Paul Vogel

You may have seen the Miami Herald article on Paul Vogel and the concern over his non performance on the commission. It paints a picture of a man who just wants to continue serving the city, a picture that may very well be true. It's not Vogel who concerns me, but the people around him.

I've written before that I believe Paul Vogel is the object of bullying and elder abuse from his self appointed supporters and I stand by that.

On the cell phone issue, the article says, "About six years ago, he had a stroke from which he completely recovered, coming back full-time to his commissioner duties, she [Marietta Vogel]said"

I don't know if Paul Vogel knew that his wife had the city cellphone and never claimed that, but she knew. And she used it for seven years. This was not well intentioned assistance during a crisis. It was taking petty advantage of the city's good graces.

The article goes on about the last three absences from the commission meetings. Those were excused. But in 2011, he missed at least four meetings as well with no excuse.

I guess the biggest issue I have with the article is that while it presented a clear picture of the people talking about Vogel, Paul Vogel himself was not heard from. Isn't that the voice we need to hear? Was he kept from being interviewed?

In short, my issue is not with Vogel himself. It is with the people around him who profess their admiration while using his declining health to further their own ends. They take advantage of the incapacity of someone who served the city well and that's just wrong.

And I would remind the Commission on Ethics that it is not their job to judge intentions. It's their job to evaluate actions.

Kevin Vericker
March 23, 2012