Occupation ends with a whimper
Their zeal for revolution snuffed, the final four misguided Oregon occupiers have been tweezered like ticks from the back of a beast.
As an additional bonus for America, the messiah of the misguided, Cliven Bundy, was arrested en route to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
In the end, these law-breakers — some would say traitors — accomplished almost nothing they’d wanted from their 41-day occupation.
Their protest did not alter the course of justice for the two ranchers convicted of arson on federal lands who immediately distanced themselves from the group anyway. The protest did not elicit the national sympathy they craved, nor did it harden the hearts of most Americans against their federal government any more than already existed. In fact, quite the opposite happened. The group’s armed seizure of public property and blatant disregard for area residents and priceless artifacts only served to isolate them further on their island of fear-induced ideology.
The only glimmer of victory the group can claim is the martyrdom of one of its leaders, LaVoy Finicum, who had made it clear he would be happy to forfeit his life for the cause. Exactly what that cause is or was — the government is evil? tyranny is acceptable? personal viewpoints supercede the law? — we may never know. Nor will most Americans care.
We applaud those in law enforcement who exhibited almost superhuman restraint, resorting to violence only once, when Finicum reportedly reached for a weapon during a traffic stop.
And we hope the Idahoans who seek control of federal lands within our state have carefully observed a perfect example of how not to effect positive change.
Election moves that make sense
Finally, some news out of Boise that could actually lead to increased voter participation.
Sen. Mary Souza, R-Coeur d’Alene, is a co-sponsor of two school board election bills. One would move school board elections from May in odd years to November in even years. The other bill, she told The Press, would open up the zones to all voters. In other words, she said, trustees will still be required to represent specific school district zones, but everyone in the district can vote on all of them.
“Just like the County Commissioners, there will be representation from each area,” she said, “but everyone can vote.”
The Senate Education Committee reviewed 22 school districts and found less than 12 percent of voters cast ballots in 11 districts; in seven of those districts, turnout was in the low single digits.
Last May in the only Coeur d’Alene School District race, Tambra Pickford defeated incumbent Terri Seymour, 418-389. In a district with more than 10,000 students, only 807 adults bothered to vote.
We urge Kootenai County legislators to support both of these bills. Greater turnout is more likely to lead to greater representation.