LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

I hope the Pugetopia article (Aug. 10) you wrote wins an award! It sure won my applause. I marvel at how you nailed the defining issues and the ramifications of our past behavior. Using the game board and game cards to illustrate all the issues and obstacles we face today provided an undeniable cause and effect for the crossroad we are hopefully confronting.

Recently, Alan Mullaly spoke at the Eastside Leadership Conference. He spoke softly when he said, "We live in paradise." He paused and then repeated, "We live in paradise." He paused once again to allow those words to linger as if to say ... you need to decide what it is you really want.

It is not easy to find answers, as we long to protect what we have, while we at long last attempt to define a method to prevent another part of Boeing from escaping our midst. I still grieve the loss of Fredrick & Nelson and Boeing headquarters, while we grapple with whether to become competitive in the global marketplace or sit back and let the world pass us by.

I wish I had the perfect answer as to where those new leaders with vision are. The irony is many of those who have guided us in the past have either passed on or are living the life of leisure in their beachfront homes we are all striving to protect.

I'm concerned that Emmett Watson's words to nowhere continue to be the subliminal mantra for far too many shortsighted, selfish citizens.

Before it's too late, we need to hear from those who have the courage to stand up for our future and the generations to come, those who are inspired to build a strategic plan, i.e., for a rule of the majority for the "Common Good" for our beloved Pugetopia.

Isn't it ironic, Plato observed hundreds of years ago: Democracy . . . is a charming form of government, full of variety and disorder; and dispensing a sort of equality to equals and unequals alike.

Thank you again for the outstanding, thought-provoking series these past few months. I look forward to what's next on your list.