Voices From The Flats — I Get It, But My Mayor Is Clueless
Post and Photos By Carl Johnson
I have lived in two rather large metropolitan areas: the Twin Cities, with its two million people, and Los Angeles, with, well, way too many people. I chose to move to Anchorage eleven years ago not because I was looking for urban, but because I was looking for wild with just the right amount of urban. I have grown in my knowledge over time that I had made the right decision, enjoying many years hiking, biking and Nordic skiing on Anchorage trails, enjoying fishing for salmon in its streams, and enjoying picking berries in its forests and alpine slopes. Most of all, over those years, I have enjoyed photographing in the wild places of Anchorage, in its greenbelts, watersheds, valleys and coastal areas.
I have lived here only eleven years, but I get it. I get why Anchorage is a special place. I get what 
makes it stand out against Seattle, Portland, Minneapolis, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York … all the cities where I have been. Anchorage has actual, real wild habitat within the confines of the actual city, and most of that is accessible by the public. You can see bear, moose, red fox, coyote, even wolves within the confines of the city. You can fish for salmon only a five minute walk from downtown. You can enjoy the call of a loon in the evening if you live near a lake. You can be on a mountainside picking blueberries after only a twenty minute drive or so.
I get it. But our mayor, Dan Sullivan, sure as hell does not.
About two years ago, I made contact with the Great Land Trust to put my photography to use in helping them to secure wild places so they could be set aside for conservation purposes. Simply put, the Trust works with private landowners who have property of some greater value to habitat, public use, or some other aspect that makes the property worth while in preserving for public use or conservation. The Trust raises money to purchase the land, then either maintains ownership of the land and makes it available for public or conservation benefit, or donates the land to the state or local government, with the caveat that the property is preserved in a conservation trust, often in the form of a conservation easement. The Trust will also negotiate with private landowners to obtain a conservation easement over the owner’s land, allowing access to public lands that are otherwise not easily reachable. Sometimes that involves purchasing private land outright so that existing parks and preserves, like Chugach State Park and the Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge, have more public access.
Last year, I met up with someone from the Trust to go photograph the Campbell Creek estuary in the Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge. Not that the estuary itself is not already protected to some degree, but the purpose of the visit was to highlight the estuary to assist in fundraising for purchasing private land that would provide public access to the coastal refuge in that area and ensure greater protection for the estuary by limiting development. You see, there is no legal public access to the coastal refuge on the west side of Seward Highway from all the way down by Potter Marsh to all the way up to Kincaid Park. Why not? Because half of the land is all privately owned, and the other half is blocked by an easement for the Alaska Railroad. The Railroad, a State-owned entity, considers it trespassing to cross the tracks to access the Refuge, and I have been threatened by Alaska Railroad security before for, God forbid, trying to access public land so I could photograph it.
So I took these photos of the Campbell Creek estuary in hopes that the Trust would be able to meet its goal to purchase the land. I saw the value of having the access, of making more of the coastal refuge 
accessible to the public. There is no reason that a handful of property owners should be able to block access. I had not heard of how the Trust was progressing in its effort to secure funding. Until today.
I felt my stomach sink this afternoon when I saw the headline on the Anchorage Daily News link that Shannyn Moore posted on her Facebook page: “Mayor turns down deal for park at Campbell Lake.” I read the article, and became increasingly furious as I read. I will not reiterate all of the idiocy that spewed from the mayor’s lips and translated to a few statements in the article, but the most egregious were his assertions that there is not enough money to manage the parks as it is, and the land would be better used to plant thirty or forty homes anyway. But the worst, the absolute worst, is his claim that we have too much parkland already. Among the too many parks that the mayor identified is the Lake George Preserve, which can only be accessed by float plane. Yep, I bet a lot of people can freely get out there.
I have to wonder if our mayor even uses the parks. Has he ever been to Jewel Lake on a hot day? How many families enjoy just that one park over a weekend? I will bet you anything, because I have seen that park on busy days, that it is a lot more than thirty families. The whole point of having parks is that they are joined by the many – by whoever wants to – not just the few. They provide recreation, solace, peace and enjoyment to anyone, regardless of their station in life. They add VALUE to a city that a subdivision never could. When you look at national listings for livable cities, do you see a category for “Developable Land”? Or, do you see a category that highlights park and recreational space in the city? I think we know the answer to that question. Anchorage has not been named an All-America City four times because of the amount of its developable land.
