Whither West Walleye?

A town is a terrible thing to waste yet frighteningly easy to do. Whether a town flourishes or fails is dependent on many factors, some random and imposed from without, others deliberate and imposed from within. For example, if West Walleye withered away because the Interstate bypassed it and its economic base of local gas stations and home cooking turned to sand leaving nothing but a memory, no one is to blame.

But if West Walleye’s laws, rules and regulations did not keep pace with the reality of relentless change, or were perverted, ignored or mismanaged, its fate could be attributed to someone rather than something.

In the case of a town, any town, that “someone” is its elected officials, individually or collectively.

The danger lies in where the “someone” focuses its priorities. That is, who or what benefits from the governance they are charged with? Simply put, are their goals self-serving or other-serving; me or thee?

Autocratic leaders tend toward personal gain and are often dependent on groups and individuals all beholden to one another (“You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours”). Democratic leaders tend toward societal benefits; ‘the greater good for the greater number’.

Wonderfully, regular elections address the issue of whether a town moves forward, remains stagnant or helplessly turns to sand. The people whose lives are affected by the consequences of their town’s laws and governance can remove and replace the “someone” responsible for the outcome(s) it produces.

I don’t live in West Walleye. I live in Woodbury. What I’ve concluded is best for myself and my town is responsible democratic leadership and honest change as embodied by the dedicated slate of experienced public servants proposed by Woodbury’s Democratic Town Committee; Row B on our upcoming ballot.

D. J. Arneson