That's the reason we wanted to keep the sanitation function in house. It's part of that charm by which we're known. Some even said people want to live in BP because we have our own sanitation department. I don't know anyone like that, but apparently others do.
It's that intimate sense we have. That tight-knit connection we share. And not only with each other, but with our employees, especially our sanitation workers. One of our neighbors wrote to me as follows: "I have truly appreciated the friendliness and excellent quality of work these public works guys have given for all these years. I don't know their names or how long each of them has been here, but I do know for 21 years the department has been as neighborly as as my closest neighbors, and they have worked diligently to keep our neighborhood clean. Even though we don't call each other by name, I feel I have a personal relationship with them, and I do not want to see them lose their jobs. They are a part of our community, and I want them to stay (if that is their desire)."
We don't necessarily know their names, but we consider them personal friends and as neighborly as our closest neighbors. We also pay them very poorly, below the threshold of the County poverty level, but we care about them and appreciate the excellent quality of their work. That's what a number of us said tonight. It was never made clear why it never occurred to those of us who are such close friends to these sanitation workers that we weren't treating them very well. Actually, now that I think of it, isn't there a word for people who do a lot for you, especially to keep your environment clean, but you don't really pay them much for it?
But that's not all. There were other demonstrations of our closeness and friendliness, with each other. It turns out that once you stake out a position for yourself, if someone disagrees with you, you demonize them. Even if they're your friends? Perhaps especially so. At least it's much more dramatic if you demonize a friend. Honest differences of opinion? What could be honest about a difference of opinion?
I reminded Steve Bernard of something he said, and a public position he took, in January, 2012. He publicly called me a liar, again.
And when you're discussing an issue, the only real thing of importance is what you have in your own mind. When it's someone else's turn to speak, especially if you suspect they're going to disagree with you, or tell you something you didn't know and that might change your mind, you walk out on them. That's pretty friendly, isn't it? Polite, too. A number of our neighbors spoke tonight in favor of outsourcing sanitation, having feared being shunned or jeered at last time we had this discussion. Could a gathering be more friendly than that?
Yes, many of our neighbors came to the Commission meeting tonight. Most of them stayed long enough to tell us how heartless we would be if we outsourced sanitation, then they left. How could they have stayed? After all, weren't some of us about to destroy the lives of our sanitation workers, the ones we love but shamefully underpay? These neighbors were not one bit interested in the fact that the outsource contractor wanted very much to hire our employees, to do exactly the same job and in exactly the same place, for more money. Strangely, inexplicably, our sanitation employees weren't one bit interested, either. No, this was unmitigated heartlessness.
Come to think about it, it wasn't so clear who one's friends were. Employees who threaten you with a guilt trip if you try to transition them to a different employer who pays better aren't being very friendly. And employers who pay below the poverty level, and never give it the first thought, aren't being very friendly, either. Barbara Watts used the word disingenuous, although I think she thought she was talking about something else. Yes, that's it: disingenuous. Neighbors and even friends who get furious with you, and brand you with one epithet or another, because you have a different view of a problem and how to solve it, don't seem very friendly. Care about the neighborhood? It had nothing to do with the neighborhood.
And what was it we all said we wanted to protect about Biscayne Park? That small town, friendly atmosphere? I'm not at all sure we succeeded.
The sense I've gotten from quite a number of residents here after just 2.5 years is that it's not all about being a small, quaint, friendly village; it's about sticking your head in the sand when an important matter arises and change needs to be made... or throwing said sand at people who have the courage to make those changes. Like it or not, if we don't start making difficult decisions to change and improve our situation, there won't be a village left, or if there is, it will be falling into debt and disrepair. This matter was one such decision, as is annexation, and who knows what else might come down the line. We can't keep kicking the can down the road.
ReplyDeleteAs for the people who feel that the sanitation workers are like family or close friends, how do you not know their names, pay them sub-poverty wages, not invite them over for holiday dinners and parties, and only cheerfully acknowledge them when they're picking up your garbage? Gee, with friends like that, ..... Sure, we appreciate them for their friendliness and the work they do, but call it what is is: friendly acquaintances with underpaid service providers. Maybe I'm atypical, but that's not quite how my family operates. And we'll keep some of the same friendly acquaintances in the public works dept, and I can't imagine why the others wouldn't want to apply for the WastePro positions here (a commute can be annoying, but that's about all).
As a relatively recent resident concerned about the viability of the village, I'm thankful for the new leadership we have in the commission and the administration. Finally there are people who dig a little deeper into underlying problems, confront these sacred topics to find more efficient methods, and have a vision for the future.
