There is a line in the movie “Cool Hand Luke” that goes, “What we have here is a failure to communicate.” It was spoken by the actor, Strother Martin, who played the prison warden. He said it in front of all the prisoners, although the remark is aimed at Paul Newman. It”s a good movie and worth another look today.
I am dealing with an eight-year struggle and adjusting to a notion that my government will protect its own even after knowing I spoke the truth. The truth is that employees lied and covered up the lies. The board of supervisors, sheriff”s department, or others that should have a say over personnel have allowed dishonesty with no accountability. Thus, one not doing their job led to all the rest covering up for him. This came about because their view “it”s a personnel matter” bestows the dishonest employee”s rights over the truth. If the truth is that they did in fact lie and cover the lies up there should be no quarter, no place to hide and no government aid for those who violate that trust with employment.
Communication has been my problem with this local government. All the time they were communicating with me, it was my failure to understand. No, no, I”m to blame, for what they were telling me was true. This total lack of understanding is squarely on me.
To start with, I encountered a government totally unknown to me. With that innocence and the bureaucrats that I would meet, it would be a disaster; one that I would pay for dearly with time and money, but most of all the loss of trust. Trust is the glue that holds the citizen to the government. That lack of trust is the reason for the uproar with the Bismarck Dinius case.
Now, I will get to my point. We have a system that believes a personnel matter is a free pass for malfeasance. There is no accountability. This bunch will lie and cover the lies up, but they do have excuses. Can we all say it together? It”s a personnel matter. I accused employees of lying and there is not one department that would have oversight to do much, but I will say they would listen; again I failed to hear what they were saying to me. You know it”s coming. “It”s a personnel matter.”
I give no one a free pass in this government. They all took an oath. It”s us, the citizen, and not only the dishonest within the system that should have their protection. I have helped sow the seeds of discontent, but the Dinius case has put the truth in full view so all can see.
The words of Abraham Lincoln come to mind. “It is as much the duty of government to render prompt justice against itself, in favor of the citizens, as it is to administer the same between private individuals.”
James Henderson is a retired Lakeport resident.
