This world would be so much different if we never made mistakes, but unfortunately, every person does. It can range from small mistakes to massive, life-ending ones, but it doesn’t change that the act of making a mistake is universal. This is the case, unless you’re on or work with the Lubbock City Council.

This perception of God-given perfection has been commonplace within other organizations in the city (Public School Teachers will likely know of whom I am speaking), but I had always hoped that we could expect more out of our city government. Unfortunately, it’s not to be corrected anytime soon, because the officials that Lubbockites have elected not only feel that they’re beyond general reproach, but are also above state law as well.

The Lubbock City Council has a very questionable record on the Texas Open Meetings Act. There are two instances that seem to be blatant violations, and now allegations of a third violation are beginning to surface. According to KFYO News and verified by City of Lubbock officials, the council had a quorum of members at a District 2 Town Hall meeting without billing it as a special council meeting, since business was to be discussed, and technically, a binding vote could take place. The city lamely claimed they did nothing wrong, and Councilwoman Linda DeLeon claimed that KFYO was lying.

Apparently, that was just scratching the surface. Six of the seven members of the council attended the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce D.C. Fly-in, in Washington D.C. in early March. According to a reliable source from City Hall, On March 7^th, The Farcical Four, which consists of Mayor Miller, Councilwoman Jones, Councilwoman DeLeon, and Councilman Price met at the offices of Meyers and Associates, the City’s lobbying firm.

At some point between 9 and 9:15 AM, one of the four council members present closed the door to the conference room in which they were meeting, which is a glaring violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act. According to Lubbock’s News Radio 1340, “A closed-door meeting of the city council is illegal if it is not posted for executive session.” The city’s response was the same. They claim to have never violated the act, because the matters being discussed were “personal.” There is no proof of this, however.

I’m continually amazed that, when I think that the handling of city government cannot get any worse, they always find a way to keep lowering that bar. The city council, with the exception of John Leonard, has decided to trade Lubbock citizens’ safety and due process rights on promises of unrealistic dollar figures through the imminent installation of red light cameras. On the national press stage, the council and Mayor Miller have brought us embarrassment by touting the days of fasting and prayer in exchange for rain, and then the Chippendales debacle.

At the illegally handled District 2 town hall turned council meeting, Miller made some feel good speeches to the attendees. According to the Daily Toreador, Miller was quoted as saying “That is what our pledge to you tonight is; we’ll always be honest with you.” Later, he said "What I would like to encourage you to do tonight is some good, positive talk. I am so grateful to be your mayor. My favor that I'm asking of you is to hold me accountable."

While Miller’s attempt to seem interested in what his constituency thinks may sound good to an audience, members of his city council have demonstrated that they just don’t care when they walked out on Wes Nessman at a town hall meeting, when he dared to voice his concerns over what they were doing to our city. The Daily Toreador quoted Nessman as saying “"They've walked out on a meeting because they're not ready to field questions. He (Miller) is not taking care of business and it's time this man answers some questions. This meeting was supposed to be about progress. On Friday night, Lubbock was sent back 25 years.”

Sadly, the farcical four of the City Council weren’t doing enough by making Lubbock look like one of the most backward cities in the nation, but they also have to break state law while doing so. The entire heart of the problem is that these people have forgotten that they work for their constituents, and not the other way around. They act as if the entire city works for them, and they aren’t to be held accountable for their actions, no matter what. Maybe one of them could show the rest of us how to walk on water too.