Vote Telfer, Bagley in primary

It's hard to recommend any Republican for a government job because they don't believe in government.

That being said, it's important for Bend that Republican Chris Telfer be re-elected to the state Senate.

She knows that compromise is not a four-letter word. It's actually 10 letters, but wing-nut Republicans still see it as the dirtiest four-letter word in government, after taxes, of course.

Telfer worked with Democrats to fashion a reasonable redistricting plan, which drew the ire of her primary opponent, and one-time state House representative, Tim Knopp.

Of course, the real issues in the GOP primary, as always, are social issues, essentially abortion and gay rights.

Telfer is not opposed to them, but Knopp is stridently against them.

Knopp will likely win the nomination because of his stances on these social issues.

It was instructive that the local daily came out today and endorsed Knopp, who works for the local builders' association/union, and it also endorsed for county commissioner Tom Greene, a Realtor who once ran the local Realtor's association/union.

The daily paper knows how it's bread is buttered: through ads from Realtors and developers.

Those two entities, as speculators, are responsible for the housing crash that devastated Central Oregon worse than any other region in the state. It even bankrupt Greene, who desperately needs a high-paying government job with health benefits even though he's opposed to government in general.

We don't need Knopp and Greene, and the groups that support them, anywhere near government.

The local Circuit Court Judge race is interesting because four lawyers are vying for the spot.

I don't know any of them, but Beth Bagley gets the nod because, she's smart, young, energetic and is the only woman in the race. She also has a diverse cross-section of the community endorsing her.

We simply need more women in government, particularly in the court system. No, not the Sarah Palin-type who considers ignorance an attribute.

Bagley, a Deschutes County prosecutor, earned her Phi Beta Kappa key and appears more than capable of being a good judge.

Most of the other races in the May 15 primary are uncontested or nominally contested.

Three judges, though, are vying for the same position on the state Supreme Court. Again, don't know them but am partial to the only woman in the race, Nena Cook.

Until women are fully represented in the courts, according to their percentage of the population, we will never be a truly fair and democratic society.