Letter: Cost of running for office getting out of hand

Re "Utahns among mega-donors unleashed by court ruling," Tribune, April 7:

Isn't this getting out of hand? What if all these political contributions went to public education or cleaning up the air? Think of all the junk mail we wouldn't get.

The cost of a political campaign is beyond reason. I filed as a candidate for the House 30 minutes prior to the end of the deadline. Yes, it was a hasty decision. Then I learned that a good campaign runs $40,000 for the House (and $100,000 for the Utah Senate — I was getting off cheap). Multiply that by the number of people in this state running for the House and Senate. Wow, we could solve some problems.

I taught school for 30 years and learned to do a lot with very little. I've already dusted off my city council signs and pasted over "Bluffdale City Council" on both of them. So instead of asking for money, perhaps I should ask my former students to simply make a sign "Colleen Bliss — House #41."

I'd feel better about that than asking all my friends and family for money or finding a mega-donor.

Colleen Bliss

Bluffdale