I received some interesting correspondence this week. Some of it was solicited, comments from colleagues responding to my request for help. I am finally crafting the foreword to our collection of writings on agriculture and the common good, and I wanted their input to make this small piece of writing represent the large effort of the book. Although I don’t always like being corrected, their comments helped strengthen my sentences as well as my position. Every drop was helpful.
Another piece of correspondence,
however, was less than helpful. It was a
letter elicited by my April 20th column, “Disappointing News” from a
reader in Strathmore. Let me say that
such letters are always welcome, no matter the content, because they tell me the
column is serving my main purpose in writing it: to get people expressing
themselves about, and on behalf of our communities. This letter, however,
triggered doubts about my ability to communicate.
The writer of the letter was kind in
his criticism if also seemingly confused in his facts (i.e., his facts do not
match mine.) His subject was what has
happened in the City of Lindsay over the last couple of years; his purpose in
writing the letter appeared to be to correct my version of those events. He also expressed what he thinks should be
done, solutions which run contrary to my prescriptions.
I don’t know where he got his
facts. Perhaps it was from reading the
newspapers. The point of my column that week
was that the reporters had chosen narrowly from the facts available, and that
this selectivity had skewed the truthfulness of their reports. Perhaps I was too subtle.
I suspect, however, that the
letter’s writer had his facts delivered to him from another source, someplace
nearer and dearer than the printed page.
That’s fine. That’s where most of
us get our facts, after all.
The writer of the letter recommended
that I (and my fellow discontents) educate ourselves and get a copy of the city
charter, then hold our councilmembers accountable to that lovely legal
document. I wish that would help. But I’ve had a copy on my shelf since 2010
when the citizenry began expressing their discontent and dismay, first at the exorbitant
salaries Lindsay city officials were paying themselves, then at the debacle
over the stacked low-income housing loans made to 13 city employees. This effort to “hold accountable” the council
culminated in the resignation of former city manager Scot Townsend, who
departed with a $35,000 severance package despite the fact that he quit (i.e.,
he was not fired or asked to resign,) and the exit of several other higher-ups,
including finance director Kenny Walker.
The scramble that followed wasn’t pretty, and the perpetrators got away
scot-free, so to speak.
The writer of the letter also
suggested we initiate a recall if our efforts are not taken seriously. He apparently
is unaware of 2011-2012 recall effort of all 5 city council members, which did
not culminate in a recall election but which (I feel pretty sure) resulted in
the non-re-election of 2 of those members in 2012. The effort took us one step in the right
direction, no doubt, but it also burned out a great deal of the community’s
available energy.
Reflecting on that time took me back
to my battle to save the Central California Citrus Exchange building from
demolition in 2013, which our current city manager, Bill Zigler (then holding
the position of city planner) wanted so badly he could taste it. That building was eventually saved, thank
God, by the new owner who has a passion for buildings with historical value and
design integrity. But this effort to
bring Lindsay into the 1980’s regarding historic preservation was followed
quickly by the loss of several other historic buildings, including its first
hotel and Stamper Motors. We still do
not have even an inventory of our historic resources much less an update of our
badly-outdated general plan.
Looking back on the last six years
wasn’t particularly pleasant for me, but perhaps it was useful after all. I’ve learned the hard way that people are
inclined to hear what they want to hear, to believe what seems to best serve
their purposes. Changing those beliefs
takes something more than crafty little sentences on a page of newsprint.
It takes speaking truth in love, a
Quaker concept I have not yet mastered but admire when I hear it. The next six months, as we approach the big
election, will give us all lots of opportunities to hone our skills in this
spiritual art. Let us begin.
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Trudy Wischemann is a
remedial student of plain speech who writes despite her lack of education. You can send her your appropriate phrases c/o
P.O. Box 1374, Lindsay CA 93247 or leave a comment
below.
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