The polling has closed on the non-scientific, non-random sample poll on the Vanguard for Measures P and Q, and once again, the polls seem to track with other polling that has been done. 76 percent of those voting on the Vanguard support the library tax while 73 percent of those voting on the Vanguard support the schools parcel tax.
Permanent absentee ballots have arrived to residents on Davis--which means that voting has begun and the election is on. Think about this folks--because even as a pretty keen election observer, I was floored by the sheer number of people in the Davis area that are permanent absentee voters--according to Tuesday's Davis Enterprise, there are a little over 14,000 permanent absentee voters in an area with just over 30,000 voters overall. I am surprised they do not have the statistics on the turnout for permanent absentee voters, but it has to be much higher than the general population. My wife is one of them. I, on the other hand, have always been a person who has liked to vote on election day and get my sticker to parade around town.
There is at this point a fairly good chance that Davis will pass both the school and library taxes this fall. That is an amazing accomplishment. This blog, the Vanguard, has tended to focus on some of the darker aspects of Davis, looking at the dark underbelly of a city known for its progressive politics, and frankly I have never ever been short on material to write about. I do this because I believe the people of this district need to know what is really going on in their government and their community. I do this because I do not feel that other media outlets are properly reporting these issues.
But today, for a few minutes, we are going to put that on hold. We are not going to talk about declining enrollment, closing schools, contract disputes, achievement gap, racial tensions, poor administrative policy. We are not going to talk about efforts that are underway to hopefully fix many of these problems. We are not going to talk about the lack of county funding for basic social services because the state does not allow enough money to flow to counties and cities even as it expects them to pick up the slack for budgetary cuts at the state and federal level. We are not going to talk about the number of children living below the poverty level and not getting proper nutrition. We are not going to talk about seniors who do not have access to basic services.
Today we are going to talk about the basic value of learning in our society and why Davis is a good place because of its continuing commitment to learning and investment in learning.
There are many cities across the state, that have schools that are in need of major capital improvements. They need infrastructure overhauls. They are falling apart. Some are old and worn and some just need to be knocked down and built up against from scratch. And yet I know places where they place school bond, after school bond, after school bond on the ballot and they get to 58%, 62%, 64%, sometimes even 66.1% and they cannot get to the two-thirds vote needed to get the money to fix their schools.
Stop and think about that for a second. What message does that send to children? What message does that send to those who go to work or learn in buildings that are falling apart knowing that their community cannot provide the money to fix them? What message does it teach our children about democracy when we live in a state where a minority of people can block the will of the majority?
Is there any doubt that it sends a message to children, teachers, and district staff that the community does not care and therefore it is okay for them to be complacent? Is there any doubt that it makes it difficult to instill civic pride in children who grow up knowing that a minority of 34% can thwart the will of 66%?
Yet we do not have to worry about that here in Davis. The parcel tax is regularly renewed. It looks like the libraries will get the funding that they desperately need. For all of the complaints and the bellyaching that I have done about this community with regard to some issues, and the government of this community that I think at times has taken advantage of that generosity, taken it for granted. Local government, has if you read yesterday's edition, at times misappropriated that funding, has at times if you read about the Montgomery Elementary School fiasco misplaced public faith. Despite all of that the electorate of the city of Davis has stood by its commitment to education. And for that we should all be eternally grateful.
Without education, people have no chance in society to learn about it and to make a difference. Without education, people have little chance to make a good living. And without an early commitment to education, it is difficult to create the conditions necessary for lifelong learning.
Of all the things that have touched me about the library campaign, the one that hit me the most was the story that Helen Thomson told about being the oldest of eight and having her mother who was not an educated woman, nevertheless understand the need for her children to get an education both in and out of school and understanding that reading is the basis and the building block for that education. It is a story that my wife as the youngest of eight could relate to, for it was her mother that instilled the need for her to get her degree and become only the second member of her family to graduate from college.
It is a story that I too can relate to, even though unlike Supervisor Thomson or my wife's mother, my mother was teacher with many degrees, my mother would take me every week to the library and when I was young I would sit and listen to the librarian read stories to the children. When I grew older, I used to go to the library and check out my own books and read them. As an adult, I have never forgotten these lessons, as I sit in a small room writing this surrounded by a large number of my own personal collection of books.
You do not get a second chance to instill these values into children at a young age and it requires both a good library and a good school system to do so. At the end of the day, it does take an entire community to raise a child. It takes a community that works in concert with the values of parents. It takes a community that works to support its schools. It takes a community that works to support its libraries.
It takes a community that sends a message to our children from day one on that learning is the most important thing that you can do and we will do our best to provide you with the best possible environment for you to do so. If that means we need to pass a tax, then that is what we will do. It is a powerful message to every student in this community, that we believe so strongly in the value of education that we are willing to put our money where our hearts are and support you.
