Ideology, whether religious or political blinds the possessor to disinterest and empirical evidence. A concept such as substantive due process requires requires objective, not a moral judgement. Mr. Dahl's religious beliefs have no place in judging process or outcomes in the judicial system. It took us more than 175 years to achieve the current level of substantive due process. The past has some lessons to teach us about the rocky road to justice. The judicial system needs more resources at all levels, not less. This isn't the wild west any more and Roy Bean is long dead.
Pandering to a very loud, obnoxious minority to promote individual political agendas have made our BOCC very powerful and that’s really what it’s all about. Power, pure and simple. It’s intoxicating. They’re drunk on it. Cowlitz County could do so much better. Are we too tired to be disgusted? This will not end well if we choose to sit out and let local government continue to circle the drain. We have a future and it could be bright. It’s up to us to grab it.
I like the metaphor, "circle the drain" It captures the local state of affairs very well. Looking backwards and having a vision of the past that is false won't get us through the current decade, let alone the century.
I am so tired of these two men, and it’s crazy how much support they have from the community. Not only do they actively harm the community through their actions, they are extremely unprofessional and clearly can’t keep their religious and personal beliefs out of their decisions. Ridiculous.
At the latest meeting, Frank Morrison was asking for support for the youth homeless shelter. Frank talked about how important and personal this is to him because his daughter had passed away from an overdose a month ago, and then Arne responded with “You couldn’t even save your own daughter”. Wow.
To preface, Arne accused Frank of “aggravating the problem” and “giving people and easy way out” after he talked about how rampant drug addiction is for our youth. According to Arne, everything was better back in the day and then starts a rant about divorce rates, again, “back in the day” and then says “but then we made things easy”. How is that even remotely related?
Frank responded and talked about how Arne himself, said that the drugs on the street are going to kill children and in fact it did. It happened to his own child. Arne then interrupts and tells Frank “You couldn’t even save your own child if we’re getting technical!”. That man does not care about our community, and it’s blatantly obvious.
Skip to 1:05:30, but I urge you to watch the entire thing.
Yes. This is the best way to create a more responsive, modern government. It will need to be done very carefully, but it can be done. Clark County hit bottom a few years back and bipartisan county leaders got the charter adopted.
Excellent article. You summed up Dahl’s and Mortenson’s ridiculous view of getting back to the old days, their lack of compassion, and their devotion to MAGA or, as I call them, maggots.
The comments made by Commissioner Dahl are troubling. The term "double speak" from George Orwell's 1984 book comes to mind.
So, there is a court a backlog. As an attorney that means that there are countless people living in limbo. Their claims remain unresolved and in short that is fine with a number of Commissioners. Claimants and their family are being told to continue to effectively wait in line, live with stress, endure more months or years of this reality, and live with the uncertainty created by that backlog. My experience is that diminishes the quality of life for a large number of people and their families. My impression is that this is cruel given that there was an opportunity to improve the quality of life and promote efficiency ... but a reason was made up to avoid that. That is CRUEL and to argue that "faith" or some religious conviction has kept them from providing a fix and add to that stories of "due process" being denied and or judicial activism is tragic. A person that is so invested in a story and unable to question that is not fit to serve the office. Such a person should reflect on the story they tell themselves, take time to read unbiased sources and, if that is not an option or possibility for them, then retire for the good of the community.
Hopefully, the Commissioners that said "niet" to this will reconsider . If they have additional facts to deny the funding (other than double speak, as I have described it), they can better articulate their points and the matter put up for a vote. The public deserves a robust and thoughtful debate on this an all issues. A person that is unable to do this, does not deserve to run for office.
One book that I recommend be read to get a historical perspective on the importance of the public demanding a robust discussion and transparency is Sarah Blakewell's book Humanly Possible: Seven Hundred Years of Humanist Free Thinking, Inquiry and Hope. Throughout history, those clinging to emotional arguments (based on scant evidence or faith), have led to poor outcomes. Let's strive for a more optimal outcome and recognize that life is more often than not hard and complicated ... and not as we wish or think.
Ideology, whether religious or political blinds the possessor to disinterest and empirical evidence. A concept such as substantive due process requires requires objective, not a moral judgement. Mr. Dahl's religious beliefs have no place in judging process or outcomes in the judicial system. It took us more than 175 years to achieve the current level of substantive due process. The past has some lessons to teach us about the rocky road to justice. The judicial system needs more resources at all levels, not less. This isn't the wild west any more and Roy Bean is long dead.
Pandering to a very loud, obnoxious minority to promote individual political agendas have made our BOCC very powerful and that’s really what it’s all about. Power, pure and simple. It’s intoxicating. They’re drunk on it. Cowlitz County could do so much better. Are we too tired to be disgusted? This will not end well if we choose to sit out and let local government continue to circle the drain. We have a future and it could be bright. It’s up to us to grab it.
