The familiar voice was of a trusted friend in shock. “I’m floored right now,” the voicemail said. “I’m kind of speechless.” And it went on from there. “Mike, I am freaking out right now. You need to call me back!” What tragedy could this be? I mean...it had to be something truly horrible.
It was. My friend had not seen the weekend Chronicle. Someone called her about my column in the Sunday Commentary section where I, ha ha, perhaps inferred in passing something about running for County Commission. Well. Some people didn’t take it in the joking manner intended. I heard through the week from two groups of people: — They were happy when reading the column that I was running for County Commission but disappointed when I said I wasn’t. — A few people apparently skipped over the part that says I'm joking because they want to talk about my "campaign." (One reader asked if someone is replacing me at Just Wright Citrus. A cold chill went down my back.) To both groups, an apology is in order. It was not my intention to mislead anyone. So, to be clear. The column I wrote about running for County Commission was meant to illustrate the political landscape facing candidates next year. Growth is all we’re talking about here. The Citrus Countians with workable ideas and the background to engage in intelligent conversation, those are the people we want to see on the campaign trail for County Commission. Let’s talk about campaigning for a short minute. Everyone thinks he/she can be a county commissioner. How hard is it? Show up twice a month for meetings, get your picture taken during ceremonial groundbreakings, and steer the county the way you think it should go. Except…it is NOTHING like that. County commissioner is the hardest elected job in Citrus County. These five are stretched thin and they basically hold the balance of our future in their hands. And everything they do happens in public for all to see. So, no pressure. This isn’t a job for lazy, ineffective, out-of-touch individuals. And we’re going to know within the first five minutes of meeting candidates whether they’re the real deal or not. So, yeah, I’m setting the bar high for 2024. Why shouldn’t we? The challenges are massive, and answers don’t come easy. Those candidates are out there. I’m convinced of it. I've been blessed with a long newspaper career and now I run an engaging website that serves the community. Feels like I'm where God wants me. That said…I’ve learned in the last two years to stay completely open-minded to any idea that comes down the road. Even one as crazy as this. — I blocked someone from the Just Wright Citrus Facebook page the other day. I think that makes a total of five banned from the page since the start. I don’t want to do that. The more the merrier here, especially with diverse opinions. But I’m iron-clad about one thing: We are polite. No name-calling. No Brandon/Karen/woke/insult of the month. No accusations. Just Wright Citrus is a safe place for comments without someone slapping a label on the person making the comment. That’s my goal. The person whose comment I deleted dared me to challenge her. That, seriously, is about the dumbest approach. It took me a nanosecond to block her. I’m not debating behavior on the blog. Folks who insist on being mean can take that attitude elsewhere. — One quick leftover from Tuesday's County Commission meeting. You may have read in the Chronicle that the board OK’d a five-year contract extension with Right Rudder Aviation as the fixed-base operator of the Inverness Airport. Two weeks ago, it didn’t look so good for Right Rudder. Despite a record of success, some commissioners seemed poised to kick the company out the hangar. On Tuesday, Right Rudder president Andy Chan got his five years, but not before three commissioners called him on the carpet. In a very public manner meant, clearly, to let Chan know who the bosses are in the room. There’s the true perk of a commissioner — the final word. — I thoroughly enjoyed a sole comment beneath the column on the Chronicle’s website: “Too much bias in my opinion to be a Commissioner. I’m not impressed at all.” The people have spoken. Join the discussion on our Facebook page. Comments are closed.
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AuthorMike Wright has written about Citrus County government and politics for 36 years. Archives
November 2024
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