Defending liberty locally

Good morning. Before I moved here in 1993, a transplant from South Dakota, I spent 12 years in the U.S. Army. All soldiers take an oath to defend the nation, its Constitution, and its liberty, against all enemies "Foreign and Domestic." I am wondering who in local government is responsible for defending our liberty?

I participated in a "Citizens Academy" recently, which is offered through the combined efforts of many local agencies. We were introduced to outstanding organizations such as law enforcement, incident response, and fire/rescue.

In this class I learned that in the city of Post Falls any violation of city ordinances is a misdemeanor offense, punishable by up to six months in jail and/or a $1,000 fine. Anyone given this harsh punishment is going to suffer more than the jail time or the fine. No employer is going to hold a job for six months, no bank is going to allow you to miss six payments on your home or your auto. This is very serious punishment.

Another question I have is, why any local government is so eager to place additional restrictions and rules on our freedom. It is my belief that our representatives should be defending our God given rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Post Falls was recently mentioned in US News as one of the 10 best mountain towns for retirement. We have done a great job here in Idaho. You can drink the water, eat the food and breathe the air. We keep our communities safe and clean and are recognized nationally for our efforts.

The last time I voted I asked about the voter turnout. The answer was that participation was way down. In a town the size of Post Falls with a population around 28,000, I estimate four people per household so we have around 7,000 homes. With 1.5 voters per home we have approximately 10,000 voters. When only 16 percent of the voters turn out for any issue and where only a simple majority is required for passage, the math says around 900 people decide the outcome. That is 900 deciding an issue that will effect 28,000. That is not a majority rule, that is a majority of voters rule.

This leads me to an observation about a recent survey taken in Post Falls. The survey has led to a push to "clean up" our city, which I am sure will lead to more regulation with severe punishment attached. I wonder what percent of the population got the survey, what percent responded, and what percent thinks our city is in need of more regulation to control cleanliness. I would venture to guess the vast majority does not think we need more laws on the books, nor do we want more of our liberty taken away.

Many laws we have now need to be rewritten or removed completely. An example is fireworks. A law that is disregarded by the citizenry is also unenforceable. So my recommendation is that city officials think hard before adding new laws. Perhaps even going so far as removing one old law from the books for each new one added.

Fireworks can certainly be a hazard and can be noisy, but the law can certainly make allowance for them on special days like the Fourth of July and New Year's.

Another example of a law that puts people in a no-win situation is snow removal from sidewalks. Many neighborhoods have walks installed next to the curb and roadway with no grass in between. The city approved this design and wrote an ordinance to ensure the snow was removed.

However, after the homeowner shovels the fallen snow from the walk the city plows come by and move mountains of compacted and frozen snow from the street back onto that sidewalk. There really is no way the homeowner can be within the law because some years the amount of snow moved from the street onto the walk is overwhelming.

It would be my recommendation that this ordinance be changed or dropped until the city is able and willing to not only plow the snow but also truck it away from the neighborhoods that have no grassy areas to put it on.

Our city is a great place to live. We have done a good job overall. Defending our freedom and our rights is an ongoing battle. I ask that our leaders work to defend the America we have built and not work to place ever more restrictions on our way of life.

Randy Huska is a Post Falls resident.