Life in the Sandbox
Well last night’s VT-GOP was interesting. Turns out that the invite I got from Bruce at church was to join a Stowe business man who had bought a table. Buying a table means that you get to into the “private” meeting room prior to the dinner and smooze with the big-wigs. Got a picture taken with Ari Fleshier and my host Jacques Bouramia, chatted with Jim Douglas for a bit and enjoyed watching all the folks jockey for a moment with the Governor and the Heir presumptive, Brain Dubie.
I have a duck box from 2006, when I was manning a table, selling paint your own bird house, bat boxes and duck boxes to raise money for the Conservation District. Jim Douglas came by to the event and I got him to sign his name on a duck box, in green paint. I reminded him about the box last night and we joked about it. He asked if I was planning to run again, and I replied that I was planning to run for the select board. ” Didn’t work out to well for Shaun Bryer” he said. I let that one go.
Short speeches were given a plenty in the back room, then we were herded out to our perspective tables and to hear more speeches. I was not surprised to find our table way up in the front of the room. The annual fall dinner is a general fund-raising event, so the cost of a table is pretty steep and with an added donation, your table can be up in the front, ours was next to Brian Dubie’s crew. So I guess I lucked into a pretty desirable spot. I think that the other Lamoille county republicans must have been a bit curious as to why I have emerged back in public and managed to be placed where I was.
I love being enigmatic in those type situations. I think I scare the local guys. They had a hard time controlling me in the past election, and I am much too liberal in some of my views, making them very uncomfortable with the thought I might run again. In fairness, Jacques is a very nice guy, and he was most kind to let me tag along. He had found out (via Bruce) that I had run for a house seat a while back and had a fun time telling folks I was going to run again…not so soon cowboy. I got a bunch of other stuff to do first.
The speeches at dinner were predictable. It went a little like this…the republican party is the only party that thinks about the economy and the democrats are disorganized with any type of financial restraint. The state is falling apart and all the Dems what to do is spend more. Blah blah blah. Tom Salmon was given a thunderous welcome to the team. He talked about his service in the war and when he returned to Vermont he expected the State House democrats to be working on solutions, not talking about trying harder. Predictable. More partisan language and finger pointing at the other team for all the problems. Gets old after a while. Ari’s speech was a bit creepy, focusing on being at Bush’s right hand side at the campaign, in the White House, and all during 911. He talked about Peace though Power and sprinkled a lot of right winged Christian speak though out. Then things turned into a Obama slam and I lost interest.
My feet began to hurt and I had, had enough. This blog confession will certainly put a nail in my republican coffin. I need to find a new home. It is not that I have seen the light, it is more about being sick of the darkness. Can’t we all play nicely in the sandbox folks?
Editor’s Note: An anonymous comment linking Tom Salmon to the news story in this Sunday’s paper was deleted.
1. can’t just post a slam without taking credit for it.
2. the point of the piece was to say that finger-pointing needs to stop. to post a slam, without your name, is a sissy’s way of finger-pointing. at least have the courage to say who you are. then maybe I will put up the comment.
