Sounding Off:

It always amazes me how different people can look at the same reality and come away with different understandings of what they saw. Perhaps the philosophical premise, “Whatever is received, is received in the manner of the one receiving it,” or, in modern parlance, “It is all in the eye of the beholder,” explains such dichotomies.

David Sullivan sees those who have a different view of Huntington Beach’s proposed senior center than his as “anti-senior center folks” and as “an attempt to overturn the people’s vote” (“Senior center not just a luxury,” Mailbag, Jan. 28). He sees the judge as “an environmental extremist who ignored the obvious law in his flawed decision” and imposed “his personal bias.”

I look at that same reality and see courageous and committed people who, I understand, have taken more than $40,000 from their own pockets, not from the Huntington Beach taxpayers, and have pursued their cause in a court of law as provided for in our system of government. Such people make me proud to be a part of this community.

The judge looked at the facts of the case knowing, as all judges do, that there will be those who disagree with his decision and who will attempt to remove him as a judge because he did not agree with their position on the issue. These are values that make a democracy work. My respect to the judge. If I knew where to send a couple of bucks, I would like to be associated with these committed people who want to save our city’s parks.

As I look at this reality, I see people who want Huntington Beach to be a city where the sun shines, not a city where decisions and plans are made in back rooms and where sweetheart deals for a developer seem to be the motivation for this thing in the park. I concur in their belief that in a world of ever-increasing population, we must preserve open park space for people to know something of our world beyond asphalt and concrete. I am fearful of people who label opponents incorrectly, such as those who confuse protecting parks with being “anti-senior center folks.”

Perhaps it is time that we all take a walk in the park.

JOHN SCOTT is a Huntington Beach resident.