Topic: campaigning

Clarksville campaigning hits political low

By Christine Anne Piesyk | October 26, 2008 |

Politics got ugly in Clarksville Saturday, October 25, as at least one McCain/Palin campaigner chose to take the low road, politicking curbside at Veteran’s Plaza Election near the Election Commission office where hundreds of people arrived to vote between 8 a.m. and noon.

One male Caucasian McCain/Palin campaigner donned an Obama Halloween mask, of and by itself not a big deal, but then attached a hand-printed cardboard “Hamas for Obama” sign perpetrating a lie and creating an implication of terrorist ties to presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama. On the flip side of the sign are the words “Honk for Socialism NoBama.”

Debating the issues, building an case for a candidate rooted in facts, is one thing. This kind of ill-informed misinformation and dis-information starts with the word “stupid,” meanders into “childish,” and continues with “dangerous” and “malicious.” Where it ends remains a question mark. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Issues, News, Opinion, Politics | 2 Comments

Voter Apathy: Is it possible in November??

By Turner McCullough Jr. | August 25, 2008 |

The August 7th Primary and State Election showed the power of the individual voter. With less than twelve percent of registered voters participating, the course of representative government was set for the next four years. By not voting, that other 88 percent of voters surrendered their rights and actually allowed a small minority to determine their lives. Hope they like the outcome these voters have and will continue to impact upon them.

11.86. Look at that number again. Eleven-point eighty-six. Out of one hundred percent, it is only slightly more than ten percent. And yet it is just a hair less than a full twelve percent. Not even twelve percent of Montgomery County’s registered voters participated in the August 7th ballot! Not even twelve percent, people! Even with the convenience of early voting, and mail-in balloting for the elderly and infirm, not even one-quarter of eligible voters exercised their freedom and their responsibility to determine the course of their elected government.

Just what can explain this low voter interest in elections? The November ballot will determine the composition of the City Council for the next two years of Mayor Johnny Piper’s term and beyond. The course of redevelopment, planned urban growth (or the lack thereof), recreation amenities and city services, greenspace provisions, police and fire department personnel hiring, revitalization of neglected or rundown neighborhoods, installing red-light traffic cameras, improving our quality of life, all are issues likely to come before local government. The electorate must find the will to engage itself at levels above a repulsive twelve percent. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Events, Issues, News, Opinion, Politics | 3 Comments