Newspaper missed reporting the why

Editor,

Who, what, when, where, why is a common standard used by news organizations when reporting the news.

In a recent kerfuffle between the Thompson Falls Mayor and three city council members over the selection of a Chief of Police, the Ledger did not report on the “why” in that standard. I don’t know why the Ledger decided to pass on the “why” but I suspect it was to protect both the mayor and the nominee.

The reason the three council members did not attend the council meeting to vote on selecting the new Police Chief was to avoid a quorum, thereby preventing the vote. They were doing their best to prevent a really bad council decision. In the end their action failed, and the new Police Chief was selected, the tie broken by the Mayors vote.

The Ledger’s editorial that the three councilmen were not doing their job was at best shallow. They were doing the only thing they could to prevent a bad decision.

Fortunately, there is at least a partial solution to this. I live outside the Thompson Falls city limits but I do spend both time and money there. I have an interest but I can’t vote, perhaps you can.

There is a Mayoral election in early November. Please vote for Dennis Newman. He has the best interest of Thompson Falls at heart.

Bill Risch, Thompson Falls