Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Opinion & Editorial

by Jessica Randazzo, Mayor of Hamilton

With the new year upon us, I want to thank all of you who have contributed over the past years to making the City of Hamilton the best possible place to live and work. I'd like to extend a special thanks to our citizen volunteers who sit on advisory boards. Your participation in local government is appreciated. We need and value your input.

Thanks also to all of you who voted in the last city election. The message from the voters was clear and supportive of the goal I have had for our city government; that elected official will put aside their personal issues and angry, nasty attacks and focus instead on the business of the city. I am confident that the newly elected council will do just that.

The city staff and I are looking forward to the coming year and to working with the newly elected council. We have been planning for the best start possible. We have put together a comprehensive orientation that includes meeting with department heads, taking tours of city facilities, and receiving volumes of reading material (not the most exciting part of the job but definitely necessary).

I am particularly excited about the fact that all of the councilors have agreed to participate in a council retreat. Experts from the Montana State University Local Government Center will be in Hamilton in late January offering two evenings of training. On the first night we will be reviewing the roles and responsibilities of the Mayor and Council. This basic information is essential to the smooth operations of our city government. On the second evening we will be goal setting. Goal setting builds trust and helps establish a sense of team. Most importantly, it sets priorities so we can focus our efforts.

Priority setting will particularly important in 2008 because in the past two months the outgoing council has presented and passed a host of resolutions, some of which will require substantial staff time to implement. Several of the resolutions will require large amounts of money to move them forward. Hiring new staff, paying for a citizen-led planning process, and looking into a land purchase of nearly $2 million will take tens of thousands of dollars, none of which are included in the current operating budget. The new council will need to provide direction to the administration about how to proceed.

The coming year promises to be one of many challenges. Managing growth and planning for the future of our valley will continue to be a big focus of local government. The City has already committed to updating our growth policy and to planning for our long-term capital needs. Both of these projects require citizen input and the hard work of our talented staff. The City has also started talking with the County about how we can work together to protect our water and air quality, to plan for the transportation needs of the valley and to figure out how to zone and develop the areas just outside the city boundaries. These are gigantic tasks that can only be accomplished by city/county partnerships. I am optimistic about local government's ability to do what is best for our citizens.

Serving as your Mayor for the past two years has been a great honor and privilege. It has also been exciting and at times, difficult. I appreciate the outpouring of supported and I thank you for the encouragement, kind words and prayers I have received.

I look forward to the coming year and welcome your participation in making Hamilton the best it can be. Please feel free to contact me by calling 363-2101. ext. 13, or be emailing: mayor@cityofhamilton.net.

Montanans show ugly side

Dear Editor,

Most days, I would say that folks in western Montana are about the friendliest people you could ever hope to meet. However, that opinion was sorely tested at a recent Forest Service meeting in Darby.

The topic was the Bitterroot National Forest's proposed travel plan held at the Darby Clubhouse. The crowd advocating motorized recreation was clearly trying to intimidate and bully anyone who might disagree with them. They refused to allow the Forest Service to run the meeting as intended, with study of maps and thoughtful feedback.

Instead of being democracy in action, the meeting was closer to a mob scene. The Forest Service facilitator was unable to steer the unruly bunch into doing anything constructive.

When people were brave enough to speak up against this bunch, they were not simply treated rudely - they were verbally abused. "F-bombs" fell left and right. Speakers were called names and sworn at by anonymous people in the crowd. At one point, a woman was speaking when a rider clearly made a very threatening, violent remark.

I am no prude and understand that folks get angry with the government. But there is no excuse for what occurred in Darby.

If the responsible ATV and dirt-bike riders think this kind of behavior is good for them, they better think again. It may shut up some critics in the short run, but will backfire in terms of lost public support for your favorite sports. If riders want respect, they better learn to show some in return.

Leaders of trail-riding groups say most motorized users are responsible, courteous neighbors who respect the land and a "few bad apples" are giving them a bad name. The Darby meeting seemed evidence that the bad apples are running the show.

Joe Hundley
Darby

No room for rude behavior

Dear Editor,

An angry mob of motorized ORV users treated our employees, the men and women of the US Forest Service, appallingly at the Darby hearing for the Travel Plan on the Bitterroot National Forest (BNF). Eyewitness reports from the meeting have confirmed that several members of the motorized user community included obscenities and personal attacks in their comments, to the approving applause, whistling and noisy praise by most of the rest of the crowd for over three hours.

