Thursday, June 8, 2006

Incivility

Maybe it is my old age or my previous life as the mouth that would occasionally roar. But, if there is one thing I have learned in later life it is that we, as a people, have to try and be civil to each other. It is OK to be critical; but let's try and keep it civil. It isn't easy but it's not hard either.
I'm not a big fan of super conservative or super liberal book authors. There are some I really respect, like Pat Buchanan and Jim Hightower, for example. But I don't go for any of the "haters" like Al Franken and Michael Savage ... "liberalism is a mental disorder ..." oh yeah. And, I don't go for that lunatic Ann Coulter. For someone who professes Christianity so strongly, she is a pretty poor example. Check out this, from her new book, "Godless," talking about the 9-11 Widows:
"These self-obsessed women seem genuinely unaware that 9-11 was an attack on our nation and acted like as if the terrorist attack only happened to them. They believe the entire country was required to marinate in their exquisite personal agony. Apparently, denouncing Bush was part of the closure process. ... These broads are millionaires, lionized on TV and in articles about them, reveling in their status as celebrities and stalked by griefparrazies. I have never seen people enjoying their husband's death so much."
Gasp. Wow. Can you believe that? These women lose their husbands and they have to get this from some blonde ding-a-ling? What has she lost? She doesn't have kids who will grow up without their fathers. My Lord!

Mihos picks Sullivan
So much for respecting Christy Mihos' independent run for governor of Massachusetts. Today, Mihos picked John Sullivan, Winchester Town Moderator, as his running mate:
["Mihos names Sullivan as running mate"].
Needless to say, I'm shocked. Most people in Winchester respect Sullivan and never liked that I was often critical in editorials for The Winchester Star of the way in ran Town Meeting - speaking from the moderator's podium about policy and editorializing on how the meeting should vote which would often sway the vote; closing debate down when he felt no one else should speak instead of when the meeting wanted to adjourn a question ["I'm sensing it is time to move the question ..."]; his alleged back room deals and under-handed moves to keep TM members from their elected right to govern - like squashing a warrant article to kill the controversial Winning Farm elderly housing project and then later, helping to ram it through to passage, despite deep opposition for the project. Nevermind the really bad NESWIC contract he was involved in negotiating which almost brought the town to bankruptcy. They have only just begun to get out underneath that mess and are now, finally, paying much less than they were before. This guy is the last person you want a heartbeat away from the governship, believe me.
I should try and dig up some of my columns and editorials about the guy - some pretty amusing and hard-hitting writing, if I say so myself.
Sure, Sullivan was funny with a quip; but deep-down, I sensed something pretty bad about the guy and I just couldn't prove it beyond off-the-record comments, semantics, and insinuations. Well, now he is in the big time. And maybe someone else will find the skeletons. A really bad move by Mihos.

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