There Really Is a 'Them', and 'They' Live Here

Well, I have a new development in my bid for world power… I mean my desire to serve our community. I went to the county court house to sign up and get a petition to get my name on the ballot. My hopes were high, I was going to get a list of all registered voters in the district and then start sorting them and devising a strategy for canvassing our area.

All that was well and good until... One of the ladies who worked in the office heard me say that I wanted to run locally in the election and she informed me that I couldn’t because I hadn’t registered in December. Well, I thought she must have been confused so I turned to her supervisor, Greg McCay. He is the head of the election office. Well he also said that I had to be registered by December.

This made little sense to me because I wanted to run as an independent and everyone who registered in December was running in the primaries for their party. Apparently that doesn’t matter, the state law (yes we have a state law governing our local elections and I had them give me a copy of it) says that during a presidential year independents have to register at the same time as the party boys, oh but in non-presidential years they don’t.

So begins my rant.

I MEAN WTF!?! Why is the state regulating our local elections? Why would an independent, who cannot run in a primary because they don’t exist for independents, register for an election 11 months away? Why do we allow these two political parties to dominate us to a ridiculous extent? What does the RNC or the DNC have to do with how the leaves get collected in the fall or how the water main gets repaired when it floods Cumberland?

I can answer a few of my questions. A local election is cheaper. An interested citizen could feasibly mount an independent candidacy and get elected. Well, well we can’t have that now can we? I appreciate the purpose of the political party system and am not advocating a destruction of it (I mean I worked for on for 6 months). But I am saying that the quiet agreement between them to keep independents out has got to stop.

The most RIDICULOUS and telling part of this whole thing is the fact that an independent can register for this falls election for a State seat. Of course, in the more expensive more intensive races it’s no problem to let an independent run, they’ve really got no chance. But the two parties can agree that they have to fight the evil threat of a local person who cares about something other than party loyalty getting in there and having a say.

There is a sunny side to this whole thing though. Greg McCay did tell me that I could mount a write in campaign, but something about the smirk on his face and the fact that everyone in the office snickered told me that might not be my best option.

I am still seriously considering a write in race. It could be fun just putting up signs and stirring the pudding some.

We’ve got major problems in our local government and the two party system isn’t helping.

WRITE IN THE POL ‘08

PS- Thanks to Stan for his help with the title.