And, I am sorry, but it is a lame, pathetic, hollow and convenient excuse to say the city cannot afford to maintain another park. The main point of this property purchase was to provide public access to the coastal refuge. You know what that takes? A trail. I have maintained hiking trails before. It is not that challenging, and certainly not rocket science. Given this mayor’s financial decisions to date, the fact that there is not money in the budget to maintain more parks, or maintain the existing ones better, is not for lack of money. It is for lack of respecting the value that those parks and open spaces provide to our city.
Instead, the city is more than willing to throw all sorts of tax breaks for developers to tear up the land and install ugly, gaudy, rapacious strip malls or other monstrosities, with little or no control over aesthetics. If our mayor wants sprawl, he can move to the Midwest. I would prefer if he moved to some small suburb that really is a city wannabe, and he can sprawl and develop to his heart’s content. I just don’t want him to do that with our city. Providing $2.7 million to set aside this land along the Anchorage Coastal Wildlife Refuge would provide more long-term vale to far more people than any other expenditure of $2.7 million for private development could. And that is really the problem here, our mayor has no interest in the public good; his interests lie more in how much money someone can make on selling land to build thirty homes.
And let us not forget that it was a private landowner who made the decision to partner with the Great Land Trust to set aside this land for the public good. If we are so respectful of the rights of landowners to make decisions on the disposition of their land, why does our mayor not value that decision when it benefits the entire community?
I share images from Alaska with people from all over the world, whether on my website, my blog or my Facebook fan site. Quite often, the most feedback I receive are from images I have captured right here in the Anchorage bowl. People are often so amazed that so much beauty in the land can exist in an urban environment. They share their envy when I show them images of wildlife I have captured within Anchorage’s many suitable habitat areas. They tell me how lucky I am.
There is a reason that the Anchorage Convention and Visitor’s Bureau chose “Big Wild Life” for its marketing slogan. Anchorage is not great for its restaurants, its museums, its live music, its theatre, or all the other things you can find in other cities. That is because you can find them in other cities! I cannot think of another city this size in the United States where you can do all of the things you can do, see all of the wildlife you can see, in the outdoors, that you can do in Anchorage.
The mayor has simply reached a new low in his total and complete disregard for the values of green and wild spaces, wildlife and habitat in this city. If he does not see value in greater public access to designated park and refuge lands, if he does not see value in protecting and celebrating our wild and green spaces, if he does not see the value of our wildlife (see earlier comments this summer on brown bears by our mayor), if he does not see value in promoting what makes Anchorage great, then he is the mayor of the wrong city. I urge everyone to call, write, email, fax, or even make a personal visit to City Hall and tell the mayor’s office to reverse his position and allow the funding to go through for the purchase of the land to provide the access to the coastal refuge and provide even greater assurances that the Campbell Creek estuary will be protected and enjoyed.
Totally agree, this is an awesome place that should be preserved for the many, not the few. It’s only 60 acres, but such a lovely spot. We don’t need those extra houses — there are gravel pits nearby adding enough of those, don’t worry. This is a great place for a park because kids in the immediate neighborhood dont have many parks — they have to bike across busy Dimond to get to Jewel Lake. Let’s save this Anchorage gem for future generations! (I wonder who is lining up to develop this land and I wonder if they know any city leaders.)
Totally agree, this is an awesome place that should be preserved for the many, not the few. It’s only 60 acres, but such a lovely spot. We don’t need those extra houses — there are gravel pits nearby adding enough of those, don’t worry. This is a great place for a park because kids in the immediate neighborhood dont have many parks — they have to bike across busy Dimond to get to Jewel Lake. Let’s save this Anchorage gem for future generations! (I wonder who is lining up to develop this land and I wonder if they know any city leaders.)
Totally agree, this is an awesome place that should be preserved for the many, not the few. It’s only 60 acres, but such a lovely spot. We don’t need those extra houses — there are gravel pits nearby adding enough of those, don’t worry. This is a great place for a park because kids in the immediate neighborhood dont have many parks — they have to bike across busy Dimond to get to Jewel Lake. Let’s save this Anchorage gem for future generations! (I wonder who is lining up to develop this land and I wonder if they know Mayor Sullivan.)
