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Our View: What happened, Dave?

Have you ever made a big purchase and the next morning you woke up with a sick feeling that you had made a big mistake? Imagine if that sick feeling was so bad that you felt you had made the biggest mistake of your life.

That's what happened to Dave Thomas the morning after he made the motion to give the appointed city manager of eight months a huge raise -- a raise that the city council had been blind-sided with from another abundantly paid support staffer, Bob Dowd.

But this issue isn't whether City Manager Gary Misenhimer deserved the raise or not.

A matter of days after the vote, Thomas submitted a letter for The Sentinel's Commentary page, after spending a good hour in our office reaffirming what he called "the biggest mistake" of his life.

He made a public apology, and said he would propose to the city council at its next meeting -- this Tuesday -- that the board reconsider the item on Misenhimer's vote.

He told us that the vote by the council had been a "disservice to the community and sent a bad message to the taxpayer."

So...fast forward to this Tuesday.

The council chambers were packed with people, the majority there, it seemed, to either witness the swearing-in of four new police officers, or participate in the public hearing on the proposed ethanol plant.

Thomas sat quietly at one end of the table, participating now and then in other items of business -- never bringing up "the biggest mistake of his life."

So what happened? Did public opinion sway his decision to stay mum? Or was he pressured by other city officials to keep his cool? We'll probably never know, as the last phone conversation we had ended with him slamming down the phone.

Either way, it seems that Thomas has sold out. Over the last few months, he has prided himself -- via our Commentary page -- on being a "man of the people."

What happened, Dave? The citizens of Hanford want to know.

(Feb. 21, 2008)

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The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the views of the Hanford Sentinel

Yes, wrote on Feb 21, 2008 12:44 PM:

" What Happened? Don't the citizens of Kings County have a right to know? I would like an answer. "

poo-litzer prize spotter wrote on Feb 21, 2008 2:30 PM:

" I really can't believe that the Sentinel would go after Thomas like this. Sounds more like an angry blogger rant instead of an insightful op-ed piece.

What reporter got him so mad as to cause him to 'slam the phone down' on the interviewer anyway? Great interviewing skills exhibited? - NOT!

I'd like to see a complete 'on the record' transcript of that interrogation, I mean conversation. Sounds more like waterboarding journalism right here in town.

Thomas is the first open contrarian on the city council and all this kind of 'reporting' and editorializing will simply make this obviously independent man into one of the 'good old boys.'

Way to go, journalistas! "

zenmom wrote on Feb 21, 2008 3:10 PM:

" "a raise that the city council had been blind-sided with from another abundantly paid support staffer, Bob Dowd"

Blind-sided. Really? And how, pray tell, does that happen? It is the city council's responsibility to be aware of what they are voting on. THEY have the power and the ultimate responsibility, not a staffer.

For a council member to blame a staff member for HIS OWN decision is a cop-out. No one forced him to vote for anything. If he didn't have all the facts, then it was his responsibility to GET those facts BEFORE he voted. Don't blame Mr. Dowd for a decision made by your elected officials.

And if you are surprised that Mr. Thomas changes his direction based on which way the public wind is blowing, then you have not been paying close enough attention. "

gaucho mom wrote on Feb 21, 2008 5:19 PM:

" It appears that Dave is learning how to be a politician. Unfortunately it was his innocence that made him an attractive candidate. He's lost his virginity, so to speak. "

Dowd runs the show wrote on Feb 21, 2008 5:55 PM:

" Wake up Hanford, Bob Dowd runs the show. "

tritip wrote on Feb 21, 2008 6:22 PM:

" What happened to journalism ethics? If the Sentinel would spend more time listening to the facts, then reporting the facts, this finger-pointing would have never happened. Why doesn't the Sentinel spend more time on conducting a factual survey of the comparison cities that Hanford uses to establish it's wages. Maybe this would enlighten them! Wake-up! Gary is the right man for the Job! And finally, to Mr. Thomas, you made the right decision when you made the motion to approve Gary's contract. Don't let the so called Journalist's suck you in... "

Henry Ramirez wrote on Feb 22, 2008 9:48 AM:

" You can't help but agree with the OPINION article about what Mr. Thomas said in his letter to the Hanford Sentinel. After all, he did say he was going to bring it up again before the council, the fact that he voted for a pay raise without really giving it thorough analysis and thought. Mr. Thomas said "he was blindsided." Was the public "blindsided" when nothing was said at the last council meeting? How often do we hear it said, "Credibiity is based on following through with what you say you're going to do." Or how about this one, "You have to walk the talk." Well, it remains to be seen how long it will be before the issue of the city manager's pay raise is placed on an upcoming council meeting. As was said, lets take care of the ones at the bottom before we take care of the ones at the top. "

Follow Up wrote on Feb 22, 2008 9:59 PM:

" Sounds as though it is a "done deal". It is very sad that our community leaves such a bad impression- the local government is thought of in a negative light by a high percentage of these bloggers. The Police come across as buffoons with this new vehicle, when they are probably not at all. The most distrubing part of all this is that there does not seem to be an accountable person anywhere in government in any agency or group of representatives. I wonder how long it has been this way? When you talk with people in these responsible positions one on one, they seem like intelligent, well meaning people. But when one looks at the decisions that are made, the money that is spent and for what- it is just amazing that this can continue. The local paper is not respected if people would slam the phone down on a reporter. That is just not professional no matter how the discussion goes. A simple "no comment" would suffice. The bottom line seems to be that the local power is in the hands of men whomake the decisons -not for the common good, . "

to poo-litzer prize spotter wrote on Feb 22, 2008 10:47 PM:

" Thomas was the person to write the sentinel to being with, so why wouldn't the paper want to interview him. Just because Mr. Thomas slammed the phone doesn't mean that it was out of insult, sometimes truth hurts and maybe that is why he slammed the phone. Comparing an interview with waterboarding shows how completely out of touch you are, a bit exaggerated, maybe your the one full of poo,
poo-litzer, I see nothing wrong with how the paper simply followed up on something many people have wanted to know concerning the over the top, ridiculous raise Gary received. "

Question for Sentinel wrote on Feb 23, 2008 2:26 AM:

" Jackie, (Sentinel) thanks for being the eyes and ears of those of us who would have been there but could not.

Can we have a tally of all the messages left on the blogs on this subject under all the headings that relate to the topic? The numbers change next to the subject heading so one can not get a good assessment as to the total responses posted. I believe that it is important to see how cogent the response to this item of business has been.

Also, what alternatives do voters have now that the City Council has shown that they do not intend to respond to public concern? What can we do collectively? Do we have to wait until another election? Can we put together a citizen action group to present this at public forums so that the public can not be ignored? I am at a loss to see how to penetrate what seems to be an blatant obstruction of due process and public right to know. As well as a callous and arrogant disregard to the publics concerns. Any ideas out there? Anyone interested in forming a committee to tackle this? "

Kudos for the Sentinel wrote on Feb 23, 2008 6:32 PM:

" For going after the things that the City wants swept under the rug. Keep at it Sentinel! You have a fan base out here. "

Here we go again.. wrote on Feb 23, 2008 9:16 PM:

" thinking "a high percentage of these bloggers" really amounts to much of anything. Like the old saying goes, "The opinion of these bloggers and a quarter won't buy you a cup of coffee...." I know that's going to sound like a harsh comment but the point is these blogs are entertaining and provide me and (a very few) others a chance and place to post our opinion but it's no more representative of the community than an opinion poll of 10 people would represent the opinion of the entire community. We bloggers are not a representative sampling of this community. We are the few, and by and large, the perpetually angry. "

Girl Friday wrote on Feb 24, 2008 10:33 AM:

" Leave the "court jester" alone he has made it fun to attend city council meetings, don't fold on us now doubting Thomas! Where's fire and fight ?silenced that is hard to believe. Well we now have THE KING, THE COURT JESTER, and of course our PUPPET MANAGER, hummmmmm what shall we call the others????????? "

W.O.W. wrote on Feb 25, 2008 9:44 AM:

" To Girl Friday:

You are so right! The deed has been done! Only way out of this seemingly political mess is to bounce the next two council persons when their terms are up.
Then hope we don't get more "thinkers" like Thomas. "

Reality wrote on Feb 25, 2008 12:04 PM:

" The truth is everyone is talking about these blogs. Everywhere I go people ask "have you see seen the blogs on the Hanford Sentinel?" "Do you post on the blogs?".

These blogs are fantastic and hope Jackie K and staff keep putting up good material to comment on. Also, don't think for a second that city officials are not on here as well. They read them just like we do. These blogs are getting back Dave Thomas right now.