Eyewitnesses also report that those speaking in favor of some restrictions on motorized travel on the forest were booed and heckled by the belligerent mob. This hostile atmosphere crossed the line into borderline criminality when one man said, referring to comments by a person in favor of limiting access, "put a bullet in her head." There is no record of anyone within the wide earshot of this remark expressing exception or outrage about this blatant threat. When local conservationist Gary Milner asked this man if that was indeed what he said, he confirmed it, and freely gave his name as well, apparently fearing no consequences. The threat and the man's name were written down by Forest Service personnel and have since been turned over t law enforcement for investigation.

The Bitterroot Human Rights Alliance has talked to a number of conservationists who said that they declined to comment after that threat (and because of the hostility of the crowd) for fear of being at least verbally attacked. The Bitterroot Human Rights Alliance condemns this behavior. This behavior is anti-democratic mob action whose only purpose is to bully and intimidate public officials and stifle opposition. It seems to have worked as the Forest Service has decided to scrap the hearings in favor of an informational meeting on Tuesday where only written comments will be accepted.

These tactics are unfortunately not exceptional in the debate over public lands issues in the Bitterroot in recent years, and foster an atmosphere in which some people go beyond words and feel confident that they will get away with physical aggression against those with whom they disagree. Two examples include an incident a few years ago in which a crowd of anti-environmentalists assaulted and threatened conservationist Larry Campbell in the BNF Supervisor's office parking lot in broad daylight. In a more recent incident, hiker Bob Clark, while attempting to write down the license number of a motorcycle rider caught illegally riding in a restricted area, was assaulted and run down by that rider egged on by his companions.

We need to hold all people involved in the debate over the use of public forest lands to a minimal standard of respectful behavior at these hearings if the process is to work. We respectfully submit that this behavior is clearly coming from motorized users and others in the anti-environmental crowd. The Forest Service should recognize that, in this community, threats and violence have only come from this side and act accordingly. The contrast between this free-for-all hearing and the announcement two years ago by the BNF of the Middle East Fork decision could not be more striking. In that instance, body armored Federal Marshals escorted local conservationists out of the press meeting for simply being there, despite no evidence or threat of violence by them or the organizations they represent. The Forest Service officials should not be blamed for the actions of the public, but we would request that they redouble their efforts to get this process under control, so that all members of the public are safe to exercise their right to speak freely on the proposed Travel Plan.

The Bitterroot Human Rights Alliance also calls on such groups as the Bitterroot Ridge Runners and the Ravalli County Off Road Users Association to do more than simply condemn such behavior after the fact and try to distance themselves from their supporters. It would help if these organizations would tone down their incendiary rhetoric about off road vehicle users being "locked out" of the National Forest. These tactics were clearly responsible for both the number of motorized users attending the Darby meeting and for the extremely hostile mood of the crowd. And most importantly, we call upon them to demonstrate some leadership at these events by participating respectfully. This would give some credibility to their repeated claims that this behavior is not characteristic of the group as a whole.

The most recent user statistics available from the BNF showed in 2003 that off road enthusiasts comprise less than 3% of forest users. Though they are a small minority of National Forest users, their voices should be heard along with those of other users. Their claims of exclusion and disenfranchisement, however, appear to be grossly exaggerated. They would still have access to 2,487 miles of roads on the Bitterroot National Forest alone, even after the restrictions being currently proposed. The rights of an aggressively vocal minority should not trump the rights of other users, and this kind of behavior has no place in our community.

Sunny Cluff, Pam Erickson, Michael Helling, Char Jones, Bill LaCroix, Carol Miller, John Schneeberger, Bob Scott
Bitterroot Human Rights Alliance

Wal-Mart not so great

Dear Editor,

I am writing this letter in response to the one the fellow wrote the other day espousing the benefits of having Wal-Mart in a community. The first thing there is a problem with is the average wage may be $10.71 an hour, but the average employee only makes $17,144 a year. This is because the average employee is classified a part time worker, because they work less than 40 hours a week, thus making them not eligible for benefits. And this from the world's largest retailer that brings in $220 billion a year. More than the GDP of Israel and Ireland combined. And Wal-Mart encourages its suppliers to move offshore, particularly China, so that they can reduce the price that they sell their products to Wal-Mart for. By doing this former U.S. manufacturers then close down their American plants, putting workers on the unemployment line helping to create the growing lower class in the United States. And speaking to Wal-Mart's direct employment and to the treatment of their employees, the company has been hit with literally thousands of workers comp violations, just recently settled a large sexual discrimination lawsuit, been busted for employing illegal immigrants and for violations of child labor laws.

