Charlevoix County Transportation Wunderkind Bends Over Backwards Trying To Look Professional – Ends Up Looking Silly

As the date for scheduled temporary overnight closing of the US 31 bridge in Petoskey approaches, an article in the Petoskey News-Review  concerning the detour route caught my eye.

The article “Ironton Ferry not part of bridge closure detour”, published online on March 8, 2017, is loaded with quotes from John Drury, director of the county transportation authority, that serve only to illustrate the ineptitude of County transportation leadership.

Whenever you want to be completely frustrated by self-aggrandizing county bureaucrats, one need look no further than the county transportation wunderkinds, John Drury, and his wife, Jill Drury, manager of county transit. Time and again they show exactly how not to behave when providing service to county residents.

The article was written by Steve Foley and starts off by stating that John Drury attended a public meeting held by MDOT in which discussion took place regarding work on the bridge and possible detour routes. It also states that the possibility of an earlier opening of the Ironton Ferry was “mentioned”.

As it turns out, the ferry is not included in the detour routing; so why not, you may ask. The article quotes John Drury as saying “We were contacted by MDOT about a year ago and they talked about doing this,”. “Their (MDOT) original date was in early April and at the time, we said if the ice is out and we’re able to run we could do it, and that was it.”

And that was it. But wait; maybe that wasn't it. Maybe MDOT was at fault. Let's take a look at another John Drury quote:

“We had kind of assumed last year that we would be doing it, but it’s up to the board and if the ferry is able to run then they’ll make the decision to run it,” Drury said. “It’s also up to MDOT if they want us to be part of their detour or not, that’s where we’re at.”

So, John Drury assumed that the ferry would be part of the plan, but then shifts responsibility to MDOT. Does he now want county residents to "assume" that he's doing a good job?

Now that a plan has been decided upon and just weeks away from implementation, John Drury, our very own bureaucrat wunderkind is now ready to go to bat for MDOT. He is quoted as saying: “But if it’s ice-free and it appears it will be that way, I suppose we could talk about it.”

What a great idea, John. Yes, by all means, let’s talk about it, because you know, better late than never.

And for the clincher, Drury said: “We’ll discuss it at our board meeting and see where we want to go. If the board chooses to start service early, we can look at it as long as we’re able, but there’s some prep time in getting the boat ready to go.”

Notice how John keeps putting the onus of no proactive measures taken on the transit authority board? Who do you think chairs that board? And doesn't it seem rather late to be entering discussions on a subject John Drury was well aware of  a year ago; one that MDOT is ready to implement, while the prep work on the ferry is still to be done?

Why didn’t he remain in contact with MDOT concerning this issue? How is the county transportation authority able to formulate contingency plans without follow up communications with MDOT?

Could there exist other reasons for not utilizing the ferry?

Did John Drury request additional funding from MDOT for the use of ferry services for a week?

Was he too busy consulting and lobbying to keep up with his responsibilities to the county transportation authority?

Perhaps John Drury was misquoted, as his wife, Jill, claims happened to her in a PNR article last month.

Whatever the reason for this latest fumble by our very own dynamic duo, wouldn't it be nice to keep the needs of county residents at the forefront of your concerns? John? We're listening.

Wunderkind indeed.

Why Prop Up Failed Transit Management?

My efforts to get Charlevoix County Transit to do the right thing and actually serve county residents in a respectful manner is an ongoing struggle. While I present anecdotal and empirical evidence to support my case, transit management, under the auspices of the county board of commissioners, continues to refuse to recognize the errors.

Why is that? I believe it goes to their modus operandi; that is, to ignore what they don’t like unless and until it becomes a legal action. It is only then that county government will admit a problem, and would rather settle any legal claims out of court and out of the media.

Going up against a decidedly adversarial county government takes effort. It also takes thick skin as respect is not shown to dissenters, and government officials and bureaucrats don’t take kindly to average citizens having the audacity to question their decisions,
but I am not backing down.

