July 12, 1973 Shelton Mason County Journal | ![]() |
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Siiace a good five-cent cigar is out of the question in this
day of rampant inflation, what this country needs is a large,
salt-resistant, inexpensive towel for use by elected officials
.who are inconvenienced by meddling constituents.
Governor Dan Evans pointed out the problem of
citizen4nterference with the sacrosanct mechanism of
government when he commented last week on the activities
of Bruce Helm, the dissident busybody who organized the
Initiative 282 campaign to roll hack the salaries of elected
state officials.
"We're literally in a position of having salaries of elected
officials, as well as legislators, set by the whim of a furniture
salesman in South Snohomish County," Evans said.
The governor didn't say so, but he probably would have
been just as incensed if the irdtiative had been pushed by an
appleknocker in East Chelan County, a siding salesman in
West Pierce County, or a balloon ascensionist in North Mason
County.
And well he might. This Helm fellow pushed a good thing
too far. The initiative process, by tradition, is supposed to
entail lengthy preparation followed by months of
arm-twisting and doorbell-tinging culminating in a last-gasp
delivery of signatures barely sufficient to meet the
requirements.
The South Snohomish County troublemaker, needing
1 17,902 valid signatures, in two weeks obtained the
personally-inked names of about 700,000 citizens. You might
say he followed his whim with a wham.
Gathering the signatures of nearly half the number of
persons who voted in the 1972 general election is hardly the
proper way to show respect for the elected officials who
voted the pay raise. It is small wonder that the governor, plus
some vocal legislators, were less than gruntled.
This grassroots anarchy, coming on the heels of Initiative
276, is enough to upset the gastric functions of even the most
hardened public servant, turning to sour mash the steak,
lobster and wine paid for by sympathetic representatives of
special interest groups who toil ceaselessly for good
government.
For the furniture salesman from South Snohomish
County has bypassed the time-honored system of
government. Without setting foot in an Olympia watering
hole, he has influenced legislation. Instead of conferring with
those who are expert at the business of solemn debate and
wine-sniffing, he has raised a rabble army of taxpayers.
It is doubtful that our state or any state so confused and
ts esssa" vaer lt ...
M ,VE hAORE F CT'E;.*
i 17 WHAT" I$ BC- l"'lb INFL/kl'ii: i...
:1: I.. VE MORE F.t .'fS.
#...f KNOW WHAT" JS BE t::UR AMERI ...
:I: Ht VE MORE" F, c'rs.*
x3: KI¢oW WHb¢l" IS BEST" mE E(O ,IOMV,,,
I HAVE MOWE I::ACT . •
WHAT IS BES 'R:
H. VE MORE I:'AGI"5. *
I"M Ju -rl.lg PRESlC NT'/'
Editor, The Journal:
Re "ZENITH 8311." Had an
experience of my very own last
Sunday the 7th. Washing up after
a hard day's work, scratch
something- face, near left of nose
started bleeding, couldn't stop ft,
bled all over thi place, phoned
Zenith 8311 with the question: -
'bout everybody in sight ot
house had their noses glue
their windows ? By the
emergency vehicles arrived
bleeding had stopped. The
Truck was occupied by 11
only, three of 'era, charmin
creatures. Ambulance: Two 1
and just one male. The ia
anybody, there know how to stop Sweet young things !! I'm no t
a tiny annoying bleeding ?" the business of dreaming, Ii
By golly!! They sent out their annother EMERGENCY. a
FIRE TRUCK -&- AMBULANCE I'll get a lil' pettin', next tir 1
! All for just one (1) pin-prick on y'r ob.l tt
my face ! I had to phone allChas• E. McGon
neighbours in sight of this house: SNAIL-WATCE "
"Nothing wrong." I'd guess-, a
e
Our gr( a tes ."(
Uil
Editor The Journal: nfortunately this repr a
All who read this will agree what has in recent years been ts
that our children and youth are motive for many entering
the greatest asset Of our nation, time honored profession• $
Also they will be in agreement with these standards have gall0x"
that the training of them should control of the teach ne;
be our greatest concern and that organization. Their influen 3
most hours of their formative now felt with strikes• Also, ose
result the real goals of tea ,all j
years are spent with school.have been lost. The effoa '
teachers. Therefore, we must develop character, infl ms
conclude the work of the teacher k n o w 1 e d g e, p r o v0[
c a n n o t b e c o m p a r e d i n thoughtfulness, etc. has given af
