Three beautiful things from the last week:
1. There is nothing better than coming home from a trip. Walking in the door and being met by three cats who absolutely adore you is incomparable. They want nothing more than to sit on you to prevent you from ever leaving again (unless it’s to buy them some more cat food, of course).
2. The Mets have been playing remarkably well this year. Right now they have the best record in baseball and last night they became the first team to reach 90 wins for the season. It used to be that I’d go places wearing my Mets cap and people would greet me with sympathetic looks. This year, I’m greeted with, “How about those Mets?” Even in Salt Lake! It’s a nice feeling to be at the top for once.
3. Washington, D.C., is a Democratic city. 74% of registered voters are signed up as Democrats. We’re so Democratic, it’s a law that the City Council has to have two members of a “non-majority” party just so that it’s fair. So when the primary rolls around, essentially you’re electing the person who is going to assume power. This year we had two major positions open up — mayor and city council chairperson. Adrian Fenty, who is only a few years older than I, won the Democratic nod for mayor. He has a vision for where the city should go from here that many people think is exciting. And Vince Gray, formerly the executive director of Covenant House, won the primary for council chair, offering hope that the next iteration of the council will consider ways to attract businesses and to provide services to low-income families simultaneously. I didn’t vote for either of the two winners, but I am excited that they bring fresh blood and enthusiasm to their positions. May they help to keep D.C. a nice place to live.
How is it more fair to require two members of a non-majority party?
The requiring part implies that people who wouldn’t be elected in a fair vote will get placed into positions in lieu of the popular choice. I don’t get how that’s supposed to be more fair than actual genuinen fairness.
Comment by Grey Kitten 09.15.06 @ 4:18 pmJenni, Thanks!
GK, My feeling is that it is similar to a number of other programs — gerrymandering, affirmative action — that are designed to balance the playing field for those who are not represented by the majority. It just encourages a diversity of opinions and debate, which is a good thing in a place as odd as D.C.
Plus, we don’t really have conservatives on our City Council. In fact, one of the two Republicans left the party during the last election because he refused to support GWB and the party then refused to let him attend the National Convention. The other Republican stayed home, too, out of support for him. (In addition to now being an independent, the first Republican also is the champion of the indoor clean air bill that goes into effect in January.)
And let’s keep in mind that this opens the doors for all sorts of parties to run, not just Republicans. Independents, Greens, Libertarians all get a shot at those open seats.
Personally, I think it’s a good thing. It could allow a lot of the smaller parties that don’t get a lot of attention to build a solid following here.
Comment by soe 09.15.06 @ 4:54 pm