CITY LIGHTS
By Al Hooper

Reassure me, momma. Tell me there are still people around who would sooner eat raw fish than pillory a political rival in the throes of a personal crisis.
Nobody knows exactly what went on between Edmonds City Councilman Dave Orvis and his 13-year-old son in a confrontation two months ago. What we know for sure is that Mr. Orvis now faces a misdemeanor assault charge.

Not much to go on, perhaps. But enough. A resourceful foe makes do with what God provides.
Several online sites went into a frenzy mode and elicited ripostes from anyone who chose to log in. The prevailing tone was shrill. First you quote all the negatives from statements made to police investigators and Child Protective Services. Then you party on until the music stops.
Innocent until proven guilty? Odd concept. Must be foreign. From Hawaii or Kenya or like that.

Some argue, Hey, thats politics! Dave Orvis made his bed when he alienated the mayor and half of City Council with his intransigence on numerous issues.
True, a sharp divide separates the contending factions entrusted with our citys governance. Over here we have Michael Plunkett and Dave Orvis who staunchly some would say inflexibly oppose any tall building ever planned for anywhere in Edmonds.
Further along the bench sit council president DJ Wilson and like-minded thinkers who would consider making accommodations to broaden the tax base and slow the citys fiscal hemorrhaging.

These are entrenched positions. And grimly defended. When Michael Plunkett announced his bid for a fourth term in the fall election, colleague Dave Orvis swiftly endorsed him against upstart challenger Priya Cloutier.
Nor did Mr. Orvis stop there. He listed all the elections in which Ms. Cloutier had failed to vote since moving to Edmonds. Which added up to a potful of elections.
Meanwhile, across the spiked fence, the challengers candidacy gained considerable traction when DJ Wilson endorsed Priya Cloutier over his fellow councilman, Mr. Plunkett. So much for collegiality.

Then, last week, the ground shifted again with the legal charge against Dave Orvis.
Did the mayor and council close ranks around an embattled colleague? Not so youd notice.
Mayor Gary Haakenson said he had approached Mr. Orvis and suggested he resign. Mr. Orvis rejected the offer.
And council president Wilson, on his Facebook page, thoughtfully provided a link to the most lurid of the press accounts about the case to which Priya Cloutier promptly responded.

Ms. Cloutier deplored Mr. Orviss actions. She questioned his capacity for raising kids. She expressed disgust at his reported handling of the shout out. (Ms. Cloutier is a lawyer but the word alleged did not make an appearance in her testimony.)
If you deduce from any of this, dear reader, that City Lights is in lockstep with the political priorities of Dave Orvis and Michael Plunkett, you would be incorrect. In the matter of height limits, I am not.
I believe individual cases should be dealt with individually, and exceptions allowed on the basis of common sense and the common good.
But thats not the issue here.

Ive known several people with the courage and compassion to adopt foster kids, as Dave and Martha Orvis have done. I admire them enormously.
Raising a child to adulthood never comes with guarantees. But adoptive parents who put themselves out there to make a troubled life better are very special parents. And theyll always get the benefit of the doubt from this small corner of the universe.
Yes, I know. Thats bad politics.
Wouldnt have it any other way.

Ms. Buckshnis, I presume

A funny thing happened to your everlovin Beacon on its way to the printer last week. In our pre-election roundup of City Council candidates, information about Diane Buckshnis and Al Rutledge got how to say it? mucked up.
Some quotes and biographical material were attributed to the wrong candidate.
Both Ms. Buckshnis and Mr. Rutledge aspire to unseat Strom Peterson for Position 2. Other than that, they bear little resemblance to each other.

Diane Buckshnis moved to Edmonds eight years ago and immersed herself in community causes. The most intriguing line from her resume is this:
My experience fighting corruption in our banking system (listen to the NPR program Soul of a Scandal at www.dianebuckshnis.com/SoulofaScandal.aspx) and helping stabilize the banking regulatory system in Lithuania make me uniquely qualified to take on the financial challenges facing our city.
And what have YOU done lately to make the world a better place?

Mr. Rutledge, for the last 23 years, has been a relative homebody and spear-carrier for committees like Brightwater, Downtown Stakeholders and Save Our Log Cabin. He also runs for City Council from time to time.
Elsewhere in this issue youll find the bios and statements of these two candidates reprinted as they submitted them. In full. No overlap. Some would call it our mea culpa. We call it two-for-the-price-of-one.
As for Strom Peterson our regrets, sir. No reprint for you this issue. We didnt mess up YOUR statements.
Maybe next time.

Whatever became of ?

As both our Constant Readers know, Big Dave Earling is back in town.
You may remember Dave Earling as a vote magnet elected to Edmonds City Council three times (1992 to 2004). He stepped aside to run a close race for Snohomish County Executive before losing out to Aaron Reardon.
Then came a posting as administrative chair of the Growth Management Hearings Board (for Snohomish, King, Pierce and Kitsap counties).
Turns out theres a recession going on. And so the Growth Management board had to close its Seattle office to save some bucks. Mr. Earling, however, was asked to stay on the job and pick his own work site.

He chose to open an office at 108 5th Avenue South in downtown Edmonds. Where else?
Takes me eight minutes to get to work, he says serenely. Driving into Seattle every day well, it can take you eight minutes to go eight feet.
In his halcyon years as president of City Council, Dave Earling ran a tidy ship. Internal strife rarely surfaced. And things got done.
Ask him if he contemplates a return to local politics, and he appears not to hear the question. But if you spot him strolling the short block from his office to Tullys one of these bright summer days, you might ask him yourself.
Mr. Earling, sir, are you now or have you ever been?
If he takes the Fifth, youll know youre onto something.