Dec
21
So much to say
December 21, 2006 |
I’d like to take some time tonight to respond to some recent comments. This may get a little random and lengthy, and I apologize for that, but I want to share some thoughts and ideas and clear some things up for you, my readers. Please bear with me for a few moments…On the agenda tonight:
A. The police/council debacle
B. Anonymous comments/slander/libel/censorship
C. Other miscellaneous ideas that pop into my head while I’m writing this.
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A. The police/council debacle
I think I might have said this before but I’ll mention it again here. That Chief Rayburn was fired is not my main concern. Yes, it presents short-term problems such as police coverage in the community and leadership on the force, but as with any challenge people are more than able to adapt to the situations they face. Officer Hrubetz is experienced enough to know how to handle anything he comes across and will no doubt perform well as interim department leader.
What concerns me most is the method that the council went about the firing and the shroud of secrecy surrounding the whole thing. I consider myself pretty well-rounded. I’m intelligent. I value common sense in people. I try to keep an open mind about things. I spent the first 18+ years of my life in Stuart, Iowa and many weekends and holidays there after that. I know there are other people like me who live there currently and feel the same way I do about this. I know (or at least hope) the council members and mayor have and/or had most of these same qualities when they signed on for this gig. All pledged to work for the community and be the voice of Stuart’s citizens.
I hope to god that is still the case, but something about this whole ordeal just doesn’t make sense. Why won’t anyone step up and answer the questions being asked?
I’ve had some good grown-up conversations with people on both sides of the firing debate, those pro-Rayburn and also those very anti-Rayburn. Even those who aren’t her fans have admitted to me that the council’s silence makes it look like they’re hiding something.
Again, I hope I’m wrong here, but something about the method just isn’t right. If Carol Rayburn was not meeting the requirements of her job, she got what she deserved. But we’re not talking about rocket surgery here. How do you measure “get along” and “patrol more”? I’m concerned that this vagueness will become precedent.
B. Anonymous comments/slander/libel/censorship/blog ethics
It’s been mentioned lately that I should remove the option of anonymous comments. I’ve thought about this quite a bit, and there are good reasons on both sides of the argument.
Anonymous posters can make the most ridiculous, slanderous, filthy statements and not fear repercussions. These comments can and do damage reputations. Much like a few drinks, the anonymous tag gives courage to say what normally would not, or should not, be said.
On the flip side, being anonymous lets someone with a valid point make a comment without fear of retaliation. Right or wrong, we all know people who would rather settle a debate with their fists than with their brains.
While the majority of anonymous posts are ignorant and make me want to rethink my policy, once in a while a little nugget slips through and actually provides some insight and provokes some intelligence out of all of us. For that reason, I’m continuing to allow anonymous comments…so post away. With that being said, there are certain levels of courtesy and some general guidelines I still expect to see.
I’ve blogged about this in the past with little improvement, but I’ll give it another shot here.
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Don’t be an idiot.
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Don’t say things you can’t back up.
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Please attempt to stay on topic. If you want to talk about something else, you can find my email address at the bottom of the home page.
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If you want to stay anonymous, consider using a tag for yourself such as ‘anonymous1′ or ‘a-1′ or something equally vague and nondescriptive. Everyone will still not know who you are, but at least we’ll be able to follow the flow of the discussions better. Imagine reading the script to a movie where all the characters are named anonymous and without description. Tough to follow, right? Same thing here.
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Please make an attempt to be respectful.
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Unless I consider a comment spam-like or more than R-rated, I’ll leave it posted as is.
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Don’t be an idiot. Again.
I realize the information superhighway (especially blogging) may be new to a lot of people, and the rules of the road are still being worked out. That doesn’t give anyone liberty to be a jackass.
I created this blog to give people a place to discuss and to debate. It has evolved in its short life to include some venting and good ol‘ fashioned arguing. That’s fine. That’s what I expect people to do in everyday life.
I want all of you to feel free to write anything you wish to write. We all should have the freedom to say what we want. But pretty please, think about what you’re typing. Take a step back from the ‘PUBLISH YOUR COMMENT’ button and really look at what you’re about to submit. Is it logical? Does it flow with the rest of the conversation? Does it vaguely represent something from the English language? If you left the page and came back in 5 minutes, would the comment still make sense to you?
