Finally Mack-McBride Yoked Together

I am reading the current controversy about Kathy McBride's confrontation with the Trenton Mayoral Recall Petitioners with some consternation. For someone in the public eye, her behavior is unprofessional and a bit over the top.

She protests that Governor Christie pulled the rug out from the city and thinks the Mayor had nothing to do with it.

I think she is a bit tunnel visioned. I have observed two things about Mayor Mack's efforts to wring funds out of the Governor. Last November, when the transitional monies were promised from the State, there were conditions to the proposed arrangement and that the Department of Community Affairs was to approve new hires for the city. My second observation was that Mayor Mack did not live up to that agreement.

So what's a Gov to do? Maybe tweak the carpet a scooch?

Now flash forward to this weekend's events.

Front page of the Trentonian took colorful note of the "F" word used by Mack supporters who tangled with recall petitioners and press persons. The resulting display has not served Mayor Mack well. Then current Council President McBride drives around the corner to check out the recall petitioners' progress and predictably runs into fireworks.

We know there is empathy between Mayor Mack and Kathy McBride because he promptly hired a member of her family after his election. It is almost a "family" kind of thing.

If you were planning a vacation would you want to bring your kids here,when even a little league game was rubbed out by fear and the perception of Trenton as a place of violence? Of course not. And this city needs tourism dollars.

I would like to point out that when Pellettieri Homes hosted "Meet and Greet the Candidates" prior to the Mayoral and Council elections, Kathy McBride was the only person invited that did not respond or attend. We did not invite all the ward candidates but calls and emails were sent to at-large candidates and persons we wanted to hear from. I used the contact information we had at the Trentonian for emails and phone numbers and attempted vigorously to get a response.

She was the only candidate who did not get back to me. Not even for a "too busy" kind of courtesy. That speaks of bad manners or worse.

Even Divine Allah attended our sessions. He turned out to be charismatic, well spoken, knowlegeable and a good representative of prevailing attitudes in his area. Marge Caldwell-Wilson won the seat but it was an objective opportunity to hear from his point of view in a non-judgemental forum.

Each candidate was given a half hour to discuss anything. And it worked. Too bad that Ms. McBride snubbed the opportunity. Maybe it was because she would be sitting down with a mixed audience and would not be able to hoorah her bias.

Council President George Muschal was sincere and vigorous in his concern for this city. I still cannot get over the fact that someone could object to George plowing out a city resident because he did not live in George's South Ward. Snow fell all over the city if memory serves me correctly...

When a farmer yokes two calves together, it should be done early in their training. Then they eat and sleep together until eventually they move only as one. With Mack and McBride now running the affairs of Trenton, let us hope that they learn to move together and forward. For better or for worse, come hell or high water (and with Governor Christie in the mix, both could happen) they are plowing our "south forty" for another year.

I forgot to mention, sometimes those two calves will never move on.... and then they become veal.

Trenton rocks.