Perspective

Perspective, in three Acts.

Act 1. History.

First they came for the communists, and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a communist.

Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a Jew.

Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me.

The quote is from Martin Niemöller, a German pastor who spent the last seven years of Hitler’s rule as a prisoner in Nazi concentration camps. His crime was not that he was a socialist, trade unionist, or Jew – as he affords us – but instead only that he was not an outspoken supporter of Hitler.

He did not play a role in opposing Hitler. In fact, he supported him. The above quote, now engraved in history and cited often, was not uttered until well after the war was over and Niemöller had been rescued from incarceration and torture, by allied troops in 1945. But freedom afforded the Lutheran pastor only a woeful, regretful retrospective on the tragic position that he found himself in – having the ability to speak up, but choosing not to do so. And he lived out the remainder of his life (39 years) chained to a resonating feeling of culpability; a burden made unimaginably heavier by the weight of his own personal scars from his memories inside Sachsenhausen and Dachau.

Act 2. The Absurd.

This past April played host to our annual municipal elections, which this year included Ballot Proposition 11. The question posed to Anchorage residents was whether or not we should require 100% card checks for liquor sales at our box stores (i.e., Brown Jug). This means, simply, if you want alcohol, you have to show valid identification proving you are over 21 and have no criminal record that would prohibit you from purchasing alcohol.

It was an advisory vote, meaning that no legislation would be enacted solely on the yes or no vote that appeared on our ballots, but instead would provide incentive and public support for the Assembly to address the issue. The intent was to help curb the increasing and ever present chronic inebriate problems in the municipality, and put one more speed bump in the road that separates a problem drinker from attaining a drink. Especially when that drinker’s next move is to place him or herself behind the wheel of a car.

I was among those who voted in favor of universal card check. I don’t mind pulling out my driver’s licence when buying alcohol. Frankly, I dodge enough erratic drivers who have mistaken their cell phones for their steering wheels. It is not my opinion that we are running impaired driver deficits, and I am all for stopping more needless tragedies in a thoroughly researched and responsibly implemented manner. And I was not in the minority. The proposition passed by a 67% to 33% vote; roughly two thirds of Anchorage voters agreed that this was a good thing. That was an even higher margin than Prop 9, which extended property tax exemptions to include all veterans. If there is such a thing, that vote is mandate territory.

There is a long expanse, however, that separates that mandate and a carefully scrutinized, functional legislative equivalent. And we are in the middle of that process right now. Testimony has opened up. The original bill extended the scope of the law beyond box stores to include bars and restaurants, causing legitimate concern among business owners worried (for themselves as well as their employees) about being held liable for things beyond their control. Two more versions of the bill have popped up to address those concerns and offer fixes.

Much of the testimony had to do with nonspecific, ambiguous language, or the thought that legislation should be restricted to box stores. Both points represent valid concerns.

However, this concern, offered by a local bar employee, is not.

I don’t spotlight this to chastise this gentleman. But I do it as a plea to those out there who do feel that they need to speak up in matters that they believe effect them.

Respect history.

Before you pluck some obscure quote that you might have seen on a chalkboard on television, or overheard someone say, causing you to think to yourself, “hey, I should use that,” I urge you to stop, drop, and google it. Otherwise, you might confuse your plight of having to sacrifice three and a half hours one weekend (once every three years) getting a TAM card… with living inside a Nazi concentration camp. With being a holocaust victim.

3. Perspective

I’m a big believer in allowing your arguments to stand on the weight of their own merits. Watching the following video, even as I post it again here, brings tears to my eyes and a deep wish that Mr. Crawford didn’t have this argument to offer. This community does need to sift through the debate and arrive at a fair, agreeable piece of legislation that balances the intent of the voters with a practical solution that business owners can palate. But let us, please, take this story with us into the discussion as it continues into Tuesday night’s assembly meeting, so that we don’t have to revisit anything like it again, for as long as we possibly can.

Former Rep. Harry Crawford has the floor.

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