Politics Not for the People

 

What could they possibly be afraid of?

No money, no party backing, no powerful political friends; not even any real name recognition! Just one guy, just one voice, telling the people that the true power for change is, and always will be, in their own hands. Just one voice, telling the people that their money, their political games, their friends-and-family policies, their abuses of power against the citizens, can be stopped.

So what are they actually afraid of? The truth is, they know that one annoying voice that won’t go away is right. And, perhaps, people are beginning to listen to that one annoying voice. The politicians and political operatives have brought Niagara Falls to where it is today. Open your eyes, look around: over 60 years of their master plans and political scams have left us nothing but debt and poverty. Is this the future you envisioned for your city? Is this the future you envisioned for your children and grandchildren?

The truly sad part is that it is the future THEY envisioned, with their fat political-patronage-job paychecks and their six-figure pensions. They can, if they choose, leave this all behind and move to a place that has a better quality-of-life, safer streets, neighbors who care, businesses that remain open, and houses and streets that aren’t crumbling around them. When something as basic as running water isn’t guaranteed, why would they choose to stay here?

The truth is, my friends, they don’t.

Once they have squeezed every penny they can out of Niagara Falls, they leave, and we, the citizens, have to deal with the mess they have created. All the good things Niagara Falls used to be are gone with them. The politicians running will tell you that Niagara Falls can’t be what it used to be. Please, listen carefully: what you’re hearing is just another generation of political vultures, picking the meat off a rotting corpse.

“Eat, get fat, and then leave.”

Maybe, if we made them tattoo that to their foreheads, we could at least see where our money was going.

We can change all that. The “we” is very important: all I have is an annoying voice that won’t go away. You the citizens, have the real power. Accountability, responsibility to the citizens, open government by the public servants you elect, is your right, not a privilege. Your voice being heard, your needs being addressed, your direction for the future of your city being acted on by the public servants you elect; these, my fellow citizens, are your rights, not privileges of the politicians.

Think about what they’re saying: “Niagara Falls can’t be what it used to be”. They’re setting you up with excuses for why they’ll fail before you even elect them! I, on the other hand, won’t make excuses, and we won’t fail. Together, we can take back what their 60 years of control have taken from us. Safe streets, a sense of community, new businesses being welcomed, action rather than planning, solving the problems rather than studying them. An open door where your voices and your direction for the future of your city is heard.

All I have to offer is that annoying voice, and the knowledge that solving the problems is not nearly as difficult as getting the citizens to realize that they can. So thank you for listening to this annoying voice.

As always, your voice, your choice, your future.

 

Jim Szwedo

Candidate for Mayor of the City of Niagara Falls