Totally agree, this is an awesome place that should be preserved for the many, not the few. It’s only 60 acres, but such a lovely spot. We don’t need those extra houses — there are gravel pits nearby adding enough of those, don’t worry. This is a great place for a park because kids in the immediate neighborhood dont have many parks — they have to bike across busy Dimond to get to Jewel Lake. Let’s save this Anchorage gem for future generations! (I wonder who is lining up to develop this land and I wonder if they know Mayor Sullivan.)
well, he is left of center, on most of the issues that matter — but you’d never know he wasn’t practically a commie, to hear the right wingers talk about him.
beautiful photos, BTW.
well, he is left of center, on most of the issues that matter — but you’d never know he wasn’t practically a commie, to hear the right wingers talk about him.
beautiful photos, BTW.
The big question that we need to ask every Alaska potential elected official, is “Where do you intend to retire to?”. To me it answers a lot of questions. Do they see Alaska as a way to pad their retirement accounts, or a place to retire and enjoy some benefit of all the hard work they have done? If they are retiring here, chances are they see their children and grandchildren staying here too. That changes how a person supports/votes on all sorts of infrastructure.
The big question that we need to ask every Alaska potential elected official, is “Where do you intend to retire to?”. To me it answers a lot of questions. Do they see Alaska as a way to pad their retirement accounts, or a place to retire and enjoy some benefit of all the hard work they have done? If they are retiring here, chances are they see their children and grandchildren staying here too. That changes how a person supports/votes on all sorts of infrastructure.
merely electing left wingers doesn’t necessarily help. sullivan’s predecessor, now US senator mark begich was equally complicit in the NIMBY-ism that has locked up this part of anchorage’s coastline — as well as being an active participant in overdevelopment. his administration greased the wheels for 130 acres of sprawl retail in mt view and muldoon, on the northeast periphery of town. the new malls were carved out of undeveloped, forested land; some of it held by a muni agency called the heritage land bank.
Clark, I do not think that anyone is under the misunderstanding that Mark Begich is a leftwinger. He is not even progressive. There really is not much of a left wing in this country anymore, except for maybe a handful of folks like PETA, Earth First and the like.
merely electing left wingers doesn’t necessarily help. sullivan’s predecessor, now US senator mark begich was equally complicit in the NIMBY-ism that has locked up this part of anchorage’s coastline — as well as being an active participant in overdevelopment. his administration greased the wheels for 130 acres of sprawl retail in mt view and muldoon, on the northeast periphery of town. the new malls were carved out of undeveloped, forested land; some of it held by a muni agency called the heritage land bank.
Clark, I do not think that anyone is under the misunderstanding that Mark Begich is a leftwinger. He is not even progressive. There really is not much of a left wing in this country anymore, except for maybe a handful of folks like PETA, Earth First and the like.
Wow, a lot has changed in the eleven years I have been gone. I remember growing up in Homer and having the local radio station (KBBI) announce that there was a moose in town and to watch your driving. To me, what makes Alaska beautiful is the fact that there are so many wonderful, majestic spots that everyday people get to see. To deny the residents of Alaska the right to see any of it, is just not acceptable to me. I, after having lived in the South, look forward to my return to Alaska along with with my brother and sister-in-law. I have always bragged on the beauty of Alaska and that the standards of living there are so much different than down here. I will not deprive my nephew (age 8) of all the grandeur that the state of Alaska has to offer. I have seen, first hand, all the destructive properties that overdeveloping can do (i.e. “residential” development) and I don’t like any of it. I feel that the land of Alaska should be opened to all residents and visitors to Alaska and for a single individual (Mayor Sullivan) to dictate what should be seen and enjoyed is just unexpectable to me.
Wow, a lot has changed in the eleven years I have been gone. I remember growing up in Homer and having the local radio station (KBBI) announce that there was a moose in town and to watch your driving. To me, what makes Alaska beautiful is the fact that there are so many wonderful, majestic spots that everyday people get to see. To deny the residents of Alaska the right to see any of it, is just not acceptable to me. I, after having lived in the South, look forward to my return to Alaska along with with my brother and sister-in-law. I have always bragged on the beauty of Alaska and that the standards of living there are so much different than down here. I will not deprive my nephew (age 8) of all the grandeur that the state of Alaska has to offer. I have seen, first hand, all the destructive properties that overdeveloping can do (i.e. “residential” development) and I don’t like any of it. I feel that the land of Alaska should be opened to all residents and visitors to Alaska and for a single individual (Mayor Sullivan) to dictate what should be seen and enjoyed is just unexpectable to me.
