Reading about local council proceedings filtered through the lens of a crazy guy is really interesting. Maybe we should have insane people write all our political journals.
Sure we'd never be entirely sure what actually happened and what was the product of a fevered mind, but it'd probably get a lot more people interested in political participation.
Basically I am counting on it. I may not win any race for office above City Committee (or I may, who knows), but nobody can deny I've gotten hundreds of people in Malden more involved in the political process, by basically watching what gonzo Warren is doing diving into the weeds, and then trying it out themselves in different ways.
The prospective Councillors were asked over 100 questions by citizen groups in the 2017 race, and not one had been asked one debate question or one questionnaire question in the 10 years previous. And I got the first set of 25 questions asked (with help from friends of course). And then like, another middle 25 more questions. And then some Chinese-American activists set up all these debates. All these other groups got involved. Like with a snowball rolling down a hill.
I'm good at starting off avalanches like that, it seems. Although at no time do I necessarily get a lot of personal respect about it. Cause I'm a bit of a brawler and a clown, and an idiot. But I have fun, and I help make politics fun, I think.
Local politics can be really actually very entertaining if you look at it a certain way. Like a full contact sport, except instead of playing over a ball they're playing over your personal life and future. Like a semi-participatory spectator sport where the stake is human lives.
"Malden Blood Sports", they say now
Well actually I guess Statler and Waldorf can basically deny anything. There was even a fun bit about how I am making up all the lead content of our water. If only that were true. I want to believe, lol. But even my biggest detractors in the Council now agree. Not only are there illegal amounts of lead in the water, the city's been fined by the state twice over it, and it's been in the Boston Globe more than once, in addition to my kooky Weekly Dig article.
And any arrogant airs I put on may in fact be made up. Most people are full of themselves. We could all be imagining a lot of things.
But omg City Council bloodsports are a pretty dank experience if looked at a certain way, and I think I am right about that part, at least.