You Must be Crazy: The Wrong Leadership for District 7

You Must be Crazy! The Wrong Leadership for District 7

Doing a little research for the District 7 Special Election and I wanted to make sure that I had done my due diligence, despite my preconceived notions, and take some time to view candidates web pages and platforms.

In every election I am extremely concerned when those who I consider "yahoo's" enter the race. i think it erodes the public trust and diminishes the seriousness of political campaigns, intellectual debate and certainly makes a mockery of the very critical issues we are facing as a community.

Unfortunately in this "Democracy" of America the same freedoms and rights we enjoy are some of the same that hinder us. For example, Free Speech... I love it but in the world of the internet with facebook and youtube that has come to mean that anybody can say just about anything, make bogus claims, slander, start cults and false beliefs, retell history, distort facts, etc.  In this case the freedom that allows anyone to run for public office is in question. This particular freedom ensures that every election will see its fair share of wackos.  From the California race where a Porn "Actress" ran for office to my mustachioed man in New York with the "Rent is Too Damn High" Campaign, here in America crazy people are allowed to run for office and in the case of George W. Bush sometimes they even win.

Here in Boston, particularly in Roxbury's District 7 we have witnessed some very unusual candidates. Today I stumbled across the site of perennial candidate for City Council Roy Owens. I really don't know quite what to say, you should just go and look for yourself:


Roy Owens Candidate for City Council District 7
http://www.royowensboston.mysite.com/1_column_page.html

I'll give you one quote from the site:
"We have a leadership disaster, self inflcted wounds and Judical Malpractice - Economic Disaster, Housing and Transportation - Educational Disaster, Voter and Criminal Ignorance of the law - Medical disaster, Gentrification and Genocide- however,    Working Together We Can Change Things."

After you take a look at that I want to know if it really matters? Does the quality of candidates have an impact on the community? I would submit that it does and while it may be anybody's right to run, that doesn't mean that as a community we have to accept sub-standard candidates and nonsensical platforms. When any of us is attending a forum or a debate I would suggest that we dismiss anything that is not 100% together. Anything else only serves as a distraction to the real issues and dilutes our ability to develop real solutions with real partners.  There is no good that can come out of us participating in or getting enjoyment from any candidate who intentionally or unintentionally misleads our people with incorrect facts and flawed plans. To humor or tolerate this type of misinformation spread to our people is in fact dangerous not to mention a waste of time.

Althea Garrison Candidate for City Council District 7

Another Perennial Candidate Althea Garrison has quite a reputation in Boston. As a researcher, I don't much care for rumors, what I do is investigate and try to determine facts.  There has been much discussion as to whether or not Althea Garrison is in fact a man.

What I have found out is this from a basic google search:

"Ms. [Althea] Garrison used to be a guy named AC "Al" Garson before petitioning a court in 1976 for a name change to Althea [Garrison]"

Rumors don't undermine Garrison's power‎
Boston Herald - Aug 15, 1994
Althea 55 it seems used to be Al. She used to be a he according to court records.

What the Blackstonian does here is pose the question does this matter to you?
Does it matter if a candidate is transgender or transvestite? I believe that for many it will not matter and for many it will matter. There are multiple moral and religious ethos throughout our community which will guide people in their choice of who to support. I have been bothered by the lack of discussion of the issue and the reluctance of any to even ask the question. I think it is tantamount to a candidates campaign especially with a platform such as Althea's "Honest. Ethical. Moral" Some in this community would debate the moral part based on their beliefs but none can debate that this issue has not been handled honestly.

A leading Gay Publication in the Boston area years ago was critical of Althea Garrison for not being "out" and not dealing with the issues of the homosexual and transgendered community. In their view it was a cop out on Althea's part and that gave them concerns of her ability to serve. The logic was if she hasn't identified herself with this group that she is a part of, how will she handle other groups. I think that logic could be sound, for example a Black Man who is uncomfortable admitting he is black or associating himself with Black people, that would definitely cause me concern.

In 2011 after all does anyone care who you sleep with or about your private parts? I think dishonesty and lack of transparency causes more concern than someone's sexuality.  There are many in Boston who have alternative lifestyles and sexual preferences, I think they would all be better served to live openly and honestly, it benefits all concerned and the public in general.  As a community we must be able to have the maturity to discuss even the most difficult subjects, they are by definition the most important ones.

The ultimate question is who are you comfortable with representing you? Who do you think will be best suited to navigate City Hall and examine budgets and council votes and hearings? Who do you think will be best able to deliver services to this community?

- Blackstonian