[Vision2020] is V2020 doomed?
Mark Solomon
msolomon at moscow.com
Sat Jun 3 07:13:31 PDT 2006
A quick review of Idaho history should serve to
remind us that Moscow/Latah's "political and
economic influence in the state" was due to the
demographics of the 1800's. When Idaho entered
the Union in the post Civil War era, the major
population centers were the mining districts of
the state (primarily the Silver Valley), the main
trading centers situated along major
transportation hubs (still largely river or
Oregon Trail focused : Lewiston and Boise), some
dryland farmers in the Palouse and the beginnings
of irrigated ag along the Snake in the south.
There was no timber industry to speak of, no
north-south road, and very few Republicans. To a
large extent, Idaho was Democratic, as in
Southern Democrat in post Civil War America. When
it came to setting up the new state's
infrastructure, the north with it's large
population block was able to secure the capitol
in Lewiston (the terminus for upriver navigation
on the Snake), the state hospital in Orofino
(Orofino used to be a gold mining town before
Weyherhauser and the green gold of timber came in
the early 1900's), the teachers college in
Lewiston (now LCSC) and the state university in
Moscow (whose moderate Republican leaders banded
with the Dixiecrats to prevent the Mormons of
south Idaho from dominating the state. South
Idaho got the prison in Boise and the School for
the Deaf and Blind in Gooding (another Oregon
Trail connection although I can't recall if that
happened at the same time as statehood). ISU was
eventually established in Pocatello (a Democratic
RR town), but that was much later.
For an excellent account of how the state came to
be formed, I recommend UI Law Professor Dennis
Colson's book on writing the Idaho Constitution:
Idaho's Constitution: The Tie That Binds
It was a marriage of convenience that lasted, for
Moscow, a surprisingly long time. Lewiston lost
the capitol quite quickly when the instruments of
state power were "stolen" and transported to
Boise via the only connecting route: downriver on
the Snake and then over the Oregon Trail via
Pendleton to south Idaho (a trail any one who has
to go to Boise from Moscow has travelled more
than once if you've had the misfortune of needing
to be in Boise, with a car, when a rockslide
closes Highway 95).
What has diminished Moscow's influence in the
state has far less to do with the internal
workings of our community than the explosive
growth of the state capitol (with all the
attendant power that implies along with it's
setting aside the mainline RR and an Interstate
highway), the race hate politics of the 60's,
70's and 80's that saw tectonic shifts in the
major parties political platforms with Southern
Democrats realizing they are now Republicans, the
national shift from moderate to radically
conservative Republicans and a winner take all
mindset first seen here in the Church/Symms race
in 1982, white flight from other states in the
80' and 90's to almost lily white north Idaho
north of the C'dA Reservation, and the boom in
second home/retirement homes in the
ski/river/lake areas of the state as the baby
boom generation reaches it's economic if not age
maturity.
There are great challenges facing us. A city
council and mayor who have been in office for
less than six months did not create our problems.
Unlike Donovan, I remain hopeful they are able
and willing to face them. Thanks Jerry for
summing them up so succinctly.
Mark S.
At 12:17 AM -0700 6/3/06, Donovan Arnold wrote:
>Jerry,
>
>I don't think Moscow is willing to do what it
>needs or takes to survive in the 21st Century as
>a strong growing community. We are not a growing
>community. We are in fact a shrinking one. We
>are quickly losing our political and economic
>influence in the state. We are the Spanish
>after the Armada. It is not a mystery of how to
>get out of this rut. But that is the direction
>many people here in power today want the city to
>go. They want us to be a small, poor college
>town stuck in 1999. They want the average annual
>income to be $24,000 in the city, and family
>income in Latah to be $30,000 a year. They want
>us paying 45% of our income in substandard
>housing, 20% on food, and 10% more on all other
>retail goods. They even want us to pay 20% in
>sales tax, even for food and other necessities.
>
>If Moscow wants to be a thriving community it
>needs to be willing to embrace change and
>growth. Our community leaders so far have
>refused to do that. Our leaders fear it and run
>away from it, rather then learning about it and
>using it to our advantage. They insist on using
>a candle out of the fear of being electrocuted
>by turning on a light switch.
