
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, April 23, 1990                   TAG: 9004230205
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

OUTRAGED KIM-STAN STILL MAY OPERATE

I AM OUTRAGED that the owners of Kim-Stan are permitted to continue polluting the environment by hauling into Covington countless trucks of garbage while the legal battle drags on. By the time the courts act the problem will be moot, the dump will be full, and taxpayers and the public will ultimately pay the bill.

It seems to me that the governor could protect the commonwealth by putting a hold on garbage delivery until such time as the courts decide.

The public is increasingly cynical about the willingness of government to protect its real interest. The public assumes, with good cause, that everybody in government is on the take or in some fashion bought out by special interests or big industry.

We have been boasting lately of the triumph of our democratic government. Apparently democracy works like this: Money buys the votes that elect the officials who support the interests of money, which in turn buys more votes to repeat the process. Meanwhile, the people of Covington are buried in a mountain of garbage and filth, not to mention the water and air pollution from Westvaco. And no one seems empowered to put a stop to it.

If the Kim-Stan caper is a fruit of democracy, we need to look for another form of government quickly. Tomorrow may be too late.

\ RAYMOND J. LAWRENCE JR.\ ROANOKE

by CNB