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Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009

YOUR SAY: Too many ‘czars’ to mention, but a great example of clear debate in Washington County

I have seen several letters published recently that rant and rave about the “czars,” but they all seem to miss important points. Most people who this tag is being applied to are either cabinet undersecretaries (who are subject to Senate confirmation) or personal advisors to the president (who have never been subject to confirmation and have been in use for most of our nation’s history).

Additionally, “czars” are painted as a purely Democratic phenomena. One writer claimed that former President Bill Clinton appointed the first “drug czar.” The so-called “drug czar” is actually the head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, an office created during the Reagan administration. Bush 41 had czars too, be it his abstinence czar, his bioethics czar or his birth control czar.

This czar thing is simply another example of the president’s critics finding things that have existed for years to suddenly get outraged about.

In modern political discourse, where difficult issues such as health care, energy and other emotionally charged topics are debated, the arguments on either side can become less than civil and at times downright disrespectful.

How refreshing it was to be at the Oct. 20 Environmental Protection Division public hearing in Sandersville.

The people of Washington County should be proud because they demonstrated how individuals with widely different opinions can come together and debate an issue — in this case, the Plant Washington coal-fired power plant — in an orderly, thoughtful and respectful manner.

Both the proponents and opponents of Plant Washington showed the way public discourse should be conducted. People were able to speak freely. Nobody was interrupted. People applauded those speaking for their side but did not boo or ridicule those with opposing viewpoints. You could even see a few people who had opposing views sharing handshakes and hugs with one another.

In addition, the people from outside of Washington County were welcomed warmly and treated as one would expect guests to be treated.

The visitors responded by expressing their opinions thoughtfully and by showing courtesy to those with opposing views.

I also think the EPD officials, led by Air Protection Branch Chief Jac Capp, should be applauded for encouraging everyone to speak freely and for treating each person who stepped up to the microphone with respect and in a way that shows our government is listening to the people.

I applaud everyone who participated in this most recent session; it was a cut above the rest.

Dean Alford is a representative of Power4Georgians in Sandersville