Hurricanes
by JOHN ADAMS •
Even the most destructive hurricanes, those of the greatest power, finally dissipate. The damage they leave behind after they fade may take months, sometimes years to remedy, if at all. A storm lasting for decades — if any should be so unfortunate to live during those conditions — would be more destructive still. Although the…
City
Whitewater-Area League of Women Voters March 2011 Newsletter
by JOHN ADAMS •
The Whitewater-Area League of Women Voters’ March 2011 Newsletter is out, and it includes articles and a calendar of upcoming LWV events. The latest copy of the LWV newsletter is available as a link on my blogroll, and is embedded below, with coding through Google. Here’s a sampling of upcoming events for the Whitewater-Area League…
City
Fiction by the Numbers
by JOHN ADAMS •
A man walks into a Perkins restaurant, and orders an omelet, juice, and coffee. The order arrives promptly. After a while, the waitress checks on him, and asks if he’s finished eating. One would expect the man to answer the waitress’s question with either “yes, thank you’ or “no, not yet, thank you.” One wouldn’t…
City
Whitewater’s 2010 City Performance Plan (Part 3)
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here’s the final part of a series of posts on Whitewater’s 2010 City Performance Plan. Parts 1 and 2, and the document itself, appear in the preceding posts. Far worse than a ginned-up success rate, or a shameless claim about tax incremental financing, is the apparent expectation that residents should believe these shady statements. I…
City
Whitewewater’s 2010 City Performance Plan (Part 2)
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here’s part two of a series of posts on Whitewater’s 2010 City Performance Plan. Part 1, and the document itself, appear in the preceding post. Far worse than a ginned-up success rate is a claim so shameless that a reasonable person would never venture the proclamation. Under City Manager Kevin Brunner’s supposed accomplishments, one finds…
City
Whitewater’s 2010 City Performance Plan (Part 1)
by JOHN ADAMS •
In the Whitewater 2010 City Performance Plan, City Manager Kevin Brunner contends that in 2010, municipal leaders accomplished 87.1% of their goals. (I have embedded the full document below.) That sounds like an impressive success rate, until one considers that many of the goals listed are ordinary tasks that one should perform fully as part…