From Anonymous on December 30, 2007 at 12:21 p.m.
Yes and the only one laughing is Cauthen. Even his strongest supporters and supposed friends end up burned by him. LT may still be working a couple more weeks but she is probably in for a big fall. Imagine a potential employer doing a Google search and coming up with Mike Mahoney's piece? She has been boasting around City Hall about how well she and Wayne handled this and how others will fall. Sooner or later she will come to the realization that Cauthen handled this for himself. He doesn't care about her, he's done with her. He handled it and timed it for his benefit. The proof is in the end result. She is out and likely unemployable. Cauthen has a three and half year contract. Let's hope she enjoys the next couple of weeks. Remember Deb Hinsvark, Stacia Johnson, and Dee Williams?.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Lesson # 1
Ok, Boys and Girls,
What is it called if you should turn in travel-expense statements that include expenses incurred when you were not on city business and expenses incurred by your spouse?
THEFT!
What is it called when you travel first class and stay in luxury hotels on the taxpayers nickel?
OBSCENE!
What are you called when you throw your assistant to the wolves and blame her for sloppy reporting?
DIRTBAG!
I might be able to understand if there were one or two questionable items on the statements. Afterall when you spend nearly twenty percent of your workdays on the road, it is easy to get all those receipts jumbled up.
I might understand if we didn't all know that the assistant he blamed is a top-notch, loyal, professional. The people in his office, including her, take an awful amount of abuse from him. I guess she is probably relieved he's not throwing things at her. This is over the top.
Anyone else would have been fired on the spot.
This isn't leadership. In fact, I don't even see any manhood.
Check out http://www.pitch.com/2007-12-06/news/cauthen-s-travels/full for the full story.
What is it called if you should turn in travel-expense statements that include expenses incurred when you were not on city business and expenses incurred by your spouse?
THEFT!
What is it called when you travel first class and stay in luxury hotels on the taxpayers nickel?
OBSCENE!
What are you called when you throw your assistant to the wolves and blame her for sloppy reporting?
DIRTBAG!
I might be able to understand if there were one or two questionable items on the statements. Afterall when you spend nearly twenty percent of your workdays on the road, it is easy to get all those receipts jumbled up.
I might understand if we didn't all know that the assistant he blamed is a top-notch, loyal, professional. The people in his office, including her, take an awful amount of abuse from him. I guess she is probably relieved he's not throwing things at her. This is over the top.
Anyone else would have been fired on the spot.
This isn't leadership. In fact, I don't even see any manhood.
Check out http://www.pitch.com/2007-12-06/news/cauthen-s-travels/full for the full story.
Dear Rexruther, Valdaro, & Friends,
Rest assured, thousands of city employees are continuing to show up every day and are still working their hearts out to make Kansas City a better place to live. In many cases, we are working under the most demoralizing conditions possible.
You may not appreciate this blog or NRFPB but they are the only outlets we have to TELL THE TRUTH. There is no critical reporting from the media, Cauthen quashed the employee satisfaction report, and councilmembers aren't listening. A healthy organization would have an outlet for employees to voice our concerns. INDEPENDENT THOUGHT IS NOT ALLOWED AT CITY HALL.
We are watching this organization, that we have dedicated our professional life to, systematically destroyed. Doesn't anyone care that the public is lied to day after day? Doesn't anyone care that millions of dollars that could benefit KC are, instead, paying off Cauthen's friends in Denver?
No apologies. We are just TELLING THE TRUTH!
(NRFPB stepped out first and is one of my personal heroes. I only began my own because I don't know who GPS is and am concerned about confidentiality.)
You may not appreciate this blog or NRFPB but they are the only outlets we have to TELL THE TRUTH. There is no critical reporting from the media, Cauthen quashed the employee satisfaction report, and councilmembers aren't listening. A healthy organization would have an outlet for employees to voice our concerns. INDEPENDENT THOUGHT IS NOT ALLOWED AT CITY HALL.
We are watching this organization, that we have dedicated our professional life to, systematically destroyed. Doesn't anyone care that the public is lied to day after day? Doesn't anyone care that millions of dollars that could benefit KC are, instead, paying off Cauthen's friends in Denver?
No apologies. We are just TELLING THE TRUTH!