That is the message that Davis can send on November 6 and that is the message that voters can begin to send today as they turn in their permanent absentee ballots.
---Doug Paul Davis reporting
Permanent absentee ballots have arrived to residents on Davis--which means that voting has begun and the election is on. Think about this folks--because even as a pretty keen election observer, I was floored by the sheer number of people in the Davis area that are permanent absentee voters--according to Tuesday's Davis Enterprise, there are a little over 14,000 permanent absentee voters in an area with just over 30,000 voters overall. I am surprised they do not have the statistics on the turnout for permanent absentee voters, but it has to be much higher than the general population. My wife is one of them. I, on the other hand, have always been a person who has liked to vote on election day and get my sticker to parade around town.
There is at this point a fairly good chance that Davis will pass both the school and library taxes this fall. That is an amazing accomplishment. This blog, the Vanguard, has tended to focus on some of the darker aspects of Davis, looking at the dark underbelly of a city known for its progressive politics, and frankly I have never ever been short on material to write about. I do this because I believe the people of this district need to know what is really going on in their government and their community. I do this because I do not feel that other media outlets are properly reporting these issues.
But today, for a few minutes, we are going to put that on hold. We are not going to talk about declining enrollment, closing schools, contract disputes, achievement gap, racial tensions, poor administrative policy. We are not going to talk about efforts that are underway to hopefully fix many of these problems. We are not going to talk about the lack of county funding for basic social services because the state does not allow enough money to flow to counties and cities even as it expects them to pick up the slack for budgetary cuts at the state and federal level. We are not going to talk about the number of children living below the poverty level and not getting proper nutrition. We are not going to talk about seniors who do not have access to basic services.
Today we are going to talk about the basic value of learning in our society and why Davis is a good place because of its continuing commitment to learning and investment in learning.
There are many cities across the state, that have schools that are in need of major capital improvements. They need infrastructure overhauls. They are falling apart. Some are old and worn and some just need to be knocked down and built up against from scratch. And yet I know places where they place school bond, after school bond, after school bond on the ballot and they get to 58%, 62%, 64%, sometimes even 66.1% and they cannot get to the two-thirds vote needed to get the money to fix their schools.
Stop and think about that for a second. What message does that send to children? What message does that send to those who go to work or learn in buildings that are falling apart knowing that their community cannot provide the money to fix them? What message does it teach our children about democracy when we live in a state where a minority of people can block the will of the majority?
Is there any doubt that it sends a message to children, teachers, and district staff that the community does not care and therefore it is okay for them to be complacent? Is there any doubt that it makes it difficult to instill civic pride in children who grow up knowing that a minority of 34% can thwart the will of 66%?
Yet we do not have to worry about that here in Davis. The parcel tax is regularly renewed. It looks like the libraries will get the funding that they desperately need. For all of the complaints and the bellyaching that I have done about this community with regard to some issues, and the government of this community that I think at times has taken advantage of that generosity, taken it for granted. Local government, has if you read yesterday's edition, at times misappropriated that funding, has at times if you read about the Montgomery Elementary School fiasco misplaced public faith. Despite all of that the electorate of the city of Davis has stood by its commitment to education. And for that we should all be eternally grateful.
Without education, people have no chance in society to learn about it and to make a difference. Without education, people have little chance to make a good living. And without an early commitment to education, it is difficult to create the conditions necessary for lifelong learning.
Of all the things that have touched me about the library campaign, the one that hit me the most was the story that Helen Thomson told about being the oldest of eight and having her mother who was not an educated woman, nevertheless understand the need for her children to get an education both in and out of school and understanding that reading is the basis and the building block for that education. It is a story that my wife as the youngest of eight could relate to, for it was her mother that instilled the need for her to get her degree and become only the second member of her family to graduate from college.
It is a story that I too can relate to, even though unlike Supervisor Thomson or my wife's mother, my mother was teacher with many degrees, my mother would take me every week to the library and when I was young I would sit and listen to the librarian read stories to the children. When I grew older, I used to go to the library and check out my own books and read them. As an adult, I have never forgotten these lessons, as I sit in a small room writing this surrounded by a large number of my own personal collection of books.
You do not get a second chance to instill these values into children at a young age and it requires both a good library and a good school system to do so. At the end of the day, it does take an entire community to raise a child. It takes a community that works in concert with the values of parents. It takes a community that works to support its schools. It takes a community that works to support its libraries.
It takes a community that sends a message to our children from day one on that learning is the most important thing that you can do and we will do our best to provide you with the best possible environment for you to do so. If that means we need to pass a tax, then that is what we will do. It is a powerful message to every student in this community, that we believe so strongly in the value of education that we are willing to put our money where our hearts are and support you.
That is the message that Davis can send on November 6 and that is the message that voters can begin to send today as they turn in their permanent absentee ballots.
---Doug Paul Davis reporting
