Spring Break
Lubbock elections are approaching fast
Cole Shooter
Issue date: 3/14/08 Section: Opinions
Rejoice, Easter Lubbockites, because the time for the rebirth of our city is coming. The city election is May 10, and with it, the chance for our humble city to finally come out of the shadow of the embarrassment that's been caused by the current administration.
I've been waiting anxiously for this time since the last city election went so poorly. Unfortunately, things here in the city went even worse than anyone possibly could have imagined since then.
Higher taxes, misdirected priorities and mistakes such as red light cameras have plagued us since 2006, thanks to current mayor David Miller and his cronies at city hall.
The more interesting races in this upcoming election are for the Lubbock District 2 City Council seat currently held by Floyd Price, the District 4 council seat held by Phyllis Jones, who is not running for reelection, and the mayoral election with David Miller playing the role of the overly righteous incumbent.
Luckily, there are excellent candidates ready to assume these formerly problematic seats on the council. Also, along with the excellent candidates, are some mediocre candidates and perennial political hangers-on.
The ones up for reelection who I mentioned are part of what's been dubbed the "gang of four." These are the ones responsible for bullying through such horrendous things as red light cameras, raising taxes and promoting the spending of far too much money on amenities the city doesn't need to spend money on - such as a slew of soccer fields for a very small number of people.
The candidates running for the District 2 City Council seat are Gilbert Salinas, a local electrician; Armando Gonzales, the man who spearheaded two recall efforts against District 1 City Councilwoman Linda Deleon; and of course, Councilman Price.
Price seems like a nice man, but nice doesn't necessarily mean he's a good leader. Along with Miller, Price voted to inflate city government to unseen levels every time, and through the eyes of a conservative, that makes him an unfit leader.
I've been waiting anxiously for this time since the last city election went so poorly. Unfortunately, things here in the city went even worse than anyone possibly could have imagined since then.
Higher taxes, misdirected priorities and mistakes such as red light cameras have plagued us since 2006, thanks to current mayor David Miller and his cronies at city hall.
The more interesting races in this upcoming election are for the Lubbock District 2 City Council seat currently held by Floyd Price, the District 4 council seat held by Phyllis Jones, who is not running for reelection, and the mayoral election with David Miller playing the role of the overly righteous incumbent.
Luckily, there are excellent candidates ready to assume these formerly problematic seats on the council. Also, along with the excellent candidates, are some mediocre candidates and perennial political hangers-on.
The ones up for reelection who I mentioned are part of what's been dubbed the "gang of four." These are the ones responsible for bullying through such horrendous things as red light cameras, raising taxes and promoting the spending of far too much money on amenities the city doesn't need to spend money on - such as a slew of soccer fields for a very small number of people.
The candidates running for the District 2 City Council seat are Gilbert Salinas, a local electrician; Armando Gonzales, the man who spearheaded two recall efforts against District 1 City Councilwoman Linda Deleon; and of course, Councilman Price.
Price seems like a nice man, but nice doesn't necessarily mean he's a good leader. Along with Miller, Price voted to inflate city government to unseen levels every time, and through the eyes of a conservative, that makes him an unfit leader.
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Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 7
Fred
posted 3/14/08 @ 8:25 AM CST
I only have one point on which to disagree with Mr. Shooter (a rarity for me).
We have needed those soccer fields for quite some time. Upgrades to the soccer complex were promised years ago, but they always got pushed back. (Continued…)
Brandon
posted 3/14/08 @ 2:07 PM CST
Why should the city pick up the tab for something as trivial as soccer fields when they can't even manage LP&L? If they're as important as Fred makes them out to be, then they should be able to find corporate sponsors for it, without digging into the 98 percent of Lubbockites that don't care about soccer. (Continued…)
Rick
posted 3/15/08 @ 2:41 AM CST
I agree with Brandon on this. In this time of economic unrest with people losing their homes due to foreclosure, there is no justification in asking the citizens to bear the cost via taxes. (Continued…)
Johnny
posted 3/16/08 @ 1:32 PM CST
We all have our pet peeves, but there is one thing that has yet to be addressed by the Lubbock city council: timing the traffic lights. While all of this pork is being spent, we Lubbockites still have to stop at every intersection we arrive at. (Continued…)
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