Here is a great letter to the editor from Inside Tucson Business. There are so many strong voices in our community that are waiting in the wings to be heard.

This blog was created as a way to let some of those voices be heard.  The traditional media has strong voices as well, the challenge is finding those messages in a crowded world is sometimes difficult. The goal of this blog is to bring those voices front and center.

 

Published on Friday, August 08, 2008

TO: The Editor
FROM: M. L. Ebert
RE: Steve Emerine’s column “Politicians’ failure to act may have already doomed Tucson’s future,” July 28 issue

Steve Emerine again is “spot on” regarding our city government. I remember seeing a computer-generated presentation of the makeup of Tucson’s demographics including political affiliation many years ago. I said then (1980s) that this town did not have the stomach for the diversity an annexation of those folks living north of River Road would give to our community.

We truly are destined to be guided into the future by people with little understanding or appreciation for free enterprise or the importance of protecting property rights.

A good beginning would be to declare city council positions full-time and to pay them enough to attract caring citizens from the private sector. Secondly, move away from partisan elections and look to actual leadership credentials, instead of party affiliations, of individuals running for office.

Regarding annexation: We need to stop the annexation of land; that is gutless. This city needs people to join the municipal government process. Most living in the outlying areas are affected by decisions made by our city council yet have no voice. To entice them, we may have to give them their own seats on the council. If we want to stop the anti-business spirit of this city government and stop the decay, we need to do all of the above.