TIME TO REPLACE THE MRGCD?

Pictures always enlarge if clicked. Isn't it strange how some people seem to shoot themselves when they're aiming at someone else?

That header doesn't read Mr GCD. Honest. It stands for Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District. The running banner on their web site proclaims "Keeping the valley Green".

They are responsible for seeing to it that our share of the water in the Rio Grande river is disbursed as equitably as possible to all the farmers and orchards in the valley and along the river. (Yes, Albuquerque is situated in a valley that runs for miles.)

Over the years there have been rumors and criminal charges filed against a few members of the board. They are all elected positions so that the taxpayer really can't ask the Governor to get rid of anyone. Works pretty good for job tenure.

One of the board members, Jim Roberts, accused a citizen of costing the board way too much in legal fees because they had to defend their actions against lawsuits filed by one Mr. Bill Turner, another Board member and water broker.

Seems the District had paid a law firm some $853,000 from April 2005 through June 2007. Of that amount, a measley $14,000 (about 2%) was used to defend the District in the actions Bill Turner started aginst them.

However, it turns out the District had spent $140,000 (about 16%) suing Mr. Turner.

These people really need to be appointed by an elected body to whom they'd have to answer. But this is the Wild West and we don't like change much, y'all hear? Besides, then the Board members might have to get regular paying jobs.

I think this petty, internicine warfare between politicians is funny. All the Board members seem to have water related jobs, interests or businesses outside the District. (My source for this has moved out of the country. At least that's what he said he was going to do.) Politics as usual in the beautiful Rio Grande Valley.

Clicking on the header will take you to Jim Baca's blog site. He's got water information, also.

Hooray For Bill Richardson

It seems our Governator wants to run for President. He'd like to run on his record, I believe. Let's see: He spent umpteen millions on a railroad that so far only runs for about sixty miles. (And it will cost the taxpayers well over a million per year just to maintain it.) It is not noted anywhere that it will ever pay for itself. He made a trip to North Korea while a highly placed state official was being accused of having his fingers in the till. New Mexico is one of the poorest states in America according to the Federal Government. Bill Richardson wants to build a spaceport here at an untold cost to the taxpayers of this needy state. There are more than 400,00 people living here who can't afford heath insurance, can't afford to go out to dinner, can't afford a decent home. Most of them are senior citizens. There are approximately 1,900,00 people living in this state. That puts about twenty five per cent of our population at or below the poverty level (Actually, I suspect the number is larger than that.) The initial money is coming from the "windfall" N.M. collected from the gouging oil companies, by the way. I'm curious why some of that windfall couldn't have been spent on the poor and needy seniors. He must have a heckofa political machine since the voters failed to remember that when he re-ran for Governator.