Thank God we have politicians who understand the need for more taxes with the economy the way it is. With all of the people who are out of work and on welfare I guess that just adds a little more burden to those who are still lucky enough to have a job and those of us who are trying to make ends meet on a fixed income.

Karen Bishop, Whidbey Island Conservation District manager, states that this tax will not increase their budget but will stabilize it. Well if I might be so bold as to suggest that your commission allow the farmers to manage their own land as farmers have done for hundreds of years before then you could cut back on a staff of people who want to tell them what to do and how to do it, or did I miss the part in your resume about you being a farmer yourself?

I am also disappointed in the fact that Commissioner John Dean is supportive of yet another tax after I had a conversation with Mr. Dean about a week ago and he explained to me how he was drawn into politics because he wanted to be the voice for all of us taxpayers and make us all part of the system by opening the door to our commissioners and letting us have an active part in what goes on in local government. Somewhere I missed the part about the commissioners approving new taxes without the approval and vote of the taxpayers.

Finally I think if we are going to regulate anything, we (being our government, of course) should regulate the development of the land around our local farms before all we have to show our great grandkids about farms is pictures in history books and future beef is bought from a test tube, and not to forget eggs which will probably be sold out of a big red box on the street corner and have no idea about their point of origin.

The other Dick Johnson

Coupeville