Day: February 19, 2015

Comment bumps from Jackson County. The truth is likely very ugly

Slabbed literally has lifers that go back way far back but there are just a handful that were there for the prequel, Nowdy being in that number. As I watch the Singing River Health System disaster unfold I’m reminded of old business because I’m seeing it connect in certain ways to that which is now before us. And at the bottom are the vested participants in the plan.

I think the commenters are making a case that the Jackson County Board of Supervisors is stalling for time to avoid revealing the truth because the truth in this instance is very ugly. Anyone that can read a financial statement can see how bad it is when it is adjusted for the fraudulent financial reporting related to patient receivables. When you adjust the numbers and run rudimentary financial analysis, the tax increase needed to honor the promises made to the vested plan participants would be staggering.

There are other options. I have colleagues that have suggested to me that privatizing the two hospitals under one operator would be the better option, a process Jefferson Parish Louisiana is currently concluding with the larger of its two public hospitals.

Given the history of the SRHS saga the commenting community here at Slabbed are rightfully skeptical.  Here is a sampling:

Legal Community battles are always down and dirty. Commenter R. Scruggs lays down brass tacks and smack on “Thursday SRHS Miscellany: Public hospital to comply with Open Meetings bill passes the Senate, plus a court hearing.“

Simple Man understands the truth is likely to be very ugly on “SRHS Retirees Protest through the Mardi Gras Holiday plus Judge Harris is on the case to stay (Updated)” after Observer worked the math.

Jim Brown: Bobby Jindal – Don’t tell me to either speak English or leave America!

Thursday, February 19th, 2015
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

BOBBY JINDAL – DON’T TELL ME TO EITHER SPEAK ENGLISH OR LEAVE AMERICA!

My Louisiana governor has me puzzled again in his quixotic quest to be a player on the national stage. I thought Bobby Jindal was part of a Republican Party that tells government to get off our backs and mind its own business. But he now is apparently on a national pursuit to make us all homogeneous in how we act, live and speak. And when you come from Louisiana, he’s walking a slippery slope of being way too politically correct.

Jindal has been barnstorming the country with his message that we are all in one big melting pot. Here are Jindal’s words in a recent press release. “We came to America to be Americans. Not Indian-Americans, simply Americans. … If we wanted to be Indians, we would have stayed in India.” Nothing wrong here. It all comes downs to how Jindal defines “American.” Remember that when our forefathers came to America, they did not assimilate or adopt the native Indian language. Actually, there was a good bit of “ethnic cleansing” going on back in those early days.

Jindal governs a state that is about as culturally diverse as you can get. Bayou country has a long history as a domestic mix of rednecks, Cajuns, Creoles, Latinos, African Americans, Italians, and Irishmen, just to name the larger ethnic groups. They weren’t partying at all hours of the night this week down in New Orleans in the “American Quarter.”

Jindal appeared on Washington Watch radio program recently to assert that “we need to insist on English as our language.” Now I know it’s the political rage throughout the country to demand that English should be the official language. And quite frankly, I agree. That is, from the public perspective. I occasionally get a bit irritated when I’m told to “press one for English, two for Spanish” etc. If a U.S. governmental body insists on printing forms, giving tests, and processing governmental applications only in English, then that is how the process works. It’s the law.

But here’s where states’ rights come in. If any state feels the need to offer services in another language, that should be its prerogative. In some areas of my home state of Louisiana, French is the only language spoken by older Cajuns. Grocery stores in some small south Louisiana communities put up daily specials in French, and the southern part of the state has a number of radio stations that carry French Cajun music. Continue Reading………….