Category Archives: Politics

Campaign Chronicle, 3 Weeks to Election: My Distant Cousin Founded This Town

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As I began my run — okay, my ambling walk — for the empty Town Council seat, I was surprised to find that I am related to the man who founded Cary, North Carolina.

Back in 2011 I wrote about my family connection to the Pages of Williamsburg, Virginia, and at the time I didn’t give any thought to the possibility that those Pages might be related to the Page family here. But they are.

First, it’s important to point out what my friends have known for a long time: the Gray Man was adopted when he was young, which muddies the water a bit when it comes to tracing lineages and such. For those who don’t know the story: I was born Thomas Graham Lipscomb, and my father was Thomas Page Lipscomb. He died when I was three, and my mom later married Herbert Wade Rinehart. Shortly after moving to Georgetown, South Carolina — where I learned about the Gray Man and latched onto the legendary ghost as my alter ego — my stepfather adopted me and I became Graham Wade Rinehart. Or, as most of my friends know me, Gray Rinehart.

I first wondered about the connection when I was on Chatham Street in downtown Cary and noticed a historical marker about William Hines Page (with whose statue I’m pictured below). Oddly enough, before I thought about whether I might be related to him I thought about a friend of mine named “Hines” from grade school. But once the possible Page family connection came to mind, it was easy enough to check out.


(On the Cary Town Hall campus, I’m standing next to a statue of a distant cousin who was Ambassador to Great Britain and the son of the town’s founder. See any resemblance?)

William Hines Page, who was at one time Ambassador to Great Britain — itself something of a nod to the family history, since Colonel John Page originally came from Britain to settle at Williamsburg — was the son of Allison Francis (Frank) Page, who founded Cary and served as its first Mayor and postmaster. He built the Page-Walker Hotel, which stands behind the Town Hall building and is now an art gallery and focal point for local events. Frank Page’s father was Anderson Page, whose father was Lewis Page, whose father was Robert Edward Page, whose father was Mann Page II, whose father was the Honorable Mann Page.

The Honorable Mann Page, it turns out, is our nearest common ancestor.

The Honorable Mann Page had another son, about whom I wrote in that linked blog post: the Honorable John Page, who was friends with Thomas Jefferson at the College of William & Mary. The Honorable John Page’s son was Major Carter Page, whose son was Dr. Mann Page, whose son was Carter Henry Page, whose son was Carter Henry Page, Jr., whose daughter was Katherine Carlisle Page. She was my “Grandma Kate.” Her son was Thomas Page Lipscomb, my natural father.

Thus, as near as I can figure from looking at canon law relationships, Frank Page — Cary’s founder — was my fourth cousin, three times removed.

I doubt that makes anyone more or less likely to vote for me for Cary Town Council. But it’s an interesting coincidence!

___
Election Day for the Cary Town Council race is October 6th, but early voting begins on September 24th!

Have you told anyone about my campaign? It’s easy! Just share this post on social media or forward the link to anyone who lives in North Carolina (especially the Research Triangle area or the Town of Cary). Better yet, download a Print-It-Yourself Flyer in either color or black and white and put it up in your office or at your favorite hangout. For additional updates and info, sign up for my newsletter using the form in the right sidebar or visit the election page on my website. Thanks!

Spending Disclosure: As of this date, my campaign has spent a total of $84.

This blog post was “paid” for, at the cost of $0 and whatever time it took Gray to write and upload it, by The Gray Man: Service, Leadership, Creativity.

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Campaign Chronicle, 4 Weeks to Election: People Who Shouldn’t Vote for Me

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I wrote this post while riding in the van on the way home from Dragon Con, the largest science fiction and fantasy convention in the Southeast. You can judge for yourself whether that may have anything to do with the content.

Don't Blame Me...I Voted for Kodos
(Image: “Don’t Blame Me…I Voted for Kodos,” by Steve Snodgrass, from Flickr under Creative Commons.)

