This blog contains some of my personal, political, moral, and social views of our society today. All of the posts here are copyrighted, and may not be used, copied, etc. without the permission of the author. Comments are welcome! All comments must be in a family-acceptable verbiage. Feel free to share this blog with anyone that might be interested in reading and/or discussing the material I present. Thanks for visiting. R.M. "Bob" Hartman
Monday, March 28, 2011
Update on GARMA
Miracles do happen! In response to an outcry from the public, our legislature wisely repealed HB477. GARMA is currently safe; however, this same legislature does intend to "revisit" GARMA and "adjust" it to better serve their needs. The voting public in Utah needs to stay focused on this, and many other issues; and remember, come the next election, the hubris and arrogance shown by "our" elected officials.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Good Bye GRAMA
The arrogance displayed by the Republican members of the Utah State Senate should be warning to all of the state’s residents, as well as a call to action for the voters. Sadly, we do not have the ability to call for their immediate removal from office for the passing of HB477, which will result in the effective closing of elected official’s phone, text, and email records. The new, as yet unpublished, fees and charges to be leveled for access to these records will, in effect, push them into the shadows for all but the most well-heeled researchers.
A government that feels it must operate in secrecy is, defacto, operating as a dictatorship rather than a democracy. If we, the public who “hires” these legislators, have no knowledge of the individuals or groups contacting our legislators, and of the deals and trade-offs they are making, we have no choice but to suffer loss of control of our government for their gain. (Remember the I-15 “bidding error” that cost the state of Utah $13 Million?)
It is OUR government, and OUR money. The computers, cell phones, I-phones and Blackberrys they use are paid for - by us. In the private sector, anything you generate or communicate on a company computer or cell phone is considered to be non-private, and accessible by management. Why should the communication of our elected public officials be off limits to us, their employers?
There is hope, albeit faint, that the legislators will actually repeal HB477 today, as the governor has belatedly suggested. (This is the same governor who signed the bill, declaring that it will make our government more open and transparent???) The House has indicated that it is in favor of repeal, the senate leadership has come out against repealing the bill. We can hope, but we should be prepared to sign a petition (www.savegrama.org) to repeal this legislation.
A government that feels it must operate in secrecy is, defacto, operating as a dictatorship rather than a democracy. If we, the public who “hires” these legislators, have no knowledge of the individuals or groups contacting our legislators, and of the deals and trade-offs they are making, we have no choice but to suffer loss of control of our government for their gain. (Remember the I-15 “bidding error” that cost the state of Utah $13 Million?)
It is OUR government, and OUR money. The computers, cell phones, I-phones and Blackberrys they use are paid for - by us. In the private sector, anything you generate or communicate on a company computer or cell phone is considered to be non-private, and accessible by management. Why should the communication of our elected public officials be off limits to us, their employers?
There is hope, albeit faint, that the legislators will actually repeal HB477 today, as the governor has belatedly suggested. (This is the same governor who signed the bill, declaring that it will make our government more open and transparent???) The House has indicated that it is in favor of repeal, the senate leadership has come out against repealing the bill. We can hope, but we should be prepared to sign a petition (www.savegrama.org) to repeal this legislation.
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