Court jester (September 2, 2015)

Pat Orr is critical of the Apple Valley Chamber of Commerce for having been duped by a group defending commerce in the Town of Apple Valley, and writes dismissively about the group itself — Committee for Government Accountability (Bi-partisan collaboration — bah humbug, Apple Valley Review, September 1, 2015).

Indeed, it must be dismaying to Orr that anyone would dare oppose his beloved royal family — er, Town Council — on its holy crusade to destroy the oldest business in town, along with the water system on which we each depend. The gall of some people!

I suppose we should thank Mr. Orr for providing an example of precisely the type of slavish and uncritical thinking we at the CFGA are fighting.

There is nothing wholesome or desirable in the Town’s attacks on Apple Valley Ranchos Water Company. The level of deception employed by the Town is obviously designed to eclipse even the suggestion of reason or reasonability. The success of the Town’s campaign of fear, uncertainty, and doubt can be seen everywhere, including in writings by Mr. Orr and other supposedly independent members of the media.

To paraphrase William F. Buckley, the CFGA stands athwart the Town Council’s head-long plunge into debt, yelling Stop, at a time when no one is inclined to do so, or to have much patience with those who so urge it.

Because Ranchos is under attack, they would be foolish not to support the efforts of CFGA, and not being fools they have publicly affirmed their support. We at CFGA are proud to have earned the trust and support of Ranchos as a result of our efforts.

Those efforts, by the way, must be making an impact, given the reactions we are getting from the Town and its fellow travelers.

Eventually, the truth will come out about the Town’s hostile takeover of Ranchos. It is the goal of CFGA to have that happen before the seizure of Ranchos, rather than after, when our current Town Council members are long gone, and therefore unaccountable for their actions, or the mountain of debt they will have left behind.

Greg Raven is Co-Chair of Apple Valley Citizens for Government Accountability, and is concerned about quality of life issues.