They lined up like blackbirds on a telephone wire. There were only ten at this event. It little mattered. Babel’s eighth ward is having a by-election to replace a missing councillor. Some eleven citizens have thrown their hat in the ring. They want to prove that democracy can work for them.
But democracy cannot work for them until they understand how democracy works. They cannot just sing the song of birds on a wire—a song that is just the monotony of “Me, me, me.” These are mainly novices. They do not all have the skills of experienced politicos.
One of the candidates might have been doing some serious toking in the parking lot before the meeting. That candidate had the audience laughing through the introductions and first couple questions but flat lined by the third question.
As is typical in these municipal situations in Ontario, you expect to find a semi-official Conservative party candidate. Municipal politics is where the party prepares its comers and stores its has-beens. The reason the party was not standing behind its candidate was obvious when you recognized him. The local Conservatives are testing a candidate with an ‘ethnic’ name in white-bread Babel. They are standing back though, as the party does not want to be identified with a possible loss.
In the usual unorganized fashion of Liberals, there are three card-carrying Liberal party members in the running. One is the de facto provincial party candidate. Another is from the federal party in the area and one is there because he feels like it. There is little love lost between them.
There are only three women in the running. In these days of gender equality, that gives them an unfair advantage. Overheard at one point was a heated discussion by three local women voters over which of the three women they would support.
The only person doing anything useful at the meeting was the chair person who limped with his cane to hand each candidate the microphone and to say who they are. Only one of the candidates actually knew how to use a microphone and he would have done much better if he had something serious to say that was different from the others.
Luckily, the chair person also kept track of the time for each candidate to speak. He did an excellent job. Most of the applause in the meeting was for him.
But as you listened to these birds on a wire, you realized that one of them has to win. That choice will not be based on anything at this meeting. The ward by-election is on December 3.
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Copyright 2012 © Peter Lowry
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