Just when I thought that Federal Way was showing spurts of growth as a healthy city, the election coverage revealed that we are in for a treat.
It was of back in March 1989, on the campus of Pacific Lutheran University, where the late Cesar Chavez addressed the crowd: “The times we face truly call for us to do more to stop this evil in our midst. The answer lies with you and me. It is all men and women who share the suffering and yearn for a better world.”
Whether it be the dismissal of a city manager for lacking trust, electing a judge that has good judgment, or determining whether to keep a mayor that is double minded, we must heed to the words of Chavez and stop the corruption and evilness in our city government.
It is time for all community leaders to come together and raise the standards of our city’s expectations. The time has come to break down the barriers and walls that have divided us: Racial favoritism, political egoism, societal superiorism and religious moralism.
The time has come to nip it in the butt before it gets out of control. We need to elect judges that are fair, strong in applying the law accordingly, and are competent. I personally spent a day at the South King County courthouse listening and observing the performances of the judges assigned for that day.
I learned that the judges were fair and direct in their application and interpretation of the law. I sat in courtrooms where both genders were presiding, and I would not want to be a criminal and face the female judge. If you are a deadbeat, abusive, smart-ass and non-compliant with the requested forms, you stand no chance with a judge. Nor, would I want to be in the position where I needed a Spanish interpreter. If you are Spanish speaking, the court will hear all the cases right after each other, and you better hope the judge had a good Mexican vacation or that the case before you doesn’t upset the judge.
I sure did not need an interpreter to figure out Federal Way Mayor Jack Dovey’s confusion. It was appalling as I read the mayor’s confession of his change in philosophy regarding the election of a mayor by the public vs. assigned by a handful of friends. If my math is correct, the mayor has been at the helm for 17 months, and that he sided with the “elect the mayor group,” thus signing the petition as the Mayor of Federal Way. Now he is diluting it by using the old trump card: “As a citizen.” Unless there were personal reasons for thinking as a citizen with special business interests, he should have instead been looking out for the city’s best interest.
The mayor is correct to acknowledge the caliber of leadership serving on the council. However, he slides in with a recommendation that the city doesn’t need change in management or mayor, but with the council, concluding that it is wrong to change the form of government.
The mayor has shown that unless the citizens of Federal Way demand change, our youth of today will have a precedent that tomorrow they may lead with double standards, compromises and dismissals of its convictions with a simple “even though.”
It is fitting that we hearken to Cesar Chavez’s closing words of his speech, when he addressed the Tacoma crowd with the admonition for caring people to do the simple deeds of the mandate written by the Prophet Micah in the Old Testament. These simple deeds that required action were: 1) To do justice, 2) to love kindness, and 3) to walk humbly.
