Salut, Pucette! Green Bean! Yeah, it has been a while, hasn’t it? I’ve passed through here before, from time to time, though I haven’t been active lately. This summer was a greuling schedule. I worked two jobs—my eight-hour day job and then teaching English as a second language in the evenings… working five extra-full days a week wiped me out, so I’ve cut back on work time and have spent more time on line, particularly at work. (I have a new job, and there’s no a whole lot to do, but they give me net access here, so it’s their fault.) Working all the time and having next to no social life sucks (in case you might have thought otherwise…) I now teach only two nights a week, and my head’s clearing up now, letting me write more—including my lapsed message board presence.
Yeah, Pucette, I was equally uninspired by New York’s mayoral choices. I’m glad I didn’t have to pick one. It’s as depressing as the 1990 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election, which I still remember with perfect, disappointed agony. I’m jealous—I wasn’t even able to fake peppiness that day.
Chrome Spot—I’m glad you voted. Bret Schundler scares the crap out of me, too. I was unaware that he’d gotten the Ed Meese endorsement, but his NRA endorsement was bad enough. And y’know, I live in Jersey City, but like most Jersey Cityans, the very thought of voting for Schundler left a very bad taste in my mouth. He was still mayor when I moved here; in fact, I lived about a block away from him when I first got to town. For his sake, I hope he kept his Jersey City residence; he won’t be moving to Trenton any time soon!
As to raising taxes, well… you may be right. However, if they need to be raised, I think people will put up with it, as long as he doesn’t raise them too much. People still talk about Florio as if he’d firebombed the statehouse or something, due to his famous tax hike in… 1990? I dunno; I didn’t live here until 1996. In a state like New Jersey, the governor will have to keep a rein in on taxes. If they get too high, the people would probably vote another Republican in—as long as it’s a Republican like Whitman, and not a Republican like Schundler.