Local elections in Clark County, Washington

I pulled down a previous comment for the first time  since I started blogging here on blogspot because I felt it was not clear and broad enough to cover some of the newer elements that are running for local politics or using their to try to attempt to effect change.

One person in particular is putting his money where his mouth is, started a local website to counter the devoid that is coming from the local newspaper who refuses to understand that a number of us are tired of the cover-ups, the games, runarounds and the outright lies. He has has setup a Political Action Committee and is trying to help get people elected in places to try to change the tone.

And yet it seems to continue to backfire on him. He takes the hits with a smile and tries to shrug off the defeats of his candidates for the past two elections cycles. Some of his donation have brought criticism over the mailings that featured two of our local city council members who were on record making a serious gaff with the "Gavel Down" theatrics.

Now that the election is over, he has decided that he wants to mark private those old videos he used as political fodder over the past 24 months he has been to bash them. And honestly, it should be understand that once some thing comes on to the internet, it can be recreated, brought back and there is simply no way for a search engine to "forget it." If you don't understand, go look at http://www.archive.org or The WayBack Machine project as just two examples of this.

What I really want to impress upon this person without naming names is that the political process is NOT a pretty sight. And people or yourself will get hurt, both financially, mentally, physically and some say, spiritually.  If you don't understand that fact, you should pull out now and stop yourself from being used as a punching bag. Because I can tell you publicly, a certain group just loves taking direct aim at you because they DO fear the money, influence you have attained and some of the respect of local people who have some sway.

As it has been said best on at least ONE good political blog in town, please get yourself a DECENT political advisory team around you, if you are going to do this the right way for some significant amount of time, do it right. Not the haphazard way you have been doing it.  So that you craft a decent, honorable and winning message, maybe strike some further fear into that upper class that is getting political favors, shows up to the games and shows all year round like they own this place.

You have been the brightest shining light for the rest of us that have fought for years to change the system and continually had to hit the same brick walls over and over again that were raised to protect local political interests. And now that the special class is aging and dying to the point that a new and fresh blood is going to have to come in and fill in the background and vacuum of cracks in their chink and political armor.

This is the greatest and probably the first time in two generations that this group does not have a full grip on both the political realities and message locally that they have had for nearly thirty plus years to control through just about every single avenue as you and associates have readily witnessed.

As I said just a minute ago, please do some think this over the holidays and make decision if you feel the urge and need to put your own business, family and friendships on the line. Because this what you are going to have to do to defeat these people and answer their battle ax plans to trim you up slowly and perceptively until they have you neutered into the background.

They have the apathy vote here. Its been what, twenty years or more that there has never been a fifty percent or higher ballot return on ANY subject. Not even the 1994-96 Light Rail down votes.

If you really want to scare them, how about make one goal in your next election cycle to get 50+ percentage of voters to turn out and return their votes? If you get 50 percent or better for the election cycle which should be the election cycle for the brt/lrt vote in city of Vancouver only coming up next year. If that doesn't get their attention, NOTHING will.

Its even going to be a presidential election in November 2012. You should have even an EASIER time getting that goal! (Presidential election years tend to have a lot more returned ballots than our normal 20 to 35 percentage voter ballot returns.)