Should This Behavior Be Tolerated By Any of Our Elected "Leaders"?

I will start by saying that I was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for Trustee in the August primary. I am a former Township employee from two separate occassions dating back as far as 1976 and as recent as 2003. My most recent paid position was as Deputy Clerk. My husband is retired Fire Chief Larry Groth and he worked for the Township for 34 years. I say all of this in the interest of disclosing my background and my history so that you will understand when I say something that there is history behind my observations and personal knowledge about some of the people involved. I voluntarily resigned from my position as Deputy Clerk as I had no desire to continue to work under the administration of the Township at that time.  

Bryan Bentley recently posted a blog entitled "This Kind of Behavior Can Not Be Tolerated By An Elected Official" and went on to list numerous reasons that he believes Supervisor Reaume should resign from his elected position as our Township Supervisor.

Bryan Bentley has also gone on record stating that the person who publicly posts as "Ocelot Madness" is our Treasurer Ron Edwards, despite the fact the Mr. Edwards does not lay claim to this. I have been assured that Mr. Bentley has the proof necessary to validate his claims. That being the case, I suggest that you go back and read all of the blogs posted by "Ocelot Madness" if you want to put what I am saying into its proper perspective, as well as looking at all of the facts that Mr. Bentley has presented about Supervisor Reaume.

At the same time, I challenge you to look up the definition for "leader" as I just did, and compare that definition with the actions and postings of the two individuals that I just mentioned. When I see the definition for leader - I see "a person who influences a group of people towards the achievement of a goal". It could be a person who goes first and then leads by example so that others are motivated to follow. To be a leader, you must have followers and to have followers, you must have their trust. This means you must win their trust. So my question to every person who reads this is simple - are our elected leaders worthy of our trust?

When I post a blog or an opinion - it is mine with my name. You don't have to agree. Despite the fact that I support the fire service, I do not support the "no concession" stance originally taken by our firefighters and they know it. While I recognize that Unions have a place, I have never been a big Union supporter. I never said in my campaign that I supported rehiring all of the laid off firefighters or re-opening fire station #2 yet Supervisor Reaume accused me of being a disgruntled (remember - I voluntarily resigned) former employee who was going to raise your taxes. That was an outright lie. In fact, I wanted to cut spending further. Another lie by your elected leader.

When Supervisor Reaume and Treasurer Edwards decided to punish the fire service, they did it by laying off 9 firefighters and closing a fire station and telling all of you that you are as safe today as you were before. Another outright lie. How could you be? Response times are longer. They distributed wage information about the firefighters and never honestly explained why firefighters got those wages that year so your administration made your firefighters look bad in your eyes. Many people now seem them as greedy, overpaid, spoiled public servants. As such, they accomplished their goal but do any of you have any idea what sacrifice went into that kind of overtime and wages?

Do any of you know how much each of our full-time elected officials cost us each year with their wages and benefits including their pension? And when you look at that picture keep in mind that elected officials have no educational requirements to do their jobs. Our Treasurer is not required to be a CPA. Our new Clerk knows nothing about elections but she will be administering them. Our Supervisor is not required to have a degree in Business Administration. Likewise, they have no attendance requirements? Does that trouble you? Does that make you see them in a different light?

This week I saw that a Mr Wellborn commented on the "nice spread that Mr Mann" a firefighter, and his wife Jennifer, also a previous candidate; have on Ann Arbor Road. I know both of these people. Chuck Mann is one of the kindest people you could ever meet. He is a firefighter because he cares about people and he would sacrifice his life in a second for you or me or anyone else in need. He has never been a troublemaker or a problem and he is a hard worker who has his heart in this community. He is also a taxpayer just like you and I.  Jennifer works for St. Joseph in the oncology radiation department delivering radiation to cancer patients that she treats with extreme kindness. They have both worked hard and sacrificed to have their home and the mere fact that anyone would make such a statement should tell you that our elected officials have been successful in dividing our community.

When did we stop being appreciative of the people who care enough to be willing to come and help us at all hours of the day and night when we need them, at any cost?

And when we start paying all of those overtime costs to police officers to become cross trained as firefighters are you going to feel the same way towards them? And when they get the negotiated raises for agreeing to do both jobs will you also dislike the police officers and call their supporters groupies? And then of course, when we hire more police officers because we will have to - we aren't replacing retiring firefighters, each one is going to get that great pension plan that the current administration voted to give them which carries with it lifelong legacy costs, are you going to be mad at them too?

Well at least you won't have to worry about that with the fire department - the Treasurer is going to get rid of the fire department. But, the fire department lost that pension in arbitration so you wouldn't have to worry about it if they just replaced retired staff because the old pension doesn't carry legacy costs.

And what about those part-tine guys they hired to work in the fire stations with the full-time guys - when is the Township going to properly train them so that they can be more helpful to the on-duty staff and the citizens. They are there to serve - they want to so why aren't we using them to their full potential?

And there are others who are posting negative blogs with personal attacks who are said to be elected officials but who don't use real names. Any time an elected official is allowed personal gain from his/her position there is a problem and those are the types of problems that are investigated by the FBI. And when you have elected officials and their friends making nasty, mean attacks against others that are deeply personal in nature you have to wonder what the motivation is.

How can we spend money on warming huts, and property we have no right to buy and golf courses and sheds when we lay off firefighters, threaten to fire them all, cross train our police officers to be firefighters (which is a disservice to all of us) and then turn a deaf ear to the residents who are threatened by these reductions?And while we elect them to represent us, we elect them to represent our best interests as we see them, not as they choose to perceive them based on their own personal agendas and arrogance. Ask the people out on North Territorial Road where the private school was just built how they feel about this.

How can we continue to be strong as a community if we continue to elect leaders who don't lead by example but conquer and divide? How long are we going to be willing to sit back and allow our community to be the joke of Western Wayne County because people cannot believe that we, as voters, continue to allow our elected officials to keep getting away with the things they are doing.

Please give serious thought to the state of our community and how you can make a difference. It is within each of us to make it better. Now is your chance!