The Observation Deck

You may not agree with what Mike Polensek just did, but I sure wish Cleveland had more council people with his passion and attitude to act when called upon. Do any of the new candidates running for a seat in Lakewood have true passion that can get things accomplished?

Here's the link to Polensek and his letter to the drug dealer:

http://www.newsnet5.com/news/13714927/detail.html

They read the letter on TAM today.... I almost crashed my car.. He told it like is..

And just what did he accomplish?

He sent a message to non law abiding citizens... "stay out of my ward"

sharon kinsella wrote:And just what did he accomplish?

Who do you think is the major force behind the big crackdown in slavic village? There's been no bigger proponent of cleaning up that part of town than polensek. And what did he accomplish with that letter? Telling the city, thugs and his constituents we're not taking this anymore. It's not all just talk. Respect from the people who obey the law. He's been outspoken and walking that part of town listening to residents and helping them put into action the changes they all desired. I don't feel bad for that mother one bit. She stated on the news in regards to her son, "he has to pay his dues and the justice system will take care of him." Where was she all his life? How did it get to that point? Why didn't she take care of him before he turned 18?

Some may find it controversial, I find it refreshing a person in a political position is facing it head on and saying no more to the chaos of lawlessness that has ruled the streets for too long.

Dave Sharosky wrote:I find it refreshing

Very true. It is indeed refreshing. Look at the national political scene, how many times do you hear about them talking about very good ideas but never come through with it. Kudos Dave it is very refreshing to see a politician today listing to the fears of the constituents and acting on it. His letter was a clear message that it is time for a change.
Sharon you are also right, probably the only thing he accomplished was to start another frivols lawsuit. At least in the end he took a stand for the people who elected him. Which is more than you can say for a lot of elected officials today.

I just watched the story on Fox 8. The mother of the drug dealer was saying that a politician shouldn't have wrote it. She said it was racist. Then they proceeded to interview 3 other african americans in that ward. 2 middle aged females and a male around 18 years old. The two females supported Polensek 100%. The male even said, "He was talking straight to him. He didn't want him to go down the same road all the other kids like him have gone." Then as sad as it is, the drug dealer told the news, "He doesn't care about the letter. He deosn't care what anyone thinks of him."

Again I ask, for the new candidates running for seats in Lakewood, do any of them have true passion that can follow through and produce results?

sharon kinsella wrote:And just what did he accomplish?

One accomplisment is the thug will think twice about trafficking in drugs in Collinwood while he is out on bond.

Remember, the thug's mother made the letter public. Now she has pulled the race card and written to Al Sharpton for help.

This is not a grand stand act by Mr. Polensek. He has seen neighborhoods and whole families destroyed by drugs. He has attended numerous funerals of good people, including the elderly, killed by drug addicts for as little as twenty dollars.

Polensek only said what needs to repeated daily by leaders and citizens all over America. He showed courage and commitment to his community by taking his valuable time to talk to Winston and his mother directly a number of times. I do not think its a stretch to say he risked his life in doing so. He is rightly being commended by the vast majority of Cleveland residents.

sharon kinsella wrote:And just what did he accomplish?

If nothing more, it was refreshing to see a politician speak his mind truthfully on an issue. You don't get a whole lot of that.

Agree with him or don't, at least you know he was saying what he honestly feels without catering to political groups or special interests.

While he may have gone a little far, I think he was just saying what most people in his ward feel.

Actually, it kind of was a grandstand act on the Councilman's part. He cc'ed the Plain Dealer on it (link is to .pdf of the letter). Either he does that with all the letters he allegedly sends to transgressers in his ward or he knew this one would brew a little publicity.

I'm happy he's so full of fighting spirit but I think he sent the letter in a fit of rage. While I support the spirit of what he sent in the letter, it was a ranting, rambling, ungrammatical mess. He should have a "lawsuit" brought against him for "quote abuse" if nothing else. It sounded spiteful and petty instead of straight-forward and authoritative. If you're going to draw attention to yourself by sending a letter accusing someone of stupidity, you'd better make sure you don't end up sounding like a moron yourself.

I think the mother's going to have a tough time finding any sympathy.

The situation in his ward requires new vigilance more than elegance. In that the councilman's actions are at least effective and maybe inspiring.

A lot of times the news will show clips of suspects. Or I'll just run into suspects between arrests or convictions. Then the news will interview the suspects' older relatives. The older relatives will sound reasonably intelligent. The suspects will sound like retards, speaking english as though they've only learned it recently by watching the rap videos. It is hard to imagine how they turned out that way. The only conclusion is that they've been practicing to be that way their entire lives.

That's a problem when people grow up with a sense of reality almost completely informed by what electronic media entertainment they choose to surround themselves with, and hanging out with similar people. It is happening to white people who watch FOX News too. One cure seems to be Pokemon. The kids at the library who play a lot of japanese strategy games seem to at least speak decent english.

ryan costa wrote:It is happening to white people who watch FOX News too. One cure seems to be Pokemon. The kids at the library who play a lot of Japanese strategy games seem to at least speak decent english.

Now that I look back, I've noticed myself trying to interview people and finding the best angle when talking to another person. Oh that FOX news! Pokeman? It's all about Sudoku.

ryan costa wrote:
That's a problem when people grow up with a sense of reality almost completely informed by what electronic media entertainment they choose to surround themselves with, and hanging out with similar people. It is happening to white people who watch FOX News too. One cure seems to be Pokemon. The kids at the library who play a lot of japanese strategy games seem to at least speak decent english.

I thought Polensek's letter was fair & balanced.

The crack dealer's mother is accusing the councilman of being racist. She took particular offense to his use of the phrase "dumber than mud".

Yet these chronic nuisances really are oblivious to how stupid they are. While it is important that people feel included in society, they should also have to be worth including. Letting them grow up to be both so stupid and so confident is bad for them and bad for society. Sometimes you have to call a spade a spade. If it hurts their self-esteem, it is only because they don't deserve to have high self-esteem as they are.