THIN SKIN AND TRIBALISM

 So I’d heard through the grapevine that Inyo County Treasurer-Tax Collector Alisha McMurtrie had made public comment at the Nov. 12 Inyo Supervisors meeting in rebuttal to the Nov. 9 editorial page. 

In that issue, I was critical of the Treasurer-Tax Collector instructing taxpayers to make their checks out to Alisha McMurtrie, Inyo County Treasurer-Tax Collector as opposed to simply instructing people to make them out to the Inyo County Treasurer-Tax Collector. 

Why was her name involved? I said it seemed sketch. 

In her public comment, she said I called her sketchy (poor reading comprehension – I didn’t say she was sketchy. I said the process appeared sketch). She then quoted a government code (2611) which she said she had followed in advising taxpayers to make checks to her. 

As you’ll see below, this also involved poor reading comprehension. 

She graciously told taxpayers they (her office) will cash checks made out to the Inyo County Treasurer-Tax Collector without her name on it. 

She said the money is not going into a slush fund and that the newpaper should be more responsible. 

And she ended with a flourish, saying things are divisive enough in this country, etc. A complete non-sequitur. Excellent misdirection. 

Supervisors Matt Kingsley and Jen Roeser agreed that the newspaper “needs to be called out” for its reporting. 

Below is the letter I write this week to McMurtrie, cc’ing Kingsely, Roeser and my district supervisor, Scott Marcellin. 

It received no reply. 

Gutless wonders. 

Dear Alisha, 

I reviewed your public comment of Nov. 12 and then went to look at Government code 2611.

2611.6(h) to be precise. 

It reads, under items for inclusion on a tax bill: Instructions on tendering payment, including the name & mailing address of the tax collector. 

I don’t interpret this to mean that the checks are supposed to be made out to you personally. 

And in fact, a cursory Google search shows that no other county in the state of California interprets it this way/takes money this way. Checks are made out to the officer (e.g. Riverside County Treasurer) as opposed to an individual. 

In the paper, I did not refer to you as sketchy. Again, read carefully. I call the practice sketchy and suggest it needs to be changed. 

That Supervisors expressed sympathy with you rather than express curiosity or look at the issue critically is particularly damning. 

Final question: Who is Alisha McMurtrie? I notice that Calpers identifies you as Alisha Watts. 

Why is it not one or the other? 

Thank you, 

Ted Carleton, Publisher 

The Sheet

Inyo County has a long history of embezzlement. You’d think county leadership would be hyper-vigilant as a result. Nope. Because tribalism (supporting one’s own “team” in blind allegiance – think national political affiliations) is so much more important to the Kingsleys and Roesers of the world than doing one’s job as a safeguard of the public trust.

As I wrote last week, I’ve been reading Pacino’s biography, and he has this part where he talks about his reputation as being a “difficult” star. 

“I noticed this happening on films more and more: when there were delays that were caused by creative disputes – I don’t mean some movie star holding out for a bigger trailer, I mean a genuine disagreement about how something is to be executed – stars were taking the brunt of the blame. I’ve felt it throughout my career. The star gets labeled as being difficult. 

Now what is difficult? Someone is saying, I’m interested in making this film. I’m interested in how we build the world of the film and how it comes through. The people shelling out the dough say we’re driving them crazy when we do this stuff, but this is our sanity. We do it for the sake of the film. 

If you’re fighting for the betterment of the film, then you’re not being difficult. You’re not on a film for perks. The size of a trailer, 14 assistants, lunch breaks every five minutes, demands that bear no relationship to the work – that’s being difficult.” 

I feel like local political boards/local government these days – they’ve got the money. And the masses vote to give them more because … they’ve given up on the idea that they’ll ever get ahead on their own. So let’s at least soak the rich and see if there’s a handout or a winning lotto ticket on the back end. 

And anyone in-between who says wait a second, committing to policy at any cost is no policy at all – that person becomes an utter inconvenience. That person is difficult.