In his column on Sunday, Bill White uses a Winnie The Pooh analogy, that he hopes that Pawlowski supporters start wising up, and realize that he is not the leader that he purports to be.
Ed's supporters know exactly what he is. They're not voting for integrity, instead they're betting on someone who might share the honey with them. They're not voting for a better Allentown, they're voting for bigger piece of the pie for themselves.
The new constituency which Pswlowski cobbled together for his primary victory will continue on past November's election, regardless of who wins. Rather than looking forward to a more ethical Allentown, I think that we have seen the beginning of a Tammany Hall. Even if we luck out with someone other than Pawlowski for the next mayor, he created a blueprint for a new era of self-interest politics.
I can appreciate that some of my readers may find this post less than optimistic in outlook. Thst's good, because we are going to need all the idealists available to counter the coming opportunists.
Mike,
ReplyDeleteWhat the Pawlowski era demonstrated was how many Allentoneans would willingly cozy up to corruption for one reason or another. Self interest was the common thread that bound the local Democrats, business people, the media, non profits....to a very flawed man whose only goal as mayor was self service. He completely ignored the neighborhoods and allowed blight and poverty to proliferate. Those hurt the worst by this were the same population he came to town to assist, Allentown's low income people.
Too many people closed there eyes to all this for years because for one reason or another it worked for them. All the rest of the city got screwed. That wasn't their problem. They didn't care.
I think Scott raises some very good points. Are to your thesis, I believe - hope - that the post- Pawlowski era will bring a lot of young, idealistic people to the forefront in both parties.
ReplyDeleteAs a wake up a little and start pondering your post, I begin to think that Pawlowski is not a machine politician at all. He caters not to the unwaahes masses of center city - as Boss Tweed would have - but solely to his rich cronies. He has no "fixers" or "ward healers" because he generally ignores the type of machine politics where the poor are serviced by these ward healers.
ReplyDeleteBut the analogy is thought provokong. Ed does have his patronage cronies in the parking authority and elsewhere.
robert@8:23, putting aside the tammany hall analogy, i believe that pawlowski has assembled a coalition of voters to which integrity and ethics are not guiding lights. this thirst for power is not unlike other ethnic groups in larger cities, back in the 20's and 30's.
ReplyDeleteMM,
ReplyDeleteCan you say Republican with out Hyman the circus stick? First time in your illustrious life.
This being of course that the entire public servants locally will be in for many suprizes in the coming dayz!
What can we expect from an electorate that dismissed Bill Clinton's regular sexual harassment the the workplace as a baby boomer 'boys will be boys' attitude. They also continue(d) to vote for the likes of Marion Barry, Adam Clayton Powell, Geraldine Ferarro (who benefited from her hubby's corruption)....not to mention the Kennedys, Hillary, et al. This is a gimme gimme gimme group if there ever was one.
ReplyDeleteDid anyone see the mayors short bus that seems too be missing the bars on the windows for this short gurnubrial ride from philly to the federal penatentry. Bars on the windows would make for a better CAMPaign advertisement, jack could be the bus driver!
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