George,

Calling an opinion poll on the Meadowcreek Parkway "inappropriate" as Rus Perry did is astounding cynical elitism.

He's saying knowing how the people feel about an issue might affect what leaders want to do, and this would be bad.

Bad? It's what some of us think separates Democrats from Republicans. We're supposed to stand for government by consensus while they rely on government by the elite. Have some in our party decided theirs is the better way?

Perry also terms it "political cover" to seek the opinion of the whole community. He's suggesting to ask how people feel about an issue is an act of cowardice under representative democracy.

Then if not the people, who do leaders represent?

The people of Charlottesville are well aware of our guardian stipulations regarding the parkway. Do Rus and Nancy O'Brien not care if people agree and approve? That's all a referendum can tell us. It cannot take the decision away from City Council.

Thirty years of refining the refusal to build this service road has given us a sophisticated and effective set of roadblocks. A portion of the community is happy with this. It may be a majority of the community; it may not be. The opposite of "political cover," it's political arrogance not to care where the majority stands.

Rey Barry (electronic mail, February 5, 2004)