Re: Toll Roads

[Ken Medlin <dev-plan@moscow.com>]

>We already finance our roads with what amounts to tolls: The more you
>drive, the more gas tax you pay. We just haven't got our fair share of the
>proceeds, maybe.
Excellent points but ones about which the electorate is woefully 
uninformed or misinformed. What we typically get from our state-level 
elected and appointed officials is information they deem useful to 
securing their positions and furthering their agendas -- unless of course 
they are queried "in the open" on some particular point, such as this 
one. The press and media ought to perform better in this quality-of-life 
area by probmg officialdom more often with poignant queries along the 
lines of public interest, no?  Why did a few of us have to hammer so hard 
on the "fair gas price" issue,when it has been lying out there, nakedly, 
for so many years? The Spokane-Idaho Review called us "all the way over 
here" to ask what it's all about. Vera White did mention what we were 
trying to do, but nothing more than that. The press chose not to probe 
the industry. Why? Should responsible journalism seek not only the 
immediate newsworthy events but also the stories and dramas imbedded in 
the community, which, while not sensational or "hot" items, affect the 
general welfare and quality of daily living for all? Most people are 
truly concerned about these matters, more than "who shot whom", or "cars 
jam on slick roads", "who got promoted,"  kinds of events, important as 
they arae to the few individuals involved.  Maybe the truly concerned 
souls ought to bare their observations more frequently, and not only 
through the crank letters page.Where does journalism lead us.? Any 
takers?  

------------------------
William K. Medlin
Dev-plan associates
930 Kenneth Street
Moscow ID 83843
208/892-0148
dev-plan@moscow.com