We Lost And We Won - Message from Park Village Resident

Park Village Friends,

We lost the battle of redistricting this evening.  I was sorely disappointed
that the Commission did not adopt the change we proposed.  There was ample
rationale for the change. There may be legal challenges ahead.  But I
believe that the districting decided today, with Park Village in District 6,
will be the districting we are going to live with for the next 10 years.

But why were we fighting so hard?  We were fighting to be closer aligned
with the rest of Penasquitos.  We were fighting to create a better community
to live in. 

And in the process of fighting, we achieved both.  We met new friends both
inside and outside of Park Village.  We became closer to the friends we
already had.  We learned to fight for the rights of others.  We learned that
others will fight for our rights.  We learned to face a common threat and
meet it head-on.  We learned how to get involved in the political process.
We learned how to organize ourselves to achieve a common goal.  We learned
that together we can accomplish great feats.

In short, we became the better community that we were seeking.


So many people worked so hard over the past week and a half.  It would be
understandable to feel that it was a waste of time.  But I, for one, would
do it all over again if we had to.  And someday we will have to.  We will
face many challenges in the future.  They may be fires, earthquakes, schools
problems, or crime, politicians, corruption, or the 2020 redistricting.
Whatever it is, I know we will come together again.



For now, we should use the momentum we have to build better tools and better
communication like email lists, shared documents, and community calendars or
a community website.  With better tools we can be alerted earlier and act
faster.  Sometimes the enemy is not a person or a thing.  It is time.

For those of you who did not see the proceedings today, it contained a slide
show of what you did over the weekend.  I've posted an Extended Edition,
Directors Cut of the show on YouTube here
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yybew0YJHYg> .


Oh, and we should have a party to celebrate Park Village.


Regards,

  -Bradlee Chang

  Park Village Resident