And He Called Himself Lil
This morning I woke up with the desire for two things:
1. A bold, middlebrow, and insulting-to-the-public act by our Mayor
2. A big furry mascot to convince me of the virtues of recycling
I can only speak concerning my experience in St. Elmo: our neighborhood over the last few weeks has been involved in a long and pleasantly profitable discussion on how best to address the issue of recycling. The conversation has been, on the whole, thoughtful, with many helpful ideas and suggestions made. I don't really have a horse in this race, been it has been educational to listen in on the discussion.
But then this? After all that discussion, a raccoon? It's a condescending, patronizing, and insulting gesture. Heck, to the degree that it is insulting, it's quite brilliant.
So what, does the Mayor think the average Chattanoogan is an 8 year old? Die-hard fans of the Beatles? And why a raccoon, is he a sucker for alliteration?
How 'bout Harry The Homeless Hamster? Eli the Enterprise South Elephant? Sierra The City Council Centar? Curtis Adams The Horrible Human Being?
The only rational response is this: Have A Sparkler
Chattanooga News | By Josiah Roe | 10:24 AM
Comments
He must have gotten the idea from Gideon's Bible...
Posted by: funke at January 3, 2007 11:36 AM
Symbolism is important in professional life - hence the sacral aura of major banks, the hushed voices and deferential intermediaries of the doctor's office. If politicians were required to be accompanied by a furry, cartoonish mascot at every public pronouncement, it'd be one small step toward causing the public to value their integrity and honesty at its true level. Reminded me of this groundbreaking legislation from New Mexico, unfortunately vetoed by the governer: http://home.tiac.net/~cri/2000/newmexico.html.
Posted by: Julian at January 3, 2007 11:37 AM
I think it would be funny to dress up as a raccoon, hide in your garbage can on trash day then, jump out and scare the s**t out of some garbage man. You could scream, "Littlefield sent me!"
Posted by: Chris T. at January 3, 2007 3:58 PM
Perhaps the mayor can convince the raccoon he has a clue. (I'll bet the raccoon is getting paid to stand there!)
Somebody gets paid off or paid back. It's the only answer that make sense. It wont cost the city any less money. I really pissed off a big green part of the population. I just don't get it.!?#
regards and happy new year!
Posted by: glenH at January 3, 2007 7:28 PM
I once caught a raccoon taking a mostly empty Coke bottle out of my recycle bin, which confirmed my suspicion that, by their very nature, the speices is anti-environment. Perhaps, however, now isn't the time to judge the raccoon for his past actions, but instead embrace the work of Chattanooga's fine mayor. Of course, not everyone can don a bulky costume (especially once the summer months roll around), but I think it would be a real sign of solidarity if people like you, Josiah, and the good people of the 'Noog started wearing coon skin caps, much like Tennessee native son Davy Crockett. What better way to say, "yes, recycling is a great idea...and from this point forward, may one thing and one thing only be synonomous with saving our planet: Raccoons."
Posted by: Micah at January 4, 2007 12:08 PM
