A Stark Reality
THE RIPP REPORT/BALDWIN COUNTY LEGAL EAGLE
FREAKY FRIDAY 2 of 2
March 25, 2016
A Stark Reality
A fact that no one wants to discuss, much less admit, is that Alabama is one of the most corrupt, if not the most corrupt State in America. Baldwin County is unequivocally the most corrupt county in Alabama. That folks put us at the bottom of the barrel. Who wants to admit this sad fact to their children? No one, but it is a fact. If you understood the gravity of the corruption that exists in Baldwin County’s judicial system and local municipal governments you would think twice about raising your children here. Most people live their daily lives oblivious to this rampant theft of our rights and way of life; they have heard about it, but they do not realize that they too are the victim. They do not want to hear about it, discuss it or be involved; and there lies the problem.
The dysfunction and corruption starts in Montgomery. Our Governor Robert Bentley has been a colossal failure as our chief administrator and as a medical doctor. Governor Bentley has shored up Alabama’s reputation by embarrassing the State with obviously too many communications with his communications director. Top it off with the dumb ass audio recording provided by his family that, “he had never heard” and Alabama is again the laughing stock of North America. The governor and his communications director also may have interfered in an ongoing investigation of the Speaker of the House, Mike Hubbard, who is facing 23 felony counts, April 11. Our State Government is imploding.
In Baldwin County we have a family court system that has been transformed into a cottage industry where money, not kids, is all that matters to a handful of unethical bottom feeding attorneys and judges. These extremely bad actors have tarnished ever reputable attorney in the county and their once noble profession.
Our state Senator, Tripp Pittman, who was the “trustee” of BP funds, secured the first available funds through a municipal contract with Fairhope, for himself, $636,000. The Mayor and Senator were the subjects of an FBI investigation that ultimately wound up in the Attorney General’s office in Montgomery, and is pending.
Baldwin County also has the only Court Referral System in the State of Alabama that sends offenders to a non-profit owned and directed by local attorneys and judges. Judge Michelle Thomason is a Director of Baldwin County Substance Abuse. As a Judge she refers cases to this same non-profit she directs through board membership.
By now many have heard about the non-profit Wounded Warriors a National non-profit organization designed to help veterans. The awful truth is that they were draining resources for executive salaries. Baldwin County is a member of the Mobile Area Council of Boy Scouts. Allegedly the directors of the Boy Scouts in Mobile are doing the same thing as the greedy “leaders” of Wounded Warriors. However, Eagle Scouts have stepped forward requesting the Council’s Board to conduct an investigation into all allegations. Let’s hope the Board does its job, and the Boy Scouts of Mobile soon still have a future.
If you wish to see, smell, feel and witness political corruption at its finest, Monday night’s City Council meeting in Fairhope is your venue. You will witness the ultimate good ole boy deal: The approval of Fly Creek Apartments. It matters little that two public meetings on the subject brought a total of 400 to 500 people in opposition and the only proponents are all major donors to the Mayor’s re-election. The landowner, the engineers and the attorneys are all contributors and have a vested interest in seeing the project approved. The apartments will be located in the center of single family residences, abutting wet lands and Fly Creek, no connectivity and located at the most dangerous intersection in Fairhope. The Mayor and council will betray the public’s trust and opposition to satisfy the landowner/contributor, who does not reside in Fairhope. The Mayor knows lawsuits may follow. He also knows We, the citizens will pay for it, just like we paid $3 million to attorneys on the triangle lawsuit while inheriting a “park” no one even knows is there. The price tag on the Dyas Lawsuit and buying the property was $11.75 million.
We as a community can challenge this ingrained good ole boy corruption by attending the meeting and insisting on being heard, or we can turn a blind eye and live our lives on the Eastern Shore totally ignoring the facts, attend first Fridays, have our wine and let our children and grand kids deal with the problems the Apartments will bring.
Mayor Timothy Kant is the driving force behind Monday night’s approval. Up until now he has said nothing. He is the head of the snake and is obliged to vote yes for his benefactor, Mr. Corte. Please pay attention to the city council and watch who votes YES. I predict Boone, Mueller and Ford will vote yes. These three puppets always support the good ole boys and their master, Tim Kant. Mr. Burrell will vote NO and catch hell for it. Ms. Brewer could go either way, as she is employed by one of the Mayor’s many financiers. The apartments will be approved on Monday night, even if 1,000 people attend. The outcome is pre-determined. It is fixed. It is possibly criminal. But, this is Fairhope—this is how things are done “down here.”
Our only option is to stand up to these corrupt, good-ole boy actors and vow to vote them all out in the next election later this year.
In the meantime, we must not forget that the stark reality that the government we get, is the one we allow.
Paul Ripp
BCLE, The Ripp Report, 501c3