At Least It Won't Interfere with Dinner

The Fire Commissioners, grateful for our recent interest in their activities, have scheduled yet another special meeting ($90 each, once again, for the two remaining commissioners; $0 for the public) tomorrow, Wednesday, at 4 pm at the firehall.  The members of the public will not be allowed to speak, but the Commissioners will review the new fire chief's contract for our dining and dancing pleasure.  I still don't remember their voting for him to be the new fire chief: just a motion made and seconded.  But no vote.

I'm pretty impressed by the official notice from Commissioner Ruffle including the prohibition of the public's speaking.  Says Ruffle: "The minutes from the last meeting will be approved and a review of the new Fire Chief's contract with action to approve or disapprove will be made.  There will be no public comment as it is a special meeting."

A very special meeting, indeed.  Free speech.  I don't know; was that something from the Constitution or the Bill of Rights or...?  Or maybe we just dreamed that.  
Comrades!  Join together at four and be told what we are to do next!

Added, from the Washington State Code:

RCW 42.30.010 Legislative declaration.

The legislature finds and declares that all public commissions, boards, councils, committees, subcommittees, departments, divisions, offices, and all other public agencies of this state and subdivisions thereof exist to aid in the conduct of the people's business. It is the intent of this chapter that their actions be taken openly and that their deliberations be conducted openly.

     The people of this state do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies which serve them. The people, in delegating authority, do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to know. The people insist on remaining informed so that they may retain control over the instruments they have created.

[1971 ex.s. c 250 § 1.]