Moscow Food Co-op - Letters to the Editor

Letters to the Editor

Letters to the Editor Policy

The Co-op newsletter will not publish Letters to the Editor supporting candidates for the Co-op board or any other political election.

Our reasoning: here in Moscow, the local newspapers are filled with literally hundreds of candidate support letters at every election. The Co-op newsletter does not need to duplicate that service. Additionally, since the Co-op pays for the space in the newsletter, we thought that spending that money on candidate support letters was not appropriate and would not be appreciated by most Co-op owner/members.

The Co-op will also not print any letters to the editor written to share a political perspective, an essay, or a diatribe. Co-op newsletter letters to the editor must directly involve the Co-op or its products (and must include the name and hometown of the author).

Please send Letters to the Editor to Bill London at london@moscow.com

Letter to the Editor

Written by Bill London

The Co-op board of directors has decided to limit the number of Co-op members that they will allow to run for election to the board in the 2012 campaign. For the first time in Co-op history, the board has ruled that any member who has been a Co-op employee, or who has applied to be a Co-op employee, in the last two years cannot run.

Think about it. That’s a lot of people. Those people who are Co-op members have now been denied one of the basic rights of membership (the right to serve on the volunteer board) just because the board says that all these people are not to be trusted--because they have a “conflict of interest” with the Co-op leadership.

Letter to the Editor: Organic Flour

I'm writing to comment on three articles in the Sept. Community News issue, all pertaining to a change of flour use by the Deli from organic to inorganic. The article, “Are the Co-op's Visions and Values Reflected in the Store's Products and Practices?”, by Gary McFarlane, engages me to learn more about aspects of the food growing, processing, and delivery chain. It stimulates questions: how really local is local, are local products possibly shipped far away for processing, what are the pros and cons of no-till farming? The author didn't offer pat answers, but extended an invitation to us all to become more informed about our food choices. He concludes, "I believe more information should be gathered, members informed and consulted, and this decision reevaluated." This puts responsibility to educate ourselves on individuals, and encourages us to investigate facts, take responsibility, and make informed choices.