Fisher's problems, which were first brought to light in the Aug. 29 Turner Report, are the subject of a letter written by Melissa Earll, Nevada, and sent to the Daily Mail. The text of the letter is printed below:
Dear Editor:
It's been a few years since I sat in class and studied the way our government works or rather, is supposed to work here in the United States in general, and Missouri in particular. At both levels, I've witnessed a number of elected public servants come and go; a few who played only a minor role in the formation and implementation of policy and legislation, and even fewer playing a greater role and whose favorable reputation lingers still.
I have always been a voracious reader, but even more so these past few months while witnessing firsthand the ramifications of unregulated markets amidst the greed and corruption that has permeated throughout. It's just the latest blow to our country's standing in the eyes of the world. A fat, ugly blow to the gut.
Each and every one of us has been impacted in some manner by the heaving and shifting economic reality with which we're faced today. We've had to make financial decisions that affect our pension/annuity retirement accounts, money market and savings accounts, etc...moving things around to less risky investment vehicles or keeping things as they are, hoping for the best.
Some folks have fared better than others, that's usually par for course. Also the norm are the few, somewhat privileged folks who are immune to these precarious financial uncertainties, seemingly. More power to them, I say, but they don't wear my shoes, they don't walk the miles I have.
Much like the color-flushed dying leaves outside, something's changed for me. I feel it bone-deep and have struggled to define it. I think it begins and ends in the same thought, that somehow my government has failed me; my elected representatives have failed me.
How do we move forward from here? How do we make the needed changes to make our country, our home, an honorable nation once again in the eyes of our world peers?
Simple: we must have good leaders.
We must have good leaders who understand the need for financial responsibility and accountability in all levels of government. Simple enough, right? I mean, we all know how to be financially responsible, right?
Collectively as individuals, we practice our own financial responsibility when we juggle our given financial resources to pay our monthly bills and expenses against a rising tide of higher prices and less value for our money. Don't pay and we all know what happens, right? We're held accountable. One way or another, we are held accountable.
Well, some of are, that is...Barney Fisher, MO State Representative for the 125th District apparently isn't. Yes, that's right, our very own elected public servant Barney Fisher apparently doesn't always pay his bills.
As found on www.courts.mo.gov under the Casenet search function, a judgment in the amount of $6,134.60 plus interest plus court costs was entered against Barney Fisher on behalf of Cavalry Portfolio Services in Judge McBeth's court back in February of 2005. (The original case had been filed in December of 2004, before he ran for elected office in 2006). The most notable detail from this same record is the fact that, to date, no satisfaction of this debt has yet been recorded.
Likewise, just last year in June of 2007, a judgement in the amount of $14,273.35 (including an interest rate of 18.990% plus court costs) was entered against Barney Fisher in Judge Quitno's court on behalf of Capitol Financial Group. (Ironically, a hearing on this matter that was scheduled earlier this month on October 14th has been conveniently moved back to November 18th, after next month's election.) Yet again, no date of satisfaction of this debt has yet been recorded.
I don't know about the rest of you but these court cases make me angry.
But what makes me even angrier is where's the transparency? Why wasn't this information shared with the 125th District voters before his election in 2006 when he ran against Tim Wells? Why weren't we informed of his lax handling of his personal finances and thus able to weigh this information as we considered our candidate of choice in November of 2006?
And don't anybody tell me Barney Fisher's personal affairs are none of my business; as a registered voter, it IS my business. This is a variation of the reason why we have the problems we're now having in Washington D.C. and Wall Street both.
I don't know about the rest of you but we must demand that we have public servants in Washington, D.C. and in Jefferson City, MO who understand the moral and ethical need of being financially responsible in representing ALL of their voting constituents, not just a small minority.
We have borne witness to the greed of Wall Street and the hypocrisy of politics, in general. Both reflect that we have had financially irresponsible and unwise leaders who hold much of the blame for abusing the public trust in which they were invested.
Next month, on November 4th, we can change that. For this reason alone, Carla Keough, the Democratic candidate for MO's 125th District, has my vote. Won't you support her with your vote and send a message and say enough's enough?
Melissa Earll
Nevada, MO
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