importance with that of the
to a babysitting job. A job I ntl
logger, the railroad or the factory offers but money as the re li'dg
worker, nor in fact with any other
that does not deal with people• rather than pride in being a Iililu
of the achievements of.l rfe
Teaching is, and must be, children and youth. A job fHtl
recognized as a profession the
same as medicine, ministry, etc. allows them to strike if they d(~b-rf
The one recognzied as the greatest get their demands. A job . uk
person of history is Jesus. The holds their employer to a contlL ,t
greatest part of his ministry was but that permits the employa
spent in teaching• There is no refuse to fulfill his part of
more sacred calling• If teaching is contract: 180 days of tear os
not entered into with such spirit each school year. ' id
the individual should seek A str ke" just before on-
employment in a different field, graduation, that is so meaninl r a
an area of service that gives a and important to high scl
definite wage and working seniors, proves that the ha
teachers concern for their pt rs
unions•C°nditi°ns' and is protected by was limited or nil. Charact4 I
I recognize that such words as caught more than taught, lit ,
calling and sacred are obsolete Lima pupils certainly lea i sir
so debilitated, can long endure, today by our vocal minority. I am some grim lessons as tl rfe
It will help, however, if our public servants do not assume By ROBERT C. CUMMINGS session from $25 to $40. But this as many signatures as ever were than 600,000 registered voters, also convinced that the too silent watched their striking teacherlh.,,
a defeatist attitude. While met on the great battlefield they The spectre of Initiative 282 is inconsequential. Many gathered before - even by there is a pretty good chance the majority still believe in them and learned reports of the stdllghl
should always look for the silver lining, keep on smiling and cast a shadow over the second legisla~(~rs have been willing to professionals. And he did it all in Legislature will take heed. It adhere to them as they "also do to activities. Fortunately ~rfe
watch for the light at the end of the tunnel..... round of official legislative devote long hours this year and a little more than two weeks. No seems to indicate that the voters other temporarily unpopular learned all teachers were not~72
committee meetingslast weekend, next in anticipation of the initiative measure ever qualified want to put alid on governmental standards such as morality, concerned about their pay. I,~1o,
There is a glimmer of a tspot in House Speaker Len There was nothing the law-makers ~izeable raise ttiev had expected for the ballot before which was spending, and Initiative 282 gave virtuousness, honor and pride in want to offer praise to ~n i~
Sawyer's comment on Helm s disruptive activity. Sawyer could do about it, and the subject in ] 975 " fried after April 23• them the first opportunity they all work. coaches and others who pr il,"
the initiative means that future lel latures will tend to didn t come up officially in any No Ego Trip Here Some Message have had to say so. A few years ago ! asked atheir interest was in the ptIred
..... Ever since tax reform was first fellow teacher, who was serving These teachers proved tlhel1
be more composed of the wealthy, the retired and the of the open committee sessions. But many legislators egos are there has to oe a message m .
..... o passed and sent to the 1970 ballot his first year, how liked his interest was in the achievem ay,
incompetent. But it was a major topic of suffering more than their the record ...... set by the mmatwe .... in 1969, there has been a lot ot chosen work• His angwer was, ','! of their pupils as the domi li
discussion in legislative corridors, pocketb )oks. The overwhelming soonsor. As zt was s gneo oy more ..... 1 i k e t h ep a y c h e c k. motive for their service• : ee
In a democracy, government cannot help but be in offices and at breakfast, lunch number t)t registered voters who " talk about spenoing retorm. • Mrs. Cora H. Moiety
strengthened by the introduction of two new groups into the and dinner - wherever two virtually iumped at the chance to itch
more legislators happened to sign the initiative petitions
ranks of officeholder. The wealthy and the retired will add a gather. It was virtually all that doesn's speak well for the
newdimensiontothepresentlegis]ature. There is rest fo the ngh" eous I
some of them could talk about, legislative image.
