There Isn't Much to Say. And Not Much Point in Saying It.

Commission meetings are increasingly poorly attended these days.  Last week, we had the second reading of the budget Ordinance, and I think Linda Dillon, Chuck Ross, and I were the audience.  Tonight, we had the October Commission meeting.  Maybe there were eight of us.  At the beginning.  When I left, there were about four.  I've sat through plenty of bad and oppressive Commission meetings, but it's getting impossible to sit through these.

The bobbleheads were bobbling tonight.  It was clear they didn't really even know about what they were agreeing with each other, but bobble in agreement they did.  The first matter was a Resolution Roxy Ross introduced in support of federal sanctions imposed against the autocracy in Venezuela.  I have to say that when I read the proposal, I rolled my eyes.  This has nothing to do with BP, and it's a kind of clutter in the Agenda.  Harvey Bilt felt it was important to make that point explicitly, and he voted against it.  Jenny Johnson-Sardella couldn't support it, unless some of the language was adjusted.  Tracy Truppman was resistant, but she was ultimately content with Jenny's insistence that something be changed.  Will Tudor clearly couldn't have cared less, and seemed to know nothing about it.  But when Roxy was challenged as to why this was our business, she pointed out that we have some BP residents who are Venezuelan or have Venezuelan connections, and since it's an international concern, we should get on board, too.  Tracy was slightly mollified when she was reassured that the document Roxy presented was from the County, and not from Roxy.  But all in all, the bobbleheads made way too much out of this and gave Roxy way too hard a time.  But they passed it 4-1 (you show 'em, Harvey; you da man).

Then, it was our new driveway and swale Ordinance.  It's new, because even though Tracy lamely tried to claim it wasn't her Ordinance, it was in fact hers and hers alone.  She single-handedly rewrote the Ordinance the Code Review wrote, and which was then adjusted by the last Commission, in response to feedback from many residents, and which has consumed 2-3 years of Village time and attention.  But Tracy has no use for anyone except herself, and she simply discarded the whole thing.  Fortunately for Tracy, she has complete ownership of three other Village residents, who all happen to be on the Commission, and she simply forged ahead, rewriting, and lying about whose product this was.  It was so obnoxious and insulting that Roxy Ross got up, gathered her things, and withdrew from the meeting.  I mean really, what was the point in being there?  Tracy plus three other stooges equals whatever Tracy wants it to equal.  "Listening to residents?"  The only BP resident to whom Tracy ever listens is Rhonda's housemate.  And since hardly anyone bothers to attend meetings any more, Tracy can make up any story she likes about what some anonymous resident allegedly told her, and just do whatever she wants.  Which is what she does.

The only other funny thing was from last week, when we had the budget meeting.  For whatever nonsensical reason, Chester ("Doc") Morris made a special appearance specifically and explicitly for the purpose of thanking the Commission for hiring Grubbs, the company that did part of our hurricane clean-up.  I think Chester thought he was thanking those five Commissioners for having hired Grubbs.  But it was the last Commission that made the contract with Grubbs, and Roxy Ross is the only remaining member of that Commission.  If you think Tracy or anyone else corrected Chester, and told him they were glad he was satisfied, but they weren't the ones to thank (except Roxy), you can forget it.  I'm telling you...  Truppman, Trump...  Coincidence?

Come to think about it, there was one other comical thing from tonight.  While Tracy was trying to explain why the driveway/swale Ordinance should be written whatever way she wanted to write it, she got someone to acknowledge that there were 12 properties completely out of compliance with what was everyone's plan (until tonight).  She wanted to write an Ordinance that would satisfy those 12 properties.  As they were discussing this, Tracy and two of her dopes agreed with each other about writing an Ordinance that wouldn't threaten those 12 properties, and then they all looked at the other bobblehead: Will.  Will couldn't speak.  He probably wasn't sure what to say.  He couldn't admit that he should at least recuse himself (knowing his pals would cover him anyway), and he couldn't disclose.  His is one of the 12 properties that was never in compliance, and his sister-in-law's is another.  The fact is that preventing the Village from making him put a driveway on his property is the one and only reason Will ever wanted to be on the Commission.  And there it was, the table set for him.  He could have been graceful and open about it.  He was going to get his way anyway.  But no.