Cheers: To Election Day. Whether or not the results came out as you hoped, cheers are warranted for all who participated in last week’s election. That list includes voters, candidates and those who ensure that local elections are conducted fairly and with transparency.
In Clark County, approximately 80 percent of registered voters cast ballots (votes are still being counted, so an exact tally is not available); the hope is that those who are eligible but not yet registered will partake in democracy the next time around. And thanks go to candidates who ran for office in the belief that their talents could improve the lives of their neighbors. But most importantly, we offer cheers to election workers who send out, collect and count ballots despite unfounded criticism from some activists. Under the watchful eye of citizen observers, those workers play an important role in our democracy.
Jeers: To a free criminal. Clark County Jail staff mistakenly released an inmate who should have been sent to Oregon. Maurice Xavier Haynes, 27, was sentenced in Clark County for second-degree theft. Upon completion of his sentence, he was expected to serve the remainder of a 15-month prison sentence in Oregon for first-degree criminal mischief.
A warrant has been issued for Haynes’ arrest, and county officials say an internal affairs investigation is being conducted to determine why the error occurred. Clearly, some protocol changes are needed to enhance public safety and ensure that convicted criminals serve their sentences.
Cheers: To the initiative process. Community activist group Save Vancouver Streets has turned in a petition with 6,517 signatures to the city of Vancouver. The goal is to land a measure on next year’s ballot that would require voter approval before the removal of traffic lanes.
The Columbian has editorially criticized the premise of the effort, writing: “Requiring a public vote on myriad decisions sounds like an extreme response. . . . Because we hire elected officials to make some decisions, not all public issues should require a vote of the people.” But we cheer public involvement in the process and the fact that Washington allows citizens to place legislation in front of voters.
Jeers: To a labor shortage. Although construction employment in Clark County has increased slightly in recent years, industry insiders say there is a shortage of workers. “Regionally, we are dramatically undersupplied with labor to fill those positions,” one expert told The Columbian.
For a region that is quickly growing — and that might have a multibillion-dollar bridge to build in the coming years — that news is disconcerting.
Cheers: To honoring fallen soldiers. Some 160 years after the Civil War, the remains of more than two dozen soldiers have been properly laid to rest. The Associated Press reports: “For several decades, the cremated remains of more than two dozen American Civil War veterans languished in storage facilities at a funeral home and cemetery in Seattle. The simple copper and cardboard urns gathering dust on shelves only had the name of each of the 28 soldiers — but nothing linking them to the Civil War.”
Since being identified, most of the remains have been buried at Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent. “It’s amazing that they were still there and we found them,” said Tom Keating, the Washington state coordinator for the Missing In America Project. “It’s something long overdue. These people have been waiting a long time for a burial.”
