NorCo Council Really Is in the Dark

I've been saying it for years, and finally have proof. NorCo Council really is in the dark! Well, at least they were last night. Their meeting was interrupted when a Summer thunderstorm plunged the courthouse into darkness for about the 15,000th time this year.

"I called it!" said Ken Kraft, who previously had predicted there would be a power outage.

Undaunted by the darkness, Council President John Cusick forged ahead at a meeting that was initially attended by only six Council members. Bob Werner and Glenn Geissinger were absent. Matt Deitz did call in after the meeting started. Executive John Brown and Controller Steve Barron were also absent.

It was a good night to play hookie. Little was accomplished. Council made a few appointments to boards that only rarely meet. There were also a number of open space resolutions that support "livable landscapes," whatever the hell they are, and the "scenic wild Delaware River," located in the heart of the rustbelt. Even Hayden Phillips voted yes to the scenic wild Delaware River.

The only real item of business - an ordinance about the county's three booking centers that no one really understands - was tabled. John Brown, who has no intention of funding booking centers outside of Easton, spoke against it at a Finance Committee meeting on Wednesday. And last night, Lehigh Township Supervisor Cindy Miller, Lehigh Tp police chief Scott Fogel and Magisterial District Judge Robert Hawke, the judge who handles the northern tier, all spoke against it, too.

"I'll be brief," said Cindy Miller, and she more or less was true to her word.

"I'll be briefer than Cindy," said Scott Fogel, and then went on for about 20 minutes. In the process of doing so, he dug a hole for himself, and Ken Kraft deftly pushed him in. Like Miller, he disputed Brown's claims that the Lehigh Tp booking center was saving five northern municipalities about $80,000 per year in overtime. Kraft asked him what things were like before the Lehigh Township booking center was in place, and quickly had Fogel admitting that officers would be gone four or five hours, which meant overtime.

Magisterial District Judge Robert Hawke claimed he had permission to speak on this topic from Judge Baratta, who supervises the mini judges. But Hawke is in no position and should be in no position to explain whether fees are collected by the common pleas courts. But he wore a nice suit.

After everyone was thoroughly confused, sponsors Hayden Phillips and Matt Dietz moved to table the matter, and the other five Council members unanimously agreed.

As I left the meeting room, the elevators were out, meaning I would have to rough it and take the steps. My servants were not there to carry me to my estate atop the Army Navy store.

Instead of worrying about me, Administrator Cathy Allen was concerned about some bastard in a wheelchair who was obviously faking it.

I suggested throwing him out the window, and left.