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OPINION
A 4
ICHAMPIONI
March 24 - 30, 2016 » Page 7A
Keeping sanity in local elections
The local political season
has begun.
Twenty-eight candidates
are vying for 10 different
political positions in DeKalb
County alone. Then there are
12 State House and Senate
races as well as a state court
judgeship up for grabs.
The outcome of these
races will determine who
sits on the school board and
county commission, who
oversees the county tax of
fice, who heads our sheriff’s
department and who will be
deciding which criminal cas
es to prosecute. The con
tests also involve those who
will be crafting and voting on
statewide legislation.
In other words, the seats
that are up for grabs will ef
fect some of the most impor
tant aspects of our lives.
gale@dekalbchamp.com
Lifestyle Editor
For that reason, these
are the elections that should
command our attention far
more than what’s playing out
nationally in the race for the
presidency.
However since the presi
dential preference race has
been so unusual this year
with bizarre behavior on the
part of candidates as well as
those in support of and oppo
sition to various candidates,
let’s review how we should
conduct ourselves here in
DeKalb County as we em
bark on our most important
local electoral season.
Candidates:
Stick to the issues
Let’s focus on the many
critical issues needing atten
tion in our county and not
resort to name calling and
personal insults. Offer voters
substance in how you will
resolve problems and work
for the betterment of the
community.
Show leadership from
the start
Demonstrate your style
of leadership throughout the
campaign process so voters
can gauge who you are and
how you conduct yourself.
Don’t just talk about the kind
of leader you will be, show it
in how you conduct yourself
with fellow candidates and
potential constituents.
Stay out of the gutter
Don’t resort to mudsling-
ing and focusing on what’s
wrong with other candidates.
Instead emphasize why
you are the best person for
the job. Set the tone for the
campaign season by taking
the high road.
Voters:
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Let’s be respectful of
the men and women who’ve
chosen to pursue public
office whether we support
them or not. We should be
specific in asking candidates
questions and expect (and
demand) that they answer
and not dodge our queries,
but let’s conduct ourselves in
a respectful way.
Show up, show up,
show up
Most of us won’t be an
informed voter by just sit
ting at home. We must show
up at candidate forums,
ask questions to gather the
information we personally
need to make a decision and
show up at the polls to vote
(and if necessary return to
vote in runoff races).
I’m hoping that none of
the ridiculousness that we’ve
witnessed in the presiden
tial race will seep into our
local elections. There’s too
much at stake for the future
of DeKalb County for us not
to take these elections seri
ously.
ONE MAN'S OPINION
He's got high hopes!
“...Anyone knows an ant
can’t...move a rubber tree
plant - But he’s got Hi-
igh Hopes, he’s got High
Hopes...he’s got high apple
pie in the sky hopes...”lyrics
from the Frank Sinatra
classic, “High Hopes”
(1959) and movie “Hole in
the Head. ”
Frank Sinatra is not
surprisingly also a favorite
of GOP presidential front
runner, Donald J. Trump,
and I’m certain he is familiar
with this tune. Which brings
me to The Donald’s favorite
campaign promise and
the audience participation
portion of most Trump
rallies, I’m talking about the
now 50-foot wall along the
U.S./Mexican border. Hey,
go big or go home right?
Along the Rio Grande
First, a 1970 U.S./
Mexican boundary treaty
governs all structures
along the Rio Grande
and Colorado rivers at
the Mexican border. The
treaty requires that no
permanent or temporary
structure disrupt the flow
of these waters. The Rio
Grande flows across Texas
and 24 miles of Arizona,
defining the U.S./Mexican
border. Our entire southern
border is nearly 2,100 miles
bill.csicrane@gmail.com
Columnist
from end to end. And, as
Mr. Trump well knows,
to develop any project or
parcel, it helps significantly
to own the land, to have the
appropriate zoning and a
friendly/healthy relationship
with the local governing
officials and authorities.
During the second term
of President George W.
Bush, Congress authorized
$1.2 billion to construct
several hundred miles
of double-layer fencing
along the U.S./Mexican
border. Some 650 miles
of various kinds of fencing
was built (estimated cost to
date $7 billion), including
a floating fence dividing
the ecologically fragile
sand dunes of Southern
California. Existing treaty
obligations and flood zones
also would require long
stretches of the Trump’s
proposed Taj MaWall’ to be
built well inside the United
States. In addition to the
costs of land acquisition
of numerous ranchers
and private land owners,
property is owned by at
least one Indian tribe along
the border, and it may be
more than a bit challenging
to force Mexico to pay for/
manage construction on a
wall well into U.S. territory.
How high? And, why?
Many Mexicans still
believe that the U.S. in
effect stole Texas and
most of California and
the southwest from their
country, which depending
on how you interpret history
or the Mexican-American
War of 1846-47, we sort
of did. In 1844, then U.S.
President James K. Polk
offered to purchase millions
of acres of disputed lands,
guaranteeing the people of
the United States land for
expansion from the Atlantic
Ocean to the Pacific.
When that real estate
deal was rejected, Polk
sent in occupying troops
and the territories were
seized. War followed,
including the U.S. capture
of Mexico City, and a later
treaty in 1848, with Mexico
ceded Texas, California,
New Mexico, Arizona and
pretty much the entire U.S.
southwest for the princely
sum of $15 million, and
the assumption of $3.25
million in debt. Post
expansion debate in the
states over slavery in these
new territories would later
foment into the American
Civil War. Perhaps this
is more like what Trump
actually has in mind.
Squeezing the balloon
During the ongoing drug
war, many law enforcement
professionals, often
patrolling that same border
for illegal narcotic activity,
often point out that as long
as there is demand for more
product here in the United
States, there will always
eventually be supply. As
long as the United States
remains a beacon of hope
and economic opportunity,
there will always be demand
to reach our shores, and
as long as U.S. employers
are seeking hard-working
inexpensive labor, there will
also always be that type of
demand as well.
The North American Free
Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
took years to negotiate and
finalize and, despite trade
imbalances, has expanded
the economies of Mexico,
the United States and
Canada. Trump is familiar
with several benefits of the
treaty, as much of his Trump
clothing line is currently
manufactured at textile
plants in Mexico.
The Great Wall of
China remains a marvel
of engineering and human
will power. Nearly 4,000
miles of that wall still stands
across China, but even
that wall, built for collecting
tariffs as well as security,
was breached by the
Mongol hordes and others.
However, if Trump’s
Mexican border wall is
actually constructed, it
may become more akin
to the Berlin Wall. Maybe
Mr. Trump should ask
his good friend NBC’s
Brian Williams more
about that. They seem to
have a similar view of the
importance of facts and
telling the truth.
Bill Crane also serves as
a political analyst and com
mentator for Channel 2’s Ac
tion News, WSB-AM News/
Talk 750 and now 95.5 FM,
as well as a columnist for
The Champion, Champion
Free Press and Georgia
Trend. Crane is a DeKalb
native and business owner,
living in Scottdale. You can
reach him or comment on
a column at bill.csicrane@
gmail.com.