<br>
<b>Updates:</b> November 28, 2009 (see below, with December 23 correction)<br>
<br>
When a local government official co-owns a company, is it enough to
create a separate company owned solely by another co-owner to do
business with the official's city?<br>
<br>

<a href="http://www.texaswatchdog.org/2009/10/hisd-ethics-loophole-leaves-meals-…
article</a> on the Texas Watchdog website focuses on a serious loophole
in the Texas gift disclosure policy, which applies to local government

It's always nice to see politicians provide evidence for the argument
that ethics self-regulation doesn't work, but it's rare for it to
happen in so public a way as occurred yesterday. According to <a href="http://www.rollcall.com/issues/55_45/news/39780-1.html">an
article in Roll Call</a>, Rep. John Carter (R-TX), "the point man for
Republicans seeking to strip Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel

<b>Quote after Quote in Paris</b><br>
Earlier this month the French president's son supplied me with a <a href="http://www.cityethics.org/content/quote-day">quote of the day.</a> Now he has announced he will not pursue a job his father used to have,
and he has supplied me with another quote of the day:<br>
<ul>If the question you are asking me is,
‘Did you talk to the president

Is political deal-making a government ethics violation? This is a tough
area. Government ethics is about the conflict of personal and public
interests. Political interests are generally left out of the equation
unless non-political benefits are involved. In politics, you are allowed
to put your personal interests first, at least until you win.<br>
<br>

 A few days ago, I wrote a <a href="http://www.cityethics.org/content/irresponsible-handling-possible-confl…
post</a> about how several government officials in Wausau mishandled a
conflict situation involving the purchase of property fixed up with an
interest-free loan from HUD. Yesterday's <i>The State</i> of South Carolina

<a href="http://www.globalethics.org/">Global Ethics</a>, an
organization run by Rushworth Kidder, author of <a href="http://www.cityethics.org/node/259"><span>Moral Courage</span></a> and other books,

Blago watchers will be interested in the news in <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-monk-guilty-plea-21-oct21,0,8750…
Chicago <i>Tribune</i></a> about his former chief of staff and campaign
manager pleading guilty and providing detailed testimony about the
schemes of Blagojevich and three of his friends to make money off
Blago's position, "such as through operating businesses that would get

<br>
<b>Update:</b> November 16, 2009 (see below)<br>
<br>
On Sunday, the Lexington <i>Herald-Leader</i> took an <a href="http://www.kentucky.com/latest_news/story/981948-p2.html">unflattering
look</a> at Kentucky's legislative ethics commission. As in New York
State, a
central problem appears to be the commission's lack of independence.<br>
<br>

<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/20/opinion/20brooks.html">David
Brooks' column</a> in the New York <i>Times</i> today is about two views of
character, the philosophers' and psychologists' views. He too simply portrays
the philosophers' view as involving ingrained character traits, which is sadly
how most people seem to view character. I would call this the
mythological view of character.<br>