JOHN BLACK IS STILL IN THE DARK ABOUT GOVERNMENT

For some newcomers now living in Oldham County, this article needs a little bit of background information. John Black was the Mayor of LaGrange at one time and went on be elected to the position of County Judge-Executive as a democrat. However, his political career came to an abrupt halt when he failed to listen to the people. He wanted to bring the Dynegy generating plant to Oldham County, but the people of the county clearly did not want it. They tried to tell him during public hearings, through letters to the editor, and face-to-face, but he just would not listen. Consequently, Mary Ellen Kinser defeated him and became the first woman and the first republican County Judge-Executive ever in Oldham County to my knowledge. He is also the brother-in-law of current Magistrate David Voegele, who was also a democrat before switching to republican prior to his first political campaign and the campaign manager for Black’s failed attempt to retain the judgeship.

Mr. Black just does not understand that people working for the government, including regular employees, appointees, and the elected officials do not own the “company.”
They are just hired by the people to run the company much as stockholders hire a board of directors to run a company. This means that the people have a right to an open government and a right to check the books. Former United States president Ronald Reagan once said, “Trust, but verify.” Yes, there is information in the custody of the government that is not open for inspection by everyone such as national defense information, work schedules of employees, travel plans for the president, and many other items. However, most of those are at the national level and even they are subject to scrutiny by someone.

In a recent article that appeared in the Oldham Era, Mr. Black inferred that Magistrate Scott Davis and “his friend” filed legal action against Judge-Executive Duane Murner and LaGrange Mayor Elsie Carter in order to imply that they might not be trustworthy enough to accept an anonymous donation. I certainly am not ashamed to say that I am the “friend” to whom he is referring. What Black fails to state – or perhaps he just can’t grasp - is that the legal action would not have been taken had Murner and Carter complied with the laws of the Commonwealth relating to open records requests. Does Mr. Black believe that because of their position they are exempt from obeying the law? Even the president of the United States is subject to some form of opens records laws. In the federal arena it is known as “The Freedom of Information Act.”

Black also attacks Magistrate Scott Davis because he filed a lawsuit against Judge-Executive Murner in which he alleged that he conducted an illegal closed meeting of the Fiscal Court. John Black was not present at the meeting; therefore, he has no idea whether the meeting was illegal or not. That is, unless someone close to him has been telling him things which they should not have been. Is John Black saying that if the meeting was unlawful, that it should have been swept under the carpet due to the position of Judge-Executive Murner? I certainly hope not but it sure sounds that way.

Black criticized Magistrate Davis for remaining in a meeting that he thought was illegal. Duh! If had not remained in the meeting he would not have known what transpired and whether he thought that it was illegal or not. Davis did what any intelligent person would have done. John Black may not have had the courage or the intuition to remain in such a meeting but that does not make the actions of Magistrate Scott Davis illegal. John Black’s statement about the actions of Magistrate Davis reminds me of a supervisor who doesn’t have the knowledge to recognize or appreciate outstanding work by an employee. I am sure that most people have had a supervisor who fits that mold. It makes life tougher but you have to keep trudging on. We all had better hope that Magistrate Scott Davis keeps trudging onward.

Black also stated that people might think that he is in Judge Murner’s pocket. No, I don’t suspect that because he recently stated to me that he had some “markers” down in Frankfort that he could call in. This statement came when I asked him if he would be interested in the County Judge position should Judge Murner decide to resign before completing his term.

My take on this article is that John Black sees Magistrate Scott Davis as a political threat to both himself and his brother-in-law should either decide to run for the County Judge position. Moreover, he may see him as a threat to the “good ole boy network” that currently exists in the county. The only stench that exists is the idea of some people that government should be closed to the people and shame those who demand that the government be open. Nobody is trying to prevent anyone from being a Good Samaritan. Had the name of the donor been released when it was first requested, there would have been NO fanfare about the issue.

Just recently another lawsuit has been filed against the Oldham County Fiscal Court which more specifically relates to members of the Oldham County Police Department, including the Chief. Will John Black and his brother-in-law chastise Bruce Gentry, the plaintiff? Obviously Mr. Gentry doesn’t believe that Oldham County has treated him fairly. Further, he believes that they have violated federal law by discriminating against him.

Finally, John Black chose to criticize Magistrate Scott Davis and me about regarding an issue about which he obviously does have full knowledge of the facts, issues or laws. He would do well to educate himself before trying to tackle his next issue.

It is time for John Black to come out of the dark!