Monkey See, Monkey Do
When questioned about doing something stupid, youngsters may tell their parents they did it because they friend Johnny or Susie did it. Will the Arlington County Board use that childhood excuse to explain why they are wasting taxpayer money to hire an ethicist?
That childhood remembrance came to mind after reading Kristina Rasmussen’s post yesterday at the National Taxpayers Union blog, Government Bytes. She referenced a Washington Post story that appeared in the Post’s Metro section on Sunday. According to the Post:
“Faced with painful choices about who will suffer most from looming budget cuts, Alexandria officials have taken the unusual step of paying a professional ethicist to help them grapple with the moral issues involved . . . "It is very uncomfortable to admit you're going to have to say no. It's very uncomfortable to make decisions that, quite frankly, are going to make some people's lives go worse," said Michael A. Gillette, an ethicist who helped mental health officials in Alexandria write guidelines for prioritizing assistance when there's not enough money to go around.”
The Post reports he is now receiving an “annual consulting fee” of $9,000.Rasmussen wonders:
“ Don't we elect City Council members to make these hard choices?
I didn't see Alexandria seek the advice of ethicists when they made the moral decision to take more of their residents’ hard-earned money through higher taxes.”
Guess the politicians don’t consider it immoral to plunder taxpayers so they can look benevolent by trying to meet those ever present unmet needs. In neighboring Arlington, County Board members might say they’re just trying to ensure that Arlington remains "a caring community." Thanks Kristina for exposing your city's grand poohbahs.