"The Official Portrait of Miss InDiana"

"The Official Portrait of Miss InDiana"
aka "Miss Victory"

Monday, January 7, 2008

Open Letter to IBJ regarding its coverage of the mayoral transition

Letter to IBJ, article Dec.31 “of Battles won”
Interview with Bart Peterson with IBJ Peter Schnitzler

Dear Sirs:
While your interview with then Mayor Peterson was interesting, you now
see in hindsight how disingenuous was one segment regarding the transition. His reply to the question of helping the transition for newly elected Ballard ‘being responsive to everything they’ve asked for’, ‘they’re happy with the cooperation’, ‘they’ve done everything possible to help the new folks’ is indicative of much of his sour grapes behavior. Assuming you saw the Star News, titled “Mayoral transition anything but smooth”, the IBJ must realize it was talking to a politician who also refused to appear in a joint press conference with Ballard to show unity in transition. This classless act was unworthy of a Mayor who was head of the League of Cities, but certainly underscores what went on in the final days. Locked out, where are the keys. Who nuked the supply room? “Several employees in the City-County Building said the shredding machine was going nonstop in the final week of Peterson’s tenure, with the remains hauled directly to waiting city trucks.” Eight years of taxpayer documents up in smoke with the people’s shredder and electricity and labor to do it. Do you really think there was a week’s worth of personal documents? Hardly. The IBJ should immediately investigate as I’m sure this story has legs. I hope you have an editorial soon that indicates you are not this gullible and that next time you will challenge your source, even if he is the mayor.
Sincerely,
Paul Wheeler
Accountability Activist
(317.625.3549)

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear Paul

Well said! Bart Peterson may appear to be a "Boy Scout if there ever was one" (Matt Tully - Indianapolis Star - Fall 2007), but there is a snake behind that smile.

Mayor Ballard is a man of the highest level of integrity. He deserves,as do the citizens of Indianpolis, to be treated with respect.

The Star needs to do an immediate investigation as to what was being shredded and why, on the 25th floor of the City-County Building.

Our city deserved a cooperative and smooth transition of power. The lack of cooperation from Bart Peterson was deplorable and shows his total lack of character.

Sincerely
Becky Bechtel

Anonymous said...

Becky, I could not agree more. Has Peterson no shred of moral integrity at all?

The correct and moral thing to do would be to put all the paper they deemed needed shredding in one place and let Ballard's staff do the shredding.

Anonymous said...

Peterson "sealed" his future political fate by trashing the City of Indianapolis public records and refusing to cooperate during and after the transition.

No Capitol Hill for Bart, EVER!!!
No Governorship for Bart, EVER!!!

Anonymous said...

I thought Bart "loved" our city. Is this how you treat something you say you love so much?