Dr. Kermit Staggers (former state legislator, city councilor) and Emmett Reistroffer (IM13) are our guests.
“There are a number of things I want you to be aware of in my presentation. I want you to be aware that I do not smoke, and I do not have the desire to smoke. I do not drink alcoholic beverages, and I do not desire to drink alcoholic beverages. I’ve never smoked marijuana, and I have no desire to smoke marijuana. I’ve never taken illegal drugs, and I have no desire to take illegal drugs. The reason I am at this rally for Initiative 13 is for very personal reasons. I’m not here for abstract reasons. I’m not here for theoretical reasons. I’m here for very personal reasons, and that very personal reason is I have somebody who is very close to me who suffers from constant pain. This has been going on for six years. Each day, this person is in pain. Each hour, this person is in pain. Each minute, this person is in pain. And, of course, each second of every day, this person is in pain. Now, for those of you who have other people here you’re aware of that’s in pain, you probably realize that pain can really wear a person down. Really wear a person down. In fact, this person is probably (sic) disabled. Now, I should also mention too that this person takes prescription drugs and that one of the drugs is a narcotic. A prescribed, legal drug. And also many other drugs to try and recover from the pain. So, the question has to arise; If this person is already taking heavy duty, heavy duty, heavy duty prescription drugs, what is wrong with this person being allowed to try marijuana to see if it can provide some relief? Now, as a matter of fact today I was talking to an opponent of Initiative 13 and I told this individual this very personal story of mine and this individual responded kind of interestingly. This person said “Well, if I was in the shoes of that person and suffering all this pain, you know what I would do? I’d just go ahead and smoke marijuana illegally anyway.â€Â Well, this person I know that is suffering in pain is not about to break the law. No way. But this person hopes the law can be changed with Initiative 13. And so, in conclusion, I would like to thank all of you for being here today to possibly make this happen. Thank you, again.” – Dr. Kermit Staggers
Of course I was paraphrasing, but Mr. Openness talked about this all the time during the campaign because he often took Staggers ideas and repackaged them with a smile;
“As we have discussed, the items you requested were part of the drafts of notes and recommendations which were used as part of the deliberative process during discussions with different members of the City Council regarding the possible Events Center,†Cotter wrote in an email denying the request.
“The initial notes and recommendations are items that are specifically exempt by law from disclosure,†he wrote.
Huether campaigned on a platform of government openness earlier this year, but he has refused to share the presentation with the public.
Mike, you really look stupid with this one. And throwing your whipping boy out there to make excuses for you is weak.
Who has the bigger water cannon?
As I have been predicting for awhile, Huether plans to borrow most of the money to build the EC, as explained in more detail;
Most of the $99.5 million facility would be paid for through bonds, with an estimated $15 million in cash and up to $24.5 million in private donations.
This plan will never fly. Not with the city council or residents.
I spoke with a city councilor this week about how they were frustrated about the private meetings, and I told them exactly this (and it’s almost like the Argus was quoting me);
The private meetings with Huether have included three or fewer city councilors at a time. Any more than that would create a quorum and require the meeting to be open to the public under South Dakota law.
“It’s the oldest political trick in the book: divide and conquer,” Vernon Brown said.
Yah think? Maybe it’s time to get out the sweet velvet hammer? I find it ironic that the only councilor that complained about this practice during the Munson administration was Staggers. Now all of sudden it’s a problem?! Give me a break.
This isn’t about private meetings, the budget or how to fund a new Events Center.