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passin thru

Beach Fanatic
Jun 12, 2007
344
126
Only if you do not like for most of the population to eat. Otherwise we need all of the responsible development we can get.

It's impossible to get "responsible" development, when it's being reviewed & approved by county commissioners who are willing to behave like they do in this video.

The non-answers provided, the way they handle themselves in this deposition, are an embarassment to every citizen of Walton County.

Do you honestly think those answers will protect the County from a successful suit under the records laws?? Both the commissioners and staff give ample evidence here that they have little knowledge of, or regard for, applicable procedures & laws.
 

Smiling JOe

SoWal Expert
Nov 18, 2004
31,648
1,773
Politicians in general, have little knowledge or concern for the laws. The would rather pass laws, then let the courts work out the legitimacy of the laws.

Regarding the clips from this deposition, where are the rest of the videos? This seems to be edited quite a bit. Is it possible that they actually answered 10 questions for every one they didn't respond with, "I don't know?" Careful about quick judgments from sound bites.

I do know that at least one person used to brag on SoWal.com about asking for copies of many public records, as though he were testing the County, and trying to bog them down with paperwork, while he was running for public office. County records are available to the public, anyone can access them through the Walton County Clerk of Court's website, freely, and save them to file, print them out, or email them. If you don't have a computer to do that with, the Walton County libraries have computers available to you which can assist you with those needs. If that doesn't work, I've been to the Clerk's office in person, and have requested official records, and they are sweet as can be in assisting the public with such matters. They have even walked me through searches, step by step, on the telephone, as I worked from my computer.

I wonder if the same people who are complaining about not knowing the ways in which they can freely access public records, are some of the same ones who moan about the County's budget. If each property owner asked for one public record every year, I feel confident that we would need at least one full-time staffer, solely for that purpose, and that would increase County spending. I understand a complaint if someone legitimately doesn't know how to access the public records, or if someone is refused assistance of public records. There are some things in our hi-tech world which are likely public record, but aren't being forwarded to the County Clerk to be officially entered into the record, such as every email a County Commissioner receives and sends regarding official county business. Perhaps that is what this entire mess is all about. I recall earlier this year when there was one candidate in Walton County who was saying that the commissioners were not turning in all of their emails, and he was testing them, by sending them an email of county business, then requesting records, to compare. I believe there was also at least one county or state official who had his personal computer confiscated for investigation of such emails. In my opinion, this matter could be a little on the verge of extremism from the sound of things. If someone accuses a public official of not reporting an email, does this mean that the FBI will step in and confiscate the officials computer and search for said emails, and other things which could be used to hurt the official?
 

Just Curious

Beach Fanatic
Apr 22, 2009
316
80
From what I've heard it was a pretty bogus public records request. They wanted every email that had the word beach in it, or something like that.
 

Kurt

Admin
Staff member
Oct 15, 2004
2,233
4,925
SoWal
mooncreek.com
Excellent post SJ - for every government body there are many "concerned citizens" who make it their job to be critical - a valuable component of democracy. However there are always a few individuals who take it too far and actually become part of the problem, never really caring for a real solution because if everything went smoothly and professionally they would suddenly become irrelevant.
 

Andy A

Beach Fanatic
Feb 28, 2007
4,389
1,738
Blue Mountain Beach
If you don't regularly attend the Commission meetings, you lose a lot of the "flavor" of what is really going on in this county. They are normally very enlightening in many ways.
Overall, considering some of the issues and some of the people they have to work with, our Commissioners do a pretty good job of guiding this county in the right direction, IMO.
 

Matt J

SWGB
May 9, 2007
24,646
9,496
I'd bet any amount of money that these people will get re-elected when the time comes.
 
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