I have found that many county residents feel county transit, the beloved pickle bus, does not serve their needs. To better understand the feelings of the community, try this experiment. When out in public, make a statement such as “I’m having issues with county transit”, and note the reactions. If it goes the same way as when I do it, you will find that many residents have issues with the arrogance and incompetence of county transit, and are not afraid to let you know.

So what is county transit doing to make corrections? For one they are seeking new riders by offering personal “rider training” and giving away trinkets at county senior centers. Woo-hoo! That will be sure to increase ridership - the very ridership they discouraged so dramatically that transit management is afraid to release the plummeting numbers.

The investment of over $150,000 for a ridiculously inadequate software system has been shown to be a hindrance to transit operations. But wait! That’s not all; the ongoing charge for that software is more than $20,000 per year. Wow! And yet our illustrious county board of commissioners won’t address the many problems facing the transit department.

Another thing county transit does is spin the data (or lack thereof) to make it sound like they have been doing a stellar job. If that was really the case, they would be releasing facts and figures, and trumpeting them as proof of their success. If that is what you would expect, you would be mistaken as facts and figures are mighty hard to come by, even with FOIA requests.

When discussing the many missteps and errors of judgement, it is extremely difficult to put stock in anything said by county transit, as Jill Drury has stated that she can’t be taken at her word. She may try to deny that but she made that claim in public and I have the record. It is provable. It should be intolerable.

At the very same public meeting, Jill Drury, transit department manager, said that county transit started as a service for seniors. Why then would she be abandoning them in favor of tourists and bar-hopping?

When will the residents of Charlevoix County be rid of the arrogance and ineptitude of transit management?

Charlevoix County Commissioners Are Like Spoiled Children Acting Out

Charlevoix County Commissioners

To better understand the machinations of Charlevoix County government; let’s peel back the veneer of benign wisdom and the insidious bureaucratic mindset of self-righteousness to expose the classic symptoms of juvenile selfishness.

Young children can become belligerent and throw temper tantrums when confronted with the prospect of denial of gratification. They can become defiant in the face of reason; selfish, insisting on having their own way without regard to the needs of others. While normal in the course of childhood development, such behavior becomes insolent when embraced by adults and unconscionable when practiced by governing bodies. Charlevoix County government has been exhibiting such behavior and has gone unchecked for quite a long time.

Upon examination, it appears that the method of dealing with questions from the citizenry is to simply ignore them; as if county government is above being responsive to the citizens. Our elected and appointed officials seem to feel that they are not required to provide answers to legitimate questions from the very people they are supposed to serve.

It seems that Charlevoix County government will continue to do whatever they choose, ignoring the needs and concerns of county residents until such time as lawsuits are filed. Then, and it seems only then, will our illustrious leadership deem to behave in a more appropriate manner. How unfortunate as the citizens of Charlevoix County are left to foot the bill for such behavior while county government hides the true costs of settlement behind non-disclose agreements.

Meanwhile, county residents are left without responsive government and distribution of services is biased against those most vulnerable.

When legal action against Charlevoix County government is needed to solve issues that were not given proper review and remediation; when the presumptive position is of condescending arrogance, Charlevoix County residents lose – every time. The spectacle of self-righteous pity parties and head in the sand denial become the norm.

Why Is America Afraid Of The Powers That Control Healthcare?

I’ve been listening to the Obamacare debate on CNN featuring Senators Cruz and Sanders and feel a need to respond. It seems that these debates always miss the bull’s eye; sometimes they get close but the risks here are too great to keep firing and hope for the best.

It is not a matter of right versus privilege; quite simply, government supplied healthcare is a privilege. That being said, a form of basic healthcare must be available to all citizens. We are the nation of exceptionalism, our citizens are worth it, and we can do this.

Should you be of the mindset that government supplied healthcare is sufficient for your family, that option should be readily available. That is a choice every citizen should be entitled to make; and for those in need, it is a duty of an empathetic society to provide basic compassionate healthcare.

There also must be free market choices for those who wish to invest in them, in an open and competitive marketplace, without lobbyist approved tax breaks and regulatory carve outs.

