Editorial

Two weeks ago, Cynthia Murray’s commentary published on our Tribune’s editorial page immediately captured my attention. Her opening paragraph spoke of the need for public discourse to depart from its extreme focus on rights and to emphasize more the importance of responsibilities. Because of the opening paragraph’s traditional and conservative tone I found myself nodding – yes, yes, as I read it.

Here in Sonoma County we take our carbon footprint very seriously. Together as residents, businesses and local governments we have done much to lower our energy use, resource consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. We have been repeatedly recognized as conservation and sustainability leaders across the country.

In Measure A, Sonoma County voters are being asked to approve yet another general purpose sales tax. Members of the County Board of Supervisors and others out on the stump are promoting Measure A as a “roads tax” that if approved would be spent 90 percent for road repairs and 10 percent for public transit items such as free bus passes for students, seniors and veterans. Unfortunately, the ballot language itself belies a different intent. The plain language of Measure A identifies a list of spending objectives starting with public safety and concluding with the troublesome catchall “other essential services.” Roads don’t even top the list.

What the county’s Board of Supervisors hoped would be a sleepy little single-issue election on June 2 for the Measure A county sales tax increase is turning out to be anything but.

Today (Thursday, May 14) is the annual “Bike to Work Day,” equal parts celebration and encouragement of safe and affordable transportation that doesn’t involve driving a fossil-fuel powered vehicle.

We work hard to keep our gardens looking beautiful, so when we find our plants in distress it is hard to resist the temptation to head to the store and grab any product that promises to restore the garden’s beauty. While many people consider pesticides and fertilizers as a quick solution, they are not the safest options for our heath nor for the environment.

Growing up, my parents taught me about my responsibilities to my family, my school and my country. Taking responsibility was expected of me. Today, it appears the emphasis has shifted from people taking responsibility to demanding their rights. There is an extreme focus on rights –as individuals and as members of a democratic society. The public discourse is filled with discussions of rights – whose rights trump the others or are being infringed – but often there is silence about having responsibilities.

The condition of many of Sonoma County’s roads and streets is deplorable. Almost two-thirds of county roads are poor (pavement condition index 25-49, on a scale of 100) or failed (PCI below 25). This is a huge problem in West County, because it has more roads in terrible condition than any other region of Sonoma County. Crumbling roads cost motorists $800 per year in worn or flat tires, bent rims, ruined suspensions and lousy gas mileage.

On our most recent visit to the state capitol in Sacramento, we witnessed the mounting waves of an invading army, a strange confederacy of hired-gun lobbyists, backwoods entrepreneurs, green-tinged lawyers and cannabis-sniffing capitalists.

The more arguments that are presented in support of Measure A, the quarter-cent sales tax increase on the June 2 ballot, the stronger our opposition becomes. First it is called a “road tax.” Now “Yes on A” campaign literature features a firefighter and a public safety message. What is Measure A, really? It is a “free pass” for our Board of Supervisors and their labor union contributors to avoid fixing their unfunded pension problem and other budget imbalances.