By Mark David Blum, Esq.
The County Executive for Onondaga County (New York), Nicholas Pirro, has announced his intended retirement at the end of his term this upcoming January. Having served as Executive since 1988, Mr. Pirro apparently has had enough. Twenty years is too long for anybody to serve in public office; let alone the same office. For his tenure, however, Mr. Pirro has much about which he can be proud.
Into the vacuum has stepped a gaggle of habitual office holders. Be they Democrat or Republican; all those touted as replacements for County Executive are career crimin--- politicians who shift from office to office until they complete their requirements for a taxpayer funded pension. Four Republicans and two Democrats are so far named and not a one is a populist, an outsider, or someone who has not been part of the establishment status quo for more than a decade. Indeed that is shameful. Mr. Pirro referenced opening up the pathways for others is one of the considerations for his retirement. Clogging those pathways with the same sludge defeats the purpose.
What has drawn my ire is how the media have already anointed the Seven Dwarves who are going to be the so-called candidate field from which we are going to be called upon to select. In doing so, the local media are not only trying to select for us our next County Executive, but they are also deliberately keeping certain issues off the table and out of the discussion.
I recommend that folks don’t just think about elephants and jackasses, but that they also take a moment to think Green. No, I don’t mean Tim “What Party am I with Today” Green. Instead, I refer to Howie Hawkins. Somehow I don’t think that Howie can resist an opportunity to run for County Executive. The bottom line is that we should consider all the options; not just those being offered by the media.
Since 1984 when he was one of the founders of what is known as the Green Party, Hawkins has found in himself a calling as a leader; as a barometer of our collective conscience. He has always spoken up for the poor, the impoverished, and the ignored. To our mainstream, Hawkins is seen as a nut … a lefty libby … a wacked out social activist. He is ‘Green” and thus gets no respect … none at all. That is a shame for Hawkins’ ideals are the same as preached by the God of Abraham, Jesus, and Moses.
I sit quietly day after day and await the arrival of the true populist leader. One not born of the right families, nor the product of the right schools, but one born of the community who has been raised, educated, and became aware here in this County. We need someone not of the old boy’s club, but a fresh face with new ideas and different attitudes that can permeate throughout a decaying and stagnant County government.
“Malaise” is the disease that has infected the heart and soul of the County. Whether it is economic, social, educational, or political; the life energy has come to a complete standstill. It matters not whether Democrats or Republicans are in charge as all are potential candidates are the Pied Pipers of Yawn. Though each in turn is a potentially excellent manager, has perfect character, and are wonderful human beings; Onondaga County at best has achieved and mastered mediocrity and so far, so good. We need and should demand more.
Has anybody even considered where stand all these potential replacements? Destiny, sewage, snowfall, economic malaise and depression, and the third highest property taxes in the nation require our next Executive to be more than just a manager. We need a leader.
Destiny? That is neither a new idea nor is it productive. It is going to be a giant footprint on our geography which will crush the backs of the Salina 29, fail as an icon, and turn Syracuse into nothing more than a bathroom pit-stop. A mall is not the heart and soul of a community. Those who say “yes”, are not dreamers. They do not aspire to greatness. Communities that follow along leave a legacy of children aspiring to a life of retail and Starbucks. National retailers that come into the mall will only export our capital out of the community. Shoppers from out of the area will leave a few tax dollars while at the same time filling our sewers with the crap before they hop back on their busses for New York City
Crime is also a major problem. The incumbent, his predecessor, and the ones before him all promised a magic solution to crime. Whether the abuse of RICO laws to arrest and harass half a community or turning special police squads loose on the community, citizens have been promised safety. Children are still dying … and in greater numbers. Relations between police and the community are at an all time low. Guns? Drugs? Violence? Everywhere.
Then there is infrastructure. You do remember “infrastructure” … roads, snowplowing, parking, sewers, utilities … the basic necessities of life. Mr. Pirro seems to have forgotten this issue.
Taxes, jobs, safety, schools, and reputation are all vital issues concerning this County. Nothing new is being brought to the table by nominating the same party hacks and stuffed shirts as are tendered in every election.
I search for a different vision. Mine are great dreams for a world class community. When a candidate talks to me of schools or community or jobs, I expect to see in his or her eyes and hear in their words, a true commitment to building something more than just more of the same.
One of the lessons I learned as Onondaga County Chairperson of the Ross Perot campaign back in 1992 is that there is a general feeling of disgust and frustration in the general population. I am pretty sure that we had more people who signed our lists and petitions than all the registered Republicans and Democrats combined. People came up to me everyday and said, “I support your guy, though I can’t say so publicly.” The rationale they gave was not that they were great Perot fans, but rather that Perot represented the disenfranchised and forgotten voters. His fight was not about a small group of elite continuing in place. The general population wants back in the game. People want options and neither party is responding to them anymore.
New faces and ideas must become part of the discussion. We should run from the usual gang. Instead, we should search for new ideas, fresh faces, and people whose lifelong careers are not as politicians but as regular citizens.
America was never intended to have a class of career politicians. Each of us was expected to serve and then leave. Over 200 years, that concept has changed and now the only real issue in each election is “hey, we aint the other guys”. We see all around us the results of that. Instead of being so linear in our thinking, we need to expand our ideas and dare again to dream.
In the upcoming election, do not vote your party. Vote your conscience and vote for the person you think is best fit to lead Onondaga County out of the doldrums and onto the world stage. Demand a world class leader and you will get world class results. There should never be a situation where a ousted State Assemblyman, such as Jeff Brown, has to develop a “program” to lure people back to Onondaga County.
The legacy you will leave for your children demands nothing less than the best. It may not be easy to vote Green. How much better is it to be a lumbering elephant or an incompetent jackass?
