Over the past several years I have quite often waived my right to vote. However, something happened a few weeks back that disturbed me enough compel me to vote.
It started with the phone calls from the Ventura Police Officers Association to people's homes in order to detract votes from Neal Andrews. This was frightening to me. These city employees were calling the very citizens they had sworn to serve and protect to spread a negative message about Andrews. What this said to me is: We know where you live, and if you oppose our way of thinking, we just may oppose you. True or not, I should never have to worry about whether or not I am going to have police protection if I put an opposing candidate's campaign sign in front of my house.
I am voting for Andrews if for no other reason than in the past year, when the 911 fee (tax, or whatever you want to call it) was put on the citizens of Ventura, Andrews was the only one who opposed it. Then, when the city screwed up and charged people who opted out -- not for the per 911 call, but the monthly fee -- again, Andrews stood up in a council meeting and said it should be put to a stop.
I have now been paying close attention to this member of the City Council, and I believe he, more than anyone else, looks out for the interests of the people of this city and their pocketbooks.
Since the police phone calls, there have been two anti-Andrews documents sent out to voters, both slanderous. The Star has printed several letters and articles pointing out facts indicating that the content of VPOA's documents is inaccurate. In recent articles in The Star, there was even more printed refuting the tactics of the VPOA, stating that it was a bad call on their behalf, but that the VPOA had hired an outside campaign facility and the wheels were in motion and it was too late to stop it.
Excuse me for being cynical, but I feel the VPOA doesn't care. This is a typical case of asking forgiveness instead of permission. They figure anyone following this in the newspapers surely believes the VPOA will see the error of their ways. But not everyone reads the paper, and a good number of people who received the letters and the phone calls have never seen the newspaper articles refuting the VPOA's campaign slurs and will vote in their favor -- specifically, voting in Mike Tracy, the former police chief.
Please note, I am not trying to tell people how to vote. I am just saying judge the candidates on their work, not on some piece of propaganda junk mail.
-- Maxx Cunningham, Ventura