RJ Berry's tax returns, who cares?

Candidates for mayor, are not required by the law to surrender their private tax records for public examination. If there were any good reason to require that surrender, the law would have been rewritten to that end. It has not.

Marty Chavez is not claiming any dirt in Berry's record. He has not suggested that even a thorough public examination of Berry's private papers, would reveal any issue of significance. Yet he wants to make a big deal of Berry's refusal to surrender his records, even though Berry's refusal is completely justifiable.

I can understand why Chavez wants to move in this direction. He can play on people's fundamental mistrust of politicians and deliberately create a specious argument defaming Berry.

I cannot understand why the "media", in particular the blogosphere, would want to make a big deal out of Berry's refusal. They are of course, free to place emphasis upon, and then write about any issue they want. But why this one? And why this one when there are so many other more important issues to place their emphasis upon, so many other more important issues to write about on their websites.

There is reason to pause I think, when these writers completely ignore 12 years of scandals in the Chavez administrations; the ABQPAC conviction, the airport observation deck scandal, the Bode videotapes of a shakedown in progress, the audit of Mountain West Golfscapes audit, link, or any one of a number of ethical maybe even criminal acts involving Marty Chavez, to write instead about Berry's principled stand on his and his family's right to privacy.

Chavez is yet to offer even one word in explanation, defense, or even in acknowledgment of the revelations of the MWG audit. His crony's nephew's landscaping company screwed taxpayers and made out like a bandit, and it is all documented in black and white in the audit. Chavez' Municipal Development Department could not have been more incompetent in its management of those contracts, and Chavez is getting a bye from the "media" who instead would like to make a mountain out of a molehill over Berry's tax returns.

I would feel better about their concern over Berry's complete compliance with than the law, if the media expressed any concern at all over Chavez' repeated and ongoing non-compliance with the spirit of the law, and the corruption and cronyism in City Hall.

The man is exercising a constitutionally protected human right.
How can the "media" be on the wrong side of that issue? and be
giving "good counsel" on any other.




photos Mark Bralley