The Chair of the Sierra Club, Richard Miller, was kind enough to post a remark after the blog to voice his support for Mr. & Francis. & Though I had been mulling Steve Francis at the helm, after seeing him up close and personal, and listening to his answers to the adroitly posed questions by moderators Artie Ojeda and Lee Ann Kim , I fear Francis may be a shape-shifter if he becomes mayor. &
Frankly, I'm afraid of someone using so many catch phrases, like "vision of change" and "policy ahead of politics," when voters crave earnest solutions. Granted, one minute answers don't allow for much substance. However, when compared to someone like Floyd Morrow, who was full of specific solutions on taxes, housing, and sharing resources at the border, Mr. Francis struck me as a lighter shade of political grey instead of being the better alternative to Mayor Sanders.
Granted, I also recently finished railing against voters stuck at the doorstep of a candidate's image (see, the "tired old schtick" about Edwards' pristine grooming habits that fellow bloggers hate) instead of analyzing the purported message. But at the luncheon, I realized I was guilty of the same image consciousness in denying Floyd Morrow a fighting chance. &
During a Citizen Voices appearance on " These Days with Tom Fudge ," along with the impressive talents of Chuck Hartley and Trina Boice , to justify why I wasn't voting for the only Democratic candidate running for mayor, namely, former Councilmember and Deputy Mayor Floyd Morrow. I embarrassingly admitted that Mr. Morrow, due to his ballot statement, had impressed me as a Peace and Freedom Party candidate but not a Democratic one.
Thanks to the charismatic appearances of Steve Francis, Mayor Jerry Sanders, and especially Eric Bidwell, I almost let this one get by.
I assume the mild mannered Floyd Morrow flies under most voters' radars. & After attending this event, and speaking personally with the candidates, I hope some folks will reconsider Mr. Morrow's decades-long experience, temperament, and practical solutions. He may be the only candidate who has invited Eric Bidwell and his girlfriend over for dinner. To me, that is a sign of revolutionary progress for this city-- to embrace the best parts of the past and the hope a younger generation's involvement in the future. &
Too bad these two can't run on the same ticket.
How about you? Are you still gathering information, tuning into debates, reading websites, and sorting through other distributed literature before deciding? Or, have you made up your mind? Who is your choice for San Diego's next mayor?
-Citizen Voices blogger Alma Sove has spent most of her life in San Diego and is currently attending law school.
