OUR OPINION: High salaries

What happens when no one cares about city government?

Maybe what occurred in Bell, Calif., when only 400 voters showed up for a special election in 2005 to change the city to charter form of government.

With the new form of new government and the city officials' salaries no longer restricted by state law, the city went on a pay spree. And by the time the citizens woke up the other day the city manager was making an annual salary of $800,000, the police chief drew $450,000 and the city council members paid themselves $100,000.

All this in a city of 36,000 in the 2000 census. All this in one of the poorest suburbs of Los Angeles.

We'd like to think this sort of thing could never happen in Minnesota. Certainly not in Crow Wing County or Brainerd where it seems everything is under the microscope of the public.

Watchdogs are needed. They can be citizens. They can be alert newspapers. But there should be concern in today's society in view of the shrinking media's ability to stay on top of governmental doings.

Since colonial America, newspapers have been watchdogs of government. If they don't do it, who will? Nationwide, local radio news operations are virtually nonexistent.

Annually the Dispatch prints the salaries of many officials. Maybe this happened in Bell, Calif., and no one cared. And if that's the case that's the real crime. Now, finally, the people are protesting. The attorney general is investigating and the sky-high pay is being rolled back.

People just don't seem as engaged in community affairs as they once did. As someone else said, they're residents, not citizens. Maybe the Bell tolled for no one. Or maybe it was a wakeup call.

It's our business.