Politically appointed board a bad idea

To the editor:

While the existing bylaws of the Pike County Public Library (PCPL) need thoughtful examination, the proposal for a government takeover of the PCPL Board by political appointees from the county’s 13 municipalities plus two by the commissioners is hasty, ill considered and deeply flawed. It would give equal representation to appointees from such lightly populated townships as Green and Porter as to the much larger populations in Dingmans, Delaware and Lehman. The 15-member board would be unwieldy, and too large to operate efficiently, particularly since there would be no mechanism to encourage the selection of individuals with the broad array of skills, talents and experiences that makes for an effective board. Most importantly, it would make it almost impossible to “throw the bums out” should that be necessary in the future. Just imagine what would be required for unhappy voters to have to work through numerous governmental bodies to effect major change in the library’s board. Under such a system, we can forget about accountability to the taxpayers or other stakeholders such as the users, volunteers and donors.

It is not necessary to have a politically appointed board for the voters to have leverage over the PCPL. Witness the current threat to withhold funding if the board doesn’t do what the commissioners want them to do.

I urge all concerned to avoid any perception of retribution for any aspect of the just-concluded referendum campaign and to consider carefully what is in the best long-term interest of this important community institution.

Rise up and row together

To the editor:

Recently, I was at a coffee shop in town and overheard a conversation about the tense “politics” between the Pike County Commissioners and the Pike County Library Board. The speaker commented that, in the aftermath of “the library vote,” this rift seems likely to prevent any progress toward a new library and community center for Pike County.

It reminded me of a quote from the late Senator Wellstone of Minnesota who said, “Politics is not about power. Politics is not about money. Politics is about the improvement of people’s lives. It’s about advancing the cause of peace and justice in our country and in our world. Politics is about doing well for people.”

This advice applies to each of us, individually and collectively. Whether we live here full time or part time, this is our community. The vitality and richness of our town is determined by the choices we make and whether we can work together.

There is no disputing the fact that our area needs a new library and community center. There has been a considerable amount of money raised through grants and donations and it would be shameful if it is lost because we could not rise above our differences and our egos to do what is right for the overall good.

The honorable thing for the Pike County Commissioners and the library board to do is to find common ground. And it is our responsibility as citizens and neighbors to work with them to provide input and assistance to come up with a new plan that the majority of us can agree upon and to do whatever else is necessary to make a new library and community center a reality. Rowing together, we can make a difference to enrich and strengthen our community.

Shohola, PA

Another Telstar race?

To the editor:

With last Thursday’s arrest of former Pennsylvania House Speaker John Perzel on charges of being the architect of a tight-knit conspiracy that illegally spent $10 million taxpayer dollars for sophisticated computer technology (Telstar) to help Republican candidates win legislative races, it is worth noting that Telstar was most likely utilized in at least two local races. The first was the 2002 special election for the 176th district, in which Republican Mario Scavello was first elected. The second was in the special election for the 189th district, which was won by Democratic candidate John Siptroth.

Although the grand jury does not mention this race for the 189th specifically, there were many Republican operatives on the ground. It seems likely Telstar was used, given the Republican desire to take the seat. Given the recent debacles in Pike County, with write-in ballot counting, miscounting, and court-directed re-counting, the subsequent resignation under fire of a director of elections, and the continuing partisan activities of Republican board of elections officials, we need to ferret out any other Republican practices that attempt to subvert the democratic process. The upcoming grand jury investigation of House Republicans provides us that opportunity. We call on attorney general Corbett to pursue the opportunity vigorously.

Pike County Democratic Committee