For everyone’s sake, please have fun here. The Good Egg Gazette continues to evolve and keeps getting better. I appreciate everything that you have collectively contributed, and I think we’re carving out a nice little niche here in cyberspace. Please continue to visit, post your thoughts, share your ideas, and most importantly…tell your friends about the site. It’s been a wonderful year and a half, and I’m thrilled that so many of you continue to read my not-nearly-as-often-as-they-should-be posts.
Merry Christmas/Season’s Greetings/Happy Holidays to everyone. Say hi if you see me in town this weekend.
Comments
25 Comments so far
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how can two people on the library board not live in city limits?
It has never been a prerequisite of any city department to my knowledge except the fire dept) to live within the city limits. I think that there are city employees in almost every department that have employees that live outside the city limits. I know the rescue, police, the municipalities dept, administration, city attourney, the street/sewer dept and probably others all have employees that do not live in the city limits of Stuart. So don’t complain. It’s not going to change. I do believe that all council members and the Mayor do reside within the Stuart city limits.
u dating elli? people in town are saying so.
Nope, I’m as eligible as ever.
Does that mean people are actually talking about me?
Dating, eh? Why would people say that? Because they saw us one night at Ruby’s together? Oh my goodness! If that’s the case then we should start asking questions about other “couples” that I saw that night! Imagine what people would say if they saw us hanging out all the time in KC, Nate?
Although I think any girl would be lucky to have Nate, that girl is not me
So ladies, like he said, he’s fully available and looks pretty hot in a mullet!
This just reminds me again why I don’t want to live in Stuart. I kind of like people not knowing everything about my life! I’m just glad that someone actually asked us for once instead of just assuming!
That was a wig by the way. I don’t actually have a mullet. I want one, but my hair just won’t grow in the back.
elli free?
That depends…who wants to know?
Andy, he’s dumping Nat.
me
shes bi
Who is bi?
nat
Wow, a blog dedicated to Stuart…awesome.
I don’t know anything about the Stuart Police Dept. nor do I care.
I just wanted to say that Elli girl is hot and Nate is homosexual. Although they are not currently dating, they will be married in about 4 years unless Elli gets her act together. For Nate, 30 can’t come soon enough.
Just to clarify for everyone before nasty rumors start…Nate is not gay.
I love my classmates
Chiefs 41 - Colts 34
Trust me, I’m trying to get my act together and 30 is coming way too fast! Thanks for the hot comment though
fxNeedless to say…the Chiefs looked horrendous on Saturday. No first downs until the 3rd quarter, how is that possible? This isn’t the 85 Bears defense we’re talking about here either.
Nate, I also wanted to apologize for making an inside joke on a public forum. I didn’t think that one out too well before i posted. I imagine there are some people that read this board that may not have found that statement as funny as I initially did. Anyway, i’m glad you responded in a humorous manner.
Yeah, you’re lucky I couldn’t find a good lawyer to come after you. And there are only like 3 people that read this so it’s not really that public.
As far as the game goes, I really don’t remember a whole heck of a lot after halftime, but I’m pretty sure the Chiefs are still bad. My capacity for drinking seems to increase exponentially when my team sucks.
Seriously Nate, you are all over these responses. Do you get some sort of notification when someone leaves a comment?
My initial thinking was that there were very few people who read this thing. But then I noticed the number of comments and all the anonymous posters and I began to think half the town was on here.
It’s actually just me having a conversation back and forth with myself. And since I don’t really have much of a life, I just refresh the page all the time and look for new comments.
But since you asked, I do get notifications on my scalper phone when somebody leaves a comment. The site gets around 100 visitors or so on a normal day. A lot of days lately have been better than normal so maybe the number is getting closer to 120-150. The ad revenue isn’t huge yet, but it’s starting to creep up with more visitors. If I could get everybody to do a google search from my site for car insurance, debt consolidation, or weight loss drugs and click the links I’d be rich in no time.
try scott paul douglous. he is great.
Re the Library Board: Since the library receives funding from property taxes for rural Stuart residents from both Guthrie and Adair Counties, the library is required to have one board member representing rural Adair County residents and one representing rural Guthrie County residents. Serving on our City boards is often a thankless job and we owe these volunteers a big debt of gratitude.
it hasnt always been like that warren. and city code says residents of stuart ia. a grey area.