The following letter was submitted recently to the Oshkosh Northwestern. The writer, Cheryl Hentz (Winnebago County Board Supervisor candidate in the April 2 elections), e-mailed a copy to Commentary.
April 20, 2002
Letter to the Editor:
Imagine my surprise when your April 18 editorial applauded Joe Maehl’s reelection to the position of Winnebago County Board chairman. You had only kind words to say about a man whom your editorial pages have done nothing but criticize and who has been the negative subject of nearly every county "fat-cat" cartoon on your editorial page for as long as I can remember. The two views represent such a dichotomy, I had to check to make sure the editorial staff members of the past few years were still employed there.
My next observation concerns your April 5 editorial column in which you stated that the size of the county board denies democracy, implying that voters are somehow being disenfranchised. Personally, I support a smaller county board, but the size in no way precludes people from exercising their right to vote or choosing to run for office. People who do not vote disenfranchise themselves, period.
It’s also interesting that your editorial columns continue to attack county government, while encouraging people to run for office. Yet, you apparently did not think those few county board districts in which there were challengers this last election were important enough to make any candidate endorsements. You did, however, endorse a candidate for the Oshkosh School Board whom most voters never had an opportunity to see or hear. What’s wrong with this picture?
Finally, your April 5 editorial accused Joe Maehl of denying democracy to the people, yet your April 18 editorial calls him "a true public servant who understands the public trust vested" in his position and claims that his re-election as chairman sends the message that "stability will be the watchword for the next term." Seems like very contrasting statements from where I sit.
Sincerely,