Mississippi's Best Community Newspaper

So the coloreds get more money?

Soooooooooo, the blacks get to go to an all black meeting on the taxpayer dollar. Wonder what would happen if Smith and Holloway wanted to go to an all white meeting on the taxpayer dollar. Huuuuuummmmmmm!

Can’t afford to cut grass, but can afford to take separate cars.  Marvelous.

Yep.  Gotta keep up the separate agenda.  This should stop.

I think they should ride one of those buses at the visitors center to save on transportation costs.
More people per room would also save.
Why is the city attorney going? His days may be numbered with the new administration coming on board.

This paper has become a joke.  Why is the $16,000 figure still in the headline.  That headline could have read, “Mistake, Conference to only cost $10,000.”  These conferences are necessities despite what the general public thinks.  This is a frivolous and ridiculous article.  Instead of continuing to smear our current mayor, why not do a story on why he’s being inducted into the Hall of Fame.  Apparently the State of Mississippi has a different opinion of our current mayor than this sin saddled town.  I’m about ready to get the hell out of here.

I am retired from the Navy. Throughout my Navy career I made many, many trips in Navy cars, jeeps, buses, vans, and trucks. Every one of them had glued to the dashboard a distinctive sign printed in large, red, block letters:

IS THIS TRIP REALLY NECESSARY?

Seems appropriate to this discussion ….

Aldermen’s membership in professional organizations, including the MML and the MBCLEO, are personal choices … not government requirements. City officials do not have to be in these organizations as conditions precedent or conditions subsequent or any other requirements for holding their offices. Their choosing to be members in these clubs should not impose a burden on the city’s budget and the city should not pay their claims arising from participation in MML or MBCLEO activities. We didn’t elect these people to join clubs and attend club meetings. This isn’t a professional education and training event. It’s a boondoggle. These trips are not “really necessary.” They are self-awarded perks … mini-vacations … the city fathers bestow upon themselves. They should pay these expenses from their own pockets; they can claim the expenses as deductions on their tax returns, if they insist. 
Parallel: the city attorney’s Mississippi Bar membership dues–$310 annually–are not paid by the city; they’re paid by the city attorney himself or herself. Moreover, membership in the Mississippi Bar is a legal requirement, a condition precedent, to one’s practicing law; failure to pay bar dues will result in an attorney’s being suspended from practicing law, dismissal as the city’s attorney, and a concomitant loss of income. Membership in the MML and MBCLEO is optional; failure to pay membership or registration fees for those organizations leads to … nothing. No suspension from the board of aldermen … no suspension from voting on board business … no suspension as city clerk or attorney for the board … no loss of compensation … no loss of retirement benefits accruals … nothing. 

Nothing. 

There are times when “Nothing” is a complete sentence. “Nothing” is what requires these peoples’ attendance at the conference. “Nothing” is what they will derive from their attendance. “Nothing” encompasses all the benefits the citizens of Natchez will derive from their officials’ conference appearances. “Nothing” is the word that justifies their conference attendance at public expense.

But if they insist on attending: doesn’t the city school system own a “short bus” or an “activity bus” it could assign to the city? The school system could throw in a driver and charge for his/her salary and personal expenses and  transportation-related expenses, such as fuel costs and a modicum for equipment depreciation … probably no more than $1200-$1500 total. That would work … provided the city officials still deemed this trip necessary. Which it ain’t.

Jake , I wouldn’t let these turkeys cause you to leave the city after being mayor but attend all BOA meeting and keep them in line!!!

People of Natchez could stop this in their tracks by demanding that if they have got to go to the meeting to pay their own expense and not charge a penny to the city!! These people feel they are dictators in their minds and above all other and with a city that is broke with the streets and infrastucture deterating and to charge its citizens a dollar is out rageous!!! Sanders has no business going at all that shows this a a minivacation paid by the city taxpayers!!

Please tackle the Sheriff and other department heads that attend similar sessions also, likely at taxpayer expense.  Somehow, the fact that some of those dept. heads are elected gives the BOS a “hands off” approach to oversight of those county/city functions, their budgets, operations, etc.  The BOS/BOA should be the oversight authority over all departments with final say in these matters.

It’s time for the taxpayers to rise up and put a stop to this waste. It not only happens here locally but all the way to Washington. Some of these ‘elected leaders’ are kept in office by non-taxpayers, who care not one fig about them wasting our revenue that is desperately needed else where. The madness has got to be stopped here at home before anything can be done about the waste in Washington.

The paper didn’t smear you! The people of Natchez did! And did it big-time.  I’m sure this Hall of Fame thing is something that everyone who serves in any office for 20 years recieves. Likely just a plaque or something.  I’m sure they will mail it to you.  Just can’t see how you can justify wasting tax payer money on a silly trip as a Lame Duck.  Wouldn’t blame you for getting the hell out of here.  Don’t let the door hit you in the ass.

Do you actually think I’m the current mayor blogging on this site or are you just being facetious, or are you just a jealous moron.  Either way, you apparently supported the jail bait that is our incoming mayor.  One that sent a letter on behalf of a raping murderer and who’s actually been cited for open meeting violations by the State of Mississippi.  Nice job, I hope you can sleep at night Sullivan although I expect you can as you have zero morals or common sense.  And as far as travel goes, didn’t the incoming mayor spend tens of thousands of tax payers dollars to fly all over the world while at the MDOT????? Oh yeah, where’s that story.

AMEN!