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Highlands Today

Good Ol' Boys?

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Marni Frantz

Published: August 22, 2008

I'm amazed to hear that the firing of the county employees was upheld. This is such nonsense. I just cannot understand the hypocritical part of others being excused, and some people taking the bullet. Is this the Good Ol' Boys network at work here?

I've encountered this a few times since moving here, first by being asked to drop out as a judge for Heartland Idol last year. The reason given was because one of my students was competing. I understood that and always chose not vote for that particular part of the competition and I did this on my own without being asked. I guess that was not good enough and I was encouraged to drop out so there could not be any questions about bias.

Meanwhile I find out that one of the judges last year had a very close relationship with one of the winners and in fact was even offered coaching on the side. So much for being fair and unbiased. Why wasn't that disclosed the way I disclosed that a contestant was my student?

Now I read in the paper the judges for this year's Idol are from the Little Theatre. Are they going to drop out now, after all, I am sure that singers and dancers who have performed with the Little Theatre will also be competing?

In both of the examples, the firing of the employees and Heartland Idol I find it interesting that there are "levels" of what is OK and what isn't. I guess if an employee only wrote a few e-mails, that's OK? Oh get real! I have nothing against him, but why was David Flowers not dismissed? He wrote e-mails also, oh, wait, he only wrote a few. Here come the "levels" thing again. Oh, I get it, he is one of "them."

The "level" for the Idol is also in question. Why are these judges allowed? Rooter Rush seems to know everyone in Highlands County so maybe he should drop out also. "Levels" again? As far as the firing of the employees, it should have been all or nothing, and it really should not have been anyone in my opinion. I would imagine that the same scenario is played out over and over vocally again and again each day at the water cooler; there is just no paper trail. With this type of thinking why not fire them too?

Marni Frantz
Lake Placid

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