Onto The Clowns

Hello Again, Everyone

It has been a few weeks since I last weighed in on the clown show - mostly because Hotdog can’t manage a schedule any better than he manages his district - but the remaining clowns have shown that my sarcastic reality checks are still in demand.

Before we get to that, I want to express my heartfelt concern and sympathy for Mark Aliff, his wife, and family. My thoughts and prayers are with them, hoping for a full and speedy recovery.

Now, Onto the Clowns

For this installment, there are two uppity clowns and a clown-adjacent:

Hotdog

Unfortunately for all of us, even though he has clearly been cooked too long, he has yet to explode in the microwave. This time, Hotdog spewed at the Director of Finance, who was there at Hotdog’s request to answer questions about supposed past-due payments. Mr. Nunn clearly stated that the city was not delinquent on anything and that it had fulfilled all contractual obligations. He provided accurate, easy-to-understand explanations and answers to all questions - so easy that even Hotdog could understand.

That was not good enough because Hotdog was already boiling. He then proceeded to take swipes at the Mayor and was foolish enough to declare, on a televised and recorded public forum, that Mr. Nunn was implicated in financial malfeasance and essentially guilty of financial crimes. In the legal realm, making baseless verbal claims against someone is called slander. As a city official “working for the people,” Hotdog opened himself - and the city - to a civil lawsuit.

I must compliment Mr. Nunn for keeping his composure and remaining professional. He set a proper example for city leadership and decorum in a public meeting. Hotdog was too lost in his own mustard to realize it. While I do not anticipate a lawsuit coming from Mr. Nunn, someone with less tolerance and more sarcasm - like me - would have verbally hammered Hotdog into relish. Then, after thoroughly embarrassing him, an attorney could fire off a cease-and-desist letter to Hotdog and the city, outlining the next steps in the civil lawsuit that would follow.

This is not the first time Hotdog has bullied and insulted someone. In fact, he has a well-documented pattern of it. Let us not forget his inappropriate, sexist emails to city employees about his “pee-pee getting whacked” and his abuse of a library employee regarding their gender identity. Just a side note on that descriptive - pee-pee… his description. Most grown men I know do not talk about their equipment at all, much less with such small-minded adjectives.

Cranky the Clown

The clown that never sleeps. At the last few meetings, he has been lost in the soup. No comments. It has been nice not to listen to an angry old man tell stories and try to bully people. The poor guy cannot remember how he voted the week before. Who believes he remembers events from three decades ago when he was a hero of some cause… or was that when he was a steelworker… err, hardcore coach… maybe it was astronaut? I can’t keep track anymore.

He seems to think that angrily stating that the city council can override a mayoral veto with five votes is worthy of respect, fear, or submission??? The reality: the city council can override a mayoral veto with five votes. No righteous anger required.

He didn’t even know why he was angry or why he was righteously indignant. It was out of place. He is out of place. I am running out of sarcasm because the facts he presents regarding his mental capacity and childish temper tantrums are far more telling on their own.

One other point: Cranky is making assumptions that the new council members will fall in line and go along with the clown-show agenda. I think the incoming council members might have some thoughts about that. You know what they say about assumptions…

Hats the Clown (Clown-Adjacent)

This one is like comic relief, except he isn’t funny. I listen to/watch the council meetings every week and have the misfortune of being forced to listen to this clown. He imposes his ridiculousness on everyone by taking advantage of the public forum rules. Worse, when he is not subject to a restraining order, he shows up to council meetings in everything from a Burger King crown to a papal crown.

When he speaks, on every topic imaginable, it is like listening to a grade-school kid tattling on his classmates… “and everything.” While I liken his behavior to that of many others, he is relentless in his pursuit of attention and does nothing but detract from serious public business and discourse.

The Bottom Line

Regarding the two clowns who hold positions: Hotdog repeatedly claimed he worked for the people, which is true. So does Cranky. They are both embarrassing their districts and paying more attention to anger and vendettas than to the needs and the will of their constituents. It is time for the people to make a change. These two clowns are bogging down the city’s ability to improve and move forward. Recall petitions are in order.