Opinion
Chamber's critics sound unneeded, strident tone
Our view: Small-business group should drop hostility, get involved in change process
Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 12.23.2009

Our community, our state, our nation and our world need a lot of things, but more confrontation is not high on our list of needs.
A push by a group of business owners in the Tucson region to create a more confrontational Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce seems yet another step in removing the civil tone from our discourse.

There are times when we should be fed up and not willing to take any more, but such righteous anger should be reserved for genuine crises — the original Tea Party in Boston harbor comes to mind.

Not every problem requires full-blown revolution.

The sins of the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce are many, according to Tucson First, which began its campaign to Change the Chamber by demanding the resignation of longtime chamber president Jack Camper.

The rap on Jack? He's a "get-along" guy — too cozy with those in political power to criticize and confront, too willing to deal with the devil.

Two points:
First, we don't necessarily recognize that Jack Camper.
The one we know leads an organization that has routinely supported challengers in elections to the Tucson City Council and the Pima County Board of Supervisors and has opposed most neighborhood-led changes in city and county development codes.

Second, there is nothing wrong with a little compromise.
Camper and the chamber have to deal with the devil they know in negotiating the more devilish details of legislation, rule and ordinance. Pragmatism is often necessary. "The perfect," as we know from endless repetition in the national health-care debate, can be "the enemy of the good."

This grass-roots assemblage of small-business owners wants a chamber that expresses the anger of small-business owners over high taxes and fees, over-regulation of business activity and sweetheart deals for connected insiders.

To quote the group's Web site:
"It is the belief of the Tucson First Coalition that the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and its leadership have failed the local business community. The Chamber's failure has resulted in a hostile business environment, overbearing government, complicated land use codes, and inflated business costs. An ineffective Tucson Chamber of Commerce has diluted efforts and minimized businesses influence on the political process."

The chamber, it also says, has lost membership, is controlled by the area's large corporate interests and has allowed fragmentation of its efforts.

Some of those internal problems can be remedied if interested business owners get involved in the chamber and push for its reform. One of Tucson First's leaders, Eric Ruden, says group members promise to do just that, but only after Camper is canned and the chamber makes room for more small-business leaders on its board.

That board has unanimously backed Camper's retention. Ultimatums tend to have that reaction.
We are not naive enough to suggest that we all just get along. There is a required amount of push-and-pull in any attempt at reform.
If Tucson First truly wants to reform the Chamber of Commerce and tackle the larger problems it outlines, it will need to get involved in finding solutions.

Pragmatism, compromise and moderation are not vices.
 
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