The News That Moved Us This Past Week: May 17 - May 24
by Martin Davis
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
The week just past saw Spotsylvania’s School Board corrupting Congress, Stafford’s showering money on managers, playing fast and loose with Buc-ee’s traffic study, Mary Washington Healthcare finding new ways to add fees to patients’ bills, and two teacher arrests in Spotsylvania. Also this week, a long-overdue lesson in Robert’s Rules of Order (that seems to be having a positive impact), and Drew Gallagher going on and on about robots, Amen!
5. Decorum Travels North
Last week, Marjorie Taylor Green (R-Ga.) and Jasmine Crockett (D-Tex.) tangled at a committee meeting on Capitol Hill, exchanging barbs about personal looks that surely have Tip O’Neill and Joseph Gurney Cannon wondering from the Great Beyond what has become of their beloved House. But then, neither O’Neill nor Cannon had members who took their cues from the Spotsylvania School Board — Or is it the other way around?
4. Mid-Year Raises Extended To Some Stafford County Department Directors
A handful of Stafford County government department directors and both deputy County Administrators have received raises—one over $10,000—outside of the annual budget cycle.
3. How Much Traffic Will The Stafford Buc-ees Generate?
A consulting firm hired by Buc-ees found that the Courthouse Road area faces debilitating traffic even without the proposed travel center.
2. Facility Fees Surprise Patients At Mary Washington Healthcare Practices
Fees are charged at practices that are considered “outpatient departments of the hospital.”
1. Spotsylvania Teacher Arrested, Accused Of Striking Child and Spotsylvania Teacher Arrested For Drugs Worked For Fredericksburg City Schools Until November
Two arrests of Spotsylvania teachers rock the school district yet again. The arrest of a teacher for drugs raises questions about district’s relationship with Regent University, and the policy passed last year that gave then-Board chair Lisa Phelps authority to approve hires in an effort to speed up the employment process.
Spotsylvania Needs A Reset On Robert's Rules
For three years, the School Board has not been following Robert’s Rules of Order; rather, members have bludgeoned one another with it. There’s a better way forward.
It's Drew Time! I Am Not A Robot
Today, Drew turns to AI to write his column. Or does he? The End.
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What a week.