FARGO VS. JOHNSON: WHAT THE HELL, JUST VOTE YOUR CONSCIENCE. I’M PLANNING TO.

My mom’s side of the family were all Irish-American working class type folk.

My grandfather was a precinct worker for a guy named James Michael Curley, a legendary figure in Boston political history. Curley had a rather broad political career that included serving in Congress, as mayor of Boston (where he is best known in political history), and as Governor of Massachusetts. Curley holds the distinction of having served time while at the beginning of his political career (elected to the Boston Board of Aldermen while in prison) and in his last term as mayor doing five months in the Federal pen for mail fraud. Nevertheless, the working and poor folks loved Curley and he won several elections with their help. My grandfather, by the way, had a pretty decent little job in Boston's public works system thanks to his support of Curley. Ah, good old fashioned patronage.

Which is why I’m not pondering whether or not Kevin Johnson will succumb to the Bradley Effect as much as wondering if he will succeed due to the Curley Effect. No, I’m not comparing Johnson’s various allegations to Curley in magnitude, but the fact remains that despite Johnson’s image problems, a certain element of Sacramento’s populace seems willing to give him a free pass. However, in stark contrast to Curley, Johnson seems to be attracting the upper crust crowd of this city, or at least those who want to be perceived as such.

And that’s a big reason why I’m voting for Heather Fargo.

Frankly, I think that too many people who support Johnson are assholes. They are wealth worshipping, narrow minded, shallow elitist pigs who have some bizarre fantasy of turning Sacramento into Beverly Hills, North Annex with all the fellas driving around their silicone bosomed dates to tacky overpriced establishments designed to make everybody who patronizes them forget about how utterly meaningless their cash chasing material hoarding lives are.

Oh, and a new arena too. Yuh great.

Heather Fargo may not be the flashiest politician in the world, but at least she has enough experience not to fuck up the city the way that someone with all talk and no real ideas would do it, i.e. Johnson. A relevant hypothetical question could be: In the event of a levee break, whom would you rather see under that type of emergency as mayor?

It’s a shame that Steve Cohn, my local City Council member, is still bitter about losing his bid for the primary election that resulted in Fargo’s first term. He has personally embarrassed himself and the people of the district in which I live (and vote) by endorsing Johnson, who has basically installed himself as a sort of Brahmin of my neighborhood, having bought a penthouse on L Street.

It’s pathetic to see someone run for mayor simply because they have a grudge with the city government over their property issues. What’s even sadder is how Johnson’s run was originally spurned on by a guy named Bob Thomas, the former City Manager as well as Angelo Tsakopoulos, a guy who owns a lot of currently unused plot space in the north part of Sacramento. Both of these guys have major grudges against Fargo because she doesn’t share their lust for reckless development for maximum profit, among other particulars.

It just seems that a small handful of major league scumbags have manipulated so many voters in this town into possibly doing a very stupid thing come November 4th. I don’t plan on being one of those dupes. My conscience, as well as my common sense, will remain intact after this election regardless of who ends up winning. Will yours?

P.S. Michael Bloomberg, Charles Barkley, Warren Buffet et al - I have the vote here, not you. Don't try to tell me how to choose if you don't even live here.