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The INDEPENDENT, October 7, 2004
Letters… From page 3
Local government is
bastion of democracy
To the Editor:
What is the point of local gov-
ernment?
As a child I was taught that
we live in the greatest country in
the world because of the free-
doms we enjoyed. And that our
type of government, democracy,
was the best a group of citizens
could hope to have.
The Merriam-Webster’s dic-
tionary defines democracy as
“government by the people; es-
pecially: rule of the majority b: a
government in which the
supreme power is vested in the
people and exercised by them
directly or indirectly through a
system of representation usual-
ly involving periodically held free
elections.”
Well, as most of us old
enough to vote know, on a na-
tional level we do not live in a
true democracy. The Electoral
College decides our president
for us. And in many instances,
special interest groups and lob-
byists control a senator’s or rep-
resentative’s vote.
This can occur at the state
and city level, too. But it is at
these levels, especially the city
level, that an individual can truly
have a voice that is listened to,
even if the final vote doesn’t go
their way.
I feel the major role of an
elected official, and also city
staff, is to try and find equitable
solutions to issues that affect
the constituency they represent.
When issues arise that could
potentially have an adverse ef-
fect on the city’s citizens, they
need to be heard so an informed
decision may be realized for all
parties involved.
This is why public hearings
are held. It is a fact and opinion
seeking process by the govern-
ing body. It is also a forum to
take the “pulse of the communi-
ty,” so decisions made will re-
flect the majority’s desire.
In my tenure on the city coun-
cil, there have been more Public
Hearings held than I can re-
member. We do this because
we WANT the public’s input be-
fore we make decisions that will
affect their lives, whether finan-
cially or aesthetically.
There are exceptions, but
overall, I have seen few issues
that were “No Brainers.” Each of
us has a different perspective
regarding an issue. Many times
our opinions on how to deal with
an issue do not agree. It is the
responsibility of the council to
listen to differing opinions, and
taking into account the facts of
an issue, decide on a course of
action that will benefit the city as
a whole.
With that said, it was a good
decision to hold a Public Hear-
ing regarding POTENTIAL
changes at the Transfer Station.
This was obviously an impor-
tant issue to the citizens of Ver-
nonia and the surrounding area,
based on the turnout at the pub-
lic hearing. As I have used the
transfer station only once, I had
no idea what the situation was in
regards to its operation and
management. It was quite in-
formative to me, listening to
people who use it on a regular
basis. (FYI, the transfer station
is not a part of the city’s fran-
chise agreement with WM. And
when the last contract was ne-
gotiated WM said they would
keep it open as a separate serv-
ice to the community).
I must say that I do not recall
ever hearing or discussing the
idea of THE CITY closing down
the transfer station, except
when I tried to dispel rumors to
that effect.
As soon as city staff learned
about WM’s desire to close the
transfer station they began, and
are still, looking at alternatives in
case WASTE MANAGEMENT
decides to leave. I would agree
with Mr. Akers that the city coun-
cil “bungled this one” IF we just
said okay to WM and didn’t seek
alternatives or replacements for
this service.
Holding a public hearing re-
garding such a “No Brainer” is-
sue was beneficial, as issues re-
garding accounting practices,
non-local users and, most im-
portantly, recycling, were dis-
cussed. Hopefully, the informa-
tion provided increased public
awareness of the situation.
I thoroughly agree (based on
the public’s input) that the ac-
counting practices used by WM
at the transfer station are lack-
ing and need to be addressed.
But I would not have known that
without the public hearing. Also
because of public input from
consistent users of the transfer
station I learned that the rates
charged are lower than any oth-
er transfer station in the sur-
rounding area.
I know from past experience,
that if we had not held a public
hearing, and just said to WM,
“go ahead and raise your rates,”
that a future council meeting
would have been overflowing
with irate citizens accusing the
city of not including them in a
decision that adversely affected
their pocketbooks.
One other note is a reminder
for Mr. Akers. When those of us
on the council received the infor-
mation that he also received
from WM, there was a glaring
difference. Our documents had
the word CONFIDENTIAL
stamped in red on them.
The fact that one of WM’s
employees provided him with
this information non-confiden-
tially is wonderful. (Although
based on the WM representa-
tive’s reaction at the public hear-
ing, I think there is some discipli-
nary action in your WM contact’s
future).
