Candidate for
Council Member; City of Ridgecrest

Dear SmartVoter,

Thank you for taking time to research my 2010 candidacy. While I sincerely appreciate the commitment that our current Councilmen have shown in governing according to their guiding philosophies of local government, the fact remains that I have been very dissatisfied with the Council's decisions in recent years, both prior to and after the November 2008 election. Two years ago, my campaign addressed issues such as the Downs Median Project, the Facility Modernization Project, and Measure N, the proposed sales tax increase which was ultimately rejected by local voters. (I have retained the Position Paper entitled "My Thoughts on the Last Election's Hot City Issues (2008)" on this website so that you can better understand my approach to such issues.) Since then, the Mandatory Trash & Recycling debacle has almost completely dominated the local political landscape for nearly two years -- with no end yet in sight.

The Declaration of Independence states that "Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed". Because I do not consent to the manner in which I am being locally governed, it is, in the Declaration's words, my right and my duty to change it -- and I can do this most effectively by serving on the City Council, as opposed to frequently offering remarks from the Council Chamber's citizen's podium. On a more personal note, my wife Patricia and I have endeavored to educate our three children about the foundational principles of American government, and to live by those principles. Therefore, my candidacy also serves as an example to my family of promoting Constitutionally-limited government and its resultant benefits to our community.

Fellow citizens, it is not our names or personalities that are important, but rather the differing principles of government which our names represent. Do you prefer to raise taxes, or to cut spending? Do you favor more socialism or less socialism? Do you support more ordinances and regulations on the grounds that these are ultimately for our own safety and security, or would you prefer that government limited its activities to only those expressly permitted by our constitutions? A candidate's answers to these questions will, of course, dictate the votes that he or she will cast after taking office.

If I am elected to the Council, I have five basic objectives. These are:

1st) To ensure that City government focuses primarily upon protecting its citizens, punishing evildoers, and upholding everyone's Constitutional rights.

2nd) To promote unfettered exercise of free-market principles which will encourage economic growth and prosperity without the City's help or hindrance. In particular, the City must abandon its involvement in well-intentioned but money-losing business ventures with our tax money.

3rd) To oppose, in times of economic downturn, all non-essential projects that require City funding for installation and maintenance.

4th) To bring my professional engineering background to the Council's deliberations on its engineering-related business, and

5th) To effectively represent Ridgecrest citizens who prefer more Constitutionally-minded use of their tax dollars. Accordingly, I have read the U.S. Constitution and am currently reading the California Constitution, the two documents that every California public official is required by oath to support and defend.

Incidentally, my household lives within our means because we constantly strive to ensure that our expenses remain less than our income. If elected, that mindset will be reflected in my votes. I will also decline all monetary compensation from the City of Ridgecrest other than reimbursement of my expenses incurred by City business. I will never vote to raise taxes, but will instead refer taxation issues directly to the electorate. And if elected, I will serve in office for no longer than one term. I would be honored to receive your vote.