(NRFPB stepped out first and is one of my personal heroes. I only began my own because I don't know who GPS is and am concerned about confidentiality.)
Friday, December 28, 2007
Help Wanted -- PLEASE!
It is common knowledge that Cauthen has been looking, desperately, for a job for at least two years. Why won't anyone hire him? Participate in the poll; you can vote for multiple reasons. Maybe we should wrap it up, put a big ribbon on it, and offer it as a late Christmas gift to the Boss.
H2o Troubles
It took the manager four years but he finally succeeded in pushing Frank Pogge out the door. Although Pogge certainly deserves to retire after 40 plus years, he and Cauthen have been at loggerheads on many issues. Pogge wasn't even allowed to select his own number two guy. Cauthen's pattern of having no respect for anyone who was here before '03 reared it's ugly head, resulting in a national search for the position, instead of looking within the department. Cauthen settled on Jim Buckler. Cauthen hired Buckler, promising him the director position when Pogge retired.
Cauthen has not been thrilled with his new hire. First of all and great for KC, Buckler turned out to be highly competant, affable, and INDEPENDENT. Cauthen has issued an ultimatum to Buckler, the water capital projects must be CIMOIZED or he is doing another national search for the director position!
Cauthen has plans to bring back his buddies from Denver to manage the $500 million in water projects. With CIMO skimming at least 10% off the top of all projects, this means a whole lot of moola heading for Denver and a bunch of mismanaged projects for KC.
Buckler has stood up to the Boss and, as a result, Cauthen has announced he is doing a national search. Watch for Buckler to leave very soon.
Cauthen has not been thrilled with his new hire. First of all and great for KC, Buckler turned out to be highly competant, affable, and INDEPENDENT. Cauthen has issued an ultimatum to Buckler, the water capital projects must be CIMOIZED or he is doing another national search for the director position!
Cauthen has plans to bring back his buddies from Denver to manage the $500 million in water projects. With CIMO skimming at least 10% off the top of all projects, this means a whole lot of moola heading for Denver and a bunch of mismanaged projects for KC.
Buckler has stood up to the Boss and, as a result, Cauthen has announced he is doing a national search. Watch for Buckler to leave very soon.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Cauthen Insulted by the Falling Star
Not once in today's column by Lewis Diuguid did Mr. Diuguid mention Mr. Cauthen's professional credentials and track record. It should be insulting to describe Mr. Cauthen only as whether he is a "Black" or "African American" city manager. If Mr. Cauthen has suffered from discrimination or discriminatory acts in his employment at City Hall, he has the absolute responsibility to report them immediately. Such discrimination is a violation of federal law that he, as city manager, is obligated to report.
What are his achievements? Has he achieved anything that didn't require millions of dollars and consultants from Denver? My wife has tried to convince me for years that spending money requires talent and intelligence. It hasn't worked for her either! (I hope she doesn't read this blog.)
The truth is that Mr. Cauthen has either not achieved or has violated every tenet of being a professional city manager. (http://icma.org/main/bc.asp?bcid=40)
Let's talk about:
Purchasing? Codes? Public Works? Finance? Council - Manager relations? Youth programs? Budget? Housing? Human Relations? Neighborhoods? (Look forward to separate entries on each -- your input is welcome.)
Mr. Cauthen, you know that this is not about race. You should speak out and say so. Instead you will drag Kansas City through the mud for your own selfish reasons and over-inflated ego. Shame on you.
What are his achievements? Has he achieved anything that didn't require millions of dollars and consultants from Denver? My wife has tried to convince me for years that spending money requires talent and intelligence. It hasn't worked for her either! (I hope she doesn't read this blog.)
The truth is that Mr. Cauthen has either not achieved or has violated every tenet of being a professional city manager. (http://icma.org/main/bc.asp?bcid=40)
Let's talk about:
Purchasing? Codes? Public Works? Finance? Council - Manager relations? Youth programs? Budget? Housing? Human Relations? Neighborhoods? (Look forward to separate entries on each -- your input is welcome.)
Mr. Cauthen, you know that this is not about race. You should speak out and say so. Instead you will drag Kansas City through the mud for your own selfish reasons and over-inflated ego. Shame on you.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
What now?
