Did you, too, resist the temptation to cheer or dance in the streets when Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed VP Kamala Harris as his replacement?

Or did you throw all caution to winds and parade in glee?

Were you, like me, so amazed at the news that you had to check multiple sources before trusting that it was real? Did you welcome all the smiles on people’s faces at the Food Co-op that day and the day after? 

Nothing can beat the feeling of hope born anew. Here’s to transforming hope into action so that on Nov. 5 and/or 6, we can gather together in Pope Marine Park to celebrate the election of President Harris.

There is so much work to do on so many fronts. Recently, I did my bit by contributing to the Harris campaign, speaking via Zoom against a proposed book ban for the Quilcene Public School library, participating in the two Port Townsend Comprehensive Plan Studios at the Cotton Building, and filling out the city’s Active Transportation Plan survey, which you can do, as well. [bit.ly/pttransportation].

Book ban?

At the July 17 Quilcene School Board meeting, board member James Hodgson first declared that he was not be in favor of book bans, and then singled out at least two titles for banning from what he erroneously termed the school’s “private library.” During the meeting, which I learned about from the Local 20/20 Health and Wellness email list, health@12020.org, every speaker, including teachers, parents, youth, librarians, and counselors to childless cat ladies such as myself opposed the ban.

Regardless, our efforts could amount to less than a mound of cat litter if Hodgson, supported by board member Ron Frantz and another soon-to-be appointed new member, formally proposes the ban.

Make your voice heard! See www.qsd48.org/District/1214-School-Board-Members.html. In addition, urge state legislators to pass a bill to reign in renegade school boards that attempt to limit fact-based education, deny diversity, and ignore state mandates concerning education on LGBTQ+ identities and issues.

One Port Townsender, the Rev. Crystal Cox, recently filed an 18+-page ethics complaint against Mayor David Faber. One of her claims is that, to quote last week’s front-page article by James Robinson, “Faber kept people he ‘did not like’ out of an Aug. 15, 2022, city council meeting.” That allegation is false. I was the first person in line to enter City Hall for that meeting—thank you, George Marie, for the honor—which took place shortly after the Aug. 15 anti-trans demonstration across the street at Pope Marine Park. I was also the person who checked with Police Chief Olson around 3:45 p.m. and told people how we would enter and the way to line up outside City Hall. Anyone who wished could have joined the line-up for that meeting. David Faber wasn’t involved; he was preparing to present a proclamation in support of Trans Rights at meeting’s start. At a certain point, city police stopped people from entering the building for one reason only: City Council Chambers were packed to capacity, and adding more people would have created a fire hazard. Cox’s claim is absolutely bogus.

Back to positives. Thanks to city staff, SJC Consultants’ superb facilitator, Bill Grimes, and a committed group of attendees, the two Comprehensive Plan Studios were a huge success. Happily, the majority of attendees were people who work in Port Townsend and stand a good chance of seeing elements of the city’s next Comprehensive Plan achieve fruition. (See https://cityofpt.us/planning/page/comprehensive-plan-development-regulations-annual-update.)

On the first night of group exercises and discussion, a woman who chose not to join a group delivered a long diatribe about the golf course. Her outburst left me equally confused and concerned. A contract that, in stages, will transform the golf course into a shared, multi-use park that preserves golfing has been signed by all parties. Yet the fighting continues, this time mainly centering on City Council’s proposal to erect housing on a strip of land along Blaine Street that has none of the deed restrictions for recreational or municipal uses that most Golf Park land has.

No matter what is done to resolve matters amicably and move on, controversies continually arise. Why?

Thoughts turned to a recent NY Times interview, “Robert Putnam Knows Why You’re Lonely,” conducted by Lulu Garcia-Navarro [https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/13/magazine/robert-putnam-interview.html?]. After distinguishing between “bonding social capital,” which brings similar people together, and “bridging social capital,” which transcends differences between dissimilar individuals and contributes to a unified and caring society, Putnam attributed the rise of political polarization and social antagonism to a lack of bridging organizations and entities.

Putnam’s thesis, to which I cannot do full justice in limited space, suggests that the ongoing fight over golf course land is about more than golf. Ultimately, it’s about threats to a community institution that has bonded people together since 1927. During an era when more and more people feel isolated, alienated, and disenfranchised, the golf course has continued to unite people of different ages, political bents, religious/spiritual beliefs, incomes, and more. It is a central source of small-town cohesion and personal bonding in the best and most positive sense. Until every single one of us honors this reality and helps to create equally potent ways for dissimilar Port Townsenders to bond deeply, the fights will likely continue. That’s how strong the need for community and community unifiers has become in 2024.

Jason Victor Serinus is a critic of culture, music, and audio. A longtime advocate for rights, equality, and freedom, he is also a professional whistler. Column tips: jvsaisi24@gmail.com