Tuesday, September 27

Representative Democracy in Hardin County

What part of "No" do 19 out of 20 Hardin County commissioners, our sheriff and our county mayor, not understand?

These folks are generally out of step with the citizens.

If they continue on down the path they have chosen for themselves, over the next couple of months we will again get into the evils of using this regressive tax, known as wheel tax, to fund a capital improvement project in general and the validity of this ill conceived project, specifically.

I would like to take this opportunity to express my opinion on a far more basic problem that has finally and clearly manifested itself.

It is one thing for our county government to have to admit they are guilty of deliberate indifference to those folks who are unfortunate enough to find themselves confined in what passes for our detention facility, but it is a major breach of their sworn oaths and responsibilities to act with deliberate indifference to those folks who elected them.

It was just ten or so months ago that the voting citizens of this county, by a public referendum, said loud and clear that we did not want a $28 wheel tax increase to fund "the Jail/Sheriff’s Department Project." Do these folks really think we are going to like a $36 wheel tax any better?

By this attempt to usurp, displace, supplant and cut out the voters, our county commission has clearly established their intent to lay claim to the right to appropriate, seize, commandeer or preempt the decisions of the citizens.

Representative Democracy and Majority Rules is, at best, on life-support in Hardin County.

A review of the results, by voting district and precinct , will be helpful, but first it must be noted that the majority (55 percent) of those voting on the issue, were against the $28 wheel tax in November 2004. Yet, 95 percent of the commissioners voted to make it $36 in September 2005.

See anything wrong with this picture, yet? It gets worse.

Let’s assume the commissioners who represent the districts that supported the issue could ignore the majority vote in the county and take the position that my constituents support the issue. Weak at best, but a semi-effective shield.

Why doesn’t the same apply to commissioners whose constituents defeated the issue?

On a district count, it should have been 12 "No" to eight "Yes." No way to get a two-thirds majority "Yes" vote out of that. On a precinct count, it should have been 13 "No" to seven "Yes." No way to get a two-thirds majority "Yes" vote out of that, either.

Again, I think representative democracy and majority rules is, at best, on life-support in Hardin County.

Those elected officials who thumb their noses at the will of their constituents should consider resigning and not seek public office again. They can’t seem to function in a representative democracy or they have sold out to the good-ol-boys.

You decide.

Respectfully submitted for your consideration.

Ted