Were you one of the approximately 250 volunteers, including numerous schoolchildren, who helped remove more than 2,000 lbs. of litter from San Juan Island’s streets, roads, and beaches on April 21 as part of the Great Island Clean-Up? Do you consider yourself an environmentalist?
If you answered “Yes” to either of these questions, the San Juan County Republican Party apparently believes you want American to fail. At least that’s the message of a video on its website entitled “Video ‘If I Wanted America to Fail’ Exposes Environmental Agenda on Earth Day,” an insulting, dishonest attack on me and the majority of residents of San Juan County who consider ourselves environmentalists.
While many of us in our county were celebrating Earth Day the weekend of April 21-22 through good deeds and caring thoughts about the earth we share, the local Republican Party was criticizing through this video those of us who love both our country and the environment that we are working to protect for future generations.
The position of the local Republican Party on environmental issues should not be that surprising given the apparent position on voting rights of its vice chair reflected in his letter to the editor in the February 22 edition of the Journal of the San Juans. In his letter, the vice chair discusses hypothetical changes to our voting system that would give additional votes in national elections, as well as in local elections involving property taxes, in proportion to the amount one pays in federal incomes taxes and in local property taxes, respectively. As an example, the Koch brothers and Warren Buffets of the world would each receive approximately an additional 5,000 votes in presidential elections. The author then asks at the end of his letter “What’s unfair about that?” Unbelieveable!
Whatever happened to the Republican Party’s typical defense of the constitution when one of its local officers suggests further skewing our campaign finance and voting systems in favor of the wealthy? Whatever happened to one person, one vote?
As the 2012 campaign season progresses and moderate Republicans and undecided voters begin to form their opinions on whom to vote for in local, state, and national elections in November, they may want to keep in mind the local Republican Party’s video and its vice chair’s letter.
And they may also want to avoid voting for any Romulans.
David Dehlendorf
Islanders for the Common Good
San Juan Island
David –
I went to the effort of attending the San Juan County Republican Caucus and the County Convention this year, and actually speaking face-to-face with my fellow citizens about their views on a range of topics, including the environment.
There, I found overwhelming support from our local Republicans for environmental protection, though perhaps via different mechanisms than you support. So I think your charactization of their views is uninformed and unfounded, at best.
I didn’t meet any “Romulans” there, just a diverse group of normal, hard-working islanders, who care about our community and our environment just as much as you do.
Perhaps making common cause with your neighbors would be a more productive way to proceed…
Brian: You missed the main point of my letter. I do not doubt that there are some Republican environmentalists. What I was objecting to was the vilification of environmentalists by the local Republican party by means of the video. Perhaps making common cause with their neighbors would be a more productive way for it to proceed.
So happy to live on Orcas island and to be an “environmentalist.” What a beautiful, sunny day!