AN ALDERMAN, A CITY INSPECTOR AND A CONTRACTOR WALKED INTO A BAR.

The title of this blog sounds like the start of a bad joke.   So does Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s latest Ethics Reform Task Force and in both instances the punch lines are very funny.

Emanuel announced his Ethics Reform Task Force  last week. “I created an Ethics Reform Task Force in order to recommend reforms to Chicago’s ethics ordinance and better serve taxpayers,” Emanuel said in a press release.   The Task Force also has a web site where citizens can have a public dialogue about ethics reform.  Or as the Mayor said, “This website will assist the … task force to assess the current ordinance, consider best practices across the nation and make recommendations to ensure appropriate oversight of government activity.”

So how is ethics reform a joke?  Maybe because currently the City of Chicago seems to have more Inspectors General and Boards of Ethics than there are bus stops.  And there are bus stops on every corner! And if it ain't working now, it is not going to start just because a new ethics reform group is created.

Chicago is also very fortunate to have the Better Government Association, an independent not-for profit organization  where citizens can report government fraud and abuse and hold elected officials accountable.

At the end of this blog, I have created links to some of those  investigative ethics groups which have been in existence for decades to make your reporting job easier.  If people aren’t already whistle blowing, what makes Emanuel think they will start blowing now?  He must be hoping for a happy ending that only comes following a visit to a massage parlor.  Or is it all just a mirage?

SOME CHICAGO INVESTIGATIVE GROUPS:

The Chicago Board of Ethics

The Chicago Office of the Inspector General

The Chicago Police Board of Ethics

The Office of the Inspector General- Chicago Transit Authority

The City of Chicago Legislative Inspector General

Chicago Public Schools Inspector General

Chicago City Colleges Inspector General