Those are interesting questions, Helen. It would be interesting to find out if the majority of school board members would endorse different council candidates?

I've attended two joint meetings between the school board and city council. They were both very polite, with members of both sides expressing similar admiration for the other. Both council and school board listed their greatest achievements and rosy forecasts for the future. I detected no hints that anyone on either board thought the other was inadequate, or anything other than praiseworthy.

But such superficiality is the result of trading independent thinking for collaboration and candor for politeness.

It might be that both bodies, or at least council, wanted to morally support the other in public, but many council members may have privately believed the school board needed to be more transparent, more focused on district residents, more concerned with planning, and more conservative in their bond request.

But had they said that publicly and earlier, they may have lost the support of the large number of residents that believe the school board is doing a great job and is beyond criticism--or the residents that feel criticism is always a bad thing.

But ultimately, yours and my comments are speculative. You'll have to ask the council members why they support the BOLD slate.

Well said Helen!

Helen,

I see it through a different lens. The members of Council are simply expressing their individual feelings about the candidates and collectively they have all aligned. I see nothing wrong with each individual member being able to say who they support, similar to what you have done for the CBE slate. That said, I agree that as a GROUP they should refrain from input into this election, however, denying them the ability as individuals to speak about the schools that affect them and their children just doesn’t seem right.

Have a great day!

i agree that Helen raises good questions. What is the basis for the council members endorsement....I can only presume, and I won't, unlike some others who like to hear themselves talk. On the other hand, we know why Dave Coulter expressed support for one of the CLEAR candidates.....friendship! Coulter has expressly written that he does not insert himself into local campaigns, except for this one time, because he is a long time friend of the candidate. I recall that when Coulter knocked on my door before his election, he has me to carefully consider his positions on the issues, his experience, his history of activities in the community. But apparently his personal/professional standard for endorsement and support is much lower....friendship. It is this type of endorsement that give politicians a bad name....the height of hypocrisy, Do as I say, not as i do. Coulter's simplistic approach to candidate selection should be resoundly rejected....I trust that our community will set a higher standard for their personal electoral choices !

Helen,

I have always had, and will continue to have, a tremendous respect for you and your standing on the issues in Ferndale. I consider us friends, but I know we have not always seen the same sides of the same coin...I think that's what friends need, sometimes.

I'm a little disappointed in your approach of trying to show support for your candidates (CBE) while knocking down the oppenents' supporters (BOLD). While I don't disagree that some of your questions are invalid, I would argue that you trying to create a conspiracy that doesn't exist by implying that the city council members are "maneuvering to unseat those from the current [school] board." No offense, Helen, but that is pretty low.

I know you are have always supported freedom of speech and standing for what you believe in...I think I've seen you more than once standing at Woodward and 9 Mile on a Monday evening with your PEACE and NO WAR signs practicing that right. Can't our elected officials show THEIR freedom of speech by endorsing candidates that are opposit of your choice? Because you are not aligned with them, does this mean it is a conspiracy?

Perhaps a better road traveled would be for you to ask the City Council members directly as to why they are supporting candidates that you're not? I know that the majority of the council are friends of yours...that shouldn't be hard to do. Perhaps a better question would be...why aren't you supporting the STRONG DEMOCRATIC/LIBERAL thinking candidates?

My friendship with Kevin Deegan-Krause developed while serving with him on the Library Board, where I saw first-hand his leadership skills in planning and executing the successful expansion of the library. I'm proud of what we accomplished and make no apologies for supporting him now. My friendship with Helen goes back even further, so I'm disappointed she sees a council conspiracy where none exists. This has been a heated campaign, but voters would be better served with a debate focused more on issues than accusations.

I think it is important to state very clearly that the Ferndale City Council has taken no position on the School Board race or the candidates.

Just as Helen did while she was on the City Council, each member of Council chooses whether to INDIVIDUALLY endorse a candidate or ballot proposal. The fact that three of the five Council Members independently arrived at the decision to endorse the BOLD candidates should in no way be interpreted as some official action by the Council itself.

I would love to hear the rationale of each council member, considering that they never interviewed ALL of the candidates, or explored their positions, before deciding on who to support. To me, this reflects a political, not objective decision-making process. How many of us solicit only one bid, before making a large investment?

Mr. Dyson, I’m sorry to mention this but I cannot find anybody named Dyson on the voting registry in any precinct in the Ferndale School District or on the public tax rolls anywhere. I hope I am mistaken, but it looks like you might be using the name “Jim Dyson” instead of your real identity. The same thing happened a few weeks ago with somebody calling himself “Lawrence Munson.” If you really feel the need to be anonymous, at least let people know by using a name that doesn’t pretend to be real. Just saying.

Yes, Matt, you do appear a bit compulsive here......

Just calling a spade a spade. Plus, I am a pretty big dork. :).