Honest to Ghod, if I hear independent candidate for state rep (24th Middlesex) Jim Gammill utter "fiscal viability" one more I'm gonna start hitting myself over the head with a two by four to drown him out.
Ah yes, the LWV held a ballot-question and candidate's forum over in Belmont Wednesday night, it was sparsely attended and the questions from the aud were uninspired given the number of contested races this year.
Other than that there isn't a lot to report from the 24th Middlesex State Rep's race, everyone wants transparency, a bigger bang for the buck in public transportation they want development halted in the Belmont Uplands and on the Mugar Property.
As far as the later two issues are concerned there is no great disagreement between Republican Tomi Olson, Independent James Gammill and Democrat Dave Rogers even as to the means.
No if there were differences between the candidates, it was mostly on the dispirited and dissipated issue of who is the outsider?
By that I mean in nigh every other sentence Citizens Gammill & Olson belabored their years and years of Belmont Residency and eons of service to that Holy Township.
It was all a bit much I mean is the right address their soul difference with Rogers (a resident of North Cambridge)?
So it would seem...I understand the need for a dose of "Belmont Nationalism", it is to be expected, but Gammill & Olson are about as subtle as a sledgehammer when wielding that issue.
Hell Olson was so taken with her local bona fides she completely blanked on her own closing statement and could even recall the usual GOP boilerplate about stimulating small businesses.
Like I said dispiriting...Rogers got off a good parting line about "Its not about where you are from it is about where you stand"....it was about the only memorable thing said all night.
Nonetheless I am warming to Rogers he is a good listener, has a certain amount of wit and a feisty look in his eye.
Still the word on the street is, this is a fight between Gammill and Olson to secure a strong second place finish, if possible deny Rogers a majority in the process and set the state for a "do over" in 2014.
Even 50% would be considered a setback in the current climate.
Allegedly, Gammill has $30k on hand to bombard Belmont voters will mailers between now and election day, a second place finish would set him up nicely for 2014 either as a dissident democrat or an independent.
Otherwise the man has no presence to speak of, outside Belmont, so all of this speaks to a vast effort to galvanize the disgruntled cohorts within that town.
Will it work likely not given turnout this year but it could well set the stage for another series of contested primaries and elections two years hence.
Well...clearly this is how they play the game in Belmont, it seems so petty but thar yuh go.
