Category: Opinion and Analysis (Page 1 of 4)

roasted turkey on a table, with American flag in the background - thank you

Election Day Thanks to Many, Including You

11/21/2023 / David Rodeback

Last time, I — we — thanked the candidates. Today, on our belated Election Day, when it’s too late to mail your ballot but you can still use the dropbox at the library or vote there in person, both until 8:00 p.m. . . . Today we focus our thanks on some other good people.

bouquet of flowers with thank-you note - thank candidates

No Politics, Just Candidates

11/15/2023 / David Rodeback

Election Day is less than a week away, Tuesday, November 21. I’ve been candid in my evaluations of candidates and their views (here, here, here, here, here, and here). But this is not about that. For a few minutes, let’s step back from issues and from debating which candidates will be best for American Fork. Let’s talk about candidates as people — because I’m fairly certain all five city council candidates are human, not holograms or deep fakes or Cylons or whatever.

(This post is more opinion than information, but it doesn’t take sides. It might be comfortable for information-only readers.)

Candidates, we thank you! It’s not easy, this thing you’re doing. A lot of it isn’t fun. And in the final days before Election Day, whatever that means anymore, it’s even less fun.

drawing of family standing in front of a tree - Like a Family

Like a Family (Not?)

11/11/2023 / David Rodeback

One of our American Fork city council candidates likes to say we should run the City — specifically its finances — like a family budget. He even registered a web domain about it: voteforfamilybudget.com.

I’m jaded and cynical, when it comes to political talking points, including “Manage City as a Family Budget.” I like to crack them open and see if there’s any substance beneath the shiny sound bite.

. . . Which makes this one of those opinion-and-analysis posts, sez I to warn readers who come here only for information. (Thanks for stopping by again. Let’s all learn BEFORE we vote.)

My Family

I know next to nothing about this candidate’s family, though I readily accept that he has one. I’ve seen a photo. Odds are I know next to nothing about your family too. Families vary widely, so the best I can do here is compare how we’ve done things in my family over the years with how things do or could work in American Fork City government.

I have a quick tangent, then we’ll dive in. Like any proper tangent, it really does intersect with my topic.

2023 American Fork general election ballot - David's election guide

David’s Handy Little Election Guide (November 2023 Edition)

11/10/2023 / David Rodeback

This time, I can’t make my election guide any clearer than a large postcard which recently appeared in mailboxes across American Fork. That’s no surprise, once you know that I drafted the copy and my name is one of a couple dozen it lists, endorsing three excellent candidates for American Fork City Council: Clark Taylor, Ernie John, and Tim Holley.

First we’ll look briefly at the substance of the matter. Then I’ll tell you where the postcard came from — because we don’t hide in the shadows.

Taylor, John, and Holley

Here’s part of the postcard:

taxes - woman studying sheets of numbers

Straight Talk About Taxes

11/09/2023 / David Rodeback

If you were at the October 16 American Fork City Council candidate debate or listened to the audio or watched the video, you might have wished for some detailed background about how property taxes work. Here I’ll give you that background as concisely as I can, then say a few words about the candidates with respect to these issues.

(My other responses to what I heard at that debate are in the previous post. It’s about twice as long as this one.)

This post is heavy on information, for those of who seek only that here, but the closer we get to the end, the more you’ll get my opinions.

debate thoughts - American Fork election 2023 - thinking man in blue shirt

Thoughts on the October 16 Debate

11/08/2023 / David Rodeback

When I posted audio, one file per topic, from the October 16 American Fork City Council candidate debate, I promised to return with my own thoughts. It’s taken longer than I hoped, but Election Day is still almost two weeks away, and this is that post. (The American Fork Chamber of Commerce posted video of the event at its YouTube channel. See also frequent contributor John Mulholland’s TL;DR.)

If you want to know what every candidate said on every topic, please listen to the audio. Getting it straight from the candidates is best. Here I’m choosing the things I want to discuss, not trying to report or even summarize everything.

I’ll tell you what I think and why. if you’re here just for information, not opinion and analysis, exit after the next section, and thanks for reading.

