Let Laughlin residents decide on incorporation

To the editor:

Pursuant to Senate Bill 262, as signed into law following the 76th session of the Nevada Legislature, the Nevada Legislative Commission is legally obligated to "make a determination as to whether the incorporation of [Laughlin] is fiscally feasible." As the commission undertakes its statutory mandate, I urge the members to respect the will of the people of Laughlin and give them the right to vote on incorporation.

Our great nation and beloved Nevada were created when citizens entered into social contracts to establish governments. Trust is the foundation of this precious agreement. Before becoming legislators, we all conducted campaigns where we asked our constituents to trust our judgment and give us their vote.

At times, the social contract between the citizens and its elected representatives requires us to return some of that trust to the public.

We trust the citizens to collectively make informed decisions when they voted for us to be their leaders, and I am confident they will be every bit as capable when voting on the question of incorporation. In reality, questioning whether voters are capable of adequately informing themselves before voting would undermine the reasonableness of the election results we relied on to take our oaths of office. In an era where trust in government is at a historic low, abiding by the Golden Rule and trusting citizens may be the best way to begin the restoration of their trust in us.

As chairman of the Government Affairs Committee, I work closely with our state’s rural cities and counties. I am charged with ensuring their needs are met and issues are resolved as we build the essential relationship between the government and the governed. Smaller communities than Laughlin have become thriving cities, and the people of Laughlin should be given the right to decide their own future.

When this commission complies with its statutory obligation to vote on this important question, I ask its members to give the citizens of Laughlin the right to vote on their incorporation question.

John Lee

North Las Vegas

The writer, a Democrat, represents Clark County District 1 in the Nevada Senate.

Full plate

To the editor:

I have been attending Rebel basketball games for more than 38 years and have been a season ticket holder for 27 years, and I always attend the Mountain West tournament. You can say I bleed Rebel red.

I am also a big NASCAR fan and have been attending races at the speedway for years. I have an RV spot at the track.

This year, both events were on the same weekend, and if I had not already paid for the NASCAR tickets before the new date, I would not be going. What were they thinking?

On Thursday, the NASCAR haulers were driving down the Strip about the time of the second game of the Mountain West tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center, just few blocks away. This was a traffic mess that will make fans not want to come to the tournament next year.

Las Vegas Events and NASCAR need to look at moving the race back to the week before, as in the past, so that fans can go to both events.

Ken Freeman

Henderson