UEP vote a failure of democratic process

Jul 25, 2009 2 min read

To the editor:

America enjoys the greatest democratic system the world has ever known. Unfortunately, however, it’s not perfect and the council’s failure to do the right thing, and pass the water expansion plan, was a striking failure example.

Those council members who voted “yes” to move forward with the expansion deserve our respect and appreciation for honoring their oath and doing their jobs.

And those elected officials who voted “no” have not only violated their promise to respect and represent the majority, they have ignored the opportunity to put hundreds back to work, they have set the stage for more than 50,000 “ratepayers” to be unjustly charged for a service they have already bought into. And, they have designed a disastrous path for the city which can only lead to further pain, shame, and debilitation.

Sadly, this was one of those tough decisions that, we knew, would be painful.

On the one hand, there were those that had purchased homes beyond their means. They had, as property values sky-rocketed, refinanced the property and used the money to live high on the hog.

Others bought lots and also speculated that they would hit it big as values continued to soar. Then the housing market collapsed, unemployment set in, and the piper needed to be paid.

Factually, “speculation” sometimes produces wealth, and sometimes fails; it’s a gamble. And when it fails there are serious consequences. It’s absolutely unfair to insist that others who played no part in the irresponsibility are then expected to pay for the bail-out. Compassion is an admirable quality but those council members that voted no for the continuation of the project voted against the enormous majority, in violation of every ethical practice, and displayed a pomposity that challenges the sanity of any rational person.

Shame on those who didn’t have the guts to do their jobs properly and for the sake of the city. And, we need to respect and admire those representatives that recognized what was right… and did it.

Dick Kalfus

Cape Coral