Ihate to keep beating this dead horse, particularly when we have poor defenseless horses being slaughtered in South Florida. And, no, this is not an equine tale.

This is about Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez, who was kicking up a fuss last week like a stubborn mule refusing to climb out of the political muck of his own making.

Thing is, he means well. He's good to his people. He promotes them, he gives them raises because they have more work and more responsibility. He seems like a dream boss -- fearless in his defense of his clan: the cops, the firefighters, his staff.

Why can't he see that his first responsibility is to the county's 2 million residents?

And why does he think The Miami Herald is out to get him for reporting the facts?

A LOT OF NOISE

In a press conference last week right before the county commission had its 12-hour marathon session and passed a budget that includes $444 million in cuts, Alvarez hemmed and hawed about The Herald's coverage of pay raises granted to top staff, police majors and certain firefighters. A mass of armed beige-brown shirts -- the majors -- stood around him.

By holding up a misdirected e-mail from reporter Matthew Haggman who sought to get an interview with the mayor on The Herald's findings that police brass and firefighters had gotten big bumps over the past year, Alvarez implied he had a smoking gun. Lots of noise, but no real firepower, though.

Imagine, said the mayor, being a manager overseeing people who earn more than you do. ``He's a major, and the captain makes 10 grand more than he does,'' Alvarez said, pointing to an officer. ``There's something wrong with that.''

PAY DISPARITIES

Except. There are plenty of businesses in which high producers earn more than their managers. Alvarez, a former cop, doesn't know this, perhaps because as a cop he was a union member too.

Pay disparities? It happens in sales. It happens in construction. It happens in the media. Ask a TV director about the pay gap between a news anchor who rakes in big bucks and his or her boss.

Talent, awards, merit. It's supposed to count, but in union contracts not so much.

One might argue that a cop on the street in a high-crime area should get battle pay for the higher risk she or he faces every day, and perhaps earn more than the boss at the command post. One can also argue that instead of increasing the majors' salaries, Alvarez could have made a very public call for those under the majors to take a pay cut to even things out.

WRONG APPROACH

But it's not that easy, I know. The unions representing police, firefighters and county employees have worked out good deals over the years, and we shouldn't resent that.

The problem is, the economy has opened up a sink hole 444 miles deep. You can't keep building on it. You have to move on, find firm ground and start anew.

Alvarez hasn't plotted that course. His first budget proposal for the coming year was a ``sky is falling'' tactic that fell flat. He had hoped the specter of cuts to programs for the elderly, children, abused women, and even the arts, which have big corporate supporters, would push the public to accept a property tax hike. Didn't happen.

Alvarez argues that he's ``trying to rectify'' the pay scales and benefits caused by generous union contracts.

But his fix -- raising salaries for non-union managers -- only makes next year's hole bigger. For all his braying, the mayor's still stuck in the muck.

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