Quit fueling around there were others who They shouldhaveknown. Itis
accepted itphilosophically, and a an old story. The average ' id
few who chose to ignore it. legislat~)r is held in high regard by By DWIGHT JENSEN book store." I [
Legislators Hardest Hit the people of his own district. But "No more it isn't," he answered. "They had to shut
If you're having trouble finding a service station open While the measure would cut" put all of the legislators together law Earlierwent intothiseffect,week'I juSthappenedafter Idaho'Sto meetneWa frindanti'°bscenitYof mine on at the end of June We've taken over the premises."
evenings or Sundays, you might consider trading in your the pay raises voted last April for and the public viewpoint seemsto As we walked through the door I asked, What doY rfe
Aardvark Super 8 on a B-52. • , all state elective officers back to take a 180 degree turn. wasthe street.apparentlyHe waSin aWell'kn°Wngreat hurry.att°rneYstrugglingStanleYto keepBUrd'up,andI fellhe have here now9'' I05,
There is no fuel shortage for B-52 s, particularly those 5.5 percent above the salaries Silver Lining into step with him: "Dirty books," he replied.
presently paid, the legislators There is a silver lining for "What's the rush, Stan?" I asked. "1 thought you'd be "But aren't they against the law?" ll6
honorably dropping tons of peace daily on Cambodia. would be hit the hardest by far those who enjoy serving in the relaxing this week, now that all salacious literature has been "They certainly are. But remember the black marl(lhe
Remember complacency. We are using this place to arm
One sortie by a B-52 fueled at Pentagon pumps on Guam The bill passed by the Legislature l.cgi lature regardless of the pay, outlawed." ,, al rfe
uses about 28,000 gallons, would have boos ted the an~t that could take in a far conservative anti-smut citizens against dirty books." .I°s'
lawmaker's salaries from $3,600 greater number than you might,,Oh' no,. he said, "Now the danger sjust" " beginning." , ....
A month of B-52 bombings consumes sixty-five millionto $10,560 a year. The initiative think. If the $10,560 pay scale What kind of danger9''
iplUons
of
t r i i cS fl.t r] L i!i i/eln eil/ [ ib e gi i bicbelod! F t, ,t,, n( k through copies of Hard-Core Erotica and Sex Life in Paye, --:
would change that. were t() stand, a record number of - -
How so? I asked, looking around at the men thumb itl
and other filthy epics. ,
A day s bombing (prior to the increased destruction of And while the Governor and ca dida es could have been
other elective officials would get "
expected in next year's election.
their increases next January 1, the There also was the real possibility constitutes dirty books, we can make them more aware| .
the past week) consumes about 2.2 million gallons of fuel. How can they combat the danger if they can t reco s
it? By giving our good citizens an orientation as to will-
America-- s foreign relations are in splendid shape. We have c o n s t i t u t ion prove n ts th,c of imtiative to reduce the size complacent and allow the standards to be relaxed again "
legislators from getting theirs ,)t the Legislature by about"That's terrible," I said. "I hadn't realized the danger, junk': ii adp ay e ist°
sent our gasoline to Guam, our wheat to Russia, our logs to until they start their next terries- , no-third," which' automatically And you have to combat all this single-handed?" ]
Japan and illegal campaign money to Mexico.
The earliest any of them could get wo ld have squeezed out "Oh, I'm not alone. I have my own organization
The only thing to come back was the campaign money, it would be January 15, 1975. nulne ous incumbents. Hundreds of fight-thinking middle-class Americans are
which was used to improve domestic relations between the That's a long time to wait for a No more than the usual
• . , patriotic our conservative citizens are. Some of them
White House and the underworld. $200-a-year raise. umber of candidates can be joining. I'm on my way to the orgamzahon s headquarters been in here two or three times already this week."
