the following is a letter to the editor from a courageous state employee.The Olympian Oct 6,1999

I-695 IS OUR BOSTON TEA PARTY

...State government has ignored the inflated rates of the MVET for years,set up countless commissions,increased the number of state executives and mishandled several technology projects,wasting tens of millions of dollars. Now tellme WHY I should heed their wishes/warnings about the effects of I-695? As a state employee (26 years with the same agency),I continue to see first hand the waste of staff's capacity and the fiscal irresponsibility of managing our tax dollars at the agency level......The fact is,if their is money it will be spent.....To regain some influence on tax spending it becomes necessary to decrease the taxes collected.The iniative (process) proposes a law that democratically restores the powerto spend to voting taxpayers....THIS HAS BECOME A WAR BETWEEN THE TAXPAYERS AND THE TAX SPENDERS. Ithink the payers will win this one.

Dave Butler/Olympia

ricardo

-- Ricardo (ricardoxxx@home.com), October 06, 1999

Answers

I think that this is a scenario that any state employee is familiar with, but it's generally only the ones that know they've got retirement made that are willing to go public with it.

-- Mark Stilson (mark842@hotmail.com), October 06, 1999.

This is just another disgruntled worker who is pissed off at the system because he didn't save for retirement early enough and is looking for someone to blame for having to work longer than he wants to.

For all I know that could be true, don't read into one state employees opinion too deeply. we all know that one person dosen't speak for thousands of people. He is just like all you 695ers, he chose to screw the system instead of going through the proper process. there is a whistleblower law that will work if you use it. why didn't he? Why don't people go to public meetings?

-- mark (mrtou@ronrs.com), October 07, 1999.

Gee Dave, Why didn't you leave the coffee pot and help your co-workers? And it seems ou didn't mind making all that money off the State did you?

-- (mkpow62@silverlink.net), October 07, 1999.

"Why don't people go to public meetings? " Some are just too busy working to put food on the table, gas in their cars, and just generally making a living, to go to public meetings held during work hours at places convenient only to the politicians. But we CAN vote (even if we do it by absentee to avoid losing more work time). Whatsamatta? Moter voter law not QUITE working like you expected.

-- Mark (mark842@hotmail.com), October 07, 1999.