I’ll forward this to my parents so that they can contact sully. Maybe I’ll even write myself, though I know that all politicians loathe hearing from “outsiders” — even those born & raised there.
Steven Benen (@ Washington Monthly, a most excellent excellent blog and print magazine!) has a great piece up right now about this sort of thing going on in Michigan, the voter thing, that is. Which I guess wasn’t the point of this blog post, but is the underlying cause of this problem! Michigan voters don’t want higher taxes to pay for nice paved roads, so they’re going with gravel roads in many areas, then the voters complain!
Anyway, it’s a pet peeve of mine for people to rant about things that they are unwilling to do anything about (pay $2 more in property taxes a year, write a letter, etc etc). So I’ll do what I can to help. Would still like to donate $$ to the trust. Anyone have any idea how to do that?
If anyone is interested in helping the Great Land Trust directly, their website is http://www.greatlandtrust.org.
I’ll forward this to my parents so that they can contact sully. Maybe I’ll even write myself, though I know that all politicians loathe hearing from “outsiders” — even those born & raised there.
Steven Benen (@ Washington Monthly, a most excellent excellent blog and print magazine!) has a great piece up right now about this sort of thing going on in Michigan, the voter thing, that is. Which I guess wasn’t the point of this blog post, but is the underlying cause of this problem! Michigan voters don’t want higher taxes to pay for nice paved roads, so they’re going with gravel roads in many areas, then the voters complain!
Anyway, it’s a pet peeve of mine for people to rant about things that they are unwilling to do anything about (pay $2 more in property taxes a year, write a letter, etc etc). So I’ll do what I can to help. Would still like to donate $$ to the trust. Anyone have any idea how to do that?
If anyone is interested in helping the Great Land Trust directly, their website is http://www.greatlandtrust.org.
Nice article. I must admit I am not happy with the suggestion about having Mayor Sullivan come to the Midwest. We already have a Steve King(R nutjob) and up North is a Michelle Bachman(R nutjob from Minnesota). Plus we have thousands of large hog confinement buildings that can hold several thousand hogs each. Imagine a nice pleasant drive on a dusty gravel road. You choke on the dust and then BAM, your sinuses are literally assaulted by the fragrance of thousands of hogs and all their waste deposits. Yea, we need more stench in the Midwest.
Nice article. I must admit I am not happy with the suggestion about having Mayor Sullivan come to the Midwest. We already have a Steve King(R nutjob) and up North is a Michelle Bachman(R nutjob from Minnesota). Plus we have thousands of large hog confinement buildings that can hold several thousand hogs each. Imagine a nice pleasant drive on a dusty gravel road. You choke on the dust and then BAM, your sinuses are literally assaulted by the fragrance of thousands of hogs and all their waste deposits. Yea, we need more stench in the Midwest.
Mayor Sullivan’s motto:
Money for my family trust = good
Money for public safety = bad
Money for parks = worse
He’s pathetic.
If the MOA is in such dire need of tax revenue, it’s time to close the loopholes on the dozens of “church” houses owned by the Anchorage Baptist temple, and get off paying nothing.
Mayor Sullivan’s motto:
Money for my family trust = good
Money for public safety = bad
Money for parks = worse
He’s pathetic.
If the MOA is in such dire need of tax revenue, it’s time to close the loopholes on the dozens of “church” houses owned by the Anchorage Baptist temple, and get off paying nothing.
As the author of the Big Wild Life tag line, I’m flattered that Mr. Johnson invoked it in this piece. Sullivan isn’t qualified to make these determinations. If I had to write a tag line for him, it would be more along the lines of Big Dumb Jackass.
And you have every right to.
As the author of the Big Wild Life tag line, I’m flattered that Mr. Johnson invoked it in this piece. Sullivan isn’t qualified to make these determinations. If I had to write a tag line for him, it would be more along the lines of Big Dumb Jackass.
And you have every right to.
First off, Nice piece! Next, I hope sully has no idea of future political ambitions. I don’t vote in Anch but if he goes farther i will be all over his past. Anyhow this made me think of the Neil Young song “Helpless” I know it don’t fit all together but the refrain does.Perhaps one day with the help of Shannyn and all of the mudflaters we will sing Woody Guthries “this land was made for you an me” Hope you all can abide an pull the two together.
