There's "The Man"......

He's got my vote.

Isn't 'sparky' also a reference to 'the chair'???

Quoted from senders

Isn't 'sparky' also a reference to 'the chair'???

Sort of.  That's 'Old Sparky.'

http://www.dailygazette.com

Quoted Text

SCHENECTADY
Mayoral candidate is pro-catnip, anti-mouse
BY KATHLEEN MOORE Gazette Reporter

   A third candidate has entered the mayoral race, challenging the Democrats and Republicans to snap up the animal vote before it’s too late.
   And he’s doing it without uttering a word.
   In fact, Sparky the cat is taking campaigning to a whole new level. Forget about stress: he’s letting his supporters do the work while he spends his days napping at campaign headquarters, seemingly oblivious to his history-making run.
   If he wins, he would go down in the record books as the city’s first neutered mayor. But first he has to overcome a significant disadvantage — the election law forbids animals from taking office or even voting.
   Nevertheless, his human opponents are taking his unorthodox campaign as seriously as anyone can. With cheerful gravity, they noted his early lead in political signs — the red “Sparky for Mayor” signs can be seen at businesses as diverse as the Union Inn, Frank’s Auto, Blackfoot Tattoo and Brandywine Electronics.
   His list of supporters so far includes nearly a dozen businesses and possibly one dog. That’s right — at Nick’s Cafe on Broadway, the sign stands next to a life-sized hot dog statue, leading Sparky’s press manager to conclude, “Even the dogs like Sparky!”
BIPEDAL OPPONENTS
   But the human candidates think they still have a chance to win.
   Sparky probably has the cat vote locked up, Republican candidate Michael Cuevas said with as much sincerity as he could muster. But he thinks he has a chance to win over the birds and dogs before election day.
   “Dogs and birds might have trouble voting for a cat,” Cuevas said.
   Sparky will also have difficulty debating, Cuevas added.
   “I’ve not heard of any talking cats, so I think the feline will be at a severe disadvantage in this race,” he said.
   Sparky does have an unusually loud purr, but Democratic candidate and incumbent Mayor Brian U. Stratton said he wouldn’t let that lull him into complacency.
   “He should know I’m not going to girl private-foot around,” Stratton warned.
   But he added with a laugh, “I am a cat lover, so I can’t be too hard on him. I think Sparky is to be admired, as a virtual political unknown, for clawing his way to the top.”
   Both candidates discussed the Sparky campaign good-naturedly, saying that there’s nothing wrong with a bit of fun at the beginning of a serious race.
   “There’s always a place for humor. We can’t take ourselves too seriously,” Cuevas said. Stratton agreed, saying that he doesn’t want to make a mockery of the political system but can still enjoy a good joke.
JUST FOR FUN
   That’s exactly what Sparky’s owner, Kathy Fitzmaurice, hopes people take from her cat’s campaign.
   “We’re trying to have a little fun. We certainly don’t want to irritate the candidates. We hope everybody has a sense of humor,” she said. “I think it shows they have a human side.”
   Sparky’s campaign took even her by surprise. The 9-year-old feline has only lived with her for a year and apparently didn’t think she needed to know about his political aspirations. She found out when “Sparky for Mayor” signs popped up throughout the city last month.
   And although she served as translator for an interview with the cat, she’s not running Sparky’s campaign.
   “Sparky has a friend, and we were joking one day and I said Sparky would be a great candidate for mayor. Next thing I knew, he had signs made and was distributing them around town,” Fitzmaurice said.
   Businesses sporting the red signs get free advertising on the Sparky-ForMayor.com website, which also advertises Fitzmaurice’s store (and Sparky’s home), the Katbird Shop.
NO VOTES, PLEASE
   The last time an animal ran for mayor, it was a far more serious campaign. Rich Moran Jr. entered his dog Loffredo to protest what he said was a lack of political leadership in the city in 1999.
   “Write in Loffredo as a vote of ‘no confidence,’ a protest vote or just because you like dogs,” Moran wrote in a blog during the campaign.
   The dog received an estimated 30 to 40 votes, though the exact number was never recorded by the Schenectady County Board of Elections. The commissioners decided that write-in votes for a dog were really notes to the commissioners, not actual votes.
   They changed that policy in the last mayoral race, in which Loffredo got 2 votes. But Loffredo wasn’t around to campaign — he and Moran moved to California in May of 2002.
   Election Commissioner Brian Quail said he wasn’t sure whether votes for Sparky would be counted. But Fitzmaurice urged residents not to take her joke that far.
   “I wouldn’t want people to actually throw away their votes. If anything, we want to have fun, look at things on the lighter side,” she said.
   As for Sparky’s true reason for running, she said it’s entirely selfish.
   “I think Sparky wants more people to know he’s out here so they’ll come out and pet him,” Fitzmaurice said. “He doesn’t seem to take too much interest in finances, but he certainly would make a very cute mayor.”

My Chow Mein's really getting into it. http://chow-mein.com/2007/07/08/sparky-for-schenectady-mayor/

Quoted Text

That’s exactly what Sparky’s owner, Kathy Fitzmaurice, hopes people take from her cat’s campaign.
   “We’re trying to have a little fun. We certainly don’t want to irritate the candidates. We hope everybody has a sense of humor,” she said. “I think it shows they have a human side.”

That is a sign I would allow on my lawn.....

Sparky would probably do as good a job as our current mayor is doing. Remember he who does nothing makes no mistakes.

Maybe she should run for a city council seat.

They would all probably do a better job. They would just all hang around, eat, sleep and lick themselves....OH...but I think that's what the city council does now anyways.

No, city council also does whatever the police union wants.  The cats would only do something if the cops wrote it up, then at least we'd have some clarity in what's happening.  We would KNOW it's the police union controlling things.  And I bet spending would get under control.  Hard to spend money if you're a cat.

You are correct 'o' on that one BK. Notice how things have quieted down regarding the SPD? That is what they do when they want to issue to just 'go away'! The RPD did the same thing.

But here is the thing if the 'force' that is responsible for keeping the 'status quo' (or as we like) is discredited and there is nothing to replace/take it's place it would be pandemonium, (like in 3rd world countries).....this is a basic fact and 'required action' on the 'west's' part to keep status quo......read history........