READERS RESPOND

THE ISSUE: Huntington Beach Mayor Dave Garofalo turned over a Wal-Mart

protest sign displayed at an employee luncheon Dec. 9.

As a resident of Huntington Beach, I am glad to see that people are

fighting City Hall.

Good government requires the questioning of authority in ways that catch

the attention of those of us who are too busy trying to make ends meet to

be directly involved. This means that protest signs have to be large and

outrageous, and public demonstrations have to be theatrical in order to

get the message out.

Unfortunately, outrageous often results in reaction, as witnessed by Dave

Garofalo’s actions (“Garofalo angered by protest signs at city party,”

Dec. 16). I and probably he wishes he hadn’t turned over the sign, but I

will not crucify him for it. I prefer a representative with strong

feelings (even ones in conflict with mine) over one with no feelings.

I like Garofalo, even though he does not represent my viewpoint, and feel

comfortable with his honesty, good faith and strong feelings on the City

Council.

I think Wal-Mart is a despicable corporation, and I have boycotted them

for about five years now. Regardless, I think the school district should

sell the site and take advantage of the proceeds to repair the schools

instead of asking the taxpayers for more taxes in a bond election. There

is some kind of collusion going on between the City Council and the

school board over this Wal-Mart issue, and while we taxpayers (voters)

may not know what is exactly going on, we know that something is not

right, and we will continue to vote accordingly.