infinite improbability

random entry

I feel as though I ought to blog about something, since I'm trying to be less sporadic in my entries, so here goes.

I've been around local and regional politics in my hometown for a good part of my life, but sometimes the level of pettiness is so great that even though I thought I'd seen it all, I'm still somewhat dumbfounded by how juvinile it can get. We've now got the former chairman of the Republican Executive Committee and the county Sheriff, both of whom have political connections reaching to the highest levels of government, actively supporting the Independent candidate instead of the Republican candidate (and current Executive Committee chair) for a local County Commission seat because a power struggle over control of the Republican Executive Committee. Power struggles happen all the time in intra-party politics, but this turned particularly nasty because the past chairman and the current chairwoman (who is the current County Commission candidate) were both trying to get their people on to the Executive Committee, and it all turned personal when the Sheriff and the past chairman got upset because the Sheriff's mother-in-law lost out to a supporter of the current chairwoman. So, all because they are mad that the Sheriff's mother-in-law didn't get on the committee, they'd rather have someone who isn't a party member elected.

And well, it doesn't make me hopeful for the future of democracy when the sort of people who run political smear campaigns just because they are mad that somebody's mother-in-law didn't get the political position that they wanted ther to have can get in positions of influence and power.

(and, hint, hint, this is one of the reasons why Josiah needs to get tampabayblogs up and running so that I can take those sorts of people on by name where people will know what I'm talking about, instead of ranting about immature behavior by politicians in generalities).