Sheesh. I already knew Ray Reynolds was a big blabber. But you would think that people who have been through TOMA (Texas Open Meetings) training (at least I assume all the Somervell County Hospital Board members have) would know enough to keep their big fat traps SHUT talking about the matter of potential litigation. So, let's set the stage. Last week Ray Reynolds told everybody in the room at a board meeting about a closed session coming up regarding the Turks and a proposed settlement they made. He did NOT give any board members the actual settlement to read, so it was apparently more of a gossipy heads up. I thought at the time watching that video of the meeting that he sure didn't seem to understand the importance of keeping his mouth shut BEFORE having a closed session, instead telling people who were non-board members as well as in front of a recording camera about what the Turks wanted done. Made me wonder what else he gossips about in front of people; I already knew from another video I watched that he gossiped about Dr Peter's divorce. Discretion for Ray Reynolds? Pah, what's that? 

But what is absolutely absurd about tonight's meeting is that these board members went into executive session to discuss potential litigation. They came out and anything they said was private. In other words, they dang well discussed whatever the fool was in that settlement amongst themselves, privately, AS THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO DO. When they came out, Paul Harper made a motion about this. And then they adjourned that meeting.

WHILE THEY WERE WAITING for the next meeting to start, Ole Chip Harrison feels the need to blab himself. 

Rough Transcript:

Harrison: Uh, since we're not in any sort of meeting or anything, does anybody think it would be a good idea for the board to meet with Dr Turk? And talk to him and see what he says?

Reynolds: The recorders going (MY COMMENT: PERHAPS REYNOLDS IS MORE AWARE NOW SINCE HE BLABBED SO OPENLY LAST WEEK)

Harper: No wait, this isn't an agenda item. So we can't talk about it. 

Harrison: Well, I'm just talking out loud

Hankins: Well, we're not going to make a decision. I'll just say from my point I'm ..... (unintelligible). That's my two cents

Parker ... dispute if you can talk it's worth it

Harrison Yeah

Hankins. I still think there's reasonableness going on based on what Dr Burroughs reported. 

Again, WHAT THE FOOL? Are these people completely stupid? What was the POINT of having a closed session where presumably everything was discussed THEN if they're going to come out and talk about it some more. Sorry, but these board members are not smart for doing this. I almost want to give props to Ray Reynolds for calling out that they are being recorded, but it ain't like he wasn't (and maybe isn't regularly doing it in other venues) too. 

Adding that Ray Reynolds specifically said, in the same meeting he was so openly talking about the offer, said that he's been *thrown under the bus* for approaching the Turks. Why would that be? Could it be that that the attorneys on the hospital side set down an edict that the Turks not discuss anything, please, outside of attorney-attorney conversation and Reynolds decided to ignore the advice of the GRMC attorneys? Seems like that might be. IF THAT IS SO, then surely Chip Harrison or John Parker or Ron Hankins would not believe it was appropriate for THEM to go rogue and go approach the Turks. Or maybe they believe these types of admonitions, even though Reynolds apparently smacked for his failure to not interfere, doesn't apply to them.

In fact, this is a farce. If Chip is only "just talking out loud", does he also "talk out loud" in his daily travels around the city? Do people in, say, the Dairy Queen, get to hear him expound on this subject since he had no scruples not to talk about what was supposed to be ONLY discussed in closed session *during* the time between meetings? Also, there was a quorum of members sitting there. No one has to make decisions, as Hankins said, in order for this to be the wrong thing to do. Shows that the majority of the board, as well as Ray Reynolds, has no respect for the entire mechanism of what closed meetings are FOR and that you don't just blab your head off to other people or feel like it's Olly Olly In Free because, even though a quorum is present, you're in between meetings. Seems like the only time Ray Reynolds and some of the board wanted to keep stuff private was with regard to Liz Morgan, who is Director in charge of patient records, having pled GUILTY to a 3rd degree felony for stealing money from a CHURCH. 

One can only laugh.