Now more than ever, paranoia is the big destroyer.

The headshrinkers call it paranoia, and when it gets bad they put you away. Because, after all, people who think everyone in the world wants to kill them can be dangerous.

Joseph R. Garber

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Now that all the relevant clarifications and denials have been trotted out, let’s begin another manic Monday by reviewing media coverage of the March 16 city council meeting, during which local businesswoman Valla Ann Bolovschak chewed the scenery with evident glee while dramatically producing a hitherto elusive copy of the city’s 2004 audit report, reading excerpts aloud and gloriously basking in the quasi-erotic approbation of “little people” who can afford neither a $19.43 progressive pint nor a folding cot in her B & B, and regularly condemn all those who can – except, of course, their Machiavellian heroine.

(Late note: To be perfectly fair to the rising Sun Tzu of the local GOP set, whose calculated tactical grasp of disingenuity NAC deeply respects, I suggest that readers visit SOLNA to read Valla Ann’s personal account. While you’re there, hold your nose and tour the spitwad blogyard propaganda facility. Note the stifling preponderance of populist blather, leering anonymity, anti-intellectual hatred and undisguised envy, and ask yourself this question: Why are so many bearers of the “truth” so timid when it comes to their identities -- and what might Pol Pot have learned from them?)

The first portion of the Tribune’s Friday article on the meeting focused on factoids gleaned from the audit, concluding with this sentence:

(Controller Kay) Garry, (Mayor James) Garner and council member Bill Schmidt -- council president in 2004 -- discussed the audit results with state officials Feb. 14.

State audit shows city’s ‘04 financial errors; Garner: ‘Mediocre’ results still better than past years, by Eric Scott Campbell (News-Tribune).

Observe that the preceding constitutes the sole mention of CM Schmidt’s name in the Friday, March 17 edition of the Tribune, and refers to an audit meeting that took place in mid-February -- two weeks before March 3.

Then, giving its merrily random archive wheel a hefty heave, the Tribune elected not to make available (i.e., archived on-line) the conclusion of reporter Campbell’s March 17 article. Here’s the pertinent excerpt not posted on the Internet:

Council members said they hadn’t received the report until Bolovschak gave copies to them and Garner shortly after her remarks.

Garner told a reporter he believed a council member had obtained a copy earlier but gave it to Bolovschak instead of to city officials, “trying to embarrass everyone.”

Earlier on Friday, NA Confidential had described the scene:

Such as when the forever coy future mayoral candidate with every reason to embarrass the incumbent brought a copy of a 2004 audit that – gee -- hasn’t been officially released, which in all likelihood was passed to her by the same city council member who has been feeding sacks of numbers sans meaningful context to the transgendered ghost blogger Erik/Erika, and this high profile player promptly lectured the council about the improperly leaked document’s contents – and the Siamese Councilmen went into immediate spasms of near orgasmic intensity in praising her for doing so …

To assist those just tuning in, “transgendered ghost blogger Erik/Erika” is our way of describing the author of the Freedom of Speech blog, which arose from the primordial troglodyte ooze a few months ago and claims to be written by a university professor – a transparently fictitious and adolescent claim that is a laughing stock among educated people hereabouts – at least among those lacking vendettas.

Here’s the Freedom of Speech entry of Saturday, March 18, 2006, reprinted in its entirety without the permission of the author – who after all, doesn’t exist, and as such, need not be consulted.

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LET'S SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT

Freedom Of Speech contacted Councilman Bill Schmidt and asked him to reply to the "Accusations" being made about the presentation of the 2004 New Albany City Audit. We appreciate his Response.

So let's set the record straight!

March 17, 2006

To: Freedom of Speech Newsletter
From: Councilman Bill Schmidt

Re: 2004 New Albany City Audit

There are all kinds of accusations being tossed out and I want to tell you that the announcement and presentation of the 2004 Audit Copy was a complete surprise to me at the Council meeting.

My wife and I were in Memphis, Tennessee, with our grandchildren from March 3 to March 15, 2006. I returned to New Albany on Wednesday night, the day before the City Council meeting.

I had asked the state for a copy of the 2004 Audit when it was completed.

I have not received a copy from the State at this time.

I do not know how or when the 2004 Audit was delivered to the citizen who passed out copies to the Council members at the meeting. I thanked the citizen because I appreciate finally getting a copy of the 2004 Audit.

I have just read the March 17 Tribune article and saw the accusation that I provided the copy of the audit that was passed out at the council meeting.

I am very disappointed in the public officials who are making these accusations.

I take my role in representing the citizens of New Albany very seriously.

Councilman Bill Schmidt

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To be sure, it's bold, forthright and plausibly deniable, but very strange, indeed, for how often do you see someone vigorously denying allegations that were never made?

Reread the Tribune passages quoted above, and you’ll see that the there was no mention of CM Schmidt’s name in the context suggested by his statement, “I have just read the March 17 Tribune article and saw the accusation that I provided the copy of the audit that was passed out at the council meeting.”

In other words, he’s responding to a charge that wasn’t even made by the source he cites, as no such allegation was made by the Tribune.

Furthermore, by consciously noting his March 3 – 15 hiatus, CM Schmidt does not address the significance (if any) of the February 14 meeting date that actually was reported by the Tribune.

In an endearing and blushingly demure manner, NA Confidential is guessing that the CM Schmidt’s letter to the transgendered ghost blogger Erik/Erika was not intended to address NAC’s vibrant and factual meeting coverage, as the councilman did not directly respond to our main insinuation (which we fully acknowledge) that he or his team had previously leaked documents to Erik/Erika – such as a letter from since departed building commissioner Paul Roberts that appeared at FOS in February.

Is it a measure of the extent to which Councilman Schmidt, a member of the Democratic Party, takes his representative role seriously that he and his are prone to speaking through an anonymous blogger with a patently false identity, with the end result of acting in concert with the undisguised and Machiavellian ambitions of a local Republican?

Umberto Eco couldn’t come up with a plot line quite that intricate, but we persist in thinking this to be the case. No agendas here. NAC just wants to set the record straight.

So, if you're out there E/E, who was the Paul Roberts letter originally addressed to – and how often does the information conduit tiptoe through the CM’s tulips to you -- the hooded blogger with the false, misleading and absurd non-identity?

You see, here in New Albany there’s no need to follow the money.

Just follow the bile instead. Usually it leads right to the source.