Dear Editor,
On March 24, the Great Bend Tribune published an article entitled “Pawnee population shows decrease.”
This article consisted of the minutes from the Pawnee County Commission meeting of March 7. Those minutes contained several inaccuracies and down right falsehoods that misled several of my customers and fellow businessmen. Let me relate the “rest of the story,” my experience with Pawnee County government.
First, a county loader was brought in for a window replacement. The same one which I had done a couple of years ago with no problems.
This time the two side glasses were replaced and the main front window proved difficult to install.
During the time this loader was in my shop, it was prepped not once, but two times!
I called in extra people, including an extra man from the county shop, as well as equipment brought in to facilitate the installation. The county did not agree with my opinion that the window weather strip gasket was faulty, which the county supplied.
Not once over the course of five days, did the county inform me of a problem with the structure of the loader, caused by the loader being tipped onto its side. This information came from an innocent conversation with another businessman!
Despite my questions and suggestions Mr. Kurt Demel did not admit the damage after one windshield broke, but insisted against my better judgement to try again! After another attempt and a phone conversation that amounted to a blame game, I withdrew from this service agreement.
A phone conversation with one of the county commissioners where my issues were heard still did not save me from a small claims summons. Needless to say the court did listen to me, but that adds another unnecessary expense to you and I.
Being a business owner and a county resident I have an issue with our county commissioners and county departments when they misrepresent a business transaction or do not disclose important information until it costs the county taxpayers like myself.
Not only that but Mr. Demel was basically asking me to pay for their mistakes through my business.
You and I as taxpayers are “footing the bill” for all government wastes from the local on up to the federal level.
It is little wonder to me that Pawnee County is having trouble enticing growth and development.
Since when is it a good practice to have local businesses open its wallet for government mistakes or county entities to “go after” the very business that support and make their livelihood within this county?
“To preserve our independence, we must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt. If we run into such debts, we must be taxed in our meat and drink, in our necessities and in our comforts, in our labor and in our amusements. If we can prevent the government from wasting the labor of the people, under the pretense of caring for them, they will be happy.” — Thomas Jefferson
Rocky Tauscher,
owner,
Tauscher Collision Services,
Larned