November is Approaching

Since Laura Miller announced that she will not seek re-election as Mayor of Dallas, a number of potential replacements have surfaced. The Morning News had a lineup of wannabe mayors, ten men who would be mayor of the nation's 9th largest city. I must admit I thought it odd to see so many men without the sign of a female contender. But in the Wednesday paper a list of four women, including the wife of former mayor Ron Kirk, were added. From what I've seen so far: Not impressed This will be the first election that my wife and I will cast our votes as citizens of Dallas. I never felt connected to the Grand Prairie political scene, I can't even tell you who my councilman was. I've attended a number of meetings at Dallas City Hall, including City Planning Commission Meetings, and Trinity River Master Plan Hearings. I've already attended a meeting my councilman, Ed Oakley, held regarding the 1.3 billion dollar bond project Dallas citizens will vote on in November. I'm hoping that other candidates will emerge, or at least I'll be moved by some of these folks who I haven't heard much from thus far. I plan to be involved in the process, and will blog quite a bit about voting in the weeks and months to come. I feel the local level is the only place where voting matters most; but the debt that we owe our forbearers for what they endured for our right to vote makes it imperative that we honor their sacrifices. So check in, as I will be asking you to participate in the process as well. I can't remember an election my grandmother missed…traveling to the polls well into her nineties. My mother and uncle work the polls at every election, an art that has been lost on our generation to this point. But I believe that a change is coming.