I’m pumped, readers, and I hope you are, too!
After a long, snow-piled-high winter, Election Day (Part One) has arrived. Join me in a round of applause for the seven (six active) candidates for their perseverance, restraint (generally) and mostly high-level discussion of the daunting challenges facing our city.
It’s been an interesting, hotly contested mayoral primary campaign, with the usual mix of…
— momentum swings: Deb Hermann surging and then ebbing; Sly James building slowly and methodically; Mike Burke coming on at the end
— surprises: “Captain Taco” and three former mayors, including “live” candidate Charles B. Wheeler, endorsing Burke
— snafus: a Burke flier depicting the silhouette of the Chicago skyline
So, how’s it going to unfold tonight? Here’s my predicted order of finish:
1) Burke, 23 percent
2) James, 22 percent
3) Hermann, 18 percent
4) Funkhouser, 16 percent
5) Rowland, 14 percent
6) Wheeler, 5 percent
7) Klein, 2 percent
In the interests, again, of full disclosure, I have contributed $3,000 to Burke; have attended staff meetings; and helped secure Wheeler’s endorsement.
The first leg of this race is almost over. May the winner be…KANSAS CITY!
(I want to invite all you readers to Burke campaign headquarters for tonight’s vote-count watch. The headquarters is in the Broadway-Valentine Shopping Center, just north of the Uptown Theatre. Festivities start about 8 o’clock. See you there.)
In addition to being the nation’s worst big town mayor in general, Funk En Stein and Mrs. Mayor were warned early and often ’bout the planned ‘money toss’ by Consolidated School District One and Mrs. Mims.
With Funk’s assistance, over a quarter of a million taxpayer dollars were used to tear down the quite-suitable, existing, perimeter barrier and erect a totally unneeded artsy fartsy art fence around Ruskin High School.
I mean, ya might as well thrown the coins and currency on to whizzing, ongoing traffic on Blue Ridge Extension. Ruskin came within one board vote of shutting down as a prep school.
This is not common sense. This is a script for a Hollywood mindless comedy. donlake@ymail.com, 619.420.0209