We find ourselves once again in the midst of the silly season, the five-week period that takes place in autumn every three years when your friends and neighbours shill for votes in an effort to win a seat on council or school board, or, in the case of but a few brave souls, the mayor's office.
It's a time when people who should know better (and a few who, frighteningly, don't know better) vow to single-handedly tame city finances, slice and dice red tape, fight crime and - finally, Lord, finally - bring rapid transit to the Tri-Cities.
While there is a fair measure of snark and cynicism in the previous two sentences, we seek to neither denigrate nor discount the commitment and effort required to run for, let alone hold, public office. "Thankless task" doesn't come close to describing the jobs of mayor, city councillor or school trustee.
It takes a special person - and you can interpret that adjective any way you like - to put himself or herself in the public eye and say, "Choose me."
So before the ballots have been cast and counted, before the mayors, councillors and trustees have been sworn in, and before they're sworn at for the first time, we offer a perspective on public service that comes courtesy of a longtime colleague here at The Tri-City News, Rick Halas, a father of three, a surfer, a cycling advocate and a volleyball coach who works in the paper's production department. It is this:
Someone volunteers as a Scout leader and he's seen as a caring father and neighbour.
He coaches a kids' soccer team and he's thanked for dedicating his scarce time, spending long hours on cold, wet fields.
He serves on some committee - recreation or environment, say, or the library board - and he's lauded for his contributions to his community.
Building on years of public service, he then runs for and is elected to city council, and he's quickly branded a jerk, incompetent and only in it for himself.
Which is silly in any season.
