This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Four thousand Utahns gathered at the Capitol in January to plea for a meaningful and effective response from our Legislature to the toxic air pollution issue. The response from legislators has been anemic and mostly symbolic at best. Four thousand Utahns did not clamber for electronic widgets for our students nor to move the state prison.
Utah is No. 1 in the country for air pollution, autism, anti-depressant consumption and right-wing hyperbole. For 150 years the Utah Legislature has been controlled and populated by an overwhelming majority of LDS Church members.
With such a dismal record to show for their stewardship, perhaps it is time to suggest a more balanced representation for the rest of the population who are marginalized in their wishes for a Utah of grace, health, and beauty.
Progressives, minorities, Native Americans, women, artists, teachers, environmentalists, academics, LGBT members, entertainers, alcohol drinkers, atheists and theists of every stripe long to help shape a better life for themselves, their families, and their neighbors but are blocked and ignored by our Legislature and, consequently, our state government. With such a lopsided sense of "us versus them," it doesn't surprise me that we rank first for mental imbalance.
Al Snyder
Salt Lake City