Here we go again--the Caddo Commission is opting to have committee meetings and the Tues. work session by zoom. This despite the fact the chambers at Government Plaza is known as the plexiglass palace.
Commissioners can be seen out and about taking care of job responsibilities, errands and at entertainment venues, but they do not want to come downtown to earn their paychecks, which are the highest in the state for part time elected officials.
Citizens who tune in for these zoom meetings will probably be entertained by commissioners eating, answering the phone, watching tv, or leaving the meeting with a manikin on the screen. Technical issues have plagued past zoom meetings of the commission and the council and there is no reason to believe they will not persist.
So what is the deal with commission president Lyndon Johnson calling a zoom meeting for work session on Tues? At the last committee meeting chaired by Johnson, he was in his office and was obviously doing office work while others were speaking.
Using the excuse that a Commission employee who attended the last regular Commission meeting tested positive just doe not cut the mustard. That person was masked, sat in the chamber which has been socially distanced, and did not interact personally with commissioners who were separated by 20 feet or more and layers of plexiglass.
Come on Johnson--you can go to work in person at your real job so you should go to work at the commission meetings in person. And surely all the other commissioners are not covid cowards - or are they? Collectively they are setting a horrible example when all other government bodies in Caddo and Bossier meet live.
