MA Probation Department Scandal

Brownsberger says, "Jack O'Brien was leading a new community corrections programs and I perceived that he genuinely felt that he had an important mission."

This is a pattern in government where men like Charles Rangel who started his career as a reformer of abuses by his predecessor Adam Clayton Powell Jr., became a symptom of what is wrong with the US House of Representatives.

Obama pleaded for hope and change appealing to the best of humans, but abused the trust of his supporters to mislead them and to create boondoggles which may destroy the US system of government. How can anyone tell who is a fraud and who is a decent human with integrity? That does not ensure that any person will have common sense which is just as important. But even if they are sincere what stops them from changing for "the greater good." "It is why I need more power to do more good," and then they become the problem not the solution. If you pay attention to the content and how these officials speak you can see them lying, but not everyone takes to time to scrutinize them.

Brownsberger says, "The question of how we set appropriate boundaries for legislative contacts with agencies deserves sustained attention."

That is why Cambridge MA has the Plan E form of Government, to address such abuses. Councilors are prohibited from communicating directly with city officials except for informational purposes by statute. They must go through the City Manager. They do not always respect that barrier but even when they do it does not prevent abuses. The City Manager and the councilors do favors for each other. That is how legislatures work, isn't it? Laws are passed as favors between members. "I'll vote for your bill if you vote for mine?"

When will journalists, who have serious credibility issues themselves, begin to direct attention toward integrity and toward common sense of candidates? Many Harvard and MIT affiliates have superior intelligence and knowledge. But they lack common sense. Isn't this a problem with the current US White House and TSA? You can't legislate integrity or common sense.


http://www.wickedlocal.com/cambridge/news/opinions/x1392204860/Guest-commentary-A-long-nightmare-in-probation

Guest commentary: A long nightmare in probation
By Rep. Will Brownsberger
Cambridge Chronicle
Posted Nov 25, 2010 @ 07:06 AM