It’s been a perplexing few weeks. It hasn’t been unseasonably hot so I can’t blame my confusion on undiagnosed heat stroke. I don’t have a drinking problem (open mouth, bend elbow, enjoy — thank you very much) so there’s no faulting my state of confusion on a state of inebriation. The only reasonable explanation for my being puzzled then — you people are daft.
First there was round one of the Chula Vista City Council’s district elections tussle. The council is currently hammering out the details around a ballot question voters will face in November. One point of contention is when district elections should be implemented. Some argue it should happen sooner rather than later. Others want the district elections to have staggered implementation.
But why wait? If voters want representatives from specific neighborhoods why hold off on district elections — unless you want to see how district lines will be drawn, which then will determine if you have to move to hold office or if you can run on your home turf.
Almost equally puzzling to me is the decision by La Prensa publisher and editor Dan Munoz to run for a seat on the South Bay Irrigation District.
I’m not questioning the newsman’s qualifications for public office. But I do have to wonder about his mental capacity. I have to assume that over the years he’s witnessed how rough, petty, childish and thankless politics can be. And now he wants to get into the game rather than sitting on the sidelines and writing about it? What’s the man thinking? (On second thought, rough, petty, childish and thankless can also be used to describe journalism so maybe the foray into politics is a lateral move.)
In Anaheim, home to Mickey Mouse and all his manufactured sentimentality, soldiers patrolled the streets near the Magic Kingdom while protesters railed against police for killing two men in July. On closer inspection, however, the men in camouflage carrying what looked like machine guns weren’t members of the military. They were cops in combat gear. When did that become acceptable?
And finally: This week people lined up for hours outside of Chick Fil A’s across the country to show support for a company whose president doesn’t want gay people to marry.
Gay people don’t bother me. Let them marry who they want to marry. And let company presidents spend company money how they see fit as long as it’s legal.
But standing in line for hours to buy bland-tasting fast food? In a country that has a sky rocketing obesity problem coupled with increasing cases of adult-onset diabetes, isn’t buying chicken strips as a means of political protest just a little crazy? Or maybe it’s me.
