Nitty Gritty of Politics (Mostly Gritty)

A  thorn in one's side. A stone in one's shoe. Or anything else that keeps one from becoming sellf-satisfied or complacemt.

It is a truly marvelous morning. All the expensive alternatives to  weed killer I have tried have not worked. There is nothing for it but to go out and dig the weeds  with the help of my trusty garden claw which  I will do when I finish this post.

I have the Star story on the suit against the ex-Mayor for "allegedly breaking the Conflict of Interest rules"  It did not appear on-line. It indicates The Star on-line is not the same as having the newspaper on hand.

Hmmm

The story re-counts "the Town's" dis-avowal of the law suit  initiated against citizens during the election campaign.

It notes also " the town  reiterates that we welcome  constructive criticism  from everyone who lives,works,plays and pays taxes in Aurora. it also said"......"the town depends on the public for important feedback on how it can better serve  everyone's needs."

I don't remember"the town" saying anything like that. If I did , I would have pointed out a couple of obvious inconsistencies.

In the first place    "the town" is not in a position to discern  between various forms of criticism.

"The town" is not a thinking, feeling, entity.  If you prick her, she does not bleed. 

In the second place, people who can't stand the heat in the kitchen do not belong in politics.

Hell-for leather, cantankerous criticism from citizens who pay taxes, have expectations.  are ferocious about their rights and real or perceived insults to their intelligence are definitely occupational hazards for politicians and must  be anticipated if one is inclined to take a position on any town related issue.

It's par for the course.

Only  those who make point  and practice of pleasing everyone, no matter how unreasonable  the expectations, can hope to escape criticism.

Even that is not foolproof.

But  that is changing  also. The Age of Blog has made a difference. Comments appearing in Aurora  are positively wimpish on contrast to many appearing as footnotes to Star  stories online.

The   idea a city's reputation could be injured  by anonymous  extreme commentary is simply disingenuous.The less temperate the language, the less impact.

The city is not a thinking,feeling entity.

Neither is the town.

There really is no  place for wimpish or paranoid  politicians to hide