Yes, the answers are here, but I’d very much appreciate your reading this page before going to that information.
We owe a vote of thanks to those who have indicated their willingness to serve on the POA Board. To help with the decision making process in the upcoming election, I drew up a list of questions concerning timely subjects. My intent is to help inform voters where the candidates stand on certain issues. Participation in this effort was totally voluntary, and all candidates chose to do so. These are not strictly yes/no questions, so please don’t expect to carefully read this information in two or three minutes.
Before reading this information, you may want to go the POA web site and read the posted background information on each of the candidates.
In addition, there is one extremely important point worth noting. Probably the most important quality we want in our directors is, at least in my view, the ability to absorb and understand information before making sound decisions. While it is nice to have informed candidates, there is quite possibly nothing wrong with a candidate not having made up their mind on an issue at this time. In fact, one could argue that keeping an open mind is better than having firmly made up your mind on everything in advance.
Therefore, one can easily argue that it is not necessarily bad if an answer is something along the lines of “I don’t know yet” or “I’m not entirely sure”. Based on the issue being addressed, you will have to make a judgment as to whether such an answer (if it occurs) reflects what you wish to see in your elected representatives. On some issues, you may find yourself comfortable with a candidate who does not have a firm position but is willing to keep an open mind and listen to all sides of the issue. On others, you might find a lack of commitment to be of concern.
Only you can make that judgment, but I sincerely hope you will keep an open mind when doing so. All of these candidates care about our community and wish to help. We should appreciate their willingness to share their views and avoid making harsh judgments.
Please, please, please, read the questions carefully at least once (Have I begged enough?). Understanding the questions is as important as reading the answers.
If you have questions about anything a candidate has written, you may want to consider contacting them directly. Don’t forget the upcoming candidate’s night at the POA building on October 3rd; as that might be a good opportunity to ask your question.
I thought it best to keep the candidate’s answers separate. Therefore, each link will bring up only that candidate’s answers. The questions are the same, and they are in dark red text. Answers are in black text. I have listed names in alphabetical order: