Letter to the Editor

Council nightmare

Friday, May 12, 2006

Dear Editor,

I had a nightmare last night. Bill Gates asked the City Council for approval to give $100 and Mom's apple pie to everyone in McCook who had a mother.

Phil Lyons voted against the free money and apple pie. His reason was that Gates' offer did not provide for the money to be paid by "certified check" and in all the books he had read about his heroes, he could find no evidence that Sen. Norris or JFK ever ate Mom's apple pie.

At the same council meeting, Mr. Lyons made a motion that the city sue Blind Sam's heirs for back rent on the city sidewalk at the northwest corner of Norris and C, with the money to be used to provide limousine service to and from work for city department heads.

I woke up ... the Gun Club had presented the City Council with a check for $27,000 to cover the cost of the council's mistake in re-hiring Mr. Bingham. Mr. Lyons' comment that the check was not "certified" was totally unwarranted and shows his disdain for those who love McCook.

I think there are members of the Gun Club who could probably buy Mr. Lyons with their pocket change. I'll take their check if it's written on a napkin.

If the City Council has any ethics, they must make the honorable decision and respectfully refuse to accept the Gun Club's check. The excuse that Mr. Bingham's severance was not in the budget won't fly; neither was his $5,000 raise or his $11,000 in moving expenses or the thousands spent to buy the Fire Chief a "hemi" powered SUV, etc., etc.

Next is Mr. Lyons' attempt to "milk" an extra 1 percent out of the Keno operators. They pay all their client communities 5 percent.

Phil wants 6 percent for McCook. Doesn't sound like much, but then the operator would have to pay an additional 1 percent to all their client cities, which could financially endanger their operations. 1 percent or 5 percent, it's free money for the city.

If I were the Keno operator, I'd tell McCook to "Shove it ... operate your own Keno, smarty pants."

Based on what I read, 1 percent a year would equal only $6,000. Mr. Lyons was a member of the City Council who approved the air base contract and, as an attorney, he did not require that contract to contain a "contingency clause" (30 or 40 words that would have voided the deal, costing us zero).

That little error cost property owners more than $1 million. At the $6,000 a year he's trying to squeeze out of the Keno deal, it will take only 166 years to recover the air base loss.

The council needs to approve the Keno terms accepted by all other communities and quit wasting staff time "negotiating."

'Nuff said,

Bill Frasier

McCook

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