>
>Thanks for the work you do for this community Jerry.
>
>Best,
>
>_DJA
>
>
>
>
>
>
>Jerry Weitz <gweitz at moscow.com> wrote:
>
>No, and I believe that UI needs all the help we
>can give it and wish the V2020's focus is on how
>to prosper with 21th Century realities, how to
>avoid "swaths of prosperity(Gov. Warner),'' and
>help make our rural area prosper as an example
>for other rural areas that are being gutted.
>jerry (a devoted ruralist) At 11:38 PM 6/2/06,
>Donovan Arnold wrote:
>
>>"It seems to me that if folks on Vision2020
>>focused on solutions to pressing issues such as
>>helping the UI regain its prestige and
>>position, offering solutions rather than
>>difficult arguments to such items as water,
>>attracting/retaining business that create good
>>jobs, helping with transporation issues,
>>providing excellence in k-12 education for all
>>students, making the town more attractive,
>>promoting sensible growth through actual
>>planning, considering the consequences of
>>having the area's retail shift to the corridor
>>and how to have our community prosper if this
>>occurs, etc., I suspect Vision2020 will lift
>>itself up and have the reputation of being a
>>safe place to forward great ideas and
>>actions."-- Jerry W.
>>
>>In other words, in that very long sentence, Jerry, you think V2020 is doomed?
>>
>>Best,
>>
>>_DJA
>>
>>Jerry Weitz <gweitz at moscow.com> wrote:
>>
>>
>>It seems to me that if folks on Vision2020
>>focused on solutions to pressing issues such as
>>helping the UI regain its prestige and
>>position, offering solutions rather than
>>difficult arguments to such items as water,
>>attracting/retaining business that create good
>>jobs, helping with transporation issues,
>>providing excellence in k-12 education for all
>>students, making the town more attractive,
>>promoting sensible growth through actual
>>planning, considering the consequences of
>>having the area's retail shift to the corridor
>>and how to have our community prosper if this
>>occurs, etc., I suspect Vision2020 will lift
>>itself up and have the reputation of being a
>>safe place to forward great ideas and actions.
>>After all, local politics may turn out to be
>>the most important. jerry
>>
>>
>>At 11:23 AM 6/2/06, Michael wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>I agree with Bill London. It almost seems
>>>that the strange conservative presence on
>>>Vision 2020 is a strategic move; I’m not
>>>saying it is, but it certainly does look like
>>>it. I know there are some long term
>>>contributors here who have recently given up,
>>>and I certainly can’t defend this list as I
>>>have done in the past. Ironically, though,
>>>Wilson’s point about who’s doing what and why
>>>on Vision 2020 has been disintegrated in the
>>>process. I have not given up on V2020 either,
>>>though.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>Michael Metzler
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>have heard from a few people lately who think
>>>V2020 is doomed. The horrible mean-spirited
>>>postings of late have disgusted many of us.
>>>What is to be done?
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>I haven't given up on V2020. I think we need
>>>to deal with the present problem on V2020.
>>>The problem is that following the Lewiston
>>>Tribune feature, a couple of hot-head
>>>arch-conservatives decided to have some fun
>>>with the liberals in Moscow. So they joined
>>>and started screaming. And we jumped for the
>>>bait. What I suggest is that we practice what
>>>Doug Wilson is so clever at
>>>using...old-fashioned shunning. We should all
>>>stop responding to the postings from tony and
>>>dick. This tactic has worked before on V2020.
>>>I would suggest trying it again.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>BL
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>_____________________________________________________
>>>
>>> List services made available by First Step Internet,
>>>
>>> serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
>>>
>>> http://www.fsr.net
>>>
>>> mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
>>>
>>>¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
>>>
>
>_____________________________________________________
>
>List services made available by First Step Internet,
>
>serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
>
>http://www.fsr.net
>
>mailto:Vision2020 at moscow.com
>
>¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
>
>
>
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>
>
>
>
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><http://us.rd.yahoo.com/evt=40762/*http://www.yahoo.com/preview>
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>Just radically better.
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