Saturday, May 19, 2007

The View From The Cheap Seats by Jerry Hafferkamp

The View From The Cheap Seats
By Jerry Haferkamp

“What the heck is she doing”? That’s the question reverberating all around the city. The mayor’s supporters are asking about her slash and burn at City Hall. Many of those who voted for her are surprised. Those who didn’t aren’t. We know her better than her supporters do. Like the proverbial horse led to water, we led you to the truth, you just wouldn’t drink.

I look to more surprises for the 55% of you that voted for her.

Look for the former Director of Tourism to make his return. I could only hope that when he does, this time he will abide by our ordinances. Exhibiting at least a small amount of common sense and intelligence wouldn’t hurt, either.
Look for the return of the “Top Cop”. There is an attachment there I can’t put into words. I know at the council meeting where Patti named him her “Top Cop”, she appeared as if someone was going to have to revive her. Now we can understand why she has an office in the Justice Center. We won’t have to look for a new Chief of Police. The Fraternal Order of Police will run our police department, thank you.

Look to the various boards to consist of residents who don’t breathe unless this mayor tells them they may. If she can’t get residents that will do her bidding, she’ll use non-residents. She has shown this trait in the past.

She can now dare to show her true self. She no longer needs the voters. She has this temporary position until Tom Dempsey steps down and the political machine anoints her as your State Representative. (At this point, it should be noted that the Republican machine is not doing anything the Democrat Party machine wouldn’t do). By the time she needs your votes again, many of us will have passed on and most of the rest will have forgotten the dishonesty. She is doing a quick “slash and burn” and hope most of it is forgotten by the next time she needs to use you.

Only the City Council can put the brakes on this runaway train, but so far has only given York the fast track. There are three on the council who may have not promised to drink the Kool-Aid, but seven are locked to the mayor.

The mayor now has full and unstoppable control. She has so much staff she doesn’t even have to get out of bed, and she’ll be adding more. That way, when the stuff hits the fan, she will have someone onto whom she can pin the blame. No blame sticks to Teflon Patti.

Fasten your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.

By the way. I recently asked Tom Dempsey how he was coming along with having the T.R.Hughes law removed. (That’s the anti-resident law that benefits one campaign contributor.) He replied that he is trying to identify a piece of legislation to which he can attach the bill. It surely didn’t take this long to get his buddy’s bill passed into law. Maybe we need to send him a large campaign donation to get activity.

The old council should have started legal action to have it removed.

This council never will.


That’s the view from the cheap seats.