Banty Roosters

Ya’ll know what’s been missin’ from Baton Rouge since before the EWE years….a little common sense. I’m takin’ a close look at what Jindal did in the way of ethics reform and I gotta say, He hit a home run.

Used to be, a man with an axe to grind against any public official could make up an accusation, throw a hand grenade or two, and next thing you know, a good man gets dragged under the tractor! We see headlines like, “Public Official Under Investigation By Ethics Board!” Before the facts are all out, before he gets a change to defend himself, a man’s good name has been dragged through the mud.

Now don't get me wrong, some of these slick politicians deserve just what they get...but some don't.

Some folks figured out that if you were slick enough, you could use the board to make a lie, legitimate.

Now it’s different flock of crows.

Before, the ethics board acted as investigator, prosecutor, judge, and jury. The standard of proof was pretty low. Lawyers called it the “reliable and substantial” standard. By “reliable,” it means that if enough folks are willin’ to lie, the board will believe em’. By substantial, it means that if ya got a big enough pile of papers, the board believes that too.

Now we got two changes that kind of levels the playin’ field, and keeps some of these back stabbin’ cowards from using the ethics board to do their dirty work. First, the ethics board don’t control the whole process anymore. The new laws make the board show a judge the evidence and the judge makes the decision about guilt. No more payoffs to the board, no more back room deals. Now you have to prove your case with real facts. Now it ain’t about how much evidence you can twist, or manufacture, or just plain lie about ...it’s the evidence itself that has to stand on it’s own weight.

The new standard is called “clear and convincing” proof. Proof that deals with facts that can be checked out. Goin’ before the ethics board with a pay-off and a pack of lies don’t work any more. By the way….this is the same level of proof the Supreme Court uses when it handles complaints against attorneys in this state.

Funny how some shyster lawyers want to tar and feather folks with no proof, but when somebody points the finger at them, they hide behind a different set of rules.

Naturally these new changes have the liars, and cowards squawking about how unfair the new rules are. I say let em’ squawk! I’ve listened to these little banty roosters crow about how “honest” they are and how they just want to have “good government.” That’s a bunch of cow crap. What they want is attention, and if they have to ruin a man’s family to get it, these bottom feeders will do it.

Make it system fair and make everybody play by the same rules. That’s good government.