Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Oops; let history record that…….

                           

Your humble correspondent and would be ‘consultant’ from time to time offers you projections on local matters, along with interpretations and observations on same.

We have no special qualifications for making such predictions.  We do it simply for our joint amusement and to provoke thought, in hopes it might make us more informed about local cultural and governance issues.

Well, for the first time since the last time, we come to you today to admit we were wrong on a prediction.

                                    

Every since Johnny Protocols ascended to the Brunswick Town Council, taking the seat of Joanne King, his one time campaign treasurer, we’ve predicted that he would use the platform to rehabilitate himself politically, first by becoming Governor of Brunswick, otherwise known as Chair of the Town Council when held by others.

We thought for sure it would be happening at this juncture in town history, but we were wrong.  Published news reports state that last night, Sara Brayman was elected council chair by a vote of 7-2, with councilors Dave Watson and Kathy Wilson voting in opposition.  Steve Walker was elected vice-chair, by the same vote, with the same councilors opposed.

When asked about his vote, Watson, long the eloquent elder-statesman of the council, responded thus:

“Why vote yes?” said Watson, when asked about his opposition after the meeting. “It’s just so it’s not a sweetheart deal.”

As you may know, Gerry Favreau is no longer at the table, so we’ll have to get use to living without his similarly wise take on things.

Kathy Wilson had this comment in the press:

“I felt I had to vote what my constituency was telling me,” said Wilson. “They would have liked to see a change. … But I look forward to working with the whole council.”

From which we take that her constituency wanted GoJo to become chair.  We also wonder what ‘change’ means to her and her folks, since change was inevitable, given Benet Pols’ departure from the council.  Hmmmm……

Complicating matters is a printed report that councilors Richardson and Susan Wilson were not in attendance at the meeting.  You can decide for yourself what a “7-2” vote means when two councilors aren’t there.  We know based on past events that Johnny P is prone to ‘having a conflict’ when key votes are taken, such as that to offer John Eldridge the job of Town Manager.  And that Susan Wilson doesn’t know how to vote when Councilor Protocols is not there to give her a wink or a nod.

One view of course is that the votes of those present tallied 5-2, and that Richardson and Susan Wilson, by their absence, figuratively cast no votes, for an effective margin of 5-4, the slimmest possible outcome.  7-2 sounds much better, though we’ll have to look to others how that total could be possible under the circumstances.

                                      

Well, this is a heck of a way to get back in the editorial saddle, so to speak, having to admit that history will show we screwed up, at least this time around.  But it be what it be.

And as a famous person once said, “Protocols delayed is not Protocols denied.”

On a more hopeful note, we see that Billy Thompson was elected School Board Chair.  We’re encouraged by this result, even though we realize the Board is extremely limited in their ability to override rudder orders given by the paid staff conning the government school super-tanker.

Happy New Year all.

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