Arnold vs. Beraud: Reader views on Atascadero veterans memorial controversy

‘Ridiculously absurd’

The pro-Arnold mailer claiming Ellen Beraud is anti-veteran is ridiculously absurd. Ellen wanted the memorial to be reviewed by an artistic standards committee, as has been a policy for years. Also, other artists should be given a chance to compete and be reviewed. To say this was anti-veteran exposes the character of the Arnold supporters who littered our mail box with fliers.

Ralph Nicovich, Santa Margarita

‘Gross distortion’

I wish to set the record straight. I, like many of you in the 5th Supervisor District, received a mailer claiming Ellen Beraud is against veterans. I was on the Atascadero Art Committee that reviewed the Atascadero veterans memorial project. The committee did indeed vote 4-1 against the proposed project as it was presented in hopes of refining the memorial. The City Council chose to ignore our recommendations and accept the project “as is.” No one was against a veterans memorial.

The committee was asked to review the project because there was going to be a piece of bronze sculpture incorporated into the memorial, which would be considered artwork. The wall with the names honoring local veterans was not even questioned, only the bronze piece was reviewed and received a 4-1 vote.

As a member of the committee, I recommended that the artwork be opened up for wider competition to perhaps result in a better piece. My recommendation was not considered.

The flier is a gross distortion and some would say an outright lie. I for one am tired of this kind of politics.

Stephen LaSalle, Atascadero

Diverting attention

Debbie Arnold continues to attempt to divert attention away from her own voting record by accusing Ellen Beraud of “dishonoring veterans.” Despite evidence (video and minutes from a 2007 City Council meeting) that does not support the increasingly ridiculous narrative, Arnold, and a not-so-mysterious PAC (“Friends of Veterans Primarily Formed to Oppose Ellen Beraud”) seem to believe repeating mistruths often enough makes them truth.

Fear-mongering is not leadership. A clear choice has been made to spread baseless, summarily debunked lies about her opponent rather than highlighting her own accomplishments. This undignified pattern of behavior will likely continue considering Arnold’s exceptionally poor voting record on pertinent quality of life issues within SLO County during her tenure on the board. Deceit is not leadership.

Ellen Beraud is objective, optimistic and competent. Ellen’s history of making decisions that are based on facts, science and appropriate process deeply frightens some of the old guard in North County, and that’s a good thing. There are no skeletons in her closet, but a smart woman with integrity seems to incite fear among some angry old men. A vote for Ellen Beraud is a vote for smart, honest, genuine leadership.

Peg Grady, Santa Margarita

Smear campaign

I commend The Tribune for Friday morning’s editorial regarding the smear campaign against Ellen Beraud being waged by the Friends of Veterans PAC. Despite the PAC’s insistence that Ellen disrespects veterans, a video included by The Tribune as part of the editorial puts to rest the lie this PAC’s accusations are based upon.

It speaks poorly of Al Fonzi, Dan Dow and others who publicly repeat these untruths being peddled by this PAC. And ultimately, it reflects poorly on their candidate, Debbie Arnold. When the pursuit and maintenance of power by an individual who is a public servant, becomes more important than being truthful and honorable, it’s time to vote that person out of office.

Supervisor Arnold may not have paid for the hit piece on Ellen. But her silence in the face of blatant lies being told by her supporters about her opponent speaks volumes about her unworthiness to represent District 5 at the Board of Supervisors.

Bill Alexander, Atascadero

Rush to judgment

The Tribune’s swift rush to the defense of Ellen Beraud was not surprising to anyone who has lived in the area for more than a brief moment. That your editorial board is often a predictable proxy in such matters is to be expected as a matter of course. However, rather than having a local paper that advises its readers to “throw the mailers away,” as you advised on the veterans group opposing Beraud, perhaps the candidate herself should address these charges.

Beraud is remarkable, not only for the naked opportunism of her campaign and its myriad unsavory contributors, but also for the almost comically thin skin she has toward any criticism of her activities. Not only is she a political coward, but she also is a moral one as well.

The veterans will have their say, not only on the memorial we built, but on the smug activism of this dreadful woman. Despite The Tribune’s editorializing, Debbie Arnold’s virtues are not the most important basis for the vote, but rather the imperative of stopping the unscrupulous, naked activism of an unrepentant and wholly unsuitable individual who remains, after all these years, a smug demagogic huckster. She will be stopped.

Joshua Fonzi, Atascadero

Page from the president

It is interesting that the Arnold camp has taken a page out of the president’s play book for her campaign. If you tell a lie, make it a big one, tell it often and tell it loud.

Kudos to The Tribune for posting the video of the Atascadero meeting concerning the veterans memorial. Anyone who has any doubts about Mrs. Beraud’s support should watch her advocate for the memorial.

