Sarasota Observer readers sound off

Motorized or not? Not an easy answer

Thank you for your excellent coverage of Reopen Beach Road Inc., a 501 (c)4 in your May 18, 2017 edition. Unfortunately, a picture is worth 1,000 words. Your picture shows a road that appears to be open. I would like you to provide the attached picture to your readers. The attached picture reflects the true situation: a road blocked by bollards and a sign that says “non-motorized access."

Do you have a motorized wheelchair? What is true? Is the motorized wheelchair permitted or not? When the private property owners unlock the collapsible bollard, they drive their automotive engine vehicles on this road. Are these vehicles motorized? We wonder why these private motorized vehicles are allowed if the sign says “non-motorized access only.”

As the new Reopen Beach Road Executive Director, I intend to clarify the questions and answers of this somewhat complicated “Reopen Beach Road” issue. I look forward to working closely with the Siesta Key Observer as this story unfolds. I urge your readers to visit www.Reopen Beach Road.org to educate themselves and download proposed County Charter amendments # 4.1 to preserve county-owned parks, preserves, beach and water access and waterfront vistas and # 4.2 to retain Siesta Key Beach Road as public right of way.

Political parties should wake up — and reform

Professional advisers providing training and technical assistance to civil society organizations concentrate on four areas to improve governance and program impact:

• Accountability: acceptance of responsibility for decisions made, actions taken and results achieved.

• Transparency: clear, accurate and complete disclosure about policies, programs and finance.

• Tolerance: respect for other peoples’ beliefs, views and practices.

• Advocacy: actions to promote and achieve declared principles, policies and programs.

Most reputable civil society organizations hold these criteria in high regard and monitor their progress in achieving them. Many for-profit organizations and enterprises are now also embracing these criteria, and “social responsible” fund stocks are traded on major stock exchanges.

Applying these criteria to the major organizations involved in American politics (the media and political parties) yields sad results. With few exceptions, currently the major media groups do not even bother to pay lip service to accountability,  ransparency or tolerance.

Advocacy of their agenda is paramount.

The Democratic Party, current party leaders and past candidates appear to be in a feeding frenzy for investigations and impeachment.

The Republican Party continues to flounder in attempts to govern.

Clearly, the American people are confused and angry. Improving or reforming the media may be a lost cause; hopefully, the forces of competition will solve the problem for them. The two political parties should wake up; an internal, frank review of their current actions and emotions of both parties would reveal how far they have strayed from good governance and their pledge to serve the American people.

Internal political reform should replace political rebellion. The country deserves and requires nothing less.

Duncan Miller, Sarasota