A lot of little thoughts

June 21, 2006

By JACK BALSHAW
FOR THE ARGUS-COURIER

In reading the newspaper, interesting information sometimes comes from reading between the lines. In this instance, it was an article on East Washington Place (development at the old Kenilworth Junior High School site). The story mentioned that the timeline for the opening of the new big box stores had slipped two months to December 2007.

That means if there are any holdups during the approval process, the stores won't open until after Christmas 2007. That's the big shopping season and you can be sure everything necessary will be done to not miss that opening date. It appears to me that the approval process won't be delayed by any "insignificant" issue such as an environmental impact report or special traffic considerations.

The between-the-lines point here is that there is a schedule. The proposal has to go through SPARC for site design and to both the Planning Commission and City Council for EIR approval and general discussion. It would be useful if the city would make the schedule available. Then we, the citizens, would know when our concerns need to be presented and also how much time there will be to consider our comments. How much time is there in the present schedule for public review and modification of the project?

Isn't it interesting how much bureaucratic concern there can be about a 10-home subdivision and how little about doubling the retail shopping in town?

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Thinking about the immigration problem, I wondered what would I do if, coming home from vacation, I was stopped at say the Denver airport because my name was on a list of foreigners who had overstayed their visas. How would I (or you) prove we weren't the person on the list and were in fact an American citizen? Who carries a passport or proof of citizenship on a trip within the U.S.? Think about it; proving you're a citizen isn't a simple thing. How can individuals be rounded up off the streets or at a workplace just because they can't prove they're a citizen?

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Why is there such a knee-jerk reaction to an Indian casino? If most of the Chicken Little, the-sky-is-falling, negative comments I read about a casino's impact were of concern to the public, there would be a massive outcry in Napa County to close the wineries to tourists. They cause traffic problems, drinking and driving, increase the need for police, and possibly even pollute the valley with their cars.

I'm just being a contrarian here, but there really hasn't been any objective discussion about a casino. Would it really be a "Las Vegas"-type casino or a "Mississippi"- type casino? Who knows?

Perhaps it would be interesting to put the question on the November ballot. But hopefully, the Indians would provide another view of what a casino might be. Perhaps someone should run for council on a pro-casino platform. If nothing else, he or she might get some surprise funding.

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The anti-gay marriage issue seems to be gaining support in parts of the country. This sanctity-of-marriage position seems to be based on a moral value, the benefits of having two parents available for the children, and its long-term stability. To truly support this, maybe we do need to rethink what marriage should be.

First, the two-parent thing seems to be a punch in the nose for single parents; do we mean that? Are two parents that important? If so, I suggest we reword the definition of marriage nationally to the following:

Marriage -- an exclusive, non-revocable contract between one man and one woman for life.

How many legislatures would vote for the "for life" portion? How many legislators would have to swallow hard and apologize to their ex-wives or husbands for so voting? How many of us would accept that condition?

Perhaps the best way to react to this "definition of marriage" fever would be to be more puritanical than those rushing to redefine marriage and see if they would support mandating the relationship for life.

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Not much happening in Petaluma this week.

(Jack Balshaw is a retired transportation planner and former Petaluma City Council member. His e-mail address is jbcolumn@sbcglobal.net)