05/10/04  No White - Local - Middle Age White Guys Need Apply!

Right off the top, I am thrilled that someone with David Kunkle's experience in the Dallas Police Department and two other area police departments is willing to step into the thankless job of working with the Dallas City Council.  He knows all the warts and still wants the job.

	New Police Chief: Benavides missed chance to make real change 12:06 AM CDT on Tuesday, May 11, 2004 Blue comments are DallasArena.com's opinion.
City Manager Ted Benavides' nationwide search for Dallas' next police chief could have been handled with a short taxi ride.    And it's about as inspired.
What has the distance between Dallas and Arlington got to do with anything other than David Kunkle is not Hispanic and not from out-of-state?
If the Dallas Police Department were a cohesive, effective crime-fighting organization in a well-managed city, Arlington Deputy City Manager David Kunkle might be a superb choice. But neither the department nor the city enjoys that status, which leaves no room ? and we mean no room ? for the status quo. Choosing a guy who spent one-third of his career in Dallas (however illustriously) and never made it farther than the next county smacks of the same old same old, rather than do- it-different. If all six candidates were, as Mr. Benavides said, highly qualified, selecting any one of the other five would have delivered a huge plus: the message that the city and its manager are serious about change.
Are they crazier than we thought in the Belo Editorial Board Room?  Do they think Grand Prairie (who can pay their officers more than we do) or Arlington got to be "well-managed" without  the services of David Kunkle and other qualified Middle Age White Guys like him?  Belo equates "serious about change" with get us an ethnic, preferably one from out of state.
This choice is clearly one of the most important appointments of the decade.    Despite this, Mr. Benavides seemed driven by familiarity rather than freshness, the bargain rather than the top rate, the tentative rather than the bold. Mr. Kunkle took a pay cut to come to Dallas for $138,000. And he came without a contract ? leaving him as vulnerable as his predecessor, whom Mr. Benavides fired without consulting the mayor or council.
Since when is $138,000 a bad salary?  Why would we want a Police Chief who could not be immediately replaced if he's not the City Manager's choice.  Under the City Charter, the City Manager has not obligation to nor should he consult with Our Meddling Mayor or the City Council about his departmental hirings and firings.  This Belo editorial is an example of why we don't need someone from out-of-state running the DPD.  Look what Belo's Phoenix Bird has done for their Editorial Page.
To make matters worse, Mr. Benavides reportedly failed to notify a few of the finalists for the job prior to yesterday's announcement, meaning some of them learned about it from other sources. Heck of a way to conduct a nationwide job search. Perhaps these finalists should be glad they didn't get the job.
Ted's staff made the mistake of advising Our Meddling Mayor and the Council first and the selection was leaked to the media.  Had he called the other 5 finalists first and the story leaked before Our Meddling Mayor or the Council heard about it, that would have been mentioned in Belo's editorial.
Mr. Benavides sent mixed signals about this selection from the beginning. A third of the candidates still in the running at the beginning of last month had direct or past ties to the city's department. But he took pains to include Pasadena Police Chief Bernard Melekian, one of the nation's more innovative chiefs, and former San Jose Chief Louis Cobarruviaz, an energetic crime fighter who helped retool the national police force in El Salvador. Even Mr. Kunkle told The Dallas Morning News last week that he probably wouldn't get the job, given the strong list of candidates.
Is it possible that the City Manager really thinks David Kunkle is the right guy?  More, isn't it refreshing that the CM hired someone with just a spectrum of humility and modesty?  Now, there's a refreshing change at City Hall.
Let us be clear: We wish Mr. Kunkle strength and courage. We want nothing more than for him to succeed. Mr. Kunkle cut the crime rates in Arlington and Grand Prairie when he headed those departments. We hope he enjoys similar success in Dallas.
Let's see.  Grand Prairie and Arlington are in our area and have approximately the same ethnic mixes as Dallas and many of the same problems as Dallas and David Kunkle was able to improve their departments and reduce their crime rates.  Exactly how is that a bad thing?
Our frustration is with Mr. Benavides. The mayor and council asked him in his performance review last month to communicate a strong vision to get Dallas back on track. His first major appointment since then falls short.
This may be the best decision that Ted Benavides has ever made.  He got us a Police Chief who knows how to cut crime, how to boost morale among his officers and the ins and outs of Dallas City Hall politics.  Again, how is that a bad thing?

Belo's editorial was code speak for "Why did he pick the local White Guy?"  Belo went to Phoenix to get the airhead who runs their Editorial Board.  She's been here a couple of years.  Do you think the Editorial Page is better since Belo imported out-of-state talent?  Neither does anyone else.  Their circulation is down.  It's not only their Editorial Page they need to get back on track.  Their local reporting could use some local talent as well.

It's not just what they say about David Kunkle's appointment.  Look at what their displeasure with the Four Middle Age White Guys who were selected to fill the Parkland Board vacancies.

