COAST Event Called A Sham

From the Cincinnati Enquirer:

The committee trying to pass an operating levy for Milford Schools is fighting back against organized opposition to the May 2 ballot issue.

Partnership for Milford Schools, the committee running the campaign to pass the 7.9-mill levy, has urged Superintendent John Frye to not participate in the Citizens Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes Town Hall Meeting on Thursday. Frye, who had planned to attend, has agreed to follow the committee's recommendation.

Calling the event a "political sham," Todd Munro, levy committee co-chairman, said, "The citizens of Milford are smarter than this and deserve better. To think that COAST wants to do anything other than create a self-serving event, at which it can grandstand and continue to spread its rhetoric and misinformation, would be ridiculous."


Don Lykins, organizer of OhioCOAST, explained why he called the meeting:

"People have told me when they go to the board of education and ask questions, they never get their questions answered. This was a chance to really sit down with the superintendent and maybe the treasurer and other people on their side and talk through some things," Lykins said.

"I thought a public forum would be a way to get more information out about a solution rather than going to the taxpayers' pockets all of the time."

Actually, there is some pretty good reporting in this article. Both sides are represented by qualified spokesmen.

One side looks pretty ridiculous in the article, if you ask me, and that is the pro-levy group. If you want to bring people to your side, you speak to the issues; you don't start with an insult and go from there...

Is ther planned event a sham? Probably. And for the reasons that the pro-levy folks stated. Just state your case...you don't need the COAST-inspired theatrics.

Generally speaking, I'm against school levies. Funding for education is a serious issue, but let's not kid ourselves about what we're funding...a good deal of this stuff isn't education.

But, each situation is different. I don't know what the situation in Milford is...my guess is that it would be useful to have a forum to discuss the issues.