~II~uM~u~u~I~I~I~I~II~i~u~~~H~
k McGinnis'
~IIIHIIHIIIIIIIIIIIHIIIIIHIIIIHHIIBIIIIfllIIflllUMHIlUlIIIIHII
Graham Loved, g, lot I etty el et while driving to a McDonald's for s
mack with lab Irendfather. He was told that he couldn't have a raft
drink. He could have a hambuqler, French fries and whatever else he
wanted to eat, but no raft drink. He suppmed to cut down on hb
comumption. "But what will I drink?" "Drink water." "If God
had meat m to drink water," Graham firmly, "He would have put
it in earn."
(Paul Crume in Dallas News)
When we kid= they taelht m alway to respect our elders; now
that we're the alden, they tell m to lbten to the youth.
, 0Vaupun Leader-News)
: If womea aren't dmi ul, why do men always inerea their iltmmce
when they get married?
(Chambersburg Public Opinion)
And then there was the cromword puzzle nut who was buried six down
and three acrms.
(Blackie Sherrod in Dallas Times Herald)
What Now?
The ease with which a
furniture salesman without
previous campaign experience
gathered so many signatures in
such a period of time didn't leave
any room for doubt that the
initiative will be approved, once it
goes before the voters.
The big question this past
weekend has been what the
measure will do to the continuing
Legislative concept, which is
getting its first trial this year. The
majority leadership in general
didn't think it would have any
effect. It was pointed out the
continuing Legislature is
operating now at $3,600 a year.
Others, however, think the
leadership is whistling in the dark.
The vote to set up the new system
didn't carry by much of a margin.
The Republican minority in each
house voted solidly against it. It
wouldn't take a switch of many
votes to change the picture.
The increase m per diem
money paid to legislators
attending committee meetings
between sessions isn't affected b)
the initiative. This was raised last
Page 4 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, July 12, 1973
expected now, assuming
initiative will be approved. The
election won't pose any more
complications than usual. Every
session a number of legislators
decline to seek reelection, saying
they can't afford to devote so
much time away from their
businesses or professions.
Some more can be expected
to retire next year, but the
number probably won't be any
greater than usual, it will still be a
citizen Legislature, which for all
its faults, compares favorably
with any other.
Speaking of Egos
If the tremendous number of
the right now. Come on in. You can see the important work we
are undertaking."
"But I can't go in here," I protested. "This is a dirty
(
ttl
:::,:::::
"Well," I said, " I can only commend you on your
Bfit isn't it expensive?"
"Very expensive, but we have a way around that.
charge tuition for each citizen who wants to come in herr
learn. It's nominal - only fifty cents. We also have a
course in dirty movies upstairs, which is another fifty
That's where I'm going now."
And up the stairs he bounded, the gleam of a crusade
his eye.
From the Intermountain Obse
een
It.
ishi
cell
heh
rfe
;OX
oat:
'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ tto]
,6 Leltoq.
./vlasoB
Countj
signatures gathered on the
i~litiative is a blow to the
collective legislative ego, consider
what it does to the ego of
experienced observers who
originally pooh-poohed the effort.
That includes this writer, who
wrote just two weeks ago that the
measure didn't have a chance of
making the ballot•
Bruce Helm, the furniture
s:~lesman who sponsored the
inili:~live, ~hattered all previous
~ecords, getting more than twice
Founde____~d 1286 b_~y Gran__._~t C._.: Angl_._.~e i~:ll
Mailing Address: Box 430, Shelton, Wa. 98584 Phone 42644I'~
',i',iii',!',i' ----~u0 s~e----;a, ~, Wo,, Cot0 S,r--~.e, S~.,on M-- --~.~~ ~
Washington 98584, weekly. ';I )l
~e~~
Member of National Editorial ~t'?_n_ ........ ~I Bi
Member of Washington Newspaper Publishers' Association I
SUBSCRIPTION RATES: $5.50 per year in Mason-c:-ou-nty. I
in advance -- Outside Mason County $6.50 ~ IL~
EDITOR AND PUBLISHER ...................... Henry G.i r~
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