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What our Readers Are Saying

Letters

to the Editor

District voting? Only for the right reasons

I read these articles about the demand for the end of at-large voting, and keep looking beyond the "what," and ask myself, "why?"

The system we have now doesn't seem broken, so why the large effort to change the system? The motivations of the advocates for change are often the most telling things behind any effort.

I really have to scratch my head and wonder how someone could claim that it would be difficult to elect a minority or woman to a countywide office, when I find myself represented at the state level by more blacks than whites, and one woman.

I honestly recall our county voting in several women to countywide offices. The statement is false, and in short an insult to the voters of this county.

It's saying we aren't capable of reason beyond the color of our skin. It's saying we're racists.

It's also an insult to put forth that unless an elected official is the same sex or same race as someone, that that official will not fairly represent. To state that this will happen is shallow thinking at best, racism in truth.

The people of this county should discuss this issue, and should consider it. But they should do so based on benefits not to include the obvious goal of racial gerrymandering.

While many may believe that having districts drawn to concentrate the vote of African-American voters makes them stronger, it actually weakens their interests.

If we have seven districts, and all the African-American votes are in two districts, then the interests of those voters are always at a 5-2 disadvantage.

In our present system, each elected official must answer to all the voters inthe county, no matter what district they are in, no matter what race they are, no matter what sex they are.

Racial gerrymandering steals the voice from the minority, by guaranteeing that they are under-represented.

Fayette County needs to take this time to turn from a path of racial division. We need to celebrate the [MLK] parade [Jan. 17].

If you need any evidence the damage that racially-made decisions will cause in our county, you need only look a bit east, to Clayton County. Please, shun that path.

Todd Hedenstrom

Senoia, Ga. (Fayette County)

District voting more in keeping with democracy

Several years ago when there seemed considerably less to get upset about, we golf cart owners in Peachtree City were informed that we now had to pay personal property taxes on our golf carts.

There was an immediate movement by many in the town to have the tax declared illegal, or get it revoked.

It seemed patently unfair that we had to pay tax to the county to drive our golf carts on town paths when owners of carts outside the city limits would be unlikely to pay the same tax.

The amount of the tax was not the question. It was simply a matter of fairness and propriety. I wondered at the time how such a thing could occur, until I noticed the makeup of the County Commission.

We seemed badly under represented at the time by Peachtree City people on the commission.

While the county commissioners might travel through the city on a daily basis, they did not have our particular experience with the metal beast, and sensed nothing unfair about taxing it as personal property.

Fast-forward to the present and a call to change the at-large voting for County Commission to sectional voting.

It seems to me the golf cart tax question is representative of why we ought to go to such a system.

The reason we have representative government is because direct democracy is normally too unwieldy. The average citizen possesses neither the wherewithal nor the time to attend constant voting sessions, make informed decisions and vote sage government.

We therefore delegate such duties to those citizens we believe will best accomplish that end.

No less than the Founding Fathers agonized over the most perfect way to connect the delegates to their constituency, having studied all previous recorded forms of democracy.

Madison in Federalist 56 makes the point that "recourse must be had to the objects within the purview of that authority." In other words, the delegate's knowledge should at the very least extend to his constituency insofar as his powers can affect them.

It makes sense then that we would strive, in any more perfect form of government, to allow our elected delegates the best opportunity to know us and our needs within the scope of the power they will exercise over our lives.

The at-large voting system doesn't necessarily exclude our commissioners from knowing us well, but by its nature elects people of the same ilk.

Consequently those esoteric matters affecting a relative minority within the community will probably fall through the crack, or, at the very best, not be as vigorously addressed as they would by a person beholden to a smaller electorate.

There seems to be an attempt to paint this movement as a "black/white issue," and undoubtedly ethnicity plays a role.

On the other hand when we're talking about local schools, and roads and public safety, doesn't it make better sense to have a person from that locale intimately involved and ultimately responsible to those most immediately affected?

This should not be viewed as an attempt to "Balkanize" the County Commission, but rather to make it more responsive to local needs and issues.

It is also congruent with the best traditions of local democracy and representative government.

So if and when the issue comes before you, the voter, keep in mind the benefits of electing someone far more accountable (on a per-vote basis) to your particular needs, versus the present "elect a stranger at large" and hope for the best.

Timothy J. Parker

Peachtree City, Ga.

District voting change seeks to fix what isn't broken; it's purely racial

The residents of Fayette County, both black and white, should pay close attention to Rep. Virgil Fludd's efforts to change the voting procedures of electing officials to the county commission and the school board.

It is unfortunate that Rep. Fludd along with the other three Democratic representatives (all black) have decided to use their political positions to raise this racially motivated and divisive issue, particularly since the other three representatives do not even live in Fayette County.

I would think they would have plenty of other state business to take care of without putting this issue at the top of their agenda.

Rep. Fludd's desire to change from a county-wide voting process to a district voting process is simply a race-based effort to get more blacks (or as he describes it, "minorities and women") into public office. I don't think he's referring to Asians or Latinos.

Like myself, I am sure that the majority of residents now living in Fayette County have moved here from other cities or counties. We did so for a variety of reasons. It may have been for the exceptional school system, the well-run and efficient city and county governments, which include the police and fire departments, the security of our investment, or in general, just the overall stability of Fayette County.

For the last few years, the residents of Fayette County have been witness to the results of the disorganized and disruptive elected officials of our neighbors to the north, the city of Riverdale, and to the east, Clayton County.

We should all be thankful that our tax dollars are not being wasted to support that type of ongoing confusion.

The decision to support or reject Rep. Fludd's efforts to change the voting process should be an easy one for any responsible resident of Fayette County; it's a no-brainer.

The quality of government, school system, and living conditions speak for themselves. They were all developed under the existing voting procedures, and they don't need to be changed. Rep. Fludd is trying to fix a wheel that's not broken.

After living in Clayton County for over 20 years, I made my escape to Fayette County several years ago, and have not regretted it one bit. My hat is off to the county administrators and employees for their contribution to Fayette County.

To date, I know of no one who was ever forced to move into Fayette County. We all chose to move here because we liked what we saw and we wanted to become a part of it.

To anyone who is dissatisfied or upset with living in Fayette County, I would remind you that Ga. Highway 54 runs east and west, and Hwy. 85 runs north and south; either one of them will take you out of the county.

Richard O. Braun

Fayetteville, Ga.

Rep. Fludd presses 'racist' gerrymandering

Why [does] Rep. Virgil Fludd of Tyrone feel that it is so important to make sure that a minority or female candidate is voted into office? How is that going to ensure that the needs of the county as a whole are met?

Shouldn't he be more interested in making sure that the best qualified and effective persons be elected to these posts? It shouldn't matter whether the person elected is male or female, white, black, yellow, or purple, as long as it is the best person for the job.

Frankly, I find Rep. Fludd's views on the matter purely racist.