We’re still counting down to the Cary, NC, Town Council election, and if you don’t live in Cary — and particularly in District D — you can’t vote for me even if you might want to. (You can, however, always write me in for some office in your area; I will not renounce my Anti-Candidate availability.)

However, you should not vote for me if …

  • You want the government to do everything.
  • You want the government to do nothing.
  • You don’t proceed when a traffic light turns green because you are too busy messing with your cell phone.
  • You dislike or disapprove of the U.S. military.
  • You dislike or disapprove of all public safety professionals, especially police officers.
  • You regularly watch and derive significant entertainment value and home economics tips from television shows about “real housewives,” and/or frequently seek life advice from people who are famous primarily for being famous.
  • You believe that your rights include the right to take rights from others.
  • You believe that other people exercising their rights represents an existential threat to your rights.
  • You are a member of Al Qaeda or any other group that has sworn enmity to the United States of America. (Hat tip to James Galt-Brown.)
  • You think having more money or things makes you a better person.
  • You think buying something on sale leaves you with more money in your pocket than not buying it at all.
  • You think the solution to all our economic problems is for the government to just print more money.
  • You would let this or any other Internet list make up your mind for you about what you should do. (Hat tip to Martin Shoemaker.)
  • You believe everything you read on the Internet.
  • You believe everything that politicians tell you.
  • You don’t necessarily believe everything that politicians tell you, but you find their empty platitudes and impossible promises comforting.
  • You call all Muggles “mudbloods.”
  • You have no discernible sense of humor.

I could have come up with many, many more such examples. Probably you can, too, and I welcome any suggestions you’d like to put in the comments.

And remember: If you are eligible to vote but don’t, you relinquish a power that was yours to use, and for which others have sacrificed much.

___
Election Day for the Cary Town Council race is October 6th, but early voting begins on September 24th.

Help spread the word about my campaign: Share this post on social media or forward it to anyone you know. Or, if you live in North Carolina, especially in the Research Triangle area or the Town of Cary, download a Print-It-Yourself Flyer in either color or black and white and put it up in your office or at your favorite hangout. For additional updates and info, sign up for my newsletter using the form in the right sidebar or visit the election page on my website. Thanks!

Spending Disclosure: As of this date, my campaign has spent a total of $84.

This blog post was “paid” for, at the cost of $0 and whatever time it took Gray to write and upload it, by The Gray Man: Service, Leadership, Creativity.

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Campaign Chronicle, 5 Weeks to Election: Various Political Thoughts

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I’ve done a little canvassing around my district (still lots more to do!), but so far I’ve found that most people have expressed similar preferences on what they appreciate about living in Cary and … let’s say, what they find annoying. And since I’ve been talking with folks who could be my constituents one day, I thought I should relay some of my thinking about what you might expect from me in terms of political service.

First, a reminder: Election Day for the Cary Town Council race is October 6th, but early voting begins on September 24th!

Liberty
Looks as if this eagle is deep in thought. (Image: “Liberty” by Joel Olives, on Flickr under Creative Commons.)

For about as long as I’ve been running this blog, I’ve occasionally written about political topics — long before I started this “election countdown” series of posts, at least. In this current series, though, I’ve discussed how my long practice in telling people “no” may have made me a poor political candidate, why I’m not making any promises to anyone, and how you can help spread the word about my campaign.

But some of my older posts might be instructive to people who are deciding whether to vote for me.

I did a series of posts called “If I Were My Own Representative,” for instance. In that series, I discussed my intention to understand, as fully as possible, any bills I would be voting on, why my default position on legislation that would hurt people would be “no”, and the message I hope I always deliver, that the U.S. is still “the greatest hope for peace and prosperity in the world”.

I also wrote a series of posts in which I floated various ideas for tax reforms, such as taxing long-term investment income at a lower rate than income from short-term speculation, eliminating taxes on interest from savings below certain amounts, and phased-in business taxes to help young businesses succeed.

