To the editor:
Jim Dyment and his friends may have forgotten that a true conservative prides himself in his ability to see the world objectively, as it actually is.
Our world is passing through a temporary period of economic recession. A conservative worthy of his chops will soberly size up the current recession and the threats it poses; he will then act methodically to address those threats in the least disruptive way. He will not yield to hysteria. That is a constructive conservatism that honors its best traditions.
As bad as the current recession may be, it is not Armageddon. The economy shows signs of turning around, even as I write. Our county commissioners have approached our revenue shortfall in a diligent, measured, transparent, pragmatic — I dare say conservative way. They obviously recognize that gutting government would be a foolish overreaction to a moderate economic downturn. They have not lost sight of the fact that they can revise the budget again next year to accommodate changing real world fiscal conditions. They “get it.”
You are correct to observe that public safety is job number one; each commissioner took an oath to protect the public. You will note that they have trimmed Sheriff Mark Brown’s budget and County Prosecutor Banks’ budget considerably less than for other departments.
I wish these cuts had not been necessary, but the board of county commissioners’ approach has left these departments able to function, as their chiefs admit. That’s good enough for me.
So, Jim, when you and your self-described “conservative” friends decry these very modest cutbacks in Island County’s law and justice operations, I scratch my head in puzzlement. I think it’s possible you are cynically trying to capitalize on the recession in an ideologically inspired, unpatriotic effort to get rid of government. Not all government is bad, Jim.
Our Island County government is a model for the rest of Washington. We will best serve our interests by supporting Commissioners Price Johnson, Homola and Dean.
Paul Thompson
Langley
