French political philosopher, Alexis de Tocqueville said that in a democracy, we get the government we deserve. Perhaps it is more correct to say that we get the governing officials that we elect..and that is also true. With the forthcoming November 3rd general election, Cape Coral residents have a chance to change our community's political landscape.
Where the mayoral election is concerned, lets see if ( this time ) we (as a community) can elect a mayor who 1.) has some ethics and is not going to be dealing with issues of not voting, due to conflict of interest. and 2.) is not someone who has boundless political aspirations that will preclude their effectively completing their term. If we can elect that person, perhaps we will see a mayor who is effectively able to vote on all issues for the betterment of all of our residents.
Where the District 1, 4 and 6 council seats are concerned, we can hope that our votes will allow for the election of individuals who are committed to leadership, as opposed to those who are just warm bodies, serving their own ends, and/or flip-flop on crucial vote issues.
I have seen many of my neighbors at the various candidate forums which have been held around the Cape in the last month. Most are concerned citizens and homeowners who seem genuinely interested in electing better and more capable leadership. What I have also seen are a collection of former elected officials, as well as elected officials from other municipalities, looming, jeering and acting like unruly children. It certainly is interesting to see the arrogance and immaturity of those who aren't in the spotlight.
Maybe the one predominant factor that seemed evident among the majority of mayoral candidates was a lack of formal education. In all honesty, I know of better educated and politically informed high school kids than several of the mayoral candidates. One definite realization of my attendance at one of these forums was that I would have to choose my candidate from the standpoint of which is the lesser of several ill-equipped prospects.
As an aside, I want to take a moment to mention that while all of the mayoral candidates were invited to share their particular platforms with our readership, most showed their true colors by referring me to their website or their campaign managers ( basically shirking off the responsibility of relating their platforms to the local community personally ). It seems that when asked to put down ( in print and for the record ) exactly where each of them stood, the lack of willingness to step up and express personal principals, beliefs and convictions came shining through. There was one exception in Mr. Robert Pizzolongo. While he was eliminated from the mayoral race in the primary, we applaud his willingness to (at least) be forthright, as opposed to being elusive or passing the buck.
Accountability and transparency are key concerns on the part of all Cape Coral residents where our city's elected officials are concerned. However, I also believe that integrity should be of equal importance. Let us, as a community, come together to elect an effective and resolute city council intent on addressing the needs of the community at large from both business and neighborhood standpoints.
See you at the polls !
-Wray
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