Bangor residents should decide

A few weeks ago, the Bangor Daily News ran a story on term limits for the Bangor School Committee. This was followed by an editorial opposing both term limits and the proposal to take the question to the public in a referendum. A second editorial endorsed raising the City Council stipend. The articles and editorials have certainly fueled the discussion of these issues at the office water cooler and in the shops around town.

While I agree with one editorial and disagree with the other, I feel they both miss the point. The issue isn’t if council pay should be increased or not, or if we should impose term limits on the School Committee or not. The issue is whether the voters of the city of Bangor ought to have the opportunity to make these decisions. I feel passionately that the people should have that opportunity.

I would like to make a couple of important points about the Bangor School Department separate from the issue of term limits. We have one of the finest school systems in the country, and Bangor schools are the envy of every other district and municipality in the state. We have students who excel academically, athletically and in the arts. We have a staff, from top to bottom, of

talented and dedicated individuals who take great pride in their work. We’re also fortunate to have the people who serve on the School Committee. They are all outstanding individuals who are committed to this community.

Since I first proposed the idea for a referendum on term limits for the School Committee, the response has been enlightening. Many conspiracy theories were aired suggesting that either this group or that group was really behind this. I’m nobody’s pawn. This was put forward at the request of a citizen committee that has had term limits and increased council compensation as a part of their agenda for

a number of years. I would do the same for any other group or individual coming forward with

a request that seems reasonable. The only way to change the City Charter is through a ballot question, and this proposal will place it on the November ballot at no additional cost to Bangor taxpayers.

In the last few weeks I’ve had many phone calls and conversations with people on the subject of term limits for the School Committee. Many arguments have been made on both sides of the issue. Those in opposition say “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” while those in favor talk of an opportunity for “new blood and new ideas.”

Regardless of the position taken, no one has yet made a compelling argument as to why the voters of the city of Bangor should not have the opportunity to decide this issue. The council pay issue was voted down just six years ago; after years of discussion, however, there has yet to be a vote on term limits for the School Committee, a change that will have little impact since someone who is term limited may run again after

a one-year absence.

What the French historian, Alexis de Tocqueville, wrote 170 years ago still holds true today: “When the opponents of democracy assert that a single man performs what he undertakes better than the government of all, it appears to me they are right. Democracy does not give people the most skillful government but it produces what the ablest governments are frequently unable to create; namely, an all pervading and restless activity that may produce wonders.”

We start down a treacherous path when we think we should decide for the people. I might not agree with the outcome of a referendum, but I will support it because the people made it.

Wars have been waged and millions have died for the cause of democracy. Tonight, in a peaceful way, the Bangor City Council can further that cause by sending the term limit question to the voters of Bangor to decide.

Dan Tremble is a Bangor city councilor.