Bringing about good government

On Sept. 1, at 6:30 p.m. at the Westlake Rec Center, 10 candidates for Cuyahoga County District 1 were present at a forum with about 100 citizens in attendance. This was free and open to the public. It was about historic events in our county, electing a new government to replace the corrupt and rotting county government we had. 

Sadly, it was not attended by any news cameras (invited), or local Staff writers for the PD, the Sun News, or the WestLife.  Why? Because they choose to ignore the movement that is not just grass roots but ground swell. The Westshore Tea Party was able to get both the Democrat and the Republican District 1 candidates at the table. 

The questions were selected based on issues facing the new Charter Reform government. There were no "gotcha" moments because that was not the intent or purpose of the event. Citizens cry out of ethics and knowledge about expertise of those we elect. In this first job interview that was non-partisan, we got to see the human faces of the candidates. Lucky for us, District 1 has some of the best candidates in the entire county. They were a joy to watch.

Those in attendance saw candidates agreeing, saw mutual respect, saw a deep concern about our county. This was the essence of citizen involvement. The entire Charter Reform government is the result of citizens not going to take it any more. These candidates will take up that banner and take our county in a new direction.

For those that could not attend, you can view the events in their entirety at http://westshoreteaparty.com/District1CandidatesForum.aspx. If you have not yet selected a candidate for Sept. 7, this is your chance to see them all in action (candidate Sweeney was the only one unable to attend). Primaries are for political parties to select their champion. We don't get good choices if we don't pick the best of the best to go on the ballot in November.

Hopefully, with the cooperation of both sides of the aisle, we can host more events where government can come down and mingle with the people. This was a good day in America.

Please vote.  It is the only way.

Cynthea Sabolich lives in Westlake.

Read More on Letters to the Editor
Volume 2, Issue 18, Posted 10:18 AM, 09.03.2010