A little side note from a report done by the Federal Reserve bank of Minnesota in the Fed Gazette. They found that Wal-Mart kills jobs and downtown areas and destroys community character. They also found that they discriminate against women, use illegal immigrants, and require workers to work off the clock (that would be for free). Wal-Mart also works to stop formation of labor unions among its workers; they closed a store in Canada where the meat cutters unionized. It causes or encourages sprawl and creates traffic congestion. It strong arms infrastructure upgrades from local governments. This would be stop lights, sewers and road widening, as examples. It constantly fights property tax assessments on its stores.

Retail wages fell in every county where Wal-Mart has a store. Employee benefits were better in counties that didn't have a Wal-Mart. Poverty rates are significantly higher in counties where Wal-Mart has a store. Coincidence? In other reports it was noted Wal-Mart's heavy reliance on public subsidies, its downward influence on wages and stores' damage to the local ecological system.

Is this what you want for your community, a local ghetto, but you will find a store that has low prices to go along with the quality of life.

Mike Lulay
Hamilton

Hamilton HEC offers great opportunity

Dear Editor,

A new semester begins January 22 for University Montana courses offered through the Hamilton Higher Education Center. You have seen a listing of the courses in newspaper: Accounting, Computers, Medical Terminology, Psychology, Biology, Oral Communications (presentations, public speaking, etc.), American Government, Intermediate Algebra, Medical Terminology, and others. Classes meet one or two evenings a week, either at Hamilton High School or the Hamilton Carriage House, 310 No. 4th St. The semester ends May 9th. There will be new courses offered in the Summer, in a five-week term; than again new classes in the Fall.

What is the Hamilton "Higher Education Center"? It is not a college of itself; it does not have its own faculty or its own degrees. There is no Hamilton HEC diploma. Rather, we are the University of Montana in the Bitterroot Valley. All our courses are University of Montana courses, listed in the official University catalogue and leading to UM degrees, including the Bachelors degree and the various Associate degrees earned through the UM College of Technology. (As is true for most universities, a Bachelors degree requires 120 credits, approximately; and the Associate degree requires 60 credits, approximately.)

The Montana Board of Regents uses the phrase "Higher Education Center" to mean a University affiliated program remote from its main campus. There is a Great Falls Higher Education Center, established in the mid-90s, which is an affiliate of Montana State University.

The Bitterroot Star has readers anywhere in the Valley. The Higher Education Center hopes to enroll students from all the Bitterroot towns and communities. This past Autumn semester, which ended in December, the HHEC had about 42 students, taking one or two of the five classes we offered. More than half were from Hamilton or near-Hamilton (24). Corvallis was represented by four (4) students, Stevensville three (3), Victor and Darby each had two (2). One (1) student drove from Missoula, and one (1) from Conner.

You might have heard recently that a new fund for scholarships has been created by a gift to The University of Montana Foundation by the Edward L. Hutton Foundation of Cincinnati. These scholarships are reserved for students who register for two UM or UM College of Technology courses through the Hamilton Higher Education Center this Spring semester. There are also scholarships for the two courses offered by the UM Graduate School and School of Education through the Hamilton HEC.

The intention of the scholarship is to pay the tuition and fee cost for the second of two classes a student selects. That is, if the student pays for a first class of 2 or 3 credits, the scholarship will pay the tuition and fee cost for a second class of 3 or 4 credits. Scholarships will be in the range of $400 for a 3-credit course, or $500 for a 4-credit course.

A very few scholarship-grants may also be available for students registering for a single course through the Hamilton HEC.

Applicants must complete a scholarship form, write a one-page statement about their education plans, and complete their registration papers for the Spring semester. Because classes begin January 22, anyone who would like to come forward to apply for these scholarships should speak to me very soon. My office for the Hamilton Higher Education Center is at The Hamilton Carriage House, 310 No. 4th St. My telephone is 363-5410, ext. 115.

This fund represents a generous gift – altogether $15,000 – from someone with sincere good wishes to help education in our part of Montana. If the Hamilton HEC is offering courses that could be useful in your career plans, please think of this as a very lucky opportunity.

Frank Laurence, Ph.D., Acting Director
Hamilton Higher Education Center

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