	Parkland's Future: Board will need more than efficiency 12:06 AM CDT on Sunday, May 9, 2004 Blue comments are DallasArena.com's opinion.
It's a common business mantra that successful corporations are in touch with their customers' needs. The same should apply to public hospitals, which are chartered to provide health care to virtually anyone who walks through the door.
Does the Board of Wal-Mart need some people from trailer parks or RV roamers to be in touch with its customers' needs?
Last week's appointments to the Parkland Hospital board ? lacking in ethnic or gender diversity ? raise questions about whether the new board fully appreciates the critical role Parkland plays for the overwhelmingly poor and minority patients it serves. The board consists mostly of businessmen and only one minority member, a woman.
What has their ethnicity got to do with reading reports and understanding the financial chaos that Ron Anderson has caused for Parkland?
Faced with rising costs and more patients, Parkland needs wise financial leadership to fulfill its health care mission. But better efficiency alone isn't going to accomplish that task. Parkland's administration must have the support of board members who understand medical care is expensive and who are willing to fight for the resources Parkland needs.
Parkland's administration must get under control.  Ron Anderson wants to give free care to residents of every County touching or near Dallas on our dime.  He has no concept of a bottom to the well.  Parkland's care is expensive because Ron Anderson never looks at measures to control costs.
The four new members have their work cut out for them. Former Dallas city councilman Alan Walne and Louis A. Beecherl III are businessmen. Allan Shulkin will be the second physician on the board. And Richard Kneipper brings both business and medical expertise from his years of running a health care firm.
Why is it a bad thing for Dallas County taxpayers to have 3 businessmen looking out for our interests on the Parkland Board?
Here's what the board must do:    Build a consensus publicly. Board members must engage each other and Dallas County's residents in a straightforward and open discussion of Parkland's needs. No one wants to see another meeting like the one in March, when citizens who were concerned about budget cuts weren't allowed inside the board room.
"Consensus" means doing what Ron Anderson wants.  That March meeting was packed with people Ron Anderson had recruited to raise a ruckus.  That mob was no more representative of Dallas County taxpayers than Belo is of Dallas area concerns. Dallas County homeowners and taxpayers are overtaxed by Parkland when its users do not share in the cost of its operations.
Work constructively together. The old board was wracked by factionalism. The new board can't afford to go down the same road. That doesn't mean members can't disagree. A diversity of opinion can be good. But the new board must find ways to reach decisions that are good for the hospital and the community.
The old board had people looking out for Dallas County taxpayers and standing up to Ron Anderson.  Hopefully, Walne will be less of a go along to get along Parkland Board Member than he was on the City Council.  We need fewer team players and more leaders on the Parkland Board.  Standing up to Ron Anderson is not "fractionalism" -- it's looking at the bottom line for Dallas County taxpayers.
Focus on the big picture. The new board should call a halt to the guerrilla war of micromanagement with Parkland's administration. Don't become consumed with second-guessing the hospital's managers. Stay focused on how Parkland fits into North Texas' broader health care picture.
Parkland's managers should be second-guessed.  Dallas County taxpayers fund Parkland.  We cannot afford to subsidize affluent and booming counties like Denton and Collin, which refuse to provide County hospitals for their citizens.
And, finally, be leaders. If reforming Parkland's finances means getting other North Texas counties to pay their fair share, do it. If it means increasing property taxes to ensure quality health care, make a convincing case to the county commissioners. Parkland's health affects the health of tens of thousands of county residents.    Don't fail them.
"If it means increasing property taxes to ensure quality health care...".  Are they completely bonkers at Belo?  Do they not understand that property owners are overwhelmed with property taxes already?  What the Board needs to do is to make a case to the County Commissioners that Ron Anderson needs to be replaced with someone who understands where the money comes from.

What Belo and Ron Anderson want is to have Dallas County property owners reduced to a serf class who work and pay taxes to provide for those who do not.

As a woman who went to work in the 70's, I do know and recall the problems we had getting our foot in the door.  But, this is 2004.  We don't need set asides or quotas anymore.  If 30 years of Affirmative Action hasn't made things perfectly balanced, then we may need to accept the fact that LIFE IS NOT FAIR (as an old boyfriend told me when he dumped me).

IT'S NOT FAIR that I have to work for a living when I would rather be out digging in my yard and playing with my dogs.

IT'S NOT FAIR that I'm not tall and sleek.

IT'S NOT FAIR that I had to work my way through college and had to get a job working for lawyers rather than going on to law school and becoming one.

That's just the way life works.  It isn't balanced, it isn't equal and it isn't fair. 

The folks at Belo need to grow up and trade in their hippie beads and political correctness for reality.  They just might try tapping into some home grown Metroplex talent to get there.

Political consultant John Weekley has a great letter to the editor that needs no comment, other than a big AMEN!

Letters for Tuesday 12:03 AM CDT on Tuesday, May 11, 2004

Parkland's new board Re: "Four to fill vacancies on Parkland's board ? Critics worry white men can't represent hospital community," by Sherry Jacobson, Metro, Friday.    I found trite, troubling and counterproductive the blatantly racist and sexist comments contained in this story about the new appointees to the Parkland Hospital board of managers.    What rocket scientist came up with the absurd notion that a health care facility board has to reflect the demographics of its patients?    By that logic, most nursing home boards would be octogenarians, most children's hospital boards would be populated with 6-year-olds and most psychiatric hospital boards would be run by psychotics!    Parkland Hospital, largely funded by assessments to all Dallas County taxpayers, is in very serious trouble. The very last thing it needs is pseudo-issues or demonstrations for their own sake getting in the way of solving a pending health crisis for Dallas County and North Texas.    Is there value in having public institution boards representative of the diversity of a community? Of course. But these were not routine appointments in the normal cycle of selecting board members. They are filling unexpired terms of four previous members who quit in unison.    It appears these four gentlemen were selected for their experience in health care oversight, and managerial and financial abilities, as well as their willingness to serve under emergency conditions. Along with the rest of the board, they have some very difficult decisions to make if Parkland is to successfully remain one of the best public hospitals in the country, and able to address the increasing patient load of this growing region.   Why not see what solutions they come up with before prejudging them because of their sex and color? John Weekley, Dallas

and the people said, AMEN!

sb