But I represent the City of
Vernonia as an elected official,
so my actions, both positive and
negative, have a direct effect on
our wonderful city. When I see
CONFIDENTIAL stamped in red
on a document I receive relating
to city business, I know what it
means. And if I were to discuss
publicly this CONFIDENTIAL in-
formation without authorization
from the source, I would be ex-
posing the city to potential litiga-
tion, and thereby not performing
my sworn duty as a councilper-
son to the city of Vernonia and
the people who elected me.
To all of the citizens who at-
tended the public hearing re-
garding the transfer station, and
any of the past public hearings
over the years, I offer my sin-
cere thanks.
It is obvious that in Vernonia,
we still believe in a democratic
form of government, and prac-
tice it wholeheartedly. It is a
wonderful example of what
makes our city a shining exam-
ple, and it is just one of many
reasons that this town is so spe-
cial and has found a warm spot
in many hearts far and wide.
Glen Purvee
Vernonia
Difficult to discover
quality of physicians
To the Editor:
Did you know it is easier to
check the background on a
contractor remodeling your
kitchen than it is to find out if
your surgeon has a history of
negligence? Well, it’s true. It is
almost impossible to find out if
your doctor has a history of
reckless or negligent behavior.
If we want to improve patient
safety we should crack down
on reckless and negligent doc-
tors. Measure 35 won’t do any-
thing to improve patient safety
and it will hurt Oregonians. Be-
fore we amend the Constitution
we should try something less
drastic. Voters should reject
Measure 35.
Eileen Strain
Seaside
“Security” depends on
view of nation’s needs
An open letter to President George
W. Bush
Dear President Bush,
You must be pleased with the
most recent polls indicating that
women have put you ahead of
John Kerry because of concerns
about security.
Do you think these ratings
are accurate? I am asking be-
cause I believe such reporting
may misguide you.
Do you realize that women
like myself, a mother and grand-
mother, are offended by the atti-
tude that because we are fe-
male we must depend on your
kind of “security”?
Are you aware that there are
millions of intelligent, strong
women who are independent,
self sufficient and informed, with
little belief in your political agen-
das?
Are you aware of growing op-
position to your policies by large
groups of women in organiza-
tions such as Code Pink? Code
Pink named itself in derision of
the Homeland Security color
alert system while signifying ex-
treme danger to the values held
by nurturing, caring and com-
passionate women, and men, in
our country?
Do you realize that these
young and old women commu-
nicate online, over cell phones
and through person-to-person
contacts which are unavailable
to pollster inquiry. Have you
heard of the Feminist Majority
Foundation, the Brennan Center
for Justice, the International Oc-
cupation Watch Center in Bagh-
dad? These are a few of many
organizations powered by pas-
sionate and outraged women!
Do you understand that
strong women work hard to pro-
vide for their children? Women
whose strength enables them to
sacrifice their health, their time,
and their very lives, if necessary,
to provide for their families –
without your kind of security.
Have you any idea of the
credibility problem you have
with promoting yourself as the
great defender when your form
of security leaves out children
whose schools have been
closed because you and con-
gress have deleted over 20 bil-
lion dollars from promised fund-
ing? A funding loss which result-
ed in one of many phrases of
voter discontent like “Leave no
Billionaire Behind!”
Is it not your kind of “security”
that provides great profits for
companies like AT&T, Boeing,
Consolidated Edison, Lehman
Brothers, Marriott International,
Pepco Holdings, Reebok, Time
Warner and others, by giving
them rebates totaling $5.4 bil-
lion? Are you oblivious to the re-
port by the Institute on Taxation
and Economic Policy that those
corporate giveaways could have
provided Head Start for every
eligible child, or covered every
uninsured child in America with
comprehensive health care for
the next decade, or helped
close the gap in affordable
housing for extremely low in-
come families?
Is your kind of “security”
found in Iraq where infiltrators
from other countries retaliate
against the U.S. occupation of
Iraq with murder and brutality?
Do you think Jack Hensley’s
mother felt secure when she
was told her son had been be-
headed on his BIRTHDAY?
Was security the reason you
ordered a stop to U.S. special
forces’ pursuit of al Qaeda in the
mountains of Afghanistan when
they had the potential to capture
Osama Bin Ladin in 2002?
Your credibility, Mr. Bush, is
rapidly diminishing at home and
on the war front. The front where
real soldiers are bearing the
brunt of your ineptitude and inat-
tention. Where the answer to
the question of “are we win-
ning?” is a resounding NO!
See page 24