Comments about ‘Utah Legislature: Senate committee approves ethics resolutions’

Hmmm... I wonder if taking $10 grand, then speeding up the approval of a strip mine that no one wants is considered an ethics violation. Oh... no... it's just the $10 lunch. What a joke. It's no wonder the people don't trust politicians.

Our system is broken. It does not work right. It requires all investigations to be held in the open," Sen. John Valentine, R-Orem,


What? Open investigations? Why is that broken?

All investigations and hearings should be open for everyone.

Wow.

It seems to me that everyone thinks that the legislature is full of crooks.

I doubt that this is the case. Sure, there is an unethical legislator here and there, but calling everyone corrupt is a bit of a stretch.

People who hold public office are under intense scrutiny from the media and from citizens. And I agree that we should keep watch to make sure that they are doing their duties.

But what happens if there is a false allegation made against a public official? And the news covers it in great detail, printing it on the cover. But when it is found to be false, that story doesn't make the cover, or it doesn't even make the paper? The official's image has been badly hurt.

For those of you who think this doesn't happen in the media, it does. Bob Burnick (DN) wrote an article about the ethics bills, that was full of incorrect information. Did we ever hear a retraction, apology, or complaint about it? No, because journalists don't want to look bad for making mountains out of molehills.

re; What if it were you? | 2:07 p.m. -
So your suggestion is to just let them do whatever they want to do in secret and trust they have the best interest of the public at heart?

One word "Transparency", The public needs to be more involved when it comes to ethics in politics.

No, I don't think we should let legislators just have free reign. We should be checking up on them. What I oppose is deliberately stacking the odds against them. I am all for transparency in government, and I think that these ethics bills provide that.