Straight Talk About Fiber

10/28/2023 / David Rodeback

It’s past time for a fresh batch of straight talk here about citywide fiber optic broadband in American Fork. There’s a lot of information about the City’s project at the City website, and it’s well worth reading. But here we’ll do something the City can’t. We’ll look at the project in the context of the current city council election.

If you’re one of those readers (thank you for reading!) who seeks only information here and prefers to avoid analysis, commentary, and opinion, proceed with caution. There’s information here, but it’s arrayed against incomplete and inaccurate information spread by two of the five American Fork City Council candidates, and there’s some analysis, commentary, and opinion in the mix. But I’ll meet you halfway, sort of. I’ll only name those two candidates at the very end, in case that helps you focus on the information.

I’m firmly in favor of the project, but there are legitimate reasons why well-informed voters might oppose it. As in many other realms of our political discourse, I wish people would argue for or against a thing (or candidate) for legitimate reasons, without thinking they have to abandon truth and context in favor of spin, selective information, and untruth.

I’ve said that before. Call me naive — or perhaps spoiled, lately — but I expect better in American Fork than we sometimes get from other levels of our politics.

Harry Reid - pencil and watercolor portrait - dirty trick

The Anatomy of the Dirty Trick

10/21/2023 / David Rodeback

We don’t always see a dirty trick in our American Fork political campaigns, but we see them occasionally. There’s cause to suspect we’ll see at least one in this general election cycle, aimed at taking down at least one leading candidate. Before that happens (if it does), let’s talk about campaign dirty tricks in general.

We’ll look at what they are and aren’t, their typical attributes, and how we voters can respond intelligently and responsibly when they appear. I’ll give examples, local and otherwise. Some will be historical, some hypothetical, and I’ll be clear about which is which.

Weaponizing Democracy: Petition and Referendum

10/16/2023 / David Rodeback

A common complaint among candidates, when local elections roll around, is that the city council should send — or should have sent — the big questions to the voters, especially the big expenditures. We’ve adopted a Latin word for that vote: referendum.

The referendum process can be an important check by the people on misguided or dilatory local and state legislative bodies. There is no equivalent at the national level; some have advocated such a thing, but I never have. As firmly as I declare the people’s sovereignty in our governments, we’ve seen enough mischief achieved by referendum in states and municipalities that I have never warmed to the idea of a national referendum.

But back to earth. American Fork, to be precise. (Meanwhile, in Pleasant Grove, they’re collecting signatures through today to put a recent tax increase to a public vote.)

Cities are required by law to put certain bond issues to the voters. This happens when the bonds will have to be repaid from general funds, meaning tax revenues, which could mean a tax increase.

Most other actions, including bond issues to be repaid with other revenues, do not require the voters’ direct approval — but opponents can force a referendum by gathering enough signatures on a petition.

There’s a bit of a contradiction evident when someone running to be our elected representative wants to pull decisions away from our elected representatives and subject them to a popular vote. But I have a larger concern.

I’m sorry if this sounds cynical. If you’re tempted to believe that these referendum-touting candidates are animated by an abundance of democratic spirit and an overarching respect for the people’s collective wisdom, resist that. The motive is nearly always more political.

Here’s the short explanation. Well, short-ish.

local government - committee meeting at conference table

Why Local Politics? (guest post by Bryce Shelley)

09/23/2023 / Bryce Shelley

Which politician is the most influential in your day-to-day life?

When I ask my 8th graders, most of them respond that the President of the United States is the most influential politician.

They are surprised that the President’s fame and power is principally a result of the media wanting to make money. A story about the president will sell in 50 states. A story of a senator is usually limited to one state. And the story of a city councilman is of such small readership that no significant news source can cover it and still stay in business.

Yet it is the city council who we give the power to make laws that affect our roads, safety, building codes, community design, taxes, parks, libraries, recreation services, water, and sense of community that make so many want to call this town home. If you have a problem with your neighbor’s pet ostrich, it’s the local police you call. If your house is burning down, you don’t wait for the president to call out the national guard. When your kids want to play this afternoon, you go to a local park, not a national park. So even though it’s not covered in the national news, picking your city councilman is probably the most important political decision you can participate in.