The Free Press -- Independent News Media

Fri Jul 25 2008

Columns

Harvey Wasserman

Bob Fitrakis for City Council
April 20, 2003

There's a crucial race going on for Columbus City Council. It's not between the Democrats and the Republicans. It centers on Bob Fitrakis, the Green Party candidate, the only one who can make a difference. In fact, he's in many ways the only one qualified for the job.

Bob has campaigned long and hard for social justice in this town. He has fought against police brutality and for neighborhood rights, against environmental destruction and for a safe city.

The key is: Bob is unencumbered by the mainstream corporate agenda. All the D and R candidates are taking money from the developers and the big buck leaches that use city council as a funnel for their private interests.

Bob has fought against that all his life.

In reality, the Republicans don't belong on this ballot at all. They screwed up their petitions and should have been disqualified altogether. This, of course, has been done without compunction against the thousands of people who signed a recent referendum to allow the central Ohio public to vote on marijuana. And it was done again to citizens trying to have a vote on the environmental destruction of the Darby Watershed.

In both those cases the Bosses downtown used ridiculous technicalities to prevent the public from voting on crucial issues.

But when it came time to make the Republicans live by the same rules, suddenly the rules changed, and they were allowed on the ballot despite their invalid petitions.

Of course, the Democrats are equally useless. Their defining moment came a few years ago when every D on council voted to allow the destruction of the Pickerington Ponds Wildlife Refuge. The big developers who support both parties stood to make a few million bucks at the expense of the only refuge available to more than 200 species of migratory birds. So all Council Democrats grovelled and scraped to let them do it.

Bob Fitrakis would do no such thing. He's a throwback to the days when people in public office actually cared about the public. A wild, dynamic public speaker, Bob has remained true to his principles for as long as anybody's known him in this town. He's the only one who will take principled positions on council and stick by them. He's the only one who will take risks for the public welfare. He's the only one that will stand with integrity and courage for what once made this country great.

It's a great thing that Bob's willing to take the time and effort to run for this job. And it's incumbent on us to support him in getting rid of at least one of the corrupt, incumbents now feeding at the Council trough.

It's crucial he get enough votes in the May 6 primary to stand up to the corrupt Ds and the fraudulent Rs. Vote Fitrakis for Columbus City Council. It's time for some integrity!!!!

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