Saturday, November 24, 2007

Florida Driver's Handbook has Sticky, Stinkin' Fingerprints all over it! by Geniusofdespair

Isn't anything easy and honest in Florida? Why are so many hands in the pot? Why is every Tom, Dick and Harry trying to get rich off of public dollars? This article in The Miami Herald (Nov. 23rd), Driver's handbook ignites a furor is a classic example of Florida lawmakers, agency staff, lobbyists and even their spouses milking the bucks out of the system. Don't think Miami is the only place where crap goes on, Tallahassee has plenty of its own crap. This article is about the publication of a little handbook for teenage drivers that mushroomed into a pretty convoluted tale, here are some of the highlights:

The state agency head who awarded the 2005 contract to print the handbook came under fire because he was married to the lobbyist for the for-profit company that publishes it. That company goes by the official-sounding name National Safety Commission.

Fred Dickinson, head of the department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, was cleared in a state audit -- but National Safety Commission's competitors still aren't happy.

State Sen. Mike Fasano, who tried to scuttle the contract, is now facing ethics charges because he has a business partner who represents traffic schools. The schools complain that the official state handbook includes advertising that directs teens to an online traffic school run by National Safety Commission.

Fasano's push to kill the contract by inserting language into this year's state budget spawned a veto by Gov. Charlie Crist and two lawsuits. Result: A judge has slapped an injunction against the Legislature, meaning that the handbook will be published and distributed early next year as usual.

Besides a rash of investigations and lawsuits, the dispute has left bitter feelings all around.


I'm bitter too, how about you all?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is the process which produces losers and know-nothings at every level of government and why the one-party state (=fascism) will always hit the wall. It vomits mediocrity upwards, until the stale scandal of absolute incompetence pervades every level of every institution. What is the so-called credit crunch? Mediocrity to the Nth.

PS like your blog which I have been visiting for a week. Keep up the good work.

Anonymous said...

Thank heaven for the blog. It seems that nowhere else id the truth being told. We all know that elected politicians do hot put trained nor even good people in any position, It is always the relatives or donators or else those the big money people ask to have hired. Nothing has changed. Over 60 years ago when I eagerly began to help out in politics I found that I and similar political workers were offered all the positions. It sucked then and it is much worse now. I think there is a special test you must pass to get a political job. That is to have an IQ of less than 80.

Geniusofdespair said...

SO Mensa, you speak of room temperature IQ's?

Anonymous said...

When I was appointed to an extremely high position, I went to the Governor and asked him if they had finally decided that someone who had the fantastic background I had at a very young age was finally important to the powers that be. He laughed and said I was given my spot at the request of a large cities top politician to get rid of me before I hurt them all. So much for getting someplace in the political process because you were valuable.