We already know, the word on the street is that Sheila is moving to Paul's old house in Makanda (there is a deep commitment to the city, if I ever heard of one), but did you hear about Joel's promise to move?
Seems Joel was going door to door for Sheila down in the Arbor District before the election. He was so sure that Sheila was going to win that he pulled an Alec Baldwin and promised to move to Murphysboro if Sheila lost. I'm thinking this was just an empty promise and he isn't really moving. Anyone seen a "for sale" sign on Joel's front yard recently?
There is a little lesson here about politics in a small town. If you are going to be in the city government, stay fairly neutral. You are going to be in there working with the people you oppose everyday, if they happen to win.
18 comments:
I thought you didn't post unsubstantiated hearsay, Peter? I see that you change your tune when it involves people you dislike.
What makes you think it is unsubstantiated? I have it from several sources, he shouldn't have shot his mouth off so many times. Guess that is the problem when you join a cult?
I like Joel. I'm sure he is an incompetent city council member, based on his results. In two years, I fully expect him to be voted out. The guy doesn't seen to have a higher gear to kick it into.
Huh. Funny that you won't post negative comments about Brad Cole when it is clear that he has 'shot his mouth off' to numerous sources as well.
Don't even try and pretend to have any standards, Pete.
I have standards, but they are my standards. Your constantly shifting complaints don't provide the entertainment value that is required to build a blog audience. You complain about one thing and then when you are wrong about that complain about another. It is boring.
Keep trying though, I'll be gone soon enough and you can write your own blog. You can see how you do.
I know Sheila quite well and I have yet to hear from her or anyone in her family that they are moving. Your sources are speculating.
You attack Joel because he backed Sheila, Joel does a better job then the two incumbents we just reelected, so really despite your babling he'll be reelected as well.
I have written about why Joel is the worst city council member recently. I agree with you that Joel votes against everything that Brad tries to do, this makes him the worst. Go remember what I wrote, it is boring to write it twice.
If Joel is going to vote against good programs and never drive anything, he will continue to be the worst.
I hope for your sake and your families you find happiness when you leave Carbondale. All the nastiness inthis blog gives a bad impression of you. Are you as hard on your children as you are on others who do not agree with you?
You may not agree with Joel but he
works at many community events and donates to many community organizations.
-There is a little lesson here about politics in a small town. If you are going to be in the city government, stay fairly neutral. You are going to be in there working with the people you oppose everyday, if they happen to win.-
Using this criteria, Chris Wissmann shouldn't have written his editorial lambasting Simon just before the election.
I'd agree, though, that if you want to work for the city, you should certainly stay neutral or at least keep your partisanship close to your vest.
Goodness, you are a stupid commenter Sam.
I'm as happy as can be, I'm free, I'm smart, I'm healthy. My wife and children are smart and accomplished. I live life as you are supposed to live it.
As for Joel, I'll pull this comment out for a new entry in the blog.
You are clearly a creature of the mediocrity that is Carbondale culture, as Joel is. So much potential, and such poor results is Carbondale's theme song.
If you don't think you've reached a new level of nastiness, Peter, then you're fooling yourself. Its one thing to say you disagree with someone or wish they would do other things. Its quite another to label them as lazy, stupid, etc. and then conjecture that they help people out of a desire for self-pleasure. If you can't see the difference then, well, you're just not civilized.
Carbondale is lazy-town! Everyone who feels that they want to accomplish more in their lives then working 20 hours a week, should get out now. I have read enough comments from Sam XXX the Anonymous commenter to realize he is a fool. It seems that hiding behind being anonymous makes you far stupider then you might be in person, for most commenter's in this space.
That we demand so little of the leaders of Carbondale is amazing to me. From the department chairs who manage nobody, to the city employees who meet behind the American Gas and Wash for a one hour break every morning, and the city council members who vote like they are in a high school click, there is nothing wrong with demanding more from them. They are giving us so much less then they promised to give. You realize that all these people have agreed to work for the tax payers?
I have called for people at SIU to be fired, pointed out the incompetence of school board members and spent a couple of months making fun of Sheila and now I'm hitting bottom? Are you Joel or just sleeping with him?
I'm using my, quite reasonable, platform to point out that Joel can do better. Just a little study and a little maturity and Joel might become a city council member with average performance. The bar isn't very high, all he has to do is stop acting like a child.
sthorn -
I agree, Chris made a political mistake to write that piece of Sheila. But, Chris knew he made that mistake when he did it and did it anyway. I guess that means that he has ethics and thought that Sheila winning the election was such a huge problem that he was forced to do something for the greater good?
I think this frames Joel's behavior pretty well. Joel needs to start voting for things based on the great good of the citizens of Carbondale and not because he hates Brad. If he can't, he needs to not be on the city council anymore.
The only difference between Joel and some of the other stooges on the City Council is that he reflexively votes against Cole while Wissmann, Jack, and others reflexively vote with Cole. No one on that City Council is doing anything - they are letting Cole do whatever he wants and they are taking no initiative of their own to try and get anything done.
I'm glad you and yours will be happy out west.
Sorry, to have upset you, I tried to be nice.
That is a really good comment ("difference between Joel and some of the other stooges on the City Council"), worthy of some serious thought.
We could count Sheila in that mix before the election, she did nothing much but vote. I think if you check the voting records that you are correct about Jack, Haynes and Joel, but I'm not sure we can cast Chris into that pit. Chris seems to vote against Brad's initiatives fairly often.
There is no doubt that Brad is driving the agenda and has been driving the agenda of new ideas for the last 6 years (as long as I have been back in town). It is clear that the city manager doesn't drive the agenda in anyway, beyond day to day work.
About this blind voting with or against Brad. Since most of the things Brad is driving are good programs, everyone should be voting with him a majority of the time. The only question is about things that aren't good or if you always vote against everything.
Of course, it could be the real work of the city council is happening behind the scenes and so the polling is done before the voting?
I have talked to a couple of city council people about this and the good ones are spending hours before every meeting preparing. You don't see me picking on the ones that seem to be working.
Very good, this is what we need to be thinking about. Is the city council doing a good enough job and what should be we asking them to do that they don't do already?
Hi Sam -
It is interesting to see who gets what I am doing here and who doesn't. This blog is a series of love notes to my hometown. It focuses on how someone who is clued in and driven to succeed, goes about his business.
I am amazed by your comments and many of the other anonymous others. You guys just don't get it.
Someone suggested to me that if I spoke like this in public, someone would punch me in the nose. The people who I'm after, are gutless and afraid of confrontation. The sulk away into the shadows like a cockroaches in the light from any reasonable analysis.
I will try to have a good life, thanks for the good wishes. Hopefully, you will do the same.
I've asked the Simon's point blank and they are not leaving town. You can stop spreading that rumor now.
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