Unbridled capitalism has caused the industries charged with providing the products and services needed to maintain our physical well-being to forego empathy and compassion. We are not isolated objects; we are connected beings of a spiritual nature. When we err on the side of corporations at the expense of our fellow citizens, we have effectively chosen servitude to those corporations. When we deny the empathy and sympathy inherent in our constitution, we have foregone liberty.

Both Senator Sanders and Senator Cruz are seeking to show their position as optimum, and neither will move toward reconciliation. How unfortunate that it is more important to score political points than be truly attuned to the needs and desires of the citizenry.

The arguments of both the right and the left are lacking in the responsibilities of compassion, and are bereft of any amount of commonality of spirit. Since free markets are winning propositions when our moral responsibilities are considered, let’s work together to bring about the compassionate care we all deserve. With focus on humanitarian responsibilities we can achieve that goal.

Once we get to the point that all of our citizens deserve access to healthcare we must then divest ourselves of the enormous influence of the American Medical Association. The AMA is an organization dedicated to capitalism over compassion; or put another way, the AMA is driven by greed and shows no concern for the very people providing their success.

The intent of the corporate/medical/pharmaceutical/insurance complex is absolutely unacceptable to compassionate reasoning. Unbridled greed and egoism result in anti-human policies that bring us to servitude. Throughout history we have seen the destructive power of unchecked greed; and it too often results in megalomania.

Capitalism should mean that everyone has the opportunity to seek whatever path to whatever success they deem sufficient. In no way should it be a license to obstruct others, or to keep the citizenry in servitude. That means we must turn our backs on Big Medicine and the inherent dangers of servitude in favor of freedom.

The ridiculous position that it is the responsibility of the employer to provide various cradle-to-grave benefits must be overturned. That insidious mindset came to be embedded in our social norms driven by government mandates and wage controls, with the fingerprints of lobbyists all over them.

Look at how employer supplied healthcare dampens prospects for the success of average Americans. It gives undue advantage to employers and no person should ever be put in the position to be indebted to their employer for anything other than employment.

Censorship In Charlevoix County Or All The News That Fits The Agenda

So there I was writing about Charlevoix County government with special attention paid to the transit department, when lo and behold I am censored by no other than the Charlevoix County Republicans Facebook group page. Yes, I have been erased from the annals of that small group of Republican partisans that claim righteousness in Northern Michigan while practicing suppression of opinion not to their liking.

This is not the first time I have been censored for voicing opinions, nor am I alone. This very thing has also happened to me and others who have attempted to criticize county transit on their Facebook page. Simply being critical of county government can and will get your comments censored. Even at a recent meeting of the county commissioners, when I read comments from a prepared statement I was censored in the minutes of that meeting. Not personal attacks, not profanity, just straight up criticism will be enough for removal.

I was contacted by a local news organization requesting documentation of the questions and concerns I had raised. I was told that they wanted to print my critiques, so I promptly sent the proof. The news editor thanked me for fulfilling his request and then he was not heard from again. When I inquired, he stated that he was still trying to determine the best way to present the information. Now, several weeks later, nothing. What happened, I don’t know; I have my suspicions, but that is all.

So what is it that causes such Orwellian response? Could it be the time I shed light on the biased and discriminatory practices of the transit department? Perhaps it was my criticism of the actions of the Charlevoix County Board of Commissioners. Or my recent call for the progressives in the Charlevoix County Republicans to accept the results from this presidential election and support President Trump. Maybe it was the time that I dared to state that secure borders are the right of all nations and securing our Southern border will improve national security. No, I believe that it wasn’t one of those things; it was any of those things. Dare to state the truth and be ready for censorship.

The elitist mentality of our county government, the good ol’ boy, go along to get along, us against them approach to government seems to be their modus operandi. How do they do it? How are they able to continue such abhorrent behavior? Well, consider the state of our society. The subversive tactics that gave us political correctness, safe spaces, and intolerance of dissenting opinion, have allowed this type of behavior to go unchecked. That and the fact that we the citizens of Charlevoix County don’t speak up often enough, or loud enough, or long enough.

I for one will keep on speaking. The right of free speech is the cornerstone of this great Republic, and as long as I am able, I will continue to accept the responsibility of the citizenry to speak truth to power.

