Sellouts by the numbers October 16, 2015
Fort Smith Superintendent of Schools Benny Gooden’s sellouts appear to be complete…at least at this point.
Before the explanation, let it be said that if honorable, legal results are to be obtained, Gooden and his legal/political entanglements may come to haunt him.
First off: His purge of Southside High School’s Southern icons and all things Southern occurring in secrecy and the excommunication of the Rebel mascot was never voted on to this day and the purging of Dixie & Johnny Reb never had a full vote of the Fort Smith School Board.
Gooden’s egregious acts occurred without any notification to “we the people” of Fort Smith, AR.
Gooden’s purge was built on a 4 word phrase “It was my perception”. His explanation is fraught with corruption.
In a supreme show of financial arrogance he now proposes a $300,000-$500,000 expenditure for the Southside Mascot makeover.
The Fort Smith School Board can only be described as a collection of Gooden enablers, with Dr. Deanie Mehl at the helm acting as the second-coming of the despised Yankee carpetbaggers (she is a Yankee) with a full bag of venom. For what reason, who knows?
The phony name change committee under the direction of Gooden came up with the name Maverick. The name being derived from a So. Carolina/Texas slaver.
The name Maverick was probably funneled to Gooden many months ago at the behest of the downtown cabal composed of Richard Griffin & Sammy Sicard, etc. to further their economic downtown activities, in this case, the behemoth known as the proposed Marshal’s Museum.
Griffin & Sicard, when introducing the proposed MM stated that it would be a “private endeavor”, i.e. funded by private investors…they lied. Millions of taxpayer dollars have been channeled into this endeavor through the actions of corrupt politicians, bureaucrats, New Market Tax Credits, Grants, cash disbursements from the county, the city, the state, and another corrupt entity, the federal government.
They will now market the MM by using the Southside mascot and logo in pursuing their economic and political interests.
October 15, 2015 a news story appeared in the Times Record that demonstrated the political muscle maneuvering & deception that the Central Business District uses to accomplish their goals by utilizing their influence to prevent a citizen from putting a car dealership in one of the abandoned buildings (why?) that Griffin & Sicard label “Lower Towson Ave.” Obviously the term “Lower Towson Ave” is a takeoff on Charleston, SC use of the phrase “Low Country”. (Oops, something Southern again)
Towson Ave has obviously become the new hallowed ground for Griffin & Sicard and the question becomes how much of the property do the two control between Garrison and Sparks Hospital?
Historically, Confederate battles were fought in this area (Backbone Mountain–Greenwood, Massard, Prairie Grove, Pea Ridge, etc.) and region no matter how hard they try to revise it. And it was Southern culture/civilization which transformed a wild town on the edge of the “Badlands” into a center for rule of law and justice.
Honest promoters would have used this unique combination to enhance and entice. True Grit and Southern manners, culture & heritage melded into a rare commodity. Instead, politically correct, myopic “leaders” try to eradicate the South and then destroy the Western part with obscene murals on historical buildings downtown.
All those involved in these despicable actions are to be vilified, certainly not congratulated or admired.
Gooden, Griffin, & Sicard are using a public institution, Southside High School, if the mascot name Maverick prevails, must surely have some legal ramifications. Is there no limit to their greed? After all, it is not their own money being spent; it belongs to “we the people”.
Joe McCutchen
arkansasfreedom.net