ROANOKE TIMES 

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

DATE: WEDNESDAY, July 5, 1995                   TAG: 9507060110
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-10   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: DARRELL LEE CROSON
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

EACH CITIZEN'S VIEW IS IMPORTANT

I RECENTLY attended a Rockbridge County Board of Supervisors meeting that addressed the issues of an airport study. During this meeting, I suggested that perhaps, before any support be given to pursuing the airport study, the board members should find out what citizens in each of their districts wanted.

As I stated at the meeting, I understand that elected officials are in a position to represent what the majority of the citizenry feel is in their best interest, no matter what their reasoning. My suggestion was quickly dismissed, and it became apparent to me that some of our elected officials don't care enough about what this county's citizens think about this issue.

In fact, the manner in which this issue has been handled is almost an arrogant abuse of power. I have come to believe that the airport issue isn't about some people getting together and putting an airstrip in the county, it's not about the environmental impact, and it's not about the money it will cost taxpayers.

No, this issue is of much greater concern. The airport issue is about returning control of local government back to the majority of Rockbridge County's citizens.

Perhaps for too long many of us have allowed apathy to rule our participation in local government. However, if we don't require our local elected officials to listen and act on our wishes for the way in which our taxes are being spent, how can we ever expect our state or federal government to represent our best interests? We all must act to ensure that our local elected officials are held accountable for how they vote, and whose interests they advance.

Young, old, rich, poor, blue collar, white collar, educated, uneducated, black, white - every one of the citizens is just as important as any other when it comes to having a voice in local government.

If we allow our local officials to act in a manner that doesn't represent our best interest or utilize our hard-earned tax dollars in the best manner on the airport issue, we will have opened the door for future disregard for majority rule in this county. We will have encouraged those few with money and power to continue to advance their agenda at the cost of our tax dollars.

Please don't sit back and feel powerless; don't feel that you don't count and that your voice will not be heard. This is your community. The person who doesn't count equally with the next is the person who doesn't act to make his or her opinions known. As Abraham Lincoln put it: ``To sin by silence when they should protest makes cowards of men.''

Darrell Lee Croson, of Lexington, is a job-placement specialist for a personnel consultant firm. 


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