IF we’re honest, looking back squarely, 29-years of cronyism have created the worst period of growth in the history of Paris, Texas.

It has been worse then the years after the Great Fire of 1916, a period of solid growth in Paris.

Paris is not meeting the expectations of her citizens.

We’re not getting our money’s worth.

It’s a failure of what we have done, and are doing.

Counting the lies leading up to citizen’s approval of the Paris Economic Development Corporation (PEDC), in November, 1993, Paris has enjoyed a lot of lies, broken promises, double dealings, and other semi-legal actions; all earning the community a well-deserved reputation in certain circles.

And now, the PEDC is spewing more double-talk than the Coronavirus has variants.

First, it repeats what the Paris Texas Chamber (and others) has said for years:

“Building a speculative building is foolish.  (EDCs don’t know what a prospect might require anymore than a cross-eyed stone-age Snapping Turtle.)

Now, the PEDC is agreeing with what we’ve said, but are –

–  also handing out at least $52,000 for designs that it claims can be later used to finish out a planned “flexible, bare-bone building“ –

Seems every time the PEDC meets, the Paris Chamber learns something new. Imagine our surprise to discover that a “flexible, bare-bone building” is not a speculative building. After all these years, we learn that both Gertrude and Willie were wrong: A rose is not a rose and the smell is not sweet.

The PEDC adds injury by saying this will save millions of dollars – !!?? (It also said said the foundation of the old Oliver Rubber plant would save money, too.)

We’re suppose to trust them.

On what? Transparency? Honesty? Double-talk? Stupidity?

The PEDC is a community representative that has said and done things that would make Joe Biden blush.

The PEDC has always been a conspiracy of cronies.

This time, cronies in the PEDC, who are cronies with cronies in the McKinney Texas office of a locally headquartered Paris firm, dreamed up a scheme to design floor-plans that can be used in different ways to finish out a pre-built (not speculative, of course, but a pre-built) building.

This way, the conspirators explain, an unknown future user – in some unknown future – can pick one of the interior configurations (or furnish their own), which, they add, can be completed “in a very short time.”

Knowing the pre-built building as they will, the bet should be that the cronies who will build the “pre-built” building, will do the act of completing the spec – uh – pre-built building, which may have to be  rebuilt to rid it of wasps, dirt-daubers, nesting pigeons, sparrows, field mice, and lots of East Texas’ Creepy-Crawlies.

Local suckers … uh … taxpayers provide the money.

Local politics at work.

Cronyism.