If John Gonder ever spots Kevin Costner and Donald Sutherland seated on a bench in front of the City County Building, I advise him to immediately go into hiding.
Meanwhile, the amazing and probably unprecedented story of Gonder, a city council candidate with a genuine platform and the ability to express it intelligibly, sans cliché, continues to captivate those of us in favor of thinking in the future tense.
From A Proposal:
The purpose of seeking this office is to provide a voice and a vote on the City Council that secures progress for our city. I have mentioned a few of the things that, for me, connote progress: rental housing improvement, increased homeownership, environmental concern, support of independent businesses and an infusing of the spirit of sustainability into the decision-making process.
John, please tell us: How did you get approval from the local Democratic party to go around spouting ideas?
The more I read of Mr. gonders platforms, the more encouraged I am for a turn around in this city of ours.
ReplyDeleteLets just hope the other 90% of voters who do not follow the blog sphere gets his message as well!
The Democratic Party is the party of ideas, and has been since the days of FDR. It is now our responsibility to make it known as such today.
ReplyDeleteI don't disagree, but instead marvel at how local Democrats seem determined to purge ideas from their campaigns.
ReplyDeleteJust wondering how you got around that fear.
Speaking of that, I wonder what happened to the idea of the Democrats making primary endorsements.
ReplyDeleteFrom The Tribune, 2-27-07:
County Democratic Party Chairman Randy Stumler said he understood the Republicans not entering the District 1 and District 3 races.
“Yeah, I don’t think about those as a Republican stronghold,” Stumler said.
His focus is on establishing unity in a party whose dominant majority in city government has nonetheless been marked by public feuds.
To get all Democrats on message is “my hope and dream,” Stumler said. “Everybody has divergent opinions, but we have something in common that makes us Democrats. ... It’s our willingness to stick our necks out for people without a voice.”
At the March 10 central committee meeting, Stumler said he will propose a policy of primary endorsements.
“The central committee is supposed to recruit and support qualified candidates for office,” Stumler said. “I don’t know that we’ve ever vowed as a party to remain neutral in the primary. ... I think it’s ridiculous to take a hands-off approach.”
It's been a month since the statement and a little over two weeks since the scheduled meeting.
Any word on forthcoming endorsements? There's only a few weeks left.
I was told informally that endorsements were counter to the local party's by-laws, which if true is even more confusing given that the trial balloon was lofted in the newspaper article.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, your comments have been most kind and I appreciate that.
ReplyDeleteAs far as getting around that fear, I can't fully identify with your premise. I have always assumed that other candidates have ideas, but have chosen to rely more on the popularity contest element of politics. I have lived in New Albany all my life but I don't work here; therefore, I lack the daily contact with people that allows the popularity angle to pay off.
Having said that, I truly believe that government is a straight up contest of ideas. While I am not a policy wonk, I hope to discuss issues in a manner that reveals the underlying thought process I hope to bring to this office. No one can predict what issues will occupy the attention of city government years in the future, but I hope to reassure anyone who listens that I will be responsive in a responsible manner.