The good and decent folks in state government.

My opposition are fond of arguing that I have argued that there is not a single decent, hardworking, and honest person working in Santa Fe or in the administration of the APS.

I have not, ever.

The most sweeping statement I have actually made is;
there are two kinds of politicians and public servants;

1. the corrupt and the incompetent, and
2. those with guilty knowledge of the corrupt and the incompetent.

I first stated that long ago. I stand by it still.
Open always, to any substantial objection.

What about the good and the decent politicians and public servants? What about them?

By enabling the corrupt and the incompetent, we dis-enable the good and the decent.

We own them more than we are giving them.

We owe them a work environment where promotions are earned.

We owe them a work environment where they can report corruption and incompetence, without feeling retribution and retaliation.

We own them a place where they can report misconduct, knowing their complaint will see due process. Due process according to an impartial system, powerful enough to hold even the most powerful, accountable for their conduct and competence. Powerful enough to hold them accountable, even against their will.

It is not up the powerless to enforce standards upon the powerful.

It is the responsibility of power to police itself.
The first legitimate use of power is to protect that power from abuse, by anyone, ever.

We owe the good and the decent, freedom from temptation.

Human nature being what it is, most, if not all, human beings are for sale if the temptation is great enough. We take good and decent people and lay huge amounts of money on their desks; huge amounts of money that nobody is keeping track of. Why?

Argue if you want that, government employees are extraordinarily immune from temptation. The the remaining few, still deserve freedom from temptation.

A hundred dollar bill, lying on a table in state government,
represents temptation. Most who see it calculate the risk-benefit
of picking it up and keeping it.

The risk- benefit calculation is the manifestation of temptation.

A hundred dollar bill, lying on the table within the administration of a Casino, does not represent temptation. No risk-benefit calculation is done because the odds are infinitely long. A casino employee has better odds of winning a Powerball than getting away with stealing that hundred dollar bill.

Absolute certainty of being caught, divided by 100 dollars is zero. Absolute certainty of being caught divided by a gazillion dollars is, still zero. It's like infinity. Infinity divided by any number still equals infinity. Absolute certainty of being caught is absolutely fatal to corruption and incompetence.

Why tempt good and decent people by placing them in positions of temptation every hour of their day?

Except to the benefit of the corrupt and the incompetent.

Unequivocal standards, inescapable accountability.

All we lack is the will.