“Say it ain’t so, Joe.” That statement was allegedly made following the Black Sox scandal of 1919 in which famed Chicago outfielder “Shoeless” Joe Jackson was found guilty of throwing the World Series and subsequently banned from baseball.

This was the thought that entered my mind last week as I listened to Prestonsburg City Council member Kelly Moore answer questions about property he sold to a local businessman; property which in fact belonged to the city: Say it ain’t smelly, Kelly.

During the Black Sox trial, the courts found it difficult to prove Jackson had a role in throwing the Series, because it had never been reflected in his play. Joe had a smoking hot batting average of .375, with 6 RBIs and the Series’ lone home run. He also threw out a runner at home plate. These aren’t exactly the stats of a man taking a dive.

Councilman Moore, on the other hand, the only defense he could muster was that he didn’t know what he was selling. Despite the surveys and the deed descriptions all saying the same thing — that the property he was conveying was not his to convey — he pleaded ignorance. The fact that the property he sold was nearly double the size of the property he purchased was waved away with a magic wand and the “I didn’t read the deed” defense. Bear in mind this is also property Councilman Moore lived two doors down from for a number of years, not some obscure wooded lot in the middle of nowhere. By the end of the discussion in Wednesday night’s special meeting, doubt was nowhere to be found.

At the conclusion of the Black Sox trial, Jackson was found guilty and banned from baseball along with the other implicated members of the team. Not because anyone could ever prove that his performance was ever less than his best, but because Jackson had prior knowledge of the fix, and never told anyone.

My guess is Councilman Moore will get the same treatment, and be removed from office. Worst case scenario: Moore acted with criminal intent to defraud the city of which he is an elected official. Best case scenario: he is incompetent and inept, and isn’t fit to serve in any official capacity.