I attended the March 12 Vancouver City Council session and was disgusted to watch the dismissal of the citizens’ views by Mayor Tim Leavitt. He was argumentative and cut a speaker out of the process, instead opting to hear from Paul Montague of Identity Clark County, who is essentially a paid lobbyist for economic development initiatives. Leavitt even stated that he wanted him to speak after we did — I believe so that our facts were disputed. It was a lesson in propaganda. What really stinks is councilman Jack Burkman’s comment that the local citizens should not have input by vote on a federal project. I want to ask him if he minds if the federal Department of Energy buries nuclear waste in his backyard without his input? That, too, would be a federal project.
This is another example of government controlling the people.
Carolyn Crain
Vancouver