I like the metaphor, "circle the drain" It captures the local state of affairs very well. Looking backwards and having a vision of the past that is false won't get us through the current decade, let alone the century.
I am so tired of these two men, and it’s crazy how much support they have from the community. Not only do they actively harm the community through their actions, they are extremely unprofessional and clearly can’t keep their religious and personal beliefs out of their decisions. Ridiculous.
At the latest meeting, Frank Morrison was asking for support for the youth homeless shelter. Frank talked about how important and personal this is to him because his daughter had passed away from an overdose a month ago, and then Arne responded with “You couldn’t even save your own daughter”. Wow.
To preface, Arne accused Frank of “aggravating the problem” and “giving people and easy way out” after he talked about how rampant drug addiction is for our youth. According to Arne, everything was better back in the day and then starts a rant about divorce rates, again, “back in the day” and then says “but then we made things easy”. How is that even remotely related?
Frank responded and talked about how Arne himself, said that the drugs on the street are going to kill children and in fact it did. It happened to his own child. Arne then interrupts and tells Frank “You couldn’t even save your own child if we’re getting technical!”. That man does not care about our community, and it’s blatantly obvious.
Skip to 1:05:30, but I urge you to watch the entire thing.
https://youtu.be/RfDBMUE5Rbw?si=z1LFH_yax8uGSXSp
Thanks for sharing the recording. I’d heard about this exchange but have it had time to write about it.
Arne crossed a big line with this one. There’s no excuse for his callousness.
If any one is wondering why we can’t have nice things...
So, what do we do? A different form of county leadership!
Did you see my earlier column about a home rule charter? It ran in December or January and is archived for all my substack readers to peruse.
Yes. This is the best way to create a more responsive, modern government. It will need to be done very carefully, but it can be done. Clark County hit bottom a few years back and bipartisan county leaders got the charter adopted.
Excellent article. You summed up Dahl’s and Mortenson’s ridiculous view of getting back to the old days, their lack of compassion, and their devotion to MAGA or, as I call them, maggots.
The Daily News is doing the community a great disservice by not printing Andre Stepankowsky's well thought out and researched articles.
The comments made by Commissioner Dahl are troubling. The term "double speak" from George Orwell's 1984 book comes to mind.
So, there is a court a backlog. As an attorney that means that there are countless people living in limbo. Their claims remain unresolved and in short that is fine with a number of Commissioners. Claimants and their family are being told to continue to effectively wait in line, live with stress, endure more months or years of this reality, and live with the uncertainty created by that backlog. My experience is that diminishes the quality of life for a large number of people and their families. My impression is that this is cruel given that there was an opportunity to improve the quality of life and promote efficiency ... but a reason was made up to avoid that. That is CRUEL and to argue that "faith" or some religious conviction has kept them from providing a fix and add to that stories of "due process" being denied and or judicial activism is tragic. A person that is so invested in a story and unable to question that is not fit to serve the office. Such a person should reflect on the story they tell themselves, take time to read unbiased sources and, if that is not an option or possibility for them, then retire for the good of the community.
This brings me to a second point. The point is why do people cling to stories despite the evidence. Here is one possibility (follow the link) https://www.fastcompany.com/40528587/why-your-brain-clings-to-false-beliefs-even-when-it-knows-better#:~:text=Back%20in%201991%2C%20Harvard%20psychologist%20Daniel,believe%20and%20very%20difficult%20to%20doubt.&text=Back%20in%201991%2C%20Harvard,very%20difficult%20to%20doubt.&text=1991%2C%20Harvard%20psychologist%20Daniel,believe%20and%20very%20difficult. This article provides a quick overview of why this bias persists. People want to believe, rather than think hard about matters. We are a stubborn species and one that is dangerous to others. But we are also a species that is capable of change and making things better. This is the species that I hope prevails. That is the species that will seek constructive solutions, seek to understand, chose love and community, see hope rather than despair, chose community over party or promoting a story their group insists is "the facts" or only way".
Hopefully, the Commissioners that said "niet" to this will reconsider . If they have additional facts to deny the funding (other than double speak, as I have described it), they can better articulate their points and the matter put up for a vote. The public deserves a robust and thoughtful debate on this an all issues. A person that is unable to do this, does not deserve to run for office.
One book that I recommend be read to get a historical perspective on the importance of the public demanding a robust discussion and transparency is Sarah Blakewell's book Humanly Possible: Seven Hundred Years of Humanist Free Thinking, Inquiry and Hope. Throughout history, those clinging to emotional arguments (based on scant evidence or faith), have led to poor outcomes. Let's strive for a more optimal outcome and recognize that life is more often than not hard and complicated ... and not as we wish or think.
Great. Another wacko commissioner with no interest in helping make the county a better place. Just more “look at me” grandstanding.