Cooperation starts right here

"So much angst! So much anger! Big government! Elected officials are corrupt! Throw them all out!"

While these messages aren't shared by all, there are enough people and organizations proclaiming them that confidence in all levels of government is weak. The reaction is to get tough and make them toe the line, "our line," what ever it may be to each individual or group.

But with hard line, no compromise negotiating positions, it's hard to get differing groups together and address the troubling issues we face locally or worldwide.

Cooperation starts at home.

That's why the unravelling of the incubator business park initiative of the LCEDC saddens me.

Port District 1 wants to stick to running a marina. The Wahkiakum School District wants a fortune for their land. Everyone in the various entities of local government is looking out for "their" constituents. They seem to be ignoring that quite often constituents of one entity are the same constituents of another entity.

The result is that years of work, and a successful funding grant, go out the window. Goodbye to what could have been a boon for new businesses, and to constituents.

Local businesses are under siege. The economy is tough, and despite efforts at good management and marketing, it's tough to make money in the wake of the recession.

I hate to see Wahkiakum County's communities turn into bedroom communities with just a few large businesses strong enough to survive. I imagine two classes of people, those who have it made and those hanging on in menial service jobs. It doesn't really sound like a fun place to live, unless you can afford your own enclave.

It seems easy to grow houses in Wahkiakum County. The land use controls are "favorable," and the planning department is cooperative. We have a couple of good gas stations to help people get back and forth from their homes to The City. That model works.

But if you like your communities, you should find ways to support them. Change isn't always easy, but it will happen. We need to work together to make it positive.