While I completely sympathize with the residents of Vashon who wish to fight these attempted zoning changes, I have to admit that I find this post to be more than slightly ironic. As you have noted in the past, you live in one of the Bluest enclaves of a very Blue state. I have heard many times from many people, that "Elections have consequences!". And I'd bet a lot of money that the great majority of Vashon residents have happily voted for county and state candidates whose views on pretty much all of what King County would like to impose on Vashon are very well known, simply because these candidates are all Democrats; or worse, because they are not Republicans. Frankly I am surprised that King County has not tried to sneak in earlier with their "progressive" ideas. Thinking that Vashon is safe from the insanity of Seattle just because you're an island is wishful thinking. Lots of people are very jealous of the life that you enjoy on Vashon, and would love to take that away and force you to live as they do.
Perhaps next time they vote, Vashon residents should look more carefully at what the candidates stand for and their track records on things like whether residents/citizens or government should make these kinds of decisions, rather than which party they belong to?
Oh gosh, I so totally agree! I don't live in Vermont, but my impression back in 2015-16 was that Bernie Sanders was basically an unusually honest politician. I didn't have the sense that he would sneak things past his constituents, and he had a reputation for talking with elected representatives and people on the other side of the aisle.
When he supported Pramila Jayapal and she supported him, I hoped this meant she was "cut from the same cloth" with regard to his honesty. She's not, and I rapidly discovered so. This current problem we're facing is just one in a string of actions she has taken that illustrate her "gain political power to achieve one's personal goals" approach to the honored role of elected "representative." She only represents herself and her allies/cronies/pet projects.
And, she's very much a "Democratic Party Player," which means, she views America's Government entirely differently than I do. As such, I regret my efforts to support her candidacy, and I've learned a lesson about trusting that one person who supports another person is actually "similar to" that person.
While I completely sympathize with the residents of Vashon who wish to fight these attempted zoning changes, I have to admit that I find this post to be more than slightly ironic. As you have noted in the past, you live in one of the Bluest enclaves of a very Blue state. I have heard many times from many people, that "Elections have consequences!". And I'd bet a lot of money that the great majority of Vashon residents have happily voted for county and state candidates whose views on pretty much all of what King County would like to impose on Vashon are very well known, simply because these candidates are all Democrats; or worse, because they are not Republicans. Frankly I am surprised that King County has not tried to sneak in earlier with their "progressive" ideas. Thinking that Vashon is safe from the insanity of Seattle just because you're an island is wishful thinking. Lots of people are very jealous of the life that you enjoy on Vashon, and would love to take that away and force you to live as they do.
Perhaps next time they vote, Vashon residents should look more carefully at what the candidates stand for and their track records on things like whether residents/citizens or government should make these kinds of decisions, rather than which party they belong to?
Oh gosh, I so totally agree! I don't live in Vermont, but my impression back in 2015-16 was that Bernie Sanders was basically an unusually honest politician. I didn't have the sense that he would sneak things past his constituents, and he had a reputation for talking with elected representatives and people on the other side of the aisle.
When he supported Pramila Jayapal and she supported him, I hoped this meant she was "cut from the same cloth" with regard to his honesty. She's not, and I rapidly discovered so. This current problem we're facing is just one in a string of actions she has taken that illustrate her "gain political power to achieve one's personal goals" approach to the honored role of elected "representative." She only represents herself and her allies/cronies/pet projects.
And, she's very much a "Democratic Party Player," which means, she views America's Government entirely differently than I do. As such, I regret my efforts to support her candidacy, and I've learned a lesson about trusting that one person who supports another person is actually "similar to" that person.
Great work, March. It's only when individuals like you step up and get involved locally does change occur. Thank you for your time and energy!