After watching this week\u2019s Council meeting, I was reminded that \u201cAll I need to know I learned in Kindergarten\u201d by Robert Ludlum should be required reading, annually, by each member.<\/p>\n
To set the stage, the Work Session agenda, set by the Mayor, contained item WS4 entitled:<\/p>\n
Discussion regarding City Council roles, responsibilities, procedures, From my vantage point the item, 150+pages, provided a prosecutorial platform for the Mayor and his allies to castigate Councilmember DeFrancisco for several alleged instances of public behavior that he\/they deemed inappropriate.<\/p>\n Oh boy, does that open a whole realm of subject material\u2026to wit:<\/p>\n Fulghum writes (an excerpt):<\/p>\n All I Really Need To Know<\/em> \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u201cAll I really need to know I learned in kindergarten\u2026These are the things I learned…:<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Share everything.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Play fair.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Don’t hit people.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Put things back where you found them.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Clean up your own mess.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Don’t take things that aren’t yours.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Say you’re sorry when you hurt somebody\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Take any of those items and extrapolate it into<\/em> OK, OK it\u2019s cute, but somewhere in Fulghum\u2019s words there is truth.<\/p>\n Regardless of motivation, whether pure or not, the Mayor and Council taking the public\u2019s time to discuss such a subject, and in the venue and manner discussed, should serve as a warning to everyone\u2026 Addison is changing, and not for the better. It\u2019s election season, and you could be next!<\/p>\n The only reason to do this seems to me to be to humiliate, embarrass, and intimidate another person \u2013 a hell of a way to lead or build a team. Can you imagine being a public-spirited citizen who\u2019s contemplating running for the Council, watching the Work Session, and thinking, \u201cWhy the hell would I subject myself to that????\u201d<\/em> Is this the message you want your Mayor and Council to send?<\/p>\n A wise person once said \u201cPraise in public and punish in private.\u201d<\/em> I suppose we\u2019ve learned, again, that there is no leadership on this Council, just politicians playing \u201cGotcha last.\u201d Is that what you voted for? Not me!<\/p>\n
\nand <\/em>policies, including the code of ethics and Council conduct and interaction.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nI Learned In Kindergarten<\/em>
\nby Robert Fulghum<\/em><\/p>\n
\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0sophisticated adult terms and apply it to your<\/em>
\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0family life or your work or your government or<\/em>
\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0your world and it holds true and clear and firm\u2026<\/em>
\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0And it is still true, no matter how old you are –<\/em>
\n\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0when you go out into the world,it is best<\/em>
\n \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0to hold hands and stick together.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n