Tom Westgard is really laying into some of the Gordon supporters and claiming there's supposed to be a poll out that shows Don is trailing. However Tom Mannis suggests the opposite is true.
Someone show me the POLL!!!!
It appears that the heat of the runoff is creating a level of meltdown across the board, and it would appear to include Westie. He doesn't like to be quoted out of context -- no one does that I know -- and he is quite certain that some of the bloggers have missed his main point:
I have been consistent in saying that Don Gordon would be far WORSE than Joe Moore.
I think I got that point. Specifically:
I get the distinct feeling that, at the core, Moore is the lesser of two evils in Tom's view.
Thanks for the confirmation Tom. Yet, despite all Tom W has to say, I still cannot get behind Moore for the reasons I gave before. Let me add another;
People facing cancer, or any serious illness, are faced with a choice -- do nothing or do something and hope that the chosen something will do the trick. Sometimes it does, and sometimes it doesn't. I just watched my Texas uncle go through this process and it looks like he'll survive. My mother, on the other hand, may have died prematurely because the cure really was worse than the disease, or so it appears. In both cases, they made the best choice they could based on the available facts and their personal situations. It was crunch time and no delay possible.
I perceive Moore as the equivalent of a political cancer in this ward. I spent part of this evening talking with a man who voted for Moore in February, but noted that all the places he used to rent are now condos, and he can't afford them. Remember the report on the reduction in rental stock in RP? On whose watch did that occur? Who was the most harmed by that? What does that do to RP's famed diversity? I won't go over the examples of Joe's poor political judgement coupled to an absence of ethics. They are well known.
He is part of the machine and if we are not ready to put a spanner in the machine's works, when will we be ready? And will it be any easier in 4 years? Moore's wake-up call is the runoff. He found out he was vulnerable after all, and he needs Jim G close to him to at least give the illusion of a humbled politician who cares about his constituents. I don't think Joe will change. Can he? Sure. Will he? Not holding my breath on that one. Can I afford to support a politician whose primary interest is his political career, and not the ward? No. He may yet pull this off and get re-elected. But I can't support him for re-election and I want to do something about that.
Maybe it won't work and I'll regret it later. But it beats standing by and doing nothing, or hoping Joe will have a personal "come to Jesus" experience and totally change. Don Gordon is not a saint, but I don't think he is the devil incarnate. I'll take my chances on doing something.
5 comments:
I know what he says, but I don't believe in his reasons. Maybe it was bad of me to post his words, but it really irritates me the way the Ginderske gang tries to act like they were never anti-Joe.
It's disingenuous to me. And every criticism they come up with against Don is blown way out of proportion in MY opinion. But hey, that's just me!
I think most political campaigns are marked by extremist rhetoric and over the top spinning. Paint your guy as Mother Teresa and the other guy as Teh Evahl Spawn of Darkness. It has really taken off in the last two Presidential elections, and we are seeing some of it at work here.
Unfortunately, I think for some folks this is taking on the dimensions of a religious war, and I base that on the tone of Tom's post announcing he was baaack! He's reacting to others who are as passionate as he is, and more intemperate in their comments.
Jim G's appointment to the zoning committee is fueling the debate. Jim has been justifying his decision to get on board to an audience that doesn't quite believe him. I saw a posting elsewhere suggesting some level of shunning. Not good if true. Joe may stand to gain from all the distraction this is causing, and folks really need to sit back and consider that they may have won the battle in forcing a run-off, but are at risk of losing the war by losing the run-off. It's time to dial back the emotional heat and focus on the facts.
In the mean time, Tom W is going to the mat for Joe because he really doesn't see Don as a viable alternative. I believe he does see Joe as the lesser of two evils. I happen to think he is wrong.
What many are forgetting, or at lease sidelining, in the heat of the moment is that we ALL have to live with the winner, which means one group has to work with an alderman they really don't want. Is everyone ready for that?
kheris - I hear what you are saying, but the truth is that there will be some people who vote with their feet. If I have a business and I know (and believe me, I do) that Joe will seek retribution as a result of my public support of Don, I can fold my tents and set them up in another, more rational, ward....say, with Naisy Dolar in the 50th. It's not going to help the 49th, but I've got mouths to feed.
The thing is, I've listened to them both and what I believe about Don is that his ambitions end at the border of the 49th. If he's elected, maybe that will change in a few years, but I doubt it. He didn't groom himself to be a politician. Joe did. And Joe is fighting some other battle - what sane man spends hundreds of thousands of dollars on TV ads to win a little aldermanic seat where your primary job is to make sure the potholes are filled, the streetlights work and your neighbors are happy, safe and as prosperous as you can help them to be? Joe has often said that he represents the City of Chicago to the world. No. He represents this ward. I live in this ward and we can't provide our residents with a living wage here if THERE ARE NO JOBS. What we have here is lots of CONDOs and "a failure to communicate."
No politican is perfect; no boss is perfect; no partner is perfect. Will Don be perfect? No.
But it's time for Joe to be fired. He's had 16 years to prove himself. He's done so very little AND he has shown a complete lack of respect for the residents of the community. I have heard first hand story upon story of citizens going to Joe only to be shot down, ignored, blown off, and otherwise disrespected (my favorite story -- though there are so many -- is the block that downzoned only to find out that Joe was about to give a variance to someone to put in a condo building). I would bet a month's pay that Don will not disrespect any resident ever. That alone will be an improvement.
Further, Joe ignores problems because those who are the biggest problems in the community give him lots of $$. Residents who complain about nursing homes with problem occupants and such are blown off. Turns out the boards of these homes are lining Joe's campaign coffers. Don won't take money from these folks so he'll never be in the position of having to play the heavy with a campaign contributor. Will Don magically turn RP around? Let's be cynical and say that he won't, but he'll be ethical.
Joe's strategy (and his predecessor's) has been to conquer and divide and RP residents have too long been fractured, a victim of their own baggage.
The worst thing we can say about Don is that we don't know. What we do know is that 16 years of Joe has not moved us forward. Should he prevail on 4/17, I will bet a month's pay that he will not change. In fact, the win will embolden him to do more of same, which is to say, nothing.
Don may end up disappointing but he could also be really terrific. I back Don because I am hopeful. Joe gives me no hope, no reason for hope.
As it happens, there ARE folks out here who LIKE Gordon.
I have supported Gordon ever since he hinted he might run in early 2006, before he went public with it. While I rather liked Adams as well, and allowed that Ginderske had (and has) some good ideas, I have always preferred Gordon.
There are many people in this ward who support Gordon for the right reason- that they beleive he is the ideal candidate. He's fair-minded, realistic, cares about middle income and low income residents, and knows that we have to both build a good economic climate AND ready ourselves for the challenges ahead, presented by diminishing resources.
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