If I Were Profane, There'd Be Profanity Here

Disclaimer: This is my personal blog. I maintain as much anonymity for myself here as possible, and I do not want to identify any of the people or even the city discussed below. My views do not necessarily reflect the views of my family, friends, or employer. I never vote straight party line and I dislike ugliness and confrontation in politics. I generally avoid writing anything online that involves politics at all, but today I’m breaking that rule. Okay?

P.S. Disclaimer: And anything that sounds like a death threat is, of course, not. And the amusing parts of this post are toward the bottom.

My sister and I attended an open political forum this week to hear our city candidates discuss the issues before the upcoming election. Our candidates are mostly conservative and pro giving-all-our-tax-money-to-businesses-and-development, which probably lines up with the views and desires of a lot of the city’s residents. The moderator asked questions about air quality, recycling, energy conservation, and sustainable development, though. The candidates were mostly non-committal in their responses. One candidate, though. The Candidate Who Is Going Down. He completely dismissed the questions and spoke about the issues as if they had no importance and would not be addressed by him at all, which is SO short-sighted for two main reasons.

Reason 1—Environmental and sustainable development issues have a lasting impact on the overall health of the city and if they aren’t addressed now, they will have to be addressed in different forms at a later date. Probably at a greater cost to the city (and he was quite clear that he cares about money). AND those issues are important to a lot the country (oh, and the world! Why did Gore just win the Nobel Prize!?). To completely disregard those issues assumes a lot about the concerns of the country and the community.

Reason 2—Environmentalism matters to some of the population of the city, and those people need a voice, too. If a candidate is so dismissive of issues (so dismissive that the candidate doesn’t even acknowledge the issues), he’s going to lose voters. And make enemies. As my sister was leaving she told me, “Now I’m not just NOT going to vote for him, I’m going to assassinate him.”

He doesn’t have to raise orphaned endangered animals in his back yard or even promise that the city will move to solar power, but a candidate for a public position should AT LEAST acknowledge that there are issues that may not personally interest him that still concern potential constituents.

He seems like a pleasant enough guy except for owning a share in my neighbor’s slave ship (which is all I can assume after hearing his comments), but he’d better watch out if he gets elected. At my sister’s house, the My Little Ponies pack heat.