Has anyone been following that story where the Deputy Director of the Merit Protection Commission was fired? He has actually put out a blog about it. The story is in the Oklahoman: Merit Protection Commission fires deputy director | NewsOK.com

Yes. I know Austin Gilley. He is a fine Christian man who epitomizes what an ethical public administrator should be.

He was railroaded. He tried to expose a corrupt organization and was a scapegoat. I am sick that the local media (OK Gazette and the DOH) have ignored his story.

You can read all about his plight at Austin Gilley. Yes, his original email may have been inappropriate, but this was not the kind of guy to fly off his handle without some semblance of rational conviction and mores.

I implore you to take up his cause and understand that real "good ole boy" politics survive in our state government.

Well, no offense, he may be a nice man but he comes across, to me, as a moralizing loon. He may have the right of it (at some level and to some extent) but he really hasn't used good judgment - in my opinion. From reading his blog, it looks like he decided time and again to do things that he really didn't need to do and only waved red flags.

I can't imagine why he would have blown off his boss about some trivial things. He may not have respected her and he may have been mad and/or feeling picked on, but ignoring her reasonable directives the way he did was just wrong. It advanced absolutely no higher cause. If he wanted to blow the whistle - why wait months until after he gets called on his rude e-mail?

If he wanted to make a difference, he could have been a lot smarter about it. Repeatedly, it looked like he went out of his way to be difficult or confrontational when he didn't need to - that becomes a distraction that undermines the ability to make change. To me, he comes across as one of those people (and we've all met them) who assumes the rest of the world is just a LITTLE less ethical than he is and he doesn't want to be tainted. In my opinion, if he REALLY wanted to stand up for what was right, he could have used the system instead of preaching and being rude. And he really was rude.

That e-mail and some of the things he did are just wacky, at best. At worst, he comes across as having some sort of mental problem. He sounds moderately "nice" (when he isn't lecturing and finger pointing) but completely lacking in good judgment - to me. Just my opinion.

Why, with a family to support - would he post this blog? Everything on the internet is there, forever. Isn't he stopping to think that prospective employers are going to think he is a brick short of a load? Hard to work with? Sanctimonious? Quick to judge? A back stabber? A manipulator? Based upon what he wrote, covering his a** sounded like something on his mind during most his waking hours. Not one thing on that blog is going to change anything. If I were his lawyer and my client did that, I'd have already resigned.

Thank you for the comments. You raise many great questions and have some great points. I hope you will stick with my story. I don't blame you for questioning me. And at some point, I realize I won't be able to respond to all of the questions and criticisms.

I believe with more information, you may have a different impression. I feel I have a good reason for every action I have taken. There is certainly one thing that you are absolutely right about: Everything I have done has been to protect myself and my family, and I happen to believe many in Oklahoma might reap benefits from it, too.

And I agree that posting all of this stuff online comes at great risk. I wonder why my attorneys aren't resigning?

-- Austin Gilley

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