Seeking Action Plan on VIIG Audit/petition

That is WEIRD!!! (the vidoj site down)

any discussion in the local news yet about the DOJ site being down? Seems very odd to have something as important as that stay down all weekend, not even a redirect to an "apology for the temporary interruption in service, steer people to ways to contact the DOJ and get info" type of page.... Even for the VI seems substandard.

Not only is the site down, but a very rude message posted on the site. Nothing to see here. Move along. Move along. No apology. Isn't this what police say at an accident or crime scene? Maybe the message is appropriate after all.

Are we sure that is the correct website? has anyone used it in the past?

It's the correct site. I'm wondering if it's been hacked as that message is decidedly peculiar ...

Update: Called the department. Interestingly enough, the person I spoke to didn't have any problem accessing the site from his JD computer but when he tried to access the site from his i-Phone, he got the same result, He's going to look into it and see what's going on.

i got the same message. that is disturbing.

I thinkk they've been hacked. This is weird, even for the USVI.

Site is back up now. Were they hacked? Anyone take a screen cap? Very interesting.

Site is back up now. Were they hacked? Anyone take a screen cap? Very interesting.

No idea. All it took was a 'phone call to alert them and, as I mentioned yesterday, the glitch apparently wasn't coming up on their in-house computers.

it must have been a clever hacker or some rogue hero in their IT dept making a very pointed joke about the thinly veiled corruption. it's pretty awesome once i thought about it from that standpoint lol.

Not likely a hacker, I believe that error message is standard for one of the common website frameworks out there: http://initapp.com/?p=14

Glad they got it back up and running and it was great that they understood the importance of checking it from an Iphone outside of their network.

Back OT, this report is amazing...hopefully something can change as a result of it.

Sean

For those of us who live here, pay taxes and vote, here is Ronnie Russell's email address: roneruss@gmail.com

Send him an email demanding accountability and the release of the names of the senators who pilfered the $$$. That way we know who NOT to vote for. In my book the only ones worth voting in again (on STX) are Positive Nelson and Nellie O'Reilly, and Craig Barshinger (at large).

For more info and some very enlightening local comments on this situation (and others) check out Crucians in Focus.

Link to story and comments thread on the Audit -
http://cruciansinfocus.com/2011/12/01/pattern-of-fiscal-negligence-continues-in-revelations-of-long-overdue-legislative-audit/

Link to homepage -
http://cruciansinfocus.com/

WOW !!!

This report identifies several instances where senators got travel advances and never provided expense reports to justify the monies. OR when they did, the expenses did not exceed the advances and they were permited to keep the excess.

Even during the audit, some senators were "caught in the act" and were given a chance to repay the monies (... but some have yet to as of the close of the audit). It appears they are above everyone else in the VI.

In the corporate world you get fired for that. In the rest of the USA, you would be the subject of "ethics hearings" as a minimum.

When are common thieves given a free pass (chance) to pay back what they stole?

hi Lucy, It's particularly appalling because government worker's salaries were cut by 8% (since July I think) AND they have run out of $$ to pay the remaining tax refunds that have yet to be paid!!!!!

It's beyone appalling - it's freaking atrocious. Something HAS to be done - people need to go to jail. Read all the comments on Crucians in Focus, if you haven't. Very very enlightening. Amidst the melee there seem to be some people in the know.

The thing that I think of is that these senators are in the public eye AND should be role-models for our youth. No wonder crime is going up. Any young person that is on the fence (between right and wrong) sees these people getting away with it --> so why not me?

The thing that I think of is that these senators are in the public eye AND should be role-models for our youth. No wonder crime is going up. Any young person that is on the fence (between right and wrong) sees these people getting away with it --> so why not me?

Getting to the root of the problem, as long as Virgin Islanders continue to accept substandard education as the norm, being in the lower percentile of academic achievement of any state or territory under the US flag and receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in Federal education funding which gets sent back every year because it wasn't properly allocated and spent, the graduating mass has little to look forward to and nowhere near the intelligence to make rational judgements when it comes to voting in local elections. And so the same old numb nuts get re-elected and their replacement ranks are no better. Not really much different in some respects from the mainland ...

Worse is that when the many real achievers go on to stateside institutions for further education and graduate from prestigious universities, there's little for them to come back home to however great their desire to effect change. Born and raised here, they're nonetheless ostracized by the numb nuts who are intimidated by their education and experience, are stonewalled at every turn and finally throw up their hands in frustration and go back stateside where they can compete in an open field and get on with their lives.

Here's a link to a Facebook page where people can post information, ideas, discussions, etc.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Virgin-Islands-Citizens-Action-Network/295624510459191?sk=wall

Why can't a regular citizen file a criminal complaint with the appropriate legal authorities and have some of these bozos arrested? The audit is evidence that a crime was committed. You can file a complaint on a regular citizen. Just wondering.

the graduating mass has little to look forward to and nowhere near the intelligence to make rational judgements when it comes to voting in local elections. And so the same old numb nuts get re-elected and their replacement ranks are no better. Not really much different in some respects from the mainland

Districted. Voting.

couldn't agree with you more.

the graduating mass has little to look forward to and nowhere near the intelligence to make rational judgements when it comes to voting in local elections. And so the same old numb nuts get re-elected and their replacement ranks are no better. Not really much different in some respects from the mainland

Districted. Voting.

That's been brought up many times and would certainly be a step in the right direction. It does, of course, do nothing to address the basic problem of education (or lack thereof).

I posted this on another topic but it certainly could apply here where an initiative is developed to require District Voting and any other changes.

This below is from a recent St. Thomas Source article.

Citizens can also create or overturn laws through initiatives. To get an initiative on the ballot, one needs at least 10 percent of the voters of each district or 41 percent of all registered voters in the territory. If enough signatures are gathered, the legislature can adopt the initiative or reject it. If it is rejected by the legislature, it will appear on the ballot in the next general election, unless the legislature holds a special election for the purpose. When it comes to a vote, a majority of registered voters must cast a vote and a majority of the votes cast must be in favor of the initiative for it to pass.

Lucy, the citizens initiative is almost impossible to do because of our 3 island configuration. It would require an organization on all 3 islands to get the required number of signatures. Then the petition is evaluated and written by the Board of Elections if it is to appear. A bout 2 years ago I tried to get the Marijuana Laws changed and out of 400 people I asked to sign most weren't registered to vote for various reasons. Probably one of the most important things that could be done for change and to give people a voice would be to pattern the initiative process after that of California or Maine.

Bombi, I never implied that it would be easy. I guess people arn't fed-up enough, but when they are it could be done. Changing the initiative process? Sounds like you would an initiative to do that, as the senators that want to stay senators would never put that forward.