Comments on: Column: Making Sunshine with FOIA

By: Tom Bletcher

Tom Bletcher — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 20:15:25 +0000

an elderly Lansing geezer, known for his wise observations on events in Sodom & Gomorrah-on-the-Grand, once told me “that no conspiracy involving more than one person can long succeed”…

By: Mark Koroi

Mark Koroi — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 01:03:26 +0000

What also needs to be mentioned is that last month, Roger Farinha, attorney for VR Entertainment, the company that operated the Dream-Nite night club that had its Liquor Control Commission license not renewed by Ann Arbor City Council, filed his brief in the Michigan Court of Appeals alleging that the Open Meetings Act and Due Process Clause of the United States Constitution were violated in the proceedings by the City of Ann Arbor. Farinha is seeking to have the non-renewal vote invalidated.

Stephen Postema is representing the City of Ann Arbor and his brief in response is due later this month.

By: Jack Eaton

Jack Eaton — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 18:58:40 +0000

Thanks Kathy! I would have missed the late posting of that article. An individual membership to the Michigan Coalition for Open Government costs just $25 ($10 for students). That's a small price to be allied with goodness and sunshine. [link]

By: Kathy Griswold

Kathy Griswold — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 01:47:26 +0000

The article Jack Eaton referenced, "Announcing the Michigan Coalition for Open Government" in the Sunday print version of the dot.com is now online at: [link] Please consider joining the MiCOG.

By: John Floyd

John Floyd — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 22:41:21 +0000

When people become accustomed to non-accountability, they generally display the traits of a non-accountable person: they get lazy, cut corners, self-serve, prefer secrecy, etc. Whether discussing the city’s record-release policy, or the specifics of Mr. Postema’s circumstance, my conclusion is the same: sooner or later, people (any people) will try to get away with as much as they can. This is a feature of the human condition – not a moral failing by any specific people.

By: Dave Cahill

Dave Cahill — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 20:04:44 +0000

Re #1: All conspiracies rot internally.

By: Jack Eaton

Jack Eaton — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 16:02:28 +0000

Thank you for the thorough discussion of FOIA and the attorney-client privilege as applied to the Council's Audit Committee's work. I would like to emphasize how well qualified Marcia Proctor is on the subject of attorney-client communication and professional ethics, generally. She has served both as director of the American Bar Association's Center for Professional Responsibility and as general counsel for the State Bar of Michigan. In a somewhat related matter, the Sunday print version of the dotcom included a piece noting that MLive has joined the group Michigan Coalition for Open Government (a nonprofit, statewide group that educates citizens about their right to access public records and attend public meetings). That article does not appear anywhere online, that I can locate. When I visited the organization's web page I was delighted to see that the Ann Arbor Chronicle already belongs to the group. [link] Keep up the great work!

By: Edward Vielmetti

Edward Vielmetti — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 15:23:52 +0000

> were able to obtain some of the records by other means.

There’s a leak at City Hall.