Cedric Floyd, a Kenner, Louisiana local official in charge of distributing hurricane donations, distributed four truckloads to his own house. The police have confiscated the goods, and are looking for the official.
But, really, isn't he just a hurricane victim too? He was probably under so much stress, he didn't know what he was doing. He just knew he really, really needed stuff. A lot of it.
Philip Ramon, chief of staff to the mayor of Kenner, helpfully displaying how absolutely crud-covered the local government of Kenner is, stated that while they are investigating complaints about city employees pilfering donations, many city employees are themselves hurricane victims.
I'm guessing that in Kenner they don't have a mandatory yearly refresher class in ethics and public service. That's some corrupt little government they've got going there if the second-in-command would blithely make a statement like that.
Posted by floridacracker at September 21, 2005 11:07 PMNot that it's unusual in Loisiana politics, but if you Google Cedric Floyd, you'll find this isn't the first time he should have had a lot of 'splainin to do.
This time he might actually have to 'splain. We'll see.
Posted by: John from WuzzaDem at September 22, 2005 03:04 PMFor a minute there, I thought you were talking about California...
About Cedric Floyd, maybe he had a plan to deliver to his place and then dispense from there to everyone else (could be, as in, possible, since there may not have been any other secure area locally to function as a distribution center of aid to the locals).
It's possible, is all I'm saying. He arranged the local distribution point to where he concluded he could secure the delivery, then had to evacuate himself and the goods remained undistributed.
O.K., I'm a person of good thoughts first. By the mere fact that Floyd's being sought by the local police, however, doesn't also mean inherently it's because he's done something wrong (as in, "fugitive") but that they're looking for him (as in, "missing person" and since he's an elected official *cough*, could be that's more important to the local police than an otherwise ~normal~ missing person.
I'm just taking a guess but the general impression that ethics is a thing missing from Louisiana politics is true but it's also very true for other places, like, for example, California.
Posted by: -S- at September 22, 2005 03:28 PMA pause long enough to go read more about Cedric Floyd, these deeds...and what I earlier wrote best evidences my own "think well of anyone until proven wrong" perspective. I now think I've been proven wrong in thinking well of Floyd, but I *still* think the story could well apply to many in California (too).
Posted by: -S- at September 22, 2005 05:47 PMThey're a tacky bunch, corrupt down to a molecular level.
Posted by: Donnah at September 23, 2005 11:05 AMYeah, and it seems that the high degree of corruption in Louisiana is a case of one attracting and fostering the other, after the other, after the other, after...
It's horrible just how corrupt so many are there. But it sure could be California, too...
Posted by: -S- at September 24, 2005 06:48 AM