Erik wrote: "I'd also like to know what Republicans like Connie N. think about the shift in city politics."
Well I must insert the disclaimer that I am 24 years old, and as such have not witnessed all of the changes first-hand, but I'll give you my take based upon what I know. First of all, one of the first tidbits I gleaned from the study of Political Science is that concentration of power is almost always a bad thing. It doesn't matter what person, party or other entity is the holder of such power. The likely outcome will be an effort by those holding the chips to preserve the status quo which benefits them. I dare say that if Republicans or Greens had held this city as long as the DFL, we'd have similar issues to those we face today. So there is conclusion number one. Not difficult to recognize, I'd say. The interesting thing NOW seems to be that the "frustration gap" amongst the non-DFL has grown so large that new and interesting reactions are beginning to take place. First, we have the (relatively) recent emergence of third parties in MN who are gaining a degree of support that I would certainly not have predicted even six years ago. (When I first got involved in local politics.) Second, we have a surprising tendency toward coalition-building, across organizations, and some folks desire the same across political parties as well. For example, Erik said: "I'm the guy who tried to get Cam Gordon to seek cross endorsement by the Republicans in a State House race here in Seward just to give the Greens and the Republicans a representative from the inner city in the House." This is indeed fascinating to me, as I have personally been approached by three different urban GOP candidates about my thoughts on similar coalition efforts with the Greens. Needless to say, this type of fusion would likely generate huge opposition among the true-believers in both parties, but perhaps time will change that. The biggest problem is obviously the fact that these parties' platforms are diametrically opposed. On the other hand, the question now seems to be: "Who cares about our differences on say, abortion, if the conversation is regarding stadium funding - and we AGREE about that?" Focusing more specifically now on Republicans, I would argue that recent years have seen a change in the relationship between urban and suburban GOP. The bottom line here is that cities are different from suburban/rural areas. We all know that. The problem is that location, issues, and even personalities get stereotyped, and feed into political divisions. I'll use myself as an example: I'm a college student, an artist, an environmentalist, an organic-gardening buff. I love the city, and I'm married to a "foreigner." If I had a nickel for every person who, knowing all or part of that information, expressed SHOCK upon learning my political affiliation, I'd be rich. So the point of the above is that it's been very easy for city Republicans to get written off, both by liberal city-dwellers and by the non-urban Republican establishment. That is now beginning to change, thanks in large part to the work of such individuals as Lee Ecklund, Bob Olson (not the Police Chief) and Carl Crawford, all previous or current members of the Minneapolis Republican Committee. There are two very important things that these folks and others have made headway on: first, convincing the "State Party" that Minneapolis issues ARE relevant and that we will not be dismissed as unsalvageable "communist territory" anymore, and second, working with activists and elected officials of other affiliations on certain issues about which we desire the same outcome. Erik referred with surprise to Jim Graham's (a conservative Democrat) supportive statements about Dean Zimmerman (a Green.) This is an example of what I suggested is a movement toward coalition-building, or issue-agreement, which is fuelled by the concentration of power among the DFL. I am also a big supporter of Dean Zimmerman. (In general, that is to say. There are certainly many things about which we would disagree vehemently... but the catch is that those issues don't come up with the same frequency as the things about which we agree.) So that's my summary for the moment, and I would just add that I too will support Jonathan Palmer in the general election, especially without that heavy "DFL-approved" chain hanging around his neck. Connie Nompelis Deputy Chair, Minneapolis Republican Committee (MRC) Ward 6 - Ventura Village __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! - Official partner of 2002 FIFA World Cup http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest option, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
