If there's anything worse than not voting, it's casting an uneducated vote.

In the case of the three bond issues being proposed by the City of Port Aransas, voters have no excuse for being uninformed.

For starters, the South Jetty has covered the story since it began. We followed city officials' deliberations that resulted in the bond issues, and we have described the proposals in detail. In a four part series, we'll start this week with an examination of Proposition 1, followed by examinations of Propositions 2 and 3, and wrap up the series with an overview of all three.

The city is making every effort to provide the facts about the proposals by making presentations to every organization in town, and is open to other invitations. Details of the bond issue also have been posted on the city's Web site.

City officials are prohibited by law from campaigning for or against any issue on the ballot. The city's intent in making presentations about the proposals is to inform and answer questions.

Anyone with any question, doubt or suggestion is urged to go to the source before casting a vote, or influencing another's vote, on insufficient or incomplete information.

Voters may call city hall, ask any member of the city council or city staff, stop by the South Jetty office and review stories (which, since the Aug. 10 edition, are available online in our archived editions at www.portasouthjetty. com), or go to the city's Web site, www. cityofportaransas.org.

There is no excuse for any voter registered in Port Aransas to cast a vote based on emotion or hearsay.

Unfortunately, there always have been, are now and always will be voters who won't let facts get in the way of a good story, and vote accordingly. Make sure you're not one of those voters.

If you're reading this, you've demonstrated you are interested in Port Aransas and will take the time to read and be informed. Arm yourself with the facts and cast your vote based on those facts.

--mhj