JUDGE FIXING “POTHOLES” PERMANENTLY

Proposed Liberty Co. Court Reporter

It is difficult sometimes to understand how some people manage their own affairs when you hear how they think about public affairs. A great example is the craziness those who waste their time (like me on rare occasion) by reading the local liberal gossip site. A wave of objections to updating the County Court-at-Law court to meet state expectations must somehow sound like clear and conservative logic to some. But in actuality if these same people run their own affairs the way they insist Judge Tommy Chambers runs his office, odds are they will end up on the wrong end of a lawsuit at some point.

The personal attacks on Judge Chambers and his wife seem to be based on what the attackers think is common sense or some bizarre view of conservatism. Their thinking seems to be something like this: “Me see increase in spending, me be big hero and me gripe about it.” Their logic and their analysis sounds like something out of the primate section of the Houston zoo.

The facts of the matter are as follows- Judge Chambers took office in January and in the process of examining his office and setting it up to do the best job he can for Liberty County he did a historical and legal study on the court’s absence of a court reporter. He found that the court had a court reporter years ago. He found that because of the legal culture that courts exist in today, Liberty County could be vulnerable to lawsuits and other expensive remedies if they continued to use the rare and outdated recording method they have used in the last few years. And last, but not least the new judge found that because of the known vulnerability courts in Texas would have by foregoing the kind of court records most courts have in this day and time, the laws require commissioner’s courts across Texas to supply judges with a court reporter when a judge deems it necessary.

Bottom line, in the long run one lawsuit against the county because we are trying to skimp on recording what goes on in our courts, and years of paying court reporters would seem like a bargain. The people that advocate continuing this court with no court reporter may be the same people who drive without insuring their car, but that is their business. Even if they come up with some statistic on how rare lawsuits are in this area, they still have to insure us that justice will never be affected by less than adequate court reporting. Of course, these same people may want to save money by removing court reporters in all of our courtrooms. Who knows?

One of the gossip columns comments says that Judge Chambers “wigged out” in commissioners court. Chambers was ambushed by the commissioners because the commissioners knew this was an issue that was to be finalized, not tabled. Judge Chambers commented on his dislike for the commissioner’s grandstanding instead of helping the county court run properly. Assuming the person writing this comment is referring to Commissioner Norman Brown’s normal pontificating about how other people ought to do their job, let’s look at the facts staring with Commissioner Norman Brown’s $250,000 patch up jobs just before every election. Brown’s complaint about Judge Chambers should be considered about the same length of time those election times patches last.

Undoubtedly, Brown is counting on the fact that the media will gang up on Chambers so they can criticize Republicans. Otherwise, why would Brown act as if Judge Chambers had not been waiting patiently on commissioners court for weeks to discuss this matter. When they told Judge Chambers they wanted to table this matter as if they have not had it in front of them for plenty of time, most of us had we been there would applaud him for being stern with the court. Norman Brown is believed to have migrated to the Republican Party with the help of Liberty County Clerk, Paulette Williams and John Otto underling, Terry Bivins to prostitute the Republican Party for his and their own personal gain. All questionable self proclaimed Republicans- but actually leftover RINO/Wisegerber cronies.

For too long this court has made certain people beg and grovel for things that they should have insisted they had – and this court has given certain other people more than they should have been allowed t have. The new members of this court, County Judge Craig McNair and Commissioner Charlotte Warner may be able to inspire a new and truly conservative way of doing business, but stalling on the issue of those court being equipped properly with a court reporter is no place to start.

Liberty Dispatch has reported more than once that the county budget has doubled in the last four years. There are some new public officials in office now however. County Judge Craig McNair to his credit when we last checked with him was working on ideas of what to do with the old Wal-Mart building and other anchors around the taxpayers’ necks. But WE THE PEOPLE will not tolerate Commissioner Brown’s criticizing people who are trying to build a more an efficient better-run local government that is accountable and trustworthy. He was not elected king and he cannot subvert the integrity of our courts by spending money on temporarily filling potholes to get re-elected while refusing to fill holes in a court system vulnerable to lawsuits.

In the months ahead we will follow, study and inform Liberty Dispatch readers how the commissioners and new county judge dole out money to the elected officials in the Liberty County. We plan to establish a pork barrel rating for each person in the commissioner’s court and the money they cost Liberty County Taxpayers.