Mining ballot initiative raises real, not disguised, issues

MiWater supporter Jon Saari recently sent a Letter to the Editor of the Marquette Mining Journal, rebutting some of the points from their editorial of Oct 21 (http://www.miningjournal.net/page/content.detail/id/535047.html?nav=5003):

The recent Mining Journal editorial (October 21) on the proposed statewide ballot initiative for November 2010 was generally factual and fair-minded. It argued the importance of clean water as well as jobs, of tourism and recreation as well as mining; and it urged U.P. residents to study the issues and ask tough questions.

Only in its conclusion was the editorial mean-spirited and misleading, in claiming that the REAL issue is about a group of people who want to prohibit all mining in Michigan by any means and are using the water angle to dupe voters.

I resist being pigeonholed into some secret cabal. My interests in the issue of mining and water protection are multiple, like those of most people. I am the grandson of a Finnish immigrant miner, the nephew of a union negotiator, a professional historian, a believer in regional land protection, and a supporter of this ballot initiative.

Read his full letter at The Mining Journal.