We all looked forward to this new council taking office. May 1, 2007 was going to be the day we were all freed. Funkhouser had promised to move Cauthen back to Denver or at least out of City Hall. I thought this new council had promise, didn't we all?
Here we are --
Funkhouser, only momentarily and too late, had the strength to take on Cauthen. He has backed down and appears to very willing to let Cauthen continue to pillage for the next three plus years. What a disappointment.
Skaggs, don't you think he is starting to look like Funkhouser?
Hermann, her heart might be in the right place but she is just not effective.
Johnson, he'll get another degree and then think about it some more.
Ford, thinks he'll be the next Mayor and will sell his mother, wife, and daughter to do it. Poor Ed, he has lost his way.
Curls, Brooks, Gottstein, did we ever expect anything?
Circo, wow, what a dumb broad!
Marcason, she taking sign ups for the City Hall Pep Club. She doesn't quite know why but she is pepped up!
Sharp, He is a clone of Ed Ford, only meaner.
Riley, Has the indictment come down yet?
Jolly, we have a great deal of sympathy and concern for her health problems but she is also a disappointment. It sounds like her aide may have already had enough of her behavior. Can we set the City Hall sound system so it won't pick up her high pitched whine?
Cauthen is laughing at this Mayor and Council.
We thought the Employee Satisfaction Survey might send a loud message but Cauthen has buried the results of that.
What is next? A walk out? A slow down might be more subtle and effective.
Here we are --
Funkhouser, only momentarily and too late, had the strength to take on Cauthen. He has backed down and appears to very willing to let Cauthen continue to pillage for the next three plus years. What a disappointment.
Skaggs, don't you think he is starting to look like Funkhouser?
Hermann, her heart might be in the right place but she is just not effective.
Johnson, he'll get another degree and then think about it some more.
Ford, thinks he'll be the next Mayor and will sell his mother, wife, and daughter to do it. Poor Ed, he has lost his way.
Curls, Brooks, Gottstein, did we ever expect anything?
Circo, wow, what a dumb broad!
Marcason, she taking sign ups for the City Hall Pep Club. She doesn't quite know why but she is pepped up!
Sharp, He is a clone of Ed Ford, only meaner.
Riley, Has the indictment come down yet?
Jolly, we have a great deal of sympathy and concern for her health problems but she is also a disappointment. It sounds like her aide may have already had enough of her behavior. Can we set the City Hall sound system so it won't pick up her high pitched whine?
Cauthen is laughing at this Mayor and Council.
We thought the Employee Satisfaction Survey might send a loud message but Cauthen has buried the results of that.
What is next? A walk out? A slow down might be more subtle and effective.
Missing in Action or Dead on Arrival
Where did the second in command of Purchasing go? For that matter, I haven't seen the Director of Purchasing for over a week.
Where is the new IT Director? Hasn't he relocated from Denver yet? I have tried to meet with him twice.
Has Hinsvark gotten her fat check?
Where did SafeCities go?
What ever happened to the four people "fired" by Cauthen in 2003?
Where is the new IT Director? Hasn't he relocated from Denver yet? I have tried to meet with him twice.
Has Hinsvark gotten her fat check?
Where did SafeCities go?
What ever happened to the four people "fired" by Cauthen in 2003?
Since when?
Since when does an employee, who has admittedly misused public property to generate and distribute inappropriate material, get three weeks to resign? Collect another $6,000 of our tax dollars? Has anyone else in the same situation been provided the same breaks?
Will this Assistant City Manager still have access to confidential records about other employees? Will this person still have access to the City Hall computer system?
Is this problem bigger than this one person? (I can't imagine that a person sends nastigrams only to themselves?) Is there an investigation going on about that?
Why did the City Manager allow this to go on for over six months? He speaks as if this matter was just presented to him.
Why doesn't our City Council care? Maybe we should have their computers checked?
Will this Assistant City Manager still have access to confidential records about other employees? Will this person still have access to the City Hall computer system?
Is this problem bigger than this one person? (I can't imagine that a person sends nastigrams only to themselves?) Is there an investigation going on about that?
Why did the City Manager allow this to go on for over six months? He speaks as if this matter was just presented to him.
Why doesn't our City Council care? Maybe we should have their computers checked?
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