A small town in middle America receives an award from a group, of whom no normal person has ever heard, declaring a town project internationally prestigious.
The project relies on millions in public grants, millions in subsidized public bonds, will use a third of its space for a publicly-funded tenant, has no clear private purpose, violated commonsense competitive principles in awarding contracts, was once shut down for federal violations of obvious competitive rules, takes place in a town that has high poverty that the project has no hope of alleviating, and that’s nearly certain to fail as other projects of its kind typically do.
The world has a population of over 6,876,501,214 people, and the town has a population of only 14,454.
Out of all those people on earth, considering the actual quality and background of the project, wouldn’t the award raise at least a few questions?
Of course it would — and anyone imagining otherwise is hoping – or daring — others to live life unthinkingly, to swallow any tall tale.
This is politics where bureaucrats treat adults as gullible children.
Any yet, for Whitewater, Wisconsin, it may be the future of reporting and public discourse — where officials will say anything and contend it’s all true.
The award story, entitled Tech Park project earns recognition, is available online. I’ve been a critic of the project, but for all that time, there’s never been a better example of what’s wrong with the project than the trumpeting of a so-called international award for it.
Consider these risible, utterly absurd claims:
IEDC’s awards recognize the world’s best economic development programs and partnerships, marketing materials, and the year’s most influential leaders….”
“There were only 28 worldwide, and having Whitewater selected because of the Innovation Center….it is amazing to see how it has come along.”
The world’s best…. Even middling high school debaters would laugh at a claim like this.
On this planet, one does finds genuine international organizations, like the UN or World Health Organization.
For it all, the closest the Innovation Center is likely to come to credible international recognition is a trip by the Tech Park Board to a local restaurant.
