Taking a Hard Look at County

Now I understand why we have business as usual in Orange County. A recent survey by The Times indicated that because we are more educated than the average community, our residents prefer national news to local coverage. Our bright, self-directed electorate focuses on the important news of Washington and abroad.

We prefer to know about the influence peddling of Michael Deaver to examining the employment of our former county officials. Ursula Meese, wife of the attorney general, writes a letter to a federal judge. Does that happen here? Wedtech is being investigated. Do we have improper campaign contributions? A whistle-blower in the defense industry is reassigned. What happens when someone in a county agency makes a decision that doesn’t please a developer? The Chernobyl disaster happens. How about a hard look at San Onofre?

If the power-brokers knew someone was watching, things would be different.

The electronic media give us in-depth coverage of news in Los Angeles or in San Diego County. We have to rely on the print for our news. Don’t court us with more pictures of local social events and say you’ve improved coverage. A good investigative reporter could sniff out many problems that have an immediate effect on our lives.

We need the same quality of reporting in our county as you give the world. A paper with the national reputation of The Times shouldn’t fear stepping on a few local toes.

TONI ISEMAN

Laguna Beach