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OPINIONS
Jim Ritter: Barge facility is not what’s best for the ‘People’
I read Jim Ross's article in The Herald-Dispatch where he had interviewed a representative from the Corps of Engineers. The article was about barges along the shore of the Ohio River in Westmoreland. A woman from the Corps of Engineers who was interviewed stated that the Corps has to do what is best for the United States of America.
Reading this article encouraged me to look at information about America. In my research, I read about people from the original thirteen colonies who fought in the American Revolutionary War, and how we pay homage to these people who fought and died for our freedom every July 4th -- the day we as Americans celebrate our independence.
I then read the Declaration of Independence and took notice of this paragraph: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving these powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to the ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its power in such a form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."
Further in my research, I see the first words of our Constitution -- "We the People." The Bill of Rights also talks of the "People". So when the Corps of Engineers says they want to do what is best for the United States of America, it should mean that they want to do what is best for me, my son, Chad, my fathers, Eugene and Glenn, my brother, Steve, and all of the veterans who fought in World Wars I and II, Korean War, Vietnam War and both Iraq wars. We all swore to uphold the Constitution and protect this country from all invaders and to secure our way of life and uphold our freedom.
I am not aware of any big business that has put its life on the line or died for the United States of America.
When someone says that allowing a barge fleeting facility along this one mile stretch of the Ohio River in Westmoreland where 4,700 residents live is good for the United States of America, I beg to differ. Most of the residents of Westmoreland would differ as well. Mr. Dale Mann, owner of Huntington Marine, does not need to build an industrial business in Westmoreland, an area that is zoned as residential in use. Mr. Mann owns property in Ohio along the Ohio River about two miles from where he wants to place the barge facility. Let him build his fleeting facility near his own home.
The Corps of Engineers is a government entity, and Congressman Nick Joe Rahall II, Senator Robert C. Byrd, Senator John D. Rockefeller IV, and Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito, all of our elected officials, should be protecting us and our rights.
We, the People, sincerely hope that the Corps of Engineers and our legislators will realize that this barge fleeting facility is not in the best interest of the citizens of the United States of America.
Thomas Jefferson once said: "The People... are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberties."
Jim Ritter is a member of Huntington City Council representing District 1.