Most importantly, the unpopular decision to outsource our sanitation demonstrates that we finally have leadership that is interested in the well-being and prosperity of Biscayne Park, not just interested in doing what's easy or popular. This is exactly what we elected/hired them to do.
Brian
Funny, but it never before occurred to me. Now that I think more about it, I wonder if the reason some of us are so protective of our sanitation workers, and don't want them thrust into the real world, is that we secretly know how we have mistreated them, and we don't want them to have something more legitimate to compare us to.
ReplyDeleteFred
It's not COMPLETELY about care or compassion for our sanitation workers, it's about individual want, NOT need. Care and compassion is the platform for their argument, but not the truth. How many times did residents describe their relationship with the workers as being "family and friends". After numerous holiday gatherings with neighbors and friends in BP, I never once sat down at a party ,or Thanksgiving meal, and shared a glass of wine with one of our sanitation workers. I also have never invited a sanitation worker to my house. The truth is that we have taken advantage and financially abused a group of workers, and have demanded a very high level of service, that we do not want to give up, and now cannot afford. I would call that selfish and fiscally irresponsible.
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ReplyDeleteMilt,
DeleteWe have seen this before. The "eleventh hour," the absence of "viable solutions" or "concrete plans." The expressions of desperation and complaints of being overpowered and mistreated. And the conclusion: "trust us, it can be done." The last time we saw that was about the FPL Franchise Agreement, which had been predictably coming for 30 years, but got no one's attention until that "eleventh hour," when some complained it was thrust upon them without adequate warning. Now this. Suddenly, some awakened themselves and acknowledged what a number of us knew for quite some time: we did not support this program properly and did not make proper provisions for it. One of my friends (former friends?), a fierce opponent of outsourcing, told me that this same thing happens every time we need new trucks. No one saw it coming; no one saved for it; everyone had to scramble to find money that wasn't exactly there. And there was no self-questioning as to why, and what the chronic neglect meant. Just some half-cocked scheme that had bits of imagined solutions based on inadequate understandings of the problems. Just that "trust us, it can be done" posture.
When we were kids, playing baseball at the park, and we got whiffed by a pitch we couldn't handle, some of us claimed we "weren't ready." I don't think it worked then, either.
There has been some tentative softening, however, regarding the stance that there is no problem, or that it "ain't broke." Some are beginning to recognize it's not quite like that. They just didn't, for whatever reasons, like the outsourcing solution.
I do agree with the rest of your comment. It was a very painful meeting, for all of us. I'm sure you and I and your unnamed friend are not the only ones who feel they were overpowered by a mob. That's what all that divisiveness accomplishes. It leaves everyone unhappy.
Fred
Fred,
DeleteNeglect and denial. It amazes me how some can't see these [inactions] as the root of our current problems. This didn't occur overnight, but over the many years of mismanagement in neglecting to deal with these issues at the proper time. Regardless of clear facts or benefits being presented, there is always the plea of "more time is still needed to consider options."
This has become a tired, overused and weak response/habit. One of the most disappointing things in all of this is that after all of the conversations, discussions, workshops, etc. many who spoke out against outsourcing didn't seem to listen or learn anything from the entire process. The same sentiment just kept being repeated over and over again. It became personal which should have never been the issue here.
When it is all said and done the winner in this is our Village. And what is more important than that?
Regardless of whatever side of the issue you were on, I don’t think that anyone can be proud of the actions and attitudes demonstrated last night. It was a petulant display of closed ears and minds. Again, no other viable solutions offered, no admission of our fiscal situation and the responsibility of our Commission to preserve the Village. Nope, just DO WHAT WE SAY!! OR ELSE!!
ReplyDeleteListening to the countless threats and disinformation issued from the mob was disgusting. And yes, mob is the correct term for what I witnessed. One woman even went to the point of referring to this process as akin to Nazi Germany. It was sickening.
You know, politics are easy when you refuse to deal with sensitive issues and instead “kick the can down the road” to appease your supporters. And this is the very problem we now face. We have run out of road.
It was stated that the sanitation department ran a deficit of $91,000.00 last year which required a bailout from our General Fund. Shouldn’t this an important fact to consider? This fact proves the problems and inefficiencies of our in-house service but somehow now, in the eleventh hour it can be magically transformed. Again, no concrete plans on how to do it just “trust us it can be done.”
It is not that the public wasn’t being heard as was suggested. It was just that there was not enough substance behind it when studied objectively. I commend those Commissioners that showed vision and fiscal responsibility and put the needs of our Village first.
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