Keep spreading the word to friends, family, co workers etc...This blogs are educating people and stiring the pot for the good.

Just look at all the drama with the city council since these blogs came into existance. Anyone see how many people were at the council meeting? This is a very good thing... "

What Would You Do? wrote on Feb 25, 2008 5:19 PM:

" What could a person of conscience realistically accomplish in this government environment? "

Think About It wrote on Feb 25, 2008 9:35 PM:

" I believe that the Sentinel has started something that could be major. I believe that these blog comments are significant. And no, I do not believe that it is only 10 people. There seems to be a cross section, -and no, they are not all perpetually angry. Though people should be angry at what has been happening, if what is said has some elements of truth as reported here.

The topper would be to have a section to upload video. Someone takes two minute videos of staff and council members at a crucial vote. Capture the good as well as the ugly. Or community happenings that seem to benefit just a select few. Whoever these good ole boys that many talk about. Maybe we could start links to YouTube to capture some of this.

What do you think? This could be the start of something. "

KC Chic wrote on Feb 26, 2008 2:00 PM:

" See Dolores Gallegos wasn't so bad afterall!!!!
Dave Thomas pulls anymore stunts like that and Dolores will get re-elected and soon will be MAYOR!!!! I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Come on, did we really have high hopes for Dave Thomas? I didn't. OH, but he's good for a chuckle or two! "

Dave the man sold out wrote on Feb 26, 2008 11:03 PM:

" Thanks Dave for selling out, you pay the city manager($149,000) and the city attorney($250,000) outrageously high wages and then you give the cops a mere scraps. U the man Dave, keep selling out. "

Girl Friday wrote on Feb 27, 2008 11:58 AM:

" Oh no the "D" Word Delores and even worst Dennis Sanchez might want to step up to the plate again with the housing market in such a slump he could now aford to actually live in his district What a hoot that would be! "

Hanford furniture wrote on Feb 27, 2008 2:09 PM:

" People keep ripping on dowd but do you think a "cheaper" city attorney would have invested in the old Hanford Furniture building? The council was able to keep the money, 250K or whatever, in Hanford, and in downtown none the less. No one on here ever thinks of the good side of things. "

Bottom Line wrote on Feb 27, 2008 7:41 PM:

" Dave voted for the raise and then appeared to want to re-visit the issue. He came forward publicly announcing his big mistake. Courage!. Not quite-then, when given the opportunity to make it right, he sits there idle. Coward. Which mistake is worse? I vote for the second one. This City Council never ceases to amaze me. At least, the majority of the town is honest and forthright. "

Step up... wrote on Feb 27, 2008 8:24 PM:

" As much slamming and complaining as I see going on, I didn't see too many people making a stand against the "good ol' boys" club at election time. If it's campaign money or votes, doesn't seem that the involved stepped up to make a change.

Spreading the word and getting more involved in our local politics is definitely something major. How about standing behind a candidate for upcoming elections to actually replace the eyesores that are sitting there now? There won't be a change until enough of us stand up and demand a change.

Will be interesting to see who is bought again next time around... "

W.O.W wrote on Feb 27, 2008 10:09 PM:

" To Girl Friday:

The guy acts like a "buffoon" at times. Maybe, if he gets his meeting packet on Thursday before the meetings on Tuesday, some of his advisors can help him understand the issues.

I believe the reason he didn't bring up the issue of changing the vote because he was told in study session that there would be no 2nd to his motion.

Incidentally, what happened to all the notes that were to be taken of the study sessions.
"

To W.O.W. wrote on Feb 28, 2008 1:48 PM:

" The study session minutes can be viewed on the City's website along with the Council minutes of the same day. I doubt that any such statement that there would be no second was made at the study session. If a conversation took place about the motion, it was most likely behind the scenes. Study sessions are open to the public. You may have meant the Closed Session, which is closed all but a few. I don't know if those notes are available to the general public. Depends on what the agreement was with the DA. "

to Hanford Furniture wrote on Mar 4, 2008 9:33 PM:

" I am pleased that someone local bought the old hotel. But, what is so great about a retail establishment that drew customers from hundreds of miles being converted to offices? How will this contribute to making our downtown vibrant? The firm was already located downtown, just down the street. Wow. It is like Radio Shack or Payless shoes moving from the old strip mall to the new strip mall across the street. Big deal. Maybe they will have Christmas windows with a legal theme. That would be a draw. "

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