Heartfelt congratulations to Carmel Clay Parks & Recreation, which is, literally, going for the gold. CCPR has been named one of four finalists for the 2014 National Gold Medal Awards for Excellence in Park and Recreation Management by the The American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration in partnership with the National Recreation and Park Association. “I am thrilled. Simply stated, the Gold Medal Award is the benchmark by which all agencies wish to be measured,” says Michael Klitzing, chief operating officer for CCPR. “Through the hard work and dedication of many people, both in the past and present, CCPR has accomplished much during the past decade when the Park Board identified winning a Gold Medal as a long-term goal.” That CCPR is in the discussion tells us this is as much about perseverance as it is about achievement. Through the years, CCPR has overcome numerous obstacles to become one of the shining examples, in our opinion, of how it should be done.
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In recent weeks, we’ve been taken to task for our “Republican views.” Here’s a concise summary of our responses: WRONG! People are quick to confuse conservatives, which we are, with Republicans, which we’re not. Well, we are, sort of, because the antiquated primary election laws force you and us to declare a party of choice. So, we hold our noses tighter than a C-clamp could and reluctantly select R. That has to change. We sincerely doubt there will be revision of the law anytime soon, but that’s beside the point. We’re for what seemingly most of the rest of the nation is against: less spending, smaller government, priority on justice and defense and zero self-interest at any level of government. We may be classified as dreamers, but that’s who we are, and that’s what some of our editorial comments in this space stand for. We firmly believe the two-party system to be not any longer what our founding fathers brought us. It’s drenched in everything we just told you we’re against.
