The Real Problems We Have With Emergency Services in Falmouth and Pendleton County as a Whole

There are many good people involved in the emergency services of Pendleton County, Butler, and Falmouth. Let me be clear. We support every first responder, emergency services professional, and volunteer as a whole. This series of articles is not about demeaning the valuable service they provide.

At the same time, our emergency services are only as reliable as the budgets they are given and the policies that control them. When infighting, budget problems, political gaslighting, and driven narratives impede the services your taxes pay for, that is a problem. A huge one.

There is a long and sordid history of strained cooperation between our town and city governments. Too often, instead of being driven by real issues, personal bias and cronyism have infected the way government views its duty to the voters. Public service sometimes takes a back seat to egos and pet projects.

What Services Are We Talking About?

We have already published many articles on failing infrastructure, budget issues, grants that expire while sitting unused, fire department problems, police budget shortfalls, 911 breakdowns, and ambulance deficiencies.

Every one of these has been explained away with the same handful of excuses. Budget constraints. Lack of training. Fund shuffling. Fiscal disorganization. Or in our opinion, outright corruption.

When problems are exposed, they are either swept aside with a shiny new solution that never matures, buried under canned PR statements, or simply ignored with the pretense that no issue exists.

Dysfunction You Can’t Ignore

For a small county like Pendleton and two small towns, the amount of dysfunction could fill a book. A long one at that.

Frankly, it is enough to make you nauseous.

We Are Cutting Through the Noise

In the first article, to be released tomorrow, we will present a complete picture of the fire department issues. That includes coverage gaps, budget mismanagement, and misplaced priorities. This is not just a Falmouth or Butler problem. These are issues affecting every resident of Pendleton County.

What About the People Saying Officials Are Trying?

We sometimes hear comments that our elected officials are doing everything they can. That we should not criticize but instead offer solutions.

To those people, I say this. You are blindly accepting that public officials have had these problems in hand for years and are actively working to fix them.

Intentions are not results. They are often just election-time pretenses.

Time and again, the good old boy mentality and political infighting have created policy traps and budget disasters that now sit at the center of everything.

The Entire Machine Is Broken

From the Judge Executive and Magistrates to the Mayors and City Councils, the entire machine leaks like a busted faucet. Once you dig into it, the truth will keep you up at night.

This Series Will Not Be Soft

This series will not be soft. It will not be fluff. And it will not contain facts that cannot be verified.

As someone who has spent hours talking with officials, reading agendas and minutes, analyzing budgets, and digging through everything from official records to Facebook comments, the real story is a maze of dysfunction.

But I have the receipts.

Tune In Tomorrow

Tune in tomorrow as we begin unraveling this mess.

As always, I love to hear your whispers. I will do my best to make sure your voice gets attention. Some issues and articles take months to unravel, and as a one-man show running this business, I attack each one as best I can.

I am starting to feel better after catching this latest super-virus that has been going around.

Whisper One Out