Beaufort County Council owes us money; if they didn’t know, they should have | Letters
I’m beginning to have hard feelings for the people of Beaufort County, myself included. It seems like we can’t elect a school board, county council, or just about anything else that doesn’t turn into an outfit that believes transparency is its enemy, and the people it is supposed to represent as a public servant are actually just subjects to be treated like mushrooms – kept in the dark and covered with manure.
I was stunned at Beaufort County Council vice chair Paul Sommerville’s attitude when asked about his over-payments from the county. Such arrogance I’d expect from a representative from New York, California and other deep blue states.
So, there’s someone (likely several someones) who dropped the ball, hid the ball, deflated the ball, and/or smoked the ball, and allowed this to go on for so long.
I don’t think for a New York minute that all the members didn’t realize they were getting overpaid. You can bet your hindquarters if they were getting shorted they’d be on someone like white on rice.
If they didn’t know, they should have. Incompetence doesn’t look good on any public figure, especially when it runs in their favor.
Any chance we can get a redo?
On the bright side, the county budget should get a nice little bump when these people repay all the funds they gained illegally ... yeah, right.
Paul Kositzka
Beaufort
Demand accountability for Beaufort County Council
Recent reports indicate representatives from Beaufort County Council received additional salary compensation, stipends, and holiday pay they were not entitled to. The pay was a result of votes they took as a body, and in violation of the law and county ordinances.
Each representative should know that an increase in Beaufort County employee pay should not affect their compensation. One does not need to be elected to the council to know that representatives are not employees of the county, but rather elected officials.
After voting four times to increase pay for Beaufort County employees, none of the council members noted a corresponding increase in their own compensation?
Vice chair Paul Sommerville was quoted, “I’ve got better things to do than worry about what the finance department is paying me for.” The county finance department bears some responsibility, but oversight of county funds is one of the primary functions of County Council. It is a failure at the most basic level, and these comments show a disdain for his position as council member.
Self-government is the foundation of American democracy. We deserve representatives who understand their role and what a privilege it is to serve.
More than that, we deserve representatives who have proven themselves to respect their relationship with the public as citizen-servants.
My name will be on the ballot in November for Beaufort County Council, District 7. I plan to represent the people of Beaufort County with integrity and respect.
Jodie Srutek
Bluffton
Pay money back, Beaufort County Council, then you’re fired
I agree that Beaufort County Council members should not have received all of the raises that were given.
And for vice chair Paul Sommerville, why did he not check his W-2 and see the increase? In my opinion, that is baloney. As taxpayers, we all check our W-2s, or most of us do.
In my opinion, our council members are the good old boys, which are still around. How can we scratch your back so you can scratch mine? They don’t care about the employees as long as they draw big money.
When the discussion came up about the county trash disposal sites, I made it to the meeting but was only given 3 minutes. They said they didn’t have the money to operate seven days a week. Now, I know why, because they would not have gotten a pay raise.
In my opinion, they should pay back all of the money and it should be given to the employees who don’t have any benefits, or to our first responders, and then the County Council members should be fired.
Robert E. Williams
Beaufort
Beaufort County Council members should be prosecuted
I am expressing my opinion regarding our leaders of Beaufort County.
First and foremost, these County Council members should be forced to make restitution.
Next, they should resign from their posts immediately.
And finally, they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
What they’ve done is disgraceful. They have robbed Beaufort County residents by their selfishness and power.
To allow these council members to remain in power would be a travesty.
The comment made by vice chair Paul Sommerville says it all: “I’ve got better things to do than worry about what the finance department is paying me for.”
Are these the people we want managing Beaufort County? I think not.
Dale Susan Terwilliger
Okatie
The downfall of great nations
President Donald Trump, his administration, Fox News and America’s right-wing billionaires are all working together to stoke an anti-government movement. Of course, this is nothing new for Republicans.
The downfall of great countries occurs slowly over decades and the descent of the United States began in 1980 with the election of President Ronald Reagan. Since then, every Republican president and Republican-controlled Congress has focused on diminishing government, pushing more wealth up, negatively impacting workers and inciting the white population to distrust (hate) those not like them. Us against them.
Reagan, the Bushes and Trump have focused on deregulation, union busting, protecting Wall Street and tax breaks for the wealthy, implementing policies that have created huge wealth gaps, destroyed the environment and diminished our standing in the world.
They denigrate the media, suppress voting rights, slander the poor, encourage hatred of immigrants and encourage the rampant use of firearms.
For Republicans, it is all about money and power. The Republican mantra for years has been to stir up their base regarding opposition to gays and support for guns and God. They hide their real actions behind these social issues. To that I add a fourth “g,” greed.
They do not care about 90% of the population because their elections are won, and power is maintained, by courting the top 1%, coupled with fanning hatred among their ill-informed base. When a small group controls a country, history notes it will eventually fall.
I am mystified by any non-multimillionaire citizen voting Republican.
Richard Hammes
Hilton Head
How to get workers back on the job
We have a national debt exceeding $25 trillion with more to come during the pandemic recovery. We have to find an approach to deal with this or risk becoming the Weimer Republic (Germany after World War I) and all our paper money becomes worthless.
Reducing spending is not part of Washington’s lexicon. Raising taxes higher has too much of a negative impact on the economy. The other alternative seems to be an ever-increasing economy being taxed at reasonable rates. We need workers back to work being productive.
Yet, we have adopted a system where many valuable workers can now make more money on unemployment than they did when the worked. Does that strike you as counterproductive to getting workers back to work?
During a crisis, errors are made. In this case, getting money into the hands of people was paramount. It is time to rectify this quickly.
I think you can justify increasing the payment to the level the unemployed were making, but not beyond. It could have been based upon the income they reported on their latest income tax return or W-2.
Actually, this excessive largess predates this pandemic.
Hawaii, Washington, D.C., and Massachusetts pay more in welfare than the average working folks earn there. The Cato Institute reports welfare benefits have increased faster than the minimum wage, so now, in some states, it pays more to sit at home than work.
Even worse, welfare pays more than $15 per hour to stay home in 13 states.
Richard Geraghty
Bluffton