And I’ve written about broader political topics, like putting civility back into civil discourse, metaphors for the opposing ends of the political spectrum, and why we shouldn’t punish good people when bad things happen.

I hope voters who might be considering me as their candidate will read a few of those that interest them. I don’t expect anyone to read through all of them (those series, for instance, were longer than just the ones I mentioned), but reading a few would give anyone a deeper look into how I think about political subjects. I have more political posts to choose from, too — plus some that I didn’t even categorize as such. But for a quicker assessment of what I’m about as a candidate, consider this:

  • I believe the fundamental purpose of government is to preserve your (and my) rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness;
  • I believe that our rights, both individual and collective in the form of the government, should not infringe on the rights of others;
  • I believe that government action intended to help anyone should be carefully evaluated on the basis of who it is likely to hurt in the process, and rejected if the benefits do not justify the cost;
  • I believe in being accountable, by which I mean being “able to give an account,” i.e., able to explain my reasoning for actions taken … and not taken;
  • I believe that many if not most people who present themselves as politicians take themselves far too seriously; and
  • I believe that serving in office is more important than running for office.

If any of that appeals to you, I hope you’ll consider voting for me.

___
Help spread the word about my campaign! Share this post on social media or forward it specifically to anyone you know who lives in North Carolina, especially in the Research Triangle area or the Town of Cary. Or download a Print-It-Yourself Flyer in either color or black and white and put it up in your office or at your favorite hangout. For additional updates and info, sign up for my newsletter using the form in the right sidebar or visit the election page on my website. Thanks!

Spending Disclosure: As of this date, my campaign has spent a total of $84.

This blog post was “paid” for, at the cost of $0 and whatever time it took Gray to write and upload it, by The Gray Man: Service, Leadership, Creativity.

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Blogging the New CD: A is for Anti-Candidate

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First in a series of blog posts about the songs on my new CD, Distorted Vision.

Since I’m currently a candidate for a real political office — the District “D” seat on the Cary (NC) Town Council — it seemed appropriate to start this series of posts by focusing on a political song. A disclaimer is in order, first: Nothing in this blog post should be construed as having anything to do with the office I am seeking, or with my actual campaign.

This is about the Anti-Campaign.

I’ve been unknown, and rarely sung, I’m an Anti-Candidate
And I’d serve in any office, in any district or any state
But I have a little problem, it’s an introvert’s disgrace
I’d rather rely on social media than to meet you face to face

— “The Anti-Candidate Song”

I started the Anti-Campaign during the 2008 election cycle because the idea tickled me: I made myself available as a convenient write-in vote for any office, anywhere. It became a running gag, and now even has its own bumper sticker!


Bumper stickers are $2 each plus shipping and handling. Buy yours on my Bandcamp page.

And every campaign needs a theme song, right? Well, in this case the campaign has two.

The first Anti-Campaign theme song was “I Think I’ll Run for Congress”, which was on my 2013 album Truths and Lies and Make-Believe. “The Anti-Candidate Song” is something of a sequel, and like “I Think I’ll Run for Congress” it pokes fun at politics and politicians.

“The Anti-Candidate Song” plays off two characteristics that the first song attributed to the candidate singing it: arrogance and megalomania. In the first song, I sing that politics

… fits my arrogant, megalomaniacal personality

and in this song I sing

I may be arrogant and megalomaniacal but it’s just because I’m great

I leave it as an exercise to you to decide how much of that is true, and how much is the kind of convenient falsehood which career politicians seem to spin so easily. (And, if you will, how much of the Anti-Campaign as a whole infuses my real campaign.) But I will point out that if you look closely at the bumper sticker in the image above, you’ll see it says, “Arrogant & Megalomaniacal: What could go wrong?”

In the end, even if you can’t quite be sure whether I’m being serious or silly, I hope you find something to smile about when you listen to “The Anti-Candidate Song”!


