The way Kelley sees it (2)

Reprinted with permission from The Press, November 29, 2006

The way I see it ... By Kelley Gorman

The way I see it, a certain individual was looking for a thank you from the public when she wrote her letter to the editor boasting on all the great things the Concerned Tax Payers Group has done, or more to the point, has kept from being done. Well let me be the first to say it. Thank you Concerned Tax Payers for successfully shooting down, in her words, “every dreamer and their passions.”

Thank you for keeping Pelican Rapids and the surrounding townships from benefitting from better school facilities, a community center and possibly a fire hall. Thank you for prioritizing your perceived bottom line over the future of this community. Thank you for turning your back and plugging your ears at the first mention of any dream or passion that might not be in your personal best interest. Thank you for taking financial accountability to the negative extreme and blocking all projects that the government doesn’t send a grant to pay for and thinking only within the box. This entire area owes the Concerned Tax Payers a big pat on the back. We might lobby for a financial reward for the community crusaders as well, but of course, that would have to be paid for in tax dollars and is thus unacceptable.

I try to keep my personal beliefs involving religion and politics out of my column, but I’m going to make an exception because I feel I need to address this. Dreams and passions have been the foundation for many of the ventures that have built Pelican Rapids up in the past. Howard Carlson spoke last week at the Rotary meeting. People here, he shared, took initiative and made things happen. All of Pelican benefitted from their foresight. When asked why he thought there was so much resistance to improvement now, he answered that people were hungrier then. They saw the storefronts closing and decided to do something about it.

What makes people think now that Pelican can continue to thrive if everyone sees it as a place where ideas are not investigated, but are instead shot down? Who wants to move to a place that won’t even take pause before running dreams into the ground? Not me. I don’t live in Pelican yet and part of the reason is that I see so much opposition to improvement. As someone with young children, I am looking to live in a place that offers them things, not just those who are already settled or comfortable with the way things are.

Having a community center would not only benefit the health and social calendar of those already living here, it would draw more people in. Businesses and familieslooking for a town to settle in are going to pick the town that has the up-to-date schools, the places to exercise and learn and city departments that are able to face the problems of fire and crime.

Uncontrolled spending is obviously not good for anyone, but an investment is an opportunity to see a return. How many concerned tax payers have stood up at a meeting and said, “I am willing to compromise. I’m willing to help find a different way with the same result”? In my experience, those claiming membership in the group are all too willing to lob grenades from behind cover of the walls and hedges, but unwilling to jump into the trenches when it comes down to finding solutions. Everyone should pursue accountability for those who decide where tax money goes, but the Concerned Tax Payers are showing themselves to be mostly stingy, selfish and close minded.

How many in this community benefitted from The New Deal, Social Security and all the government programs that came after WWII? How many Pelican lifers have benefitted from the city pool, the library and insightful projects like West Central Turkeys? Everyone. Who will benefit the most from projects proposed now? Everyone, but especially the young people. Saying that you deserved to benefit but being unwilling to benefit others is like refusing to let any of your birthday guests play with the new toys they just brought you. You got yours, but you are all alone.

So cling to the way things are. Poo poo anything and everything that means a penny more out of your pocket. Sit on your nest egg and keep your eyes closed to the possibilities. Think only of Pelican past and forget about Pelican future. Do these things and you may delay any change to your present way of life and tax payout. But you may also be securing the continuing decline of a community. Pelican has great people, great schools and great businesses, but anyone can tell you that times could be better. Everyone would like to see more commerce and more new families contributing to the local economy. Perhaps Howard was right. Maybe we need to be a little hungrier. I just hope that by the time everyone is hungry enough, the opportunities and young people needed to push the changes through are here to do it.

Gorman writes for The Press, a weekly newspaper in 56572