It's Monday morning, December 9, 2013. The epic BiNational Economic Development Summit 2013 is history. The last remaining guest at Matamoros Mayor Leticia Salazar's cocktail afterparty has been carried to his car. Conference attendees from Sweden, Denmark and beyond are sleeping in chairs at DFW. Fred Rusteberg is back to banking. Chief Carlos Garcia is protecting the Port of Brownsville from intruders. Mayor Tony Martinez is calling City Finance Director Pete Gonzalez to see why the invoice on the $8,000 interactive TV for his downtown office has not been paid. In other words, it's back to business as usual for Brownsville, a city that just had its next half century planned out without its knowledge.
No entity shows less respect for the typical Brownsville citizen, taxpayer, teacher, student, parent or veteran than the horribly misnamed United Brownsville. A poor city resident would have a better chance at membership in the notoriously exclusive Augusta National Golf Club than an invite to a United Brownsville seminar even though the venue used is part of a $200,000,000 tax burden being paid over the next two decades by those same residents. The BiNED Summit 2013 was not advertised in the Brownsville Herald or promoted to the populace. It's a game for insiders, elitists, opportunists, not a bringing of the community together in any sense.
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| Carlos Marin, Author of BiNED 2013 "Fact Sheet" |
So, we simply need your signature to the document below. We can't force you to sign and compliance is on the honor system, but you will know you refused to sign or signed and didn't comply.
United Brownsville Coordinating Board Ethics Agreement
1. As a UB board member, I will promise my company, bank, engineering, legal or construction firm will not profit from plans formulated by the Greater Brownsville Industrial and Infrastructure Plan.
2. As a UB board member, I promise not to profit from the sale of land parcels eventually included in the Industrial Corridor of the Greater Brownsville Industrial and Infrastructure Plan.
3. As a UB board member, I promise to have no financial interest in manufacturing, transportation or sidestream businesses associated with the Industrial Corridor of the Greater Brownsville Industrial and Infrastructure Plan.
4. As a UB board member, I promise that members of my family, proxies, business associates or others with whom I have a history of financial cooperation will not benefit from my participation in the Greater Brownsville Industrial and Infrastructure Plan.
Signed: United Brownsville Board Member
This is horrifying.
ReplyDeleteJim where are the attorneys that can challenge this entity to put a stop to the raping of the poorest city in America? It just boggles me that no legal experts have stepped up to the plate. Who is watching out for the taxpayers? There has to be some legal way to stop this travesty. I hear all the complaints but no one seems to do anything in this community.It seems like this same group will get there way again and again.
ReplyDeleteThere is no way in hell Carlos Msarin will sign this! The reason he created and keeps this worthless organization alive is so he can keep raping the taxpayer.
ReplyDeleteTaking the ethics pledge would be like a bear agreeing to never shit in the woods again. Your ethics code is diametrically opposed to the entire purpose of this cabal. They have neither madre or verguenza. Once you fully understand this, then you will realize what you are dealing with.
ReplyDeleteIt's all simply tongue in cheek, trying to draw attention to the developments.
DeleteJim
Will the medical expenses be considered a board related expense when they trip over each other in their haste to get as far from this document as they can?
ReplyDeleteIt AMAZES ME that this is even remotely legal. Can't the Feds get involved and bust these guys? Who is going to protect the average citizen?
ReplyDeleteMost citizens of this region don't even know this event took place.....and really don't care. Ignorance is rampant and United Brownsville is taking advantage of that public ignorance to have these meetings which are a "secret" to the ignorant and poor. The local members of United Brownsville don't care; their goal is to take advantage of the ignorance and ram-rod their agenda down the throats of the community. Shame on Mayor Martinez, Julieta Garcia and Freddie "Rustyburger".
ReplyDelete