Dear Editor,

As a new year of local elections approaches, I see the well-funded special interests have already begun their campaign ads and rhetoric. Despite politicians’ promises and misdirection, they can do very little when it comes to economics.

“Do no harm” is the most effective form of political intrusion into local economies. Local politicians cannot create jobs out of thin air nor can they pull money and resources out of a hat, but they can destroy these things with the stroke of a pen. Local special interests are hoping many voting citizens are too stupid to know this.

The minority of local “progressives” who push their personal agenda of less economic opportunity for the middle and lower classes and more economic power for their campaign supporters of entrenched wealthy local monopolist (food, hardware, gas) like to claim the “high moral ground.” They tell you that if you sacrifice more of your personal freedom and family’s income they will fix our social problems and offer you a utopia or at least their utopia.

Do Humboldt’s citizens want freedom, opportunity, tolerance and economic progress or more centralized government that believes in social engineering (as did Mao, Stalin and Mussolini), choosing who should succeed and who should fail, intolerance for different opinions, more debt, fewer jobs, less government accountability and less personal freedom?

The choice is ours: special interests that serve a wealthy few or a moderate, reasonable government that serves all of society?

Thomas Bruner
Economist, Entrepreneur, Neighbor
Westhaven