Referendum C and the Little Red Hen

Submitted to the Highlands Ranch Herald on 2/11/06:

Cindy Arsenault provided a rather curious comparison between voter approval of Referendum C and the fable of the little red hen. However, her version is not the one that I remember reading to my daughters when they were little girls. The real moral of this story is that we are all better off when everybody works hard and pitches in, and that nobody should expect to slide along and get a free ride. Unfortunately, Cindy seems to think that it means that she doesn't ever have to share, even with others who work just as hard as she does.

Cindy trotted out the tired old refrain of the Ref C opponents, "It's my money, I can spend it better than the government." Well, I have a few questions for people like Cindy. When was the last time you stopped by your local police or fire department and paid a police officer's or a firefighter's salary directly? When did you arrange for a contractor to come out and fill those potholes in your street? When did you mail a check to your neighborhood public school to cover the expenses of administering CSAP tests and complying with federal mandates? When did you host a convicted criminal in your basement lockup? Until you do any of those things, nobody wants to hear about how you can spend your money better all by yourself.

Cindy would also have us believe that Ted Harvey is a champion for Highlands Ranch, based on his very public opposition to Ref C, even though Ted's House District 43 went for Ref C by a margin of 54% to 46% in 2005. Further, in 2004, voters in Highlands Ranch approved issues 4A and 4B, as well as Amendments 35 and 37. Ted was opposed to all of these winning issues. How can Ted possibly represent Highlands Ranch in the Colorado legislature when he is so obviously out of touch with the voters in his district?

Somebody once said that Republicans are the party that says government doesn't work, and then they get elected and prove it. I think Ted Harvey and the other Ref C opponents in the legislature (all Republicans, by the way) should explain to the rest of us why they are so dedicated to making sure that our Colorado government doesn't work. And, until they are willing to work in good faith with legislators who really care about governing our great state, Ted and others like him should do us all a favor and just stay home.