How did my candidates do? In the words of my old Algebra teacher "some won, some lost".In the two County Commissioner races which mattered to me, one incumbent (Joanne Fay) was defeated by pro-union candidate Steve O'Neill. No surprise there; it was warranted. Dennis Fink (incumbent) won his race against Charlotte Vanvactor. This was a bit disappointing from the standpoint of wanting pro-labor, pro-union people on the County Board. But, all in all, we did replace one anti-union person. It's a start. One voting result shocked me. The "enhanced smoking ban" was soundly defeated. This expanded ban would have now included all bars and private clubs. It appears that the majority of voting Duluthians grew brains when I wasn't looking because I didn't give this a snowball's chance of being rejected. Very happy that it was. The message here from Duluthians is simple; "enough is enough". Go play somewhere else. And here is where the hyprocrisy once again rears its ugly head on the part of the anti-smokers. When Duluthians supported the existing ban two years ago, Pat McKone (primary lackie of the American Lung Association) was all over the press, declaring that "the people have spoken". But when the extended ban was voted down, did Pat pay attention to "the people have spoken?". Nope. She vowed to continue fighting. So, it appears that she only cares about the popular vote when it mirrors what she wants. Get out of Duluth, Pat. You're not needed here. You're not wanted here. Go be a pain elsewhere. Take your do-gooders with you. They're not wanted in Duluth either. Dope (c). In the "main" election, Bush beat Kerry. Big deal. The only scary part is the idea that one party controls both the presidency, the Senate and the House. No checks and balances other that the Dems can filibuster any legislation that they don't agree with. The impact of this election on the Supreme Court could be far more dire. Roe v Wade? Back to the alleys if you want an abortion, ladies. Watch it happen. And that is truly sad. [ Back ] |