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Gamę spurs talk of Idaho futurę

By MARtLYN ELLIOTT Ttmes-Newi wrJtcr

TW1N FALLS —About 30county commlssłoncra' wivcs suddcnty becamc rcaltors, ronchcrs, storckeepcrs and dlvorcccs one aftcrnoon bst wcck. .

And thcy candldly lołdaome "blgwlg"from Washington D.C., what thcy Lhought about his pro po sal for construclion of a dam nearby.

It was nil part of a gamc catlcd "Idaho Futures’.’ dcvdopcd by Unlvcr$lty of Idaho poliUcal sdencc professorSydney Duncombe, that isdcslgncd to get Idaho rcsldcnts thlnking about thc ąucstlons focing thclr sta te.

Adopting thc namc, persona lity and posltion asslgncd.participants bulld a "publlc hcoring" into a frcewheellng dlscusslon.

"Sandro Williams, a local rcoltor," sald thc dam .would be good for hcr business. "It's golng to bc wondcrful. Wc’ll havoaU klnds of pcoplcfromout of State coming In for thc yenr-round recrcation," she sald.

"Susan Sinclair. wifc of thc local newspąper edilnr."

Aprfl. The women werc attending a statc convcntlon ln Twin Falls with thclr husbands.

Gcncrolly. hc has found that "chambcr of commcrcc and scrvice dub" type organizations arc pro-devclopmcnt, whllc piannlng groups Or groups composcd malnly of women fovor "kecplng Idaho the way It ls."

One woman last wcck reccivcd .nods of ogreernent when she sold "We losc our Identity os Idaho If we do thls. If we go In for mctropollscs we will losc otir slmple way of Ufc.”

That is what Duncombe ls trylng to get thc people ln Idaho to think about. RJght now thcy nre faccd wlth slmllar situations.

Arc clcon alr nnd frce-flowłng streams moro importnnt than incrcascd power and lncrcascd productlon?

Si(XJId Idaho promotc tourism or should it savc lis beoudful countrysidc for unharried usc by local resldcnts?

Should form dcveiopmcnts take prcccdcnce over other interests In the state?

AJ] of thcsc ąucsUons and morc crop up during the’ "publlc hcarings" conductcd during thc playing of thc "Idaho Futures” gamc.

Duncombe sald hc wasn’t secldng answers wlth thc 8°nie, Just dlscussions about the ąucsUons.

He would ilke to get thc gamę operating ln schools throughout thc statc. The morc people (l touchcs. tłie more people hc has thlnking.

"Evcn nflcr the gamę ls over they’rc talking," he sald.

The Tacilitator’

asked thc gouemmćńtaide "what ls this dam golng to do lo our cnvlronmcnt?"

"We havc to lcavc somc of thc land or all wc’rc golng to havtris concrctc," complalned "Barbara Christensen, a local ranchcr’s wlfc."

The "statc legislator" of thc group," Grace Donohuc, said she would "havc to take thls under dccp conslderation," pbylng her poliUcian’s role well.

The group rcmnlncd largcly undccidcd at thc end of thc licarlng, wlth only flvc nctually fovorlng the dam and slx opposlng It. ^MWc'd havc to study and get morc facts," lhov.aI| sald. . ______ ........-----------------

Thnfs thc kind of response that Duncombe would Ilke to sec participants carry homc when thcy oncc agaln bccomc thcmsclves.

"The thing wo're trylng to get ls dlscusslon,” Duncombe sald. "We need discussion of the competlng aUcrnatlvcs for Idaho."

Duncombe bopcs to devclop "a morc systematie

story„ fpassr 7 '

lashion" for distribuUng the gamę statcwldc In order to rcach morc people.

"The people of Idaho should dlscuss thcsc thlngs," he siiiil'. The gamc "brlngs out a lot of pros and cons" about

issuos confronUng Idaho¹s futuro. ______

Thi¹ "Uimgs^r‘ that Idahoans should dlscuss inelude a growtli nnd industriul dcvclopmcnt. rccrcational dicclopment. . agri-business dcvcIopmcnt and im¹serviition of Idaho‘s rusllc. smali town cxlsicnce — srvor.il of whtcharc ln opposiUon to cach other. •

To stimulatc thcsc dlscussions, Duncombe has «k’vc»fopctl tlić role-pbylng gamc, "Idaho Futures."

First. hc designed a mythlcal county bcarlng a great physical re.somblanco to thc state of Idaho. Gmnltc County Iłcsina mountalnousareacutlhroughby thc Whłtc Waler Itiwr and a smali, irrigatet' river plaln.

About 15,1100 people Hvc ln thc county. spread betwccn ilmv towas of varylng size.

Duncombe dcvclopcd over40descriptlonsof indluiduals hvmg In the county. hltllng ncarly cvcry lifcstylc ndopted «»\ Idahoans.

Tlien lic created about four situations facing thosć rcsldcnts — construclion of a dam, 400 condomlnlums, a me.it packing plant and a vcgetablc proccsslng plant.

Now hc is taking Granlte County wlth hlm around thc statc. transforming local rcsldcnts Into Granlte County ntizras and throwlng them Inloonc or all of thc situatloas.

Whilc local residents Ilstcncd In stunned silcncć. a wonumgavcanimpassloncdargumcntfor construclion of «b<¹4no cnndomlniuin unlts whllc acting as lawycr for thc eousimctlon firm during a rcccnt gamc. DuncomticKald.

Stic admitted nftcrwnrd she had cvcn surprlscd hcrsclf brcause just n fcw wecks carly she liad pbycd a brge . tKirt in Uie defent of a simlbr proposal In her homc town.

Ilayers ¹"tcńd to respond pretty much łn role’," Diuicointie¹ sald. And by putting łhcmsclvcs in thc IMisItioii of somconc thcy mlght normally opposc. a "bole ucw look at the problem iiefng faccd ls łmpossllilc.

Duncomlic deftnes his mig as that or “FneOItntor." He itenerally styles hlmsclf as thc moderator for thc publlc licarlng and trłc.s to kccp thc dlscusslon llvcly and far-rouching.

Sydney Duncombe, oriftinator

The coinmissloners włvcs wcrc the 28th group In thc stale topby the gamę. Duncombe estimates that ovcr 600 people have bccn lnvolved In the dlscusslon sińce mid- —

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¹Sun'd4y. Ódóber 6.    ' Tlm«¹Now¹. Twln Fali¹. -Idaho 9