Conflict of interest is about appearance as well as the actual corruption. Any public official who appears to be involved in a conflict of interest loses (or should lose) the confidence of his constituents and the public at large. That's one reason why you shouldn't, oh, say, for instance, be the assessor of the town of Ulster and a county legislator at the same time - and let me say here that we absolutely do not agree with an appellate decision in State Supreme Court that James Maloney can continue to do both jobs. On the surface, the appearance of conflict is strong enough. You can see how a town, which pays taxes to and splits other revenue with the county could be at cross purposes with it, on the one hand wanting its citizens to pay less taxes and looking for a bigger slice of revenue side. But the county legislator should be looking out for the county and all its citizens...and Maloney engaged in such a conflict when he advised both sides in the tax dispute over the value of Tech City.

So that aside, avoidance of conflict of interest can also require that officials should not be part of companies that have contracts with the county, and that officials conducting an audit should not be ushered into the office of the chairman of a party to discuss issues.

For auditors from Democratic comptroller Alan Hevesi to go to Democratic Chairman John Parete's office for an interview with three Democratic county legislators and the chairman of the party was incredible political folly. Just when they've got the Republicans on the ropes, with the jail raking against the fabric of the slimmest of majorities in the legislature, higher officials looking into the finances, the county teetering on the verge of great debt with the election looming, candidates picked, petitions challenged, covering all the bases, they go and act, well, like the Republicans used to.

Probably nothing untoward happened, but it sure looks like Democrats spoon-feeding their case to other Democrats, receptive to listening. The comptroller was right to remove the two auditors but there's been some damage done here. And the Democrats really lobbed a softball at Mike Stock, who got some good wood on it, and all the more mileage because it was Stock who ended the closed Republican caucuses.

This jail project cries for an honest audit. At worst, it will uncover some abject corruption, with someone clearly stealing. At best, it will provide a roadmap of misjudgments, snafus and inattention, or some clue as to why and how a $50 million project doubles in price. That, at least, ought to be worth knowing.