First off, Nice piece! Next, I hope sully has no idea of future political ambitions. I don’t vote in Anch but if he goes farther i will be all over his past. Anyhow this made me think of the Neil Young song “Helpless” I know it don’t fit all together but the refrain does.Perhaps one day with the help of Shannyn and all of the mudflaters we will sing Woody Guthries “this land was made for you an me” Hope you all can abide an pull the two together.
For everyone who wants to contact the mayor’s office like this articles’ author suggested, here’s the contact info:
e-mail: [email protected] Phone # (907) 343-7100
The Mayor also has a blog that the muni website advertised as something that the mayor has so that he and the citizens of Anchorage can have an unfiltered communication. http://www.muni.org/Departments/Mayor/Blog/Pages/Default.aspx
I don’t know how much the mayor is likely to listen to comments, but I think it’s important for the city and our parks and way of life for each of us to speak up and try and change his mind about this.
For everyone who wants to contact the mayor’s office like this articles’ author suggested, here’s the contact info:
e-mail: [email protected] Phone # (907) 343-7100
The Mayor also has a blog that the muni website advertised as something that the mayor has so that he and the citizens of Anchorage can have an unfiltered communication. http://www.muni.org/Departments/Mayor/Blog/Pages/Default.aspx
I don’t know how much the mayor is likely to listen to comments, but I think it’s important for the city and our parks and way of life for each of us to speak up and try and change his mind about this.
I just clicked on Carl’s name and took a quick peek at some of his photos. They are just breathtaking.
How anyone could live in a place of such beauty and not want to preserve it is just beyond me. I’m beginning to suspect that Anchorage mayors and Alaskan governors have their hearts removed before being sworn in.
not all of em, not all the time… the ANC mayors and Alaskan govs…
that being said I’m thinking Mayor Sullivan doesn’t have a heart… just a heat pump,
Governor Parnell does have a heart but it skips pumping to his brain too often, and whatzername , well, am thinking her “servant’s heart” is made of marble…
I just clicked on Carl’s name and took a quick peek at some of his photos. They are just breathtaking.
How anyone could live in a place of such beauty and not want to preserve it is just beyond me. I’m beginning to suspect that Anchorage mayors and Alaskan governors have their hearts removed before being sworn in.
not all of em, not all the time… the ANC mayors and Alaskan govs…
that being said I’m thinking Mayor Sullivan doesn’t have a heart… just a heat pump,
Governor Parnell does have a heart but it skips pumping to his brain too often, and whatzername , well, am thinking her “servant’s heart” is made of marble…
I love having the right to vote and always relished going to the polls. Now I’m retired and request the absentee ballot, which isn’t as much fun, but I would never give not vote.
It makes me sick to think that Sullivan was elected w/18% of the vote. What has happened to the Anchorage voters…I just don’t understand it.
I love having the right to vote and always relished going to the polls. Now I’m retired and request the absentee ballot, which isn’t as much fun, but I would never give not vote.
It makes me sick to think that Sullivan was elected w/18% of the vote. What has happened to the Anchorage voters…I just don’t understand it.
Thanks for the excellent piece and stunning photographs…
Thanks for the excellent piece and stunning photographs…
I just had a conversation about this with friends in Austin.
They asked why I never want to go back to Alaska. I was born & raised there, and spent over 30 of my 40+ years there.
Here’s the deal — the majority of Alaskan voters are bas^&*ds. The rational reasonable people feel like they are pi$$ing in the wind every time an election or vote re: municipal bonds comes up. Crossing fingers that enough Alaskans that care about Alaska more than themselves come out to vote. Never happens. When the evil Dan Sullivan was elected it was what, something like 18% turnout. THat was my first complaint about Alaska. It was that way 10 years ago, and gets worse every darn year.
The second thing that I told them made me never want to go back to Alaska? Ugly ugly Anchorage! A state with 500,000 sq mi that has the most pathetic puny crummy little “family” parks in the US. How do you teach new generations of Alaskans to value Alaska when the current stewards treat it like crap? Been to Jewel Lake lately Dan? Not unless you want to score some dope! That place is a dump! The “family” parks have all been overrun by dope dealers and drunks and the homeless! The railroad car that I used to play on for hours when I was a kid, the one on the “park strip” downtown (oh sad little excuse for a park) has been called The Tetanus Express for over a decade.
