Yet another reason to end the failed War on Drugs: by far most U.S. wiretaps are for that one reason. Sure, a wiretap helped catch a Mexican drug lord. But without the War on Drugs, there would be no drug lords, just like alcohol bootleggers vanished after Prohibition ended.
Brian Anderson wrote for Motherboard 15 July 2014, Almost 90 Percent of All US Wiretaps Listen for Suspected Drug Deals,
Earlier this year, Continue reading
They wouldn’t say
what they would do to secure their own building after July 1st
when the Georgia guns-everywhere law goes into effect.
A split vote for not opposing the
Hahira annexation
recommended against by the Planning Commission
plus unanimous approval of everything else under
For Consideration, including
declaring some Finance computers surplus.
They voted to approve their
opaque selection of auditing services
and to buy
an unnamed firewall replacement
among other things for unknown amounts.
Maybe somebody should bring that up at the county Budget Hearings.
They reappointed Lonnie Denton to a sixth five-year term on the Lowndes Division of Family and Children Services (he spoke) and Willie Houseal and Gretchen Quarterman each to a third three-year term on the ZBOA (they spoke yesterday morning). Also Public Hearings for well and septic and a special events change to the ULDC. in their Luke Bryan balancing act.
Here’s the agenda, with links to the videos and a few notes. See also the videos of the Work Session of the previous morning and the videos of the 27 May 2014 Planning Commission meeting.
LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERSContinue reading
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, JUNE 9, 2014, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JUNE 10, 2014, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street — 2nd Floor
They vote tonight on their
opaque selection of auditing services
and to buy
an unnamed firewall replacement
among other things for unknown amounts not revealed in yesterday morning’s Work Session.
Maybe somebody should bring that up at the not-yet-scheduled
county Budget Hearings.
They will also vote on
their Luke Bryan musical neighbor balancing act
and on
reappointing Lonnie Denton for a sixth five-year term to the
Lowndes
Division of Family and Children Services (he will speak tonight)
and reappointing Willie Houseal and Gretchen Quarterman each
to a third three-year term to the
ZBOA (they spoke yesterday morning as you can see in these videos).
Also Public Hearings for
well and septic
and
a special events change to the ULDC.
The
Hahira annexation
recommended against by the Planning Commission
is still waiting for signatures from the applicants under
For Consideration,
along with a request from Finance to declare items surplus and several purchase requests
from Finance and IT.
Here’s the agenda, with links to the videos and a few notes. See also the videos of the 27 May 2014 Planning Commission meeting.
LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERSContinue reading
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, JUNE 9, 2014, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JUNE 10, 2014, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street — 2nd Floor
To the VDT the county government always smells like azaleas
and the city of Valdosta government always smells like sewage.
The local newspaper of record doesn’t seem to smell sewage
or landfill problems from Lowndes County.
Today’s VDT editorial complains about
environmental groups paying attention to “theoretical disasters”
(presumably referring to the Sabal Trail pipeline),
yet the VDT has never covered the group that has
most consistently followed the watershed-wide
flooding issues that cause Valdosta’s flooding problems:
WWALS Watershed Coalition.
The VDT recommends citizens get more involved
in sniffing out Valdosta’s sewage problems, yet it doesn’t seem
to cover Citizens Wishing To Be Heard anymore, nor has the VDT called
for the citizen participation sessions promised by
the local governments for the Army Corps of Engineers flooding studies.
Maybe the VDT could encourage citizen participation, rather than ignore it.
VDT editorial today, It just plain stinks, Continue reading
It’s a good thing the county held these first-ever (as far as I know)
comprehensive budget sessions.
Here are videos of the first day.
Most of the departments are asking for more money,
due to increased population and increased demand for services
during a period of economic downturn.
Something needs to be done, and these sessions are one step in
getting to doing something.
Here’s the agenda.
Lowndes County Sheriff Prine
talked about
Administration,
the
Jail,
the
Commissary,
and
Enforcement
at the
first day of Budget Presentations to the Lowndes County
Commission, 10 March 2014.
Like most other county-funded departments, he asked for more personnel.
The long squeeze of the economic downturn needs to be addressed somehow.
These videos show how the Sheriff proposes to address them.
Indefatigable reporter gets FBI to investigate profiteering private prison company: again. CCA already lost the contract for Idaho State Prison and two other CCA prisons have closed. Maybe this time the FBI will shut CCA down.
Rebecca Boone wrote for AP yesterday, APNewsBreak: FBI investigates prison company,
The FBI has launched an investigation of the Corrections Corporation of America over the company’s running of an Idaho prison with a reputation so violent that inmates dubbed it “Gladiator School.”
The Nashville, Tenn.-based CCA has operated Idaho’s largest prison for more than a decade, but last year, CCA officials acknowledged it had understaffed the Idaho Correctional Center by thousands of hours in violation of the state contract. CCA also said employees falsified reports to cover up the vacancies. The announcement came after an Associated Press investigation showed CCA sometimes listed guards as working 48 hours straight to meet minimum staffing requirements.
The Idaho State Police was asked to investigate the company last year but didn’t, until Continue reading
No penalties and no proposed criminal sanctions in TPP for environmental destruction, in sharp contrast to the U.S. proposal for new criminal penalties for “unintentional infringements” intellectual property.
Secret Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) – Environment Consolidated Text
Today, 15 January 2014, WikiLeaks released the secret draft text for the entire TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) Environment Chapter and the corresponding Chairs’ Report. The TPP transnational legal regime would cover 12 countries initially and encompass 40 per cent of global GDP and one-third of world trade. The Environment Chapter has long been sought by journalists and environmental groups. The released text dates from the Chief Negotiators’ summit in Salt Lake City, Utah, on 19-24 November 2013.
The Environment Chapter covers what the Parties propose to be their positions on: environmental issues, including climate change, biodiversity and fishing stocks; and trade and investment in ‘environmental’ goods and services. It also outlines Continue reading
They vote tonight at 5:30PM. Probably there won’t be a repeat of
yesterday morning’s presentation
by
District Health Director Dr. Grow.
The county wants
an architect for a new roof and shower in one jail pod;
it’s considering two interagency agreements,
one for
Valdosta Inspections for Lake Park
and the other for
the county extension,
plus
setting election qualifying fees
and
a Special Assessment Rate for 2014.
There’s a
beer license
and acceptance of
infrastructure for part of Grove Pointe Subdivision.
Here’s the agenda with links to the videos:
LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERSContinue reading
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2014, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street — 2nd Floor
We can probably guess who
“Dr. Grow” is
and the general topic of his presentation,
but why does the county make us guess?
The county wants
an architect for a new roof and shower in one jail pod;
it’s considering two interagency agreements,
one for
Valdosta Inspections for Lake Park
and the other for
the county extension,
plus
setting election qualifying fees
and
a Special Assessment Rate for 2014.
There’s a
beer license
and acceptance of
infrastructure for part of Grove Pointe Subdivision.
Here’s the agenda: Continue reading