Her objection was to the statue that was chosen without any other submissions or without the approval of the committee that was in place to review public art installations. As a member of the Atascadero art community at the time, I agreed with her suggestion that the memorial be built with space allotted for a statue and a call be put out for design submissions. It was reasonable and fair. Too bad the Arnold campaign is neither.

Paula Schroeder, Paso Robles

Shame on PAC

I don’t vote for liars. I have received political mail from Debbie Arnold and from the Friends of Veterans in SLO County making the false claim that her opponent Ellen Beraud “disrespected veterans” when she voted in 2007 against building a veterans memorial in Atascadero. They lied.

It took me only a few minutes to discover that Ellen voted against the memorial not out of disrespect but for aesthetic reasons. Although she “honored the vets,” she agreed with a 4-1 negative vote of a public arts commission who said that the proposed statue was “ugly,” and the sculptor should go back to the drawing board.

Shame on Debbie Arnold and shame on the Vets Group for ignoring these facts and disrespecting the truth.

Laurence Houlgate, Paso Robles

Troubled by vote

As a veteran, I am troubled by what appears to be a controversy over Ellen Beraud’s position and voting record regarding our veterans memorial. Her final vote was clear. Not only did Ellen Beraud vote “no” on the final motion to move forward with the memorial in Atascadero at the City Council meeting on March 27, 2007, she “sat” alone in that vote.

Further troubling is the fact her vote against the memorial moving forward that night was declared with uniformed military personnel present in the audience in front of her. It is a sad note that an individual such as herself, born in Canada, would choose political delay tactics and continue to stand on that “no” vote to the very end, even over the heartfelt and moving audience members’ testimonies in favor of a “yes” vote for our American soldiers and their families, past, present and future.

George Vadney, Atascadero

Troubled by PAC

A spokesman from the Friends of Veterans PAC was on the Dave Congalton program recently. This PAC was formed less than a month ago, evidently for the sole purpose of attacking Ellen Beraud as “anti-veteran” for a 13-year old vote to consider additional designs on the sculpture at the Atascadero veterans memorial.

The idea that following the recommendation of the city’s own arts commission to consider more designs, as she did, is somehow “anti-veteran” is disingenuous at best. Early in Congalton’s program, the spokesman plugged Trump’s Space Force as a big potential boost to the Central Coast economy and he disparagingly mentioned John Kerry (a war hero who ran against two draft dodgers!). When asked about his PAC’s funding, he dodged the question and countered by asking about Beraud’s campaign funding. Since his group was just formed a month ago and he himself is not even from the district, it seemed his being there and perhaps the group entirely is paid for by the same people backing Debbie Arnold.

So an out-of-town Friends of Veterans group started less than a month ago got on Congalton’s show to misrepresent a vote by Beraud from 13 years ago. That feels sort of desperate and also so partisan. Can’t our local political races at least not be paid for from out of town, and be free of these sorts of insubstantial “issues”?

Michael Seden-Hansen

Look who’s behind it

When trying to decide how to vote on an issue, it’s helpful to look at who is for or against the issue/candidate. If a person or organization I respect is for or against something, that helps me decide how to vote.

But what I really dislike is when someone is trying to fool you, by saying one thing when it’s really something else. That’s happening now locally as attack-mailers and radio ads say local veterans are suddenly upset about a vote in 2007 Ellen Beraud made concerning the veterans memorial in Atascadero.

But the truth is, these are not from local veterans, but rather a Sacramento PAC. So not only are the mailers factually incorrect, they are being shoveled into our mailboxes and radio stations by an out of area dark money PAC.

I’m not voting for anyone who supports out-of-area, dirty tricks PACs trying to trick local voters. Check it out at https://public.netfile.com/Pub2/AllFilingsByFiler.aspx?id=185753373 and see the Form 410 (paper) filed Feb. 13, where the supposed veterans group is shown to be run by Bryan Burch of Political Finance Solutions, West Sacramento. Vote for Ellen Beraud, she doesn’t use dirty tricks.

Dan Cook, Templeton

Campaign hypocrisy

I belong to an organization that supports sending packages to the troops. It is my way of showing my appreciation for their sacrifice. I also appreciate when our town comes together at the Faces of Freedom Veterans Memorial to collectively show their respect for our troops. I can tell it is election season when former City Council member Ellen Beraud showed up to the Veterans Day ceremony in a front-row seat after voting against the building of the memorial as a City Council woman years ago. Campaign season hypocrisy!

Mary Lea Harris, Atascadero

EDITOR’S NOTE: BETWEEN NOW AND MARCH 3, WE WILL REGULARLY UPDATE THIS FILE AS NEW LETTERS ARE RECEIVED. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SUBMIT A LETTER, PLEASE EMAIL IT TO LETTERS@THETRIBUNENEWS.COM. LETTERS SHOULD BE 200 WORDS OR LESS.

This story was originally published February 24, 2020 at 6:29 PM.