— from Learner Limbach —
I’m officially running to serve as your next representative on the San Juan County Council.
We are living in an unprecedented time in history. We have an economy that creates massive amounts of wealth but fails to distribute it equitably Too many people are left struggling to get by. We are witnessing the effects of climate change and ecosystem collapse right before our eyes. We are going through this world more isolated than in the past, increasingly deprived of authentic human connection.
I see the islands as a unique and special place. As a long-time islander, I also have an understanding of the challenges that we face. I see an incredible opportunity for our islands to be a model of sustainable and regenerative community, providing an example that inspires communities elsewhere in our region and throughout the world.
While there is a tremendous amount of work to do, we succeed when we come together, when we lift each other up, and when we embrace new approaches and bold new ideas for solving our biggest problems.
Working together we can:
- Support a thriving local commerce and create a year-round local living economy;
- Ensure everyone in our community has an affordable and dignified place to live;
- Establish functional solutions for healthcare in the islands;
- Take bold action to address the Climate Crisis;
- Protect the Salish Sea and the natural environment of which we are a part;
- Improve transportation systems to work better for locals and promote car-free tourism;
- Invest in growing the local food system and support our farmers to succeed;
- Provide all youth with the support they need to grow into happy, healthy adults;
- Expand senior services, create more opportunities for intergenerational connection and aging in place.
The San Juan Islands have been my home since I was a teenager. This is the place that I know, the place that I love. If given the opportunity to serve as your representative on the County Council, I pledge to listen deeply, to act with integrity, and to fully commit myself to the work ahead.
Visit www.learnerlimbach.com to donate online and learn more about the campaign. Donations can also be mailed to Friends of Learner Limbach, PO Box 1996, Eastsound, WA 98245.
Given that we live in one of the wealthiest places in Washington state, Learner, how about promoting a wealth tax for San Juan County, with the proceeds to go toward affordable housing for low- and middle-income folks and families?
Michael, thanks for the comment. I support a wealth tax as one solution to addressing the extreme wealth inequality that exists, both in the San Juan Islands and elsewhere. I support a national wealth tax, and I suppose the idea of a local tax and a national or state wealth tax are not mutually exclusive. It is certainly appealing that, as you suggest, with a local tax we would get to use those funds to address some of the inequality that exists locally such as by investing in affordable housing. I have questions, such as, whether a local wealth tax be legal and how it might be implemented if so. I look forward to exploring this with you.