It's clear that Cobb school board chairwoman Lynnda Crowder-Eagle not only ignores the people, but other board members as well.

Despite objections from two of the seven board members, Crowder-Eagle has said she's going ahead with a $5,800 "team-building" junket next weekend at Amicalola Falls State Park. This is team-building?

She dismissed a request from member Alison Bartlett to cancel the "retreat" and call a special board meeting to discuss a highly critical presentment from the Cobb County grand jury - and explain why Crowder-Eagle did not inform other board members about the inquiry.

The chairwoman also dismissed an objection from board member Dr. John Crooks, who said he would not attend. In an e-mail to Crowder-Eagle, Crooks said the costs of the junket "are too extravagant for this economic season in Cobb County." And he said, "we need team building in the board room, not in the RESORT room" and "team building with our public, repairing the communication problems of the recent past."

This time Crooks got it right, apparently having learned a lesson from the move to recall him on grounds of intent to mislead the public, violation of the Georgia Open Meetings Act and conduct unbecoming an elected official. Crooks didn't listen to his constituents opposing a cell tower and insulted them by saying if the issue was put on the agenda before the vote as required by law, "it would have probably caused a circus."

Like Bartlett, Crooks was disturbed over being kept in the dark about Crowder-Eagle, then-chairman John Abraham and Superintendent Fred Sanderson, along with board attorney Glenn Brock, appearing before a grand jury panel Dec. 1.

But Crowder-Eagle turned a deaf ear to the other board members. Her comeback: "Why not? That would be my answer."

If what Bartlett and Crooks said didn't suffice, nothing would.

As for the grand jury inquiry, she described it as "some good conversations" and gave an explanation showing she didn't know what she was talking about.

She said the board had not received a copy of "the report" by the grand jury, "and when it comes back, that would be when we would discuss it." She said the presentment, published in the MDJ legal advertising, was "not a complete report."

It was complete, District Attorney Pat Head said. And grand juries don't usually send copies of presentments to subjects of inquiries.

Obviously, the board's $2 million a year attorney Brock failed to inform Crowder-Eagle about the process - if he knew what it was. But that's no surprise, considering that he sat through more than 50 illegal votes in closed-door meetings of previous boards without letting them know they were violating the law.

Contrasting Crowder-Eagle's out of touch comments, board member David Banks of east Cobb flat out dissed the jury presentment as meaningless. "I don't put any credibility into it," he said. What arrogance.

This board majority is out of control and out of touch with the people. Next: out of office?

dmckee9613@aol.com