By. F.L. Stutzman
There are many varieties of viruses in the world, all potentially or actually deadly, including computer viruses, AIDS viruses and Ebola viruses. Now one has surfaced in Saratoga: a telemarketing virus, conducted under the guise of a poll to sound out the community sentiment on Measure G.
I received such a call on Feb. 3. The operator informed me that Measure G stated that adding a room to a house or increasing the size of a patio would require placing it on the ballot at a cost of $60,000. Measure G stated nothing else, she said.
Her supervisor informed me that this information was provided and paid for by the City Council and the city attorney using city funds.
I confronted the council with this information at the Feb. 7 council meeting. No one commented on this until later in the meeting, when Mayor Paul Jacobs professed his innocence and Council-
member Ann Marie Burger said she agreed with Jacobs. Nothing was heard from councilmembers
Tucker, Moran or Wolfe, or the city attorney.
In light of initial denial of complicity in the past two elections of some of our councilmembers, regarding the distorted hate mail against Meg Caldwell, in which they finally admitted involvement, I find it difficult to believe any of them. It also baffles me as to how the Good Government Group, the League of Women Voters, the Realtors, and the Chamber of Commerce can support this duplicity. Is honesty, morality and decency in Saratoga government a thing of the past?
Gold mining did not cease with the 49ers. It now functions under the guise of developers. If you recall the famous song from Cabaret, namely "Money, Money, Money," that says it all.
I also received a call from the same telemarketers for my wife, Edythmae, who passed away five years ago. History buffs may recall Chicago Mayor Richard Daley's tactic of registering cemetery residents on absentee ballots. Our registrar should be alerted to this possibility.
F.L. Stutzman, M.D., is a former Saratoga City Council member.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, February 21, 1996.
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