(5th in a series of modest proposals)
Regarding Gadly’s last modest proposal:
So probably at 8AM this very moment I just punched the “Send” button and perhaps the very moment you might be reading this, the Mayor is beginning his “State of the City” address to the Chamber of Commerce at a breakfast at Arts Quest.
Gadfly suggested a different venue and etc., etc. for this annual event.
As usual Gadfly enters these modest proposals on the record during public comment at Council meetings — and did so Tuesday night. It so happens the mayor was not there.
CM Reynolds took up the idea and suggested to Business manager Evans who was sitting in for the Mayor that this talk could be given during the Mayor’s report time at Council meetings.
Yes, it could.
But a couple things that CM Reynolds said struck me as not so good.
CM Reynolds said — paraphrasing now — 1) the talk is basically a bunch of slides and 2) it wouldn’t take too much time and require a different preparation. I hope I have that right.
Now that didn’t strike me quite right.
It made the “State of the City” event sound perfunctory to me.
I said last time that I’m not a big spectacle kind of guy (another wink-wink to you-know-who-you-are). And I rather dislike the wind-demon politicians who are always talking or who are all-talk. Especially if they are also no-action.
But I must admit that there are times that I want, that I need some rah-rah.
And an event called “State of the City” feels that way to me.
Respectfully, one time a year I’d like to have the Mayor throw away the slides and the stop-watch and light us up a bit.
I think all the ‘State of the ___’ reports have only one purpose: making the speaker look good while distracting from the many real problems we all face. This is even more true as most of them ignore or trivialize the climate tsunami heading our way.
Evidently, you touched a sore spot. There are excellent ways to treat sore spots and wounds. Apply a little antiseptic and then leave them open to the air so they can heal from the inside. It certainly would not hurt to have a little open airing from the City.