1 FEB 07: WHERE DOES THE MONEY GO?

First the Muscogee County School District lost thousands of textbooks. Now it's "lost" more than nine million dollars for several hours. If this keeps up, we're going to find out the TV drama "Lost" really is set in the woods around Shaw High School.

But let's be fair: what happened Wednesday apparently was NOT the Muscogee County School District's fault. School officials say a bank error led to a delay in "direct deposit" checks for 3,961 employees. But why were some employees so anxious about this on a school day? Isn't lunch in the cafeteria nutritious enough these days?

A total of $9.6 million was missing from school district bank accounts for several hours. A bank computer error affected not only paychecks, but automatic deductions from bank accounts for things such as home mortgages. Unwritten checks like these explain why penmanship is declining in this country.

Columbus Bank & Trust handles the payroll for Muscogee County schools. C.E.O. Steve Melton took responsibility for the direct deposit delay in a TV interview - as he probably took a break from serving refreshments to the National Infantry Museum construction crew.

Steve Melton admitted a CB&T computer error occurred, in transferring money to Muscogee County School District employees. But give the bank some credit - it found the problem in only a few hours. At the Government Center, it might have taken months or years.

Steve Melton promises CB&T will cover any fees that customers might owe, because of the direct deposit problems. That's what he said on the record. I think that translates into: "The computer programmers will cover any fees...."

The direct deposit error by CB&T should have been fixed by 6:00 p.m. for all Muscogee County School District employees. So their bank accounts should have been fouled up only one day. And if you listen to teachers' unions, it's a wonder collection agents weren't waiting in the parking lot after classes.

Wednesday's foul-up provides evidence for the people who don't trust "direct deposit" programs of any sort. I first heard ministers at church warn against them in the 1980's, warning the programs were taking our country toward a dangerous "cashless society." Yet now they're part of denominations which accept payments by debit card - so do they need to repent?

Call me old-fashioned, but I heeded the ministers' warnings. I've never used "direct deposit" for any workplace paychecks. That way, the government hasn't been able to intercept my assets because they know I keep a seventh-day Sabbath. At least, that's what the warnings suggested -- but I'm still waiting for federal agents to raid Seventh-Day Adventist churches.

But SSSHHH - without the ministers knowing it, I admittedly signed up for an "automatic investment" plan. A little money was withdrawn from my checking account each month, and transferred to a mutual fund. I never went broke. The money wasn't seized. And I never was confused for someone laundering drug money.

BLOG UPDATE: Speaking of money, Columbus City Manager Isaiah Hugley announced Wednesday that one-time Finance Director Angela Cole has resigned from city government. Cole actually resigned Monday - but apparently she was allowed two days to clean out her cubicle, and sneak out of the Government Center basement with no reporters watching.

The City Manager says Angela Cole resigned voluntarily, as opposed to being fired. Maybe she was waiting for a better job offer -- maybe from an investment firm....

Angela Cole was raked over the coals by many government watchers, after the missing money from landfill fees became public knowledge last year. But she was only city Finance Director from 2004-06, and fees went uncollected before she took the job. There's an old childhood lesson here: run and hide before anyone notices something is broken.

Columbus Councilor Red McDaniel said Wednesday night Angela Cole was "in over her head" as city Finance Director. But this seems a bit hard to believe. You'd think a Finance Director would have to pass a mandatory calculus check.

Some people are saying the resignation of Angela Cole makes her "the first victim" of the landfill fee-asco. Was Mayor Bob Poydasheff's election loss THAT long ago?

E-MAIL UPDATE: We received some nice fan mail Wednesday, and this is only part of it....

What a wonderful BLOG!!! I found you accidentally when doing a search, trying desperately to figure out what happened to one of my favorite on-air personalities. I plan to visit you regularly.

Usually when I visit a BLOG I find a lot of extraneous information on issues that I can't relate to - everything you addressed was pertinent to me and my community - I didn't know you were out there! You are now on my "favorites" list.

BUT, I didn't find what I was looking for, could you please send me your "blurb" about Bear O'Brien from Rooster 106?

Thanks so much -

Denise Renn Matthews

We did that for Denise, sending an item from 22 Jan. I wonder if Bear O'Brien is at his new radio station in Montgomery this week - or if he's in Miami, rooting for Chicago to win the Super Bowl.

Since Denise brought up Columbus radio: the fall ratings for local stations were released this week. But for the second report in a row, the numbers were NOT announced to the news media. Arbitron put an "embargo" on them - which apparently means a station asked for them to remain private. You'd think WFXE "Foxie 105" would want everyone to know how they're still kicking everybody else....

By the way: if you're looking for some specific person or topic on our blog, we've found it works better to use a regular search engine. The search tool on our blog pages doesn't seem to do as well, apparently because this is an "old-style" blog model. A four-year-old blog template apparently is like still having Windows 95 as Vista comes out.

(We could upgrade to a new-model blog template - but that would mean dropping the rotating colors, which have survived two votes here to oust them. I'm surprised no one's written and accused me of being a Jeff Gordon fan.)

We're saving another nice e-mail for this weekend - and moving on now to other Wednesday topics:

+ Former Columbus Council candidate Geraldine Hollis went before a property tax review board. She denied owing the city back taxes, contending the city actually owes HER money for seizing some property after a fire. Hmmmm -- would Councilor Jerry Barnes dare propose a financial settlement with an election opponent?

+ Fort Benning admitted a wildfire developed on post, spreading smoke over downtown Columbus. The fire was contained quickly - perhaps using leftover waterboarding equipment from Iraq.

+ Valley resident Stephanie Kerry told WRBL her city needs an ordinance restricting gunfire. She said officials who want Valley to be a city should "put on the long pants" and act like it. Or if you're against the idea, at least put on a flak jacket.

(Stephanie Kerry complains her neighbors are shooting at squirrels in their backyards. But she should look on the bright side - terrorist groups probably just crossed Valley off their "to-do" list.)

+ A cross selling for six dollars at an Alabama thrift shop was traced to the Catholic Archbishop of Mobile. It was stolen from Oscar Lipscomb's car in late December - so is there any such thing as a "Super Bowl Week Miracle?"

+ Delta Air Lines canceled about 200 flights through the Atlanta Airport, because an approaching storm could bring icy conditions. That's the way to show the world you won that takeover fight with US Airways....

+ The Atlanta Business Chronicle reported an investment group wants to bring a WNBA franchise to the city. Some people are truly desperate for a winning pro basketball team....

+ Instant Message to WDAK's Scott Miller: Why are you so worried about the Columbus State mens' basketball team having "only 11 players?" Don't you remember how far Bobby Cremins took Georgia Tech years ago, by playing only six or seven?

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