Theft in Manzanita
Someone, or maybe more than one someone, in our community stole several campaign signs for two of the candidates for council. They were discovered in Nehalem. I don’t know who found them but they’ve made their way to city hall for the candidates to pick up.
This is all kinds of wrong, people. First off, it’s theft and second of all, it involved criminal trespass. Plain and simple. Stealing is stealing and trespassing is trespassing. Whoever did this thought it was fine to go onto someone’s property without permission to take something that didn’t belong to them.
Those signs aren’t free. The candidates paid for them. People put these signs in their yards to support the candidate of their choice. When the thief took the signs (and let’s be clear, that person is a thief), they were also taking away free speech and silencing ideas they don’t agree with.
What kind of person steals campaign signs? Someone who doesn’t support the candidates and I’d also say someone who doesn’t support democracy. Someone with the ethics of a spoiled child. Someone afraid that their candidate will lose and so are unwilling to play fair.
I doubt this was a Halloween prank by kids—and let’s be honest, there are only a few kids in town and fewer still who’d be interested in stealing campaign signs.
To steal from these candidates is disrespectful of the time and work they’ve put in. And it’s chilling for our community’s future. People who do stuff like this aren’t interested in fairness and justice and working together.
If we want a healthy democracy where people feel like their opinions are listened to and valued, we need people to be involved. If we can’t even have a sign for a candidate in our yard for fear some random a-hole is going to trespass on our property to steal it—then we’re in deep doo doo in more ways than one.
If you have information about these thefts, including RING or other surveillance footage, please contact the non-emergency police number at 503-368-7229.
Kim Rosenberg
loretta.kim.rosenberg@gmail.com