Seeking Public Information in Charlevoix County: An Exercise in Dealing with Hubris

There’s carelessness and negligence, and then there is deception and fraud. I’m wondering what we are experiencing now from Charlevoix County Transit.

Many county residents are aware of the problems with transit operations; some may even be aware of my efforts to get transit management to make changes to improve operations. In case you are not aware of the many problems within county transit, helpful information can be found here, here, here, and here. Now I will show how county residents are disrespected when they have the gall to question elected and appointed officials and seek access to public information.

In an effort to better understand the problems that are rife in the transit department of Charlevoix County government, I have listened to transit management and the transit oversight board, county commissioners, transit riders, and other county residents concerned by the issues. What I have heard is troubling.

I have questioned the decisions and the decision-making process of county transit and have been subjected to indifference, spin, misstatements and outright lies.

I have questioned the support of the board of commissioners for the transit department, and its refusal to address the many problems that plague transit. The answers provided have been lacking in several areas and appear to show disbelief that problems exist within transit. It seems that the bureaucratic mindset is one of circle the wagons and not one of genuine inquiry.

I have filed FOIA requests with the county clerk’s office. I won’t get into how I was treated and what I was told at that time, as that is a story unto itself. What I will get into here is the rather obvious attempts to be less than forthright in providing the information sought – information that county residents have a right to access. According to current operational protocol, that access is to be free and unencumbered.

I asked for copies of the minutes from the transit department oversight board meetings for years 2015 and 2016, and the minutes from the transportation authority for 2016. In both cases the fiscal year was used to determine relevant dates. At the same time, I asked for the minutes from the commission on aging for 2016, and the calendar year was used for that determination. My point here is that not providing 4th quarter calendar year meeting minutes was a failure to abide by the letter and intent of the law and my requests.

I tried to gain access to the information sought by filing another request, and it seems that not all of the information was included in that release either. Now I must file yet another request to gain access to information that is supposed to be readily available on-demand online. Not only is it very frustrating and time-consuming, it is uncalled for. The information requested belongs to the residents of Charlevoix County and we should have ready access to it.

One of the reasons for not giving up in this quest to access public information is an attempt to discover just what county government is trying to hide. Another reason is the information requested is not provided on the Charlevoix County website as many county departments appear to be in noncompliance with existing protocol regarding such information. . It is important to remember that county government is supposed to be responsible to the county residents.

It is unconscionable to be so arrogant as to disregard the many calls of concern about the substandard operations of the county transit department; calls that have been addressed to county commissioners by many residents. How can there not be an inquiry into county transit operations with a full public disclosure of findings?

It is rather disgusting to be of the mindset that county residents are a hindrance and not the reason for the board of commissioners’ very existence.

I am aware of how harsh these words are. It is my hope that county government officials will now understand how appalling is their refusal to address the many issues of concern within the transit department.

Securing Our Borders Is Protecting America

When then-candidate Trump said that we would build a wall on our Southern border, I applauded. A sovereign nation must have secure borders or it will cease to exist (which was the plan). When he said that Mexico would pay for it, I was skeptical. As events unfolded I waited to see how such an audacious plan would be put into practice.

I am of the opinion that we have already seen a glimpse of the payment and it is quite striking. Consider the billions of dollars that were about to be invested in Mexico by American companies. Consider the many thousands of jobs getting ready to start in Mexico because of that investment. Now consider the toll to be paid by Mexico in the massive loss of investment and job evaporation. That is what is called payment; in cold hard terms.

One of the main arguments against building a border wall is that it simply won't work. If that is the case, why do the elites keep building their own walls? A few of the elite globalists who have built walls for their personal security are Speaker Paul Ryan, former President Barak Obama, and Facebook mogul Mark Zuckerberg. How could walls be good for them, but not for our nation?

A wall on our Southern border would slow the influx of civilian invaders from many countries, Mexico being but one. A large portion of illegals are simply passing through Mexico on their way here. Building a wall would force Mexico to deal with them; maybe even requiring the Mexican government to build a wall on their Southern border.

I say that it is high time we make America great again, so that we then will be able to assist other nations in their quest for liberty.