Jordan Kushner would have the Minneapolis City Council take over the Iraq problem as a Minneapolis issue. (I am NOT talking about this forum when I say Minneapolis Issue, so David doesn't get his nose out of joint).
To Jordan Kushner I quote who else but Jordan Kushner, "- Nonsense! BS!" Gary Shift and Paul Ostrow are to be complimented on having good sense and not allowing hypocrisy to color their vote. So are the other council people who did not allow meaningless demagoguery to color their votes, no matter what their personal feelings on the issue. Sure, Gary is probably against the war, given his earlier sentiments, but he at least does not allow any self-righteous halo polishing to get in the way of his doing what he was elected to do, REPRESENT THE NINTH WARD on CITY OF MINNEAPOLIS matters. I do not think any City Council person was elected to act as either the United States Congress or as UN representative. In fact many of the people who elected them have differing personal views about the Iraq situation, but voted for these City Council-people based on their stance on, and commitment to, Minneapolis issues. I remember a resolution being offered at Minneapolis City Council a few years ago concerning condemnation of the British in Northern Ireland. In the same period there were more children murdered from Phillips neighborhood than in all of Belfast Northern Ireland during the same time period. But the City Councilperson at the time seemed to have ignored his own Ward. Now, I personally do not like the English and think they should be driven out of Ireland and Scotland all together, but I also do not think it is a MINNEAPOLIS issue. For those who have a need for political "Moral Outrage", - look around there is plenty in Minneapolis to take up your professional time. After hours be as outraged as you wish, about what ever you wish to be. In the past the politics of Minneapolis was run and negatively impacted by the Democratic Party's litmus test of ones opposition to the Viet Nam War. Some real stupes were elected to office on the basis of their Anti-War activity, and not what they could do for our city. In those years the hypocrisy at DFL conventions was so thick you had to cut it with a knife to keep from choking on it. I remember in the late seventies when people with upper-middle class establishment type jobs would take off their suits and don their Levis and mackinaw coats to go to any political function. A question that always was asked of candidates was how devout you were in your Anti-Warism. It was almost as bad as the Republicans and their questions about how devout someone is in taking a woman's right to choice away. Much of our Cities problems can be traced to this attention to form rather than function. Both Parties attention to such has lead to a corresponding inattention to Minneapolis and Minnesota business. We have elected a generation of officials who knew more about the dogma of their particular groups, and gave more attention to it, than the actual running of a city. So I congratulate Gary, Paul Ostrow, and the rest of the City Council who demonstrated a concern for the true nature of their jobs. The City Council is elected to "act" locally, not think globally while at work. What they may do on their own time is only their own concern, but I and other taxpayers pay them to mind "our" (City) business while on the job. All you Council-people who refused to be distracted give me hope for the City. I may not approve of every one of your decisions, but at least I know some of you are paying attention. Jim Graham, Ventura Village - thinking globally, but paying people to act locally PS - Mork's Transportation and "collaboration" piece today bothers me. I find I agree with Mork's views two days in a row, - something must be going on. _______________________________________ 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
