Lew's A Millionaire? What Else Don't We Know?!?

(Click to Enlarge - Courtesy AM NY)

You know something, I always thought that politicians were hypocrites on some level - but I never thought people had the audacity to go this far.

We all know about Councilman Fidler's schtick on the Mayor - billionaire out of touch with the common folk, like me. Well, it turns out that the Councilman isn't as common as we all were led to believe.

According to Jason Fink of AM NY, our Councilman is doing quite well for himself, thank you very much. In fact, he is cited as one of 7 MILLIONAIRES currently in the Council!

That's right folks.... millionaires.

Call me crazy, but a millionaire railing against a billionaire in the name of us thousand-aires doesn't exactly sound genuine to me. It sounds more like a way to deceive and get more votes from those who don't know any better.

Well I, as one of the many thousand-aires living in the district, think that this whole "common man" facade is just that - another example of our Councilman waving his right hand at us while the left hand is hiding something totally opposite - and we've seen enough.

- He vocally opposes the Bloomberg administration, yet sides with it on the term limits extension.

- He touts his tax record, stating that he voted against the previous tax increase, yet neglects to mention that he voted for the previous TWO tax increases before the council - totaling 25% in the aggregate!

- Now this "common man" routine of fighting for the little guys has turned into nothing less than a millionaire in pauper's clothing!

Now I would never begrudge anyone success - the Councilman's salary is NOT the issue here.

The issue is deception. You see, facts are shaded in Councilman Fidler's world. There seems to be no such thing as full disclosure. We're always left wondering "what are we missing?"

We deserve representatives interested in full disclosure and total truthfulness with the people. We deserve someone like us, in touch with our concerns, who will not play the misdirection game that has become an art form in South Brooklyn.

If elected, you will never have to worry about the "man behind the curtain" because there will be no curtain. There's only me - a fighter from Sheepshead Bay asking for your trust with the responsibility of restoring YOUR voice - the REAL voice of the common people - in City Hall.

Why I'm Hitting The Trail

In case you haven't been following, the graphic says it all - I have decided to run for City Council for Councilman Fidler's seat.

Some people have been asking me why I'm doing this. If you've read this blog regularly, then you'd know the answer. As this year has gone on, I've grown more and more agitated at our local political scene.

I've been calling for people to step up and take a stand against the politicking down here. After a while, I thought that I should put my money where my mouth is; I've never been one for sitting on the sidelines and watching things happen around me.

Someone needs to point out Councilman Fidler's hypocrisy over the years. Might as well be me.

He touts how he stands up to the Mayor, yet he sided with the Mayor (that's a nice way of putting it -more like he bowed down to Hizzoner) against the people in repealing term limits. His reasoning? His well-documented opposition to term limits. We're meant to believe that it was a principled stance.

So let's get this straight - he sided with his supposed sworn enemy in government to put his personal opinion ahead of all of ours. That is not leadership - it's self-serving.

But speaking of "leadership", the Councilman loves being in the council leadership. Supposedly, it benefits all of us. I think he loves it a bit too much, - to the point where power outweighs principle. Here's a perfect example, straight out of recent headlines:

Councilman Fidler voted "No" on a bill put forth by Councilman Tony Avella requesting that elementary schools generate notices reminding teachers to teach children why cruelty to animals is wrong. Seems innocuous enough, so why did he give it the ol' thumbs down? Apparently, Speaker Quinn was upset that Avella had pushed the legislation without the leadership's blessing. So Lew, being a good political soldier, killed a harmless bill - in the name of politics.

Some of you may be saying "no harm, no foul". It's not like it was something important like, say... term limits. I say that both term limits and his bill is a microcosm of our Councilman's priorities - politics comes first and foremost. Deal with constituents' matters? Whenever he's not politicking. Maybe.

After all, Lincoln Terrace, a small court in Sheepshead Bay, is still waiting for its street sign, months after requesting it from the Councilman.

Councilman Fidler also likes to say how he was against raising taxes in this past vote. True.

He doesn't go around saying that he voted to increase taxes 25% in the aggregate over his terms of office.

Because you don't win elections that way.

You win elections by showing up around election time, shake a few hands, spread some money around, and hope people forget that you haven't been around so much the previous three years - three years that he's been feathering a large nest in Manhattan.

Or so he thinks that's how you win.

I don't want to be this kind of Councilman. I will do what I have always done - put community first. Your priorities will be my priorities, your battles will be my own. Our communities shouldn't be neglected for the sake of party or power. We need a public servant who is actually willing to serve the people - before party. I believe I can be that person.

Over the next few months, you'll hear a lot about what I stand for and what I'm all about. I hope this will be a two-way conversation. I'm looking forward to it.