___
Reminder: I’m playing a concert as part of the Dragon Con Filk Track, on Sunday the 6th of September at 4 p.m. in the Hyatt Regency’s Baker Room. Come out and see me!

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Campaign Chronicle, 6 Weeks to Election: STAR TREK, Slush Reading, and Politics

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Or, how years of telling people “no” may have made me a poor political candidate.

I’m afraid I don’t know how to tell people what they want to hear.

First, a story from this past weekend. On Saturday I went to Lazy Daze, the annual arts festival here in Cary, armed with a few brochures — yes, I finally broke down and spent some money — to hand out if the occasion arose. It was a lovely day, and I saw a couple of my opponents out and about, one of whom was working the crowd pretty hard. (I did not see my third opponent, who reportedly was also campaigning hard — and in a way that might be considered a bit devious.)

Anyway, I wandered the booths and examined the wares, bought a great 2016 calendar featuring some spectacular calligraphy, and at one point a gentleman walked by me and said, “Nice shirt.”

Since I was wearing my STAR TREK United Federation of Planets shirt, I turned and said, “Live long and prosper!”

To which he replied, “Qapla’!” (If you’re not up on your Klingon, that means, “Success!”)

We both laughed, and I mentioned that a friend of mine is the founder of the Klingon Language Institute,* so we chatted for a minute and I asked if the fellow lived in town. No, he said, but his in-laws did — and when his mother-in-law happened by, you better believe I gave her a campaign brochure!

So my STAR TREK shirt led to a campaigning opportunity, which was probably the furthest thing from my daughter’s mind when she bought it for me.

Broken mask
Sooner or later, it seems every politician’s mask breaks. (Image: “Broken mask” by Josef.stuefer, on Flickr under Creative Commons.)

My other campaign stops have been less successful, though, and I think I may have figured out why.

One stop was sort of a pro forma meeting, because I anticipate the group’s endorsement will go to a particular candidate they have worked with for some time. It was a quite pleasant meeting, though, and I feel I at least provided a little entertainment value.

At another stop, however, I definitely turned off some potential voters by — again — refusing to commit to specific courses of action without knowing all the facts. My “if I don’t make a promise, I can’t break a promise” message fell rather flat, and one attendee approached me afterward to explain why they were disappointed in it.

I was surprised. Even though the halls of government are littered with the shards of once-shiny promises that wound up shattered through neglect or by design, and though the fingers of the electorate are bloody from picking up the broken pieces and trying to fit them together into something, anything, useful or beautiful, it seems that people are willing to accept and even desire more promises without substance, goals without plans. I wonder if it’s a matter of needing hope, even if it’s a slim hope, even if it’s ultimately a false hope.

If so, I’ll say it straight out: I’m not the guy to give anyone false hope.

My day job, when you get right down to it, is to disabuse people of their hopes. Every person who sends in a manuscript to Baen Books hopes it will attract our attention, hopes we will accept it and publish it and help them achieve that dream of publication. But the raw facts are that we publish a limited number of books every year, only a small portion of those can be by new authors, and we receive many hundreds of submissions in the slush pile for every potential “new author” slot.

I applaud every writer who slogs through completing a manuscript, toils over that manuscript to ensure it’s as good a story as it can be, and takes the risk of sending it in for us to evaluate. But I still have to tell almost every single one of them “no.” And even when I write to someone whose work is good enough for us to consider at length and in depth — whose manuscript two, three, or even four of us will in time study and pick apart — I have to tell them that the answer may, in the end, be “no.”

In other words, I make no promises. I do not try to bash any writer’s hope, and I do not try to crush any writer’s dream, but I will not give any writer an unrealistic expectation.

And so, I will not give any voter an unrealistic expectation.

If that is what you need as a voter, if you are desperate for some slim hope and willing to take the risk of almost certain disappointment, then I apologize that I cannot be the kind of candidