Cheers: To the more than 200,000 Clark County residents who voted in Tuesday’s election. While most of the attention is placed upon the presidential race every four years, contests for, say, the state Legislature or the county council often have a larger impact upon the daily lives of residents. Donald Trump, for example, won’t decide whether or not there is a tax increase to fund Washington schools.
Locally, voters decided nine legislative positions and two spots for the county council. There also was a school bond in Battle Ground and a race for a Clark Public Utility commissioner. It is an American tradition to complain about government or lament politics in general, but we remain grateful that this nation provides an opportunity for the public to be heard. Regardless of the outcome, voting is a cathartic exercise in democracy.
Jeers: To Western State Hospital. Washington’s largest mental-health facility, located near Tacoma, is under scrutiny again — this time for failing to quickly report to state officials that a nursing assistant had inappropriate photos of a psychiatric patient on his phone.
The hospital has had a string of problems that have resulted in an operating agreement with federal authorities and have put millions of dollars in federal funding at risk. There have been reports of conditions that endanger patients and staff members, and earlier this year there were some highly publicized patient escapes. In total, Washington’s mental-health system has routinely failed in its duty to serve and protect some of our state’s most vulnerable citizens, a situation that calls for immediate improvement.
Cheers: To the state Department of Ecology. The department has proposed a rule that will prevent vessels from dumping raw or partially treated sewage into Puget Sound and some nearby waterways. Vessel owners currently may dump raw sewage into Puget Sound 3 miles from shore, and treated sewage even when at the dock.
With many areas of the country already having such rules, it is surprising that environmentally conscious Washington, Oregon and Alaska have no such restrictions. The new rules would seem to be an obvious step, as we’re guessing that Washington residents would prefer that Puget Sound not be used as a toilet for visiting ships.
Jeers: To David Madore. Not content to leave office quietly, the Clark County councilor is again raising a ruckus. Madore, who lost a bid for re-election, is seeking petition signers to refer an ordinance passed by the council to the voters.
The details are too convoluted to explain here, but we’ll leave it to Councilor Jeanne Stewart to summarize: “What you are doing here is complete baloney,” she told Madore during a council meeting. Madore also launched into a soliloquy that eventually resulted in having his microphone turned off. Madore’s brand of undignified governance has been costly to the county in terms of legal fees and respect, resulting in a shameful and forgettable era for the region.
Cheers: To a strong economy. According to the state Department of Revenue, taxable retail sales in Clark County amounted to $1.63 billion during the second quarter of the year — a 9.3 percent increase over the same period last year. Overall, the state saw an increase of 8.6 percent.
While the recovery from the Great Recession has come in fits and starts and still has not reached many workers, the state’s economy overall is doing well, and Clark County is a robust part of that. Here’s hoping that economic activity and the job market remain strong and that the vitality extends to a large percentage of the population.