That’s my rant, and I’m sticking to it! However, I will gladly donate to any trust to set aside conservation/parkland, and could easily get my parents (still in AK) to do so as well.
I appreciate this contribution, it’s very valuable, but just as important, what can be done? Do we need to phone people? Contribute money? How can we help?
TX Me,
Excellent response. How can we help with conservation/parkland and protecting these trusts down the road?
While I agree with you regarding Dan Sullivan, I object to your opinion of the parks in Anchorage. Anchorage has great parks, trails, etc. IMHO, much better than those in Austin (I lived there for the better part of a decade). And Jewel Lake really is a jewel in the heart of Anchorage – my husband and I live just down the street and often portage our canoe to the lake for a quick paddle in the midst of loons, grebes, ducks, geese, and a muskrat or two. Every nice evening and weekend there are people fishing on the south bank, barbequing at the park, or swimming in the marked-off swim area (the only one I’m familiar with in Anchorage proper other than at Goose lake). Jewel Lake is even used by the local rowing club for their regattas. I’m not sure how long it’s been since you’ve been to Anchorage parks, but your description of Jewel Lake could not be more wrong.
I just had a conversation about this with friends in Austin.
They asked why I never want to go back to Alaska. I was born & raised there, and spent over 30 of my 40+ years there.
Here’s the deal — the majority of Alaskan voters are bas^&*ds. The rational reasonable people feel like they are pi$$ing in the wind every time an election or vote re: municipal bonds comes up. Crossing fingers that enough Alaskans that care about Alaska more than themselves come out to vote. Never happens. When the evil Dan Sullivan was elected it was what, something like 18% turnout. THat was my first complaint about Alaska. It was that way 10 years ago, and gets worse every darn year.
The second thing that I told them made me never want to go back to Alaska? Ugly ugly Anchorage! A state with 500,000 sq mi that has the most pathetic puny crummy little “family” parks in the US. How do you teach new generations of Alaskans to value Alaska when the current stewards treat it like crap? Been to Jewel Lake lately Dan? Not unless you want to score some dope! That place is a dump! The “family” parks have all been overrun by dope dealers and drunks and the homeless! The railroad car that I used to play on for hours when I was a kid, the one on the “park strip” downtown (oh sad little excuse for a park) has been called The Tetanus Express for over a decade.
That’s my rant, and I’m sticking to it! However, I will gladly donate to any trust to set aside conservation/parkland, and could easily get my parents (still in AK) to do so as well.
I appreciate this contribution, it’s very valuable, but just as important, what can be done? Do we need to phone people? Contribute money? How can we help?
TX Me,
Excellent response. How can we help with conservation/parkland and protecting these trusts down the road?
While I agree with you regarding Dan Sullivan, I object to your opinion of the parks in Anchorage. Anchorage has great parks, trails, etc. IMHO, much better than those in Austin (I lived there for the better part of a decade). And Jewel Lake really is a jewel in the heart of Anchorage – my husband and I live just down the street and often portage our canoe to the lake for a quick paddle in the midst of loons, grebes, ducks, geese, and a muskrat or two. Every nice evening and weekend there are people fishing on the south bank, barbequing at the park, or swimming in the marked-off swim area (the only one I’m familiar with in Anchorage proper other than at Goose lake). Jewel Lake is even used by the local rowing club for their regattas. I’m not sure how long it’s been since you’ve been to Anchorage parks, but your description of Jewel Lake could not be more wrong.
anchor townies thanks you from our big wild hearts & hope the mayor will open his.
anchor townies thanks you from our big wild hearts & hope the mayor will open his.
When I read the headline, I thought you were going to slam Jim Hornaday. I was prepared to leap to his defense. But, of course, you’re talking about Dan. That man’s actions are indefensible. On election day, voter turnout is always pathetically light. I know there’s no guarantee people would vote the way I’d like them to, but wasn’t he elected with less than 20 percent turnout?
This article was written by Carl Johnson.
Jim Hornaday’s wife Karen was my cello teacher. I loved her.
When I read the headline, I thought you were going to slam Jim Hornaday. I was prepared to leap to his defense. But, of course, you’re talking about Dan. That man’s actions are indefensible. On election day, voter turnout is always pathetically light. I know there’s no guarantee people would vote the way I’d like them to, but wasn’t he elected with less than 20 percent turnout?
This article was written by Carl Johnson.
Jim Hornaday’s wife Karen was my cello teacher. I loved her.