12-21-2001

Op Ed

Dear Political Diary,

I spent the morning composing a potential column for the Duluth News Tribune prompted in part by the Lindstrom Editorial cartoon. I worked on it till noon then called Jim Heffernan to tell him to look for it on his email. 

I had originally planned to write a letter to the School Board for the weekly packet complaining that it was unprecedented for the Board to deny information to a fellow board member. However, I changed my mind after pointing this out in the aforementioned column. Now the entire city will find out how the Board forbade the administation from doing this research. I don't think this will do the Board any credit.

Snow was in the forecast and I took my dingy car to the London Road Carwash ahead of the precipitation. When I walked in to pay a friendly stranger looked at me and said, "Hey it's the most hated man in town." He said this with a broad grin so I turned around theatrically for the door and said that it looked like I better be leaving. 

He was, of course, just joking. He introduced himself and like lots of other people told me he wouldn't want to be where I was although he congratulated me personally for making sense. The woman standing next to him agreed and I figured that she was his wife. It turned out that she wasn't. She simply agreed with him. 

Its funny how the more I disagree with the School Board's majority the more back slaps I get. Sweet vindication.