It’s a sad day for Port Angeles, and not just because city leaders have decided to end water fluoridation — a proven safe and effective dental health measure.
It’s also heartbreaking that the Aug. 2 City Council vote to stop this public health tool demonstrates that bullying and threats are effective.
Whether you personally like Port Angeles’ seven City Council members or not, they still deserve to be treated with common decency.
But since last year, the majority of the council members have been subjected to intimidation, name-calling and alleged threats from water fluoridation critics who repeatedly have crossed the line from civil discourse into harassment.
Regrettably, the council set a precedent that acrimony and incivility trump common decency and a robust civil society with its latest decision.
I hope that we can all stand up and say, “Enough is enough.”
This is not the Port Angeles that we know.
I hope that our city can return to a place where we respect one another, even during times of disagreement.
Jody Moss,
Port Angeles