By Monotreme
In today's installment of "As Ogden Turns", the Mayor makes two fundamental errors, one of them a whopper of a logical fallacy, the other a political misstep of the first water.
1. The "I've done it before, and no one ever cared" argument. This one doesn't work when you're five, and it doesn't work with the taxpayers.
Let's compare:
I've shoplifted from this store 18 times before and never got caught. I've been doing it for three years. If they were serious about catching me, they'd have installed security cameras or something. It shows that I have a deal with the store owner, and he's going to let me take whatever I want whenever I want because of my precious character.vs.
The administration lobbied for or against 18 other bills during the 2008 legislative session that were never discussed with the entire [just my friends; emphasis mine] city council and didn't generate controversy, Godfrey said.2. I've chaired boards before, and worked with lots of committees, and Mayor, let me give you a piece of unsolicited advice: when the council comes out publicly with a 5-2 count going against you, the way to Win Friends and Influence People is not to start calling them names and attacking their character. The way to do this is to make nice and try to allay their concerns.
"We have been operating this way for the past three years, and there has never been a problem...that should tell all of us that, despite their current claim, it's not the process they are bothered about, it's the passage of the bill that bothers them."
You even got Mr. Johnson to indicate to the paper, in a very public way, that he didn't like the way you pulled a fast one on the council. Not a good move on your part.
