Something to vote for - Jim Oldham

Something to vote for
By JIM OLDHAM
Published on October 17, 2008

Here is an excerpt from the letter that Town Meeting member Jim Oldham had published in the Amherst Bulletin:
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Select Board

Amherst voters will receive a second ballot to choose one of four candidates for the vacant Select Board seat.

This year, "change" and "experience" have become shallow alternatives for genuine ideas, but the leadership qualities that they represent are real. Both the ability to break from old policies and politics to offer creative new solutions, and the knowledge and competence to successfully deliver such solutions, are desperately needed to meet difficult economic, environmental and social challenges. This is as true locally as nationally. Fortunately, one Select Board candidate combines both these qualities.

Vladimir Morales' resume includes three terms on School Committee, and appointments to, among others, the Fair Housing, Joint Capital Planning, and Community Preservation Act committees. Yet he remains one of Amherst's most effective voices for those less involved.

Vladimir is committed to accessible government. As a School Committee member, he instigated public broadcast of their meetings - a service parents value, as recent news stories demonstrate. For nine years he was the one person many parents turned to for information, to share concerns, or for help navigating the system.

Vladimir's commitment to inclusiveness runs through all his work. He led a vote to abolish a rule limiting school club participation to students with a C-plus average or higher; aware that participating students are more motivated, while those excluded will continue to drift away.

In Town Meeting, Vladimir has educated fellow members and others about the value of extending local voting rights to resident aliens so that all our neighbors can participate in decisions that affect everyone. Although state legislative approval is still pending, his leadership has created a strong local consensus on this issue.

Vladimir is a leader and doer. From advocating for air quality improvements at Fort River School to working locally and at state level to protect public safety by prohibiting drivers' use of hand-held phones, he consistently works for the welfare of constituents and the town.

He is an independent thinker and one of few who can represent the concerns of taxpayers and those who fear the loss of services. He genuinely understands that the Select Board represents all residents - renters, homeowners, those with fixed incomes, families, students, retirees and all the diverse groups that we are. I look forward to voting for Vladimir Morales for Select Board.

Jim Oldham, a Town Meeting member from Precinct 5, does environmental justice work in Massachusetts and Ecuador.