Giving him flack

First of all, I did not ask people to not "pester" council members about this issue. I requested people not to contact council members on this issue, but I did not say or imply anything about "pestering." Second, council members are prohibited by law from communicating with proponents or opponents of the Convention Center Council Conditional Use who are not parties of record. The City Council's approval of the Conditional Use permit is quasi-judicial. This issue is quasi-judicial because the council functions more like a judge than a legislative body.

When considering such projects, council members are governed by the Appearance of Fairness doctrine. This legal requirement precludes council members from reading letters, responding to telephone calls, or being lobbied on this specific project. If council members do communicate in the above manner, they could risk losing the right to vote on the project if it comes before the council.

Thank you for an opportunity to set the record straight. Jan Drago Seattle City Council Member

Rick Anderson responds: I stand by my pestering--and note that in a story in which Drago stands accused of turning a $10 million project into a $22.5 million giveaway of taxpayer money, she disagreed with one word. Kibbles and kudoes

Regarding "Journalism Sucks 2" (Watchdogs, 7/16): First, I regret the diminishing frequency of the Hamer and Parks' column. The abolition of Eastsideweek, and the irregularity of the Weekly in carrying it, sort of throws us into the dark ages as far as local watchdogs of their particular viewpoint are concerned. That viewpoint is a civic necessity, where The Seattle Times and Seattle Post-Intelligencer seem to compete in advocacy journalism by omitting news items uncongenial to their political cheerleading.

And good for "Journalism Sucks 2." However, it omits (and so did the "national media" in its limited self-examination of the recent rash of slanted stories) two very powerful examples of media misfeasance, both beautifully and meticulously described in Renata Adler's book, Reckless Disregard. No humble posing by the media there, no apologies: CBS and The New York Times instead savaged the individuals who took them quite properly to court, using batteries of attack-dog lawyers with lavish resources. The tactics are tough to describe in 10-second sound bites, and Ms. Adler obviously devoted months to her superb research and exposition of the two trials. It is not an easy read, but it makes the sarin "story" a bit less surprising. "News" producers with an axe to grind are nothing new. I should hope that Ms. Adler's work would be remembered during the current attention to media gimmicks. Hank Bradley Seattle No farmland is an island

The annexation of farmland by cities in King County is by no means a foregone conclusion, as suggested by James Bush's article in the Weekly("Take My Density, Please," 7/16). The public debate on Auburn's attempt to annex prime farmland has yet to happen, and promises to illuminate the conflict between the county's investment of $1 million in taxpayer funds to purchase farmland development rights in perpetuity, and the abandonment of those lands to a city with a record of farmland conversion to non-farm uses.

Ultimately, there is no public benefit to the county in letting this land be annexed. Farmlands use very few public services, and consistently generate more in tax revenue than they cost to maintain.

Moreover, the proposed interlocal agreement will not protect these lands--even a cursory reading shows this. And the claim that the annexation will eliminate an "island" of unincorporated land in the UGA, becomes laughable when one realizes how many "islands" of urban growth the county has created outside of UGAs. Annalee Cobbett Chair, FarmCity Alliance We welcome succinct letters commenting on articles in Seattle Weekly. Letters may be edited for length. Please include name and daytime telephone number for verification. Write to Letters Editor, Seattle Weekly, 1008 Western Avenue, Suite 300, Seattle, WA 98104; fax to 206-467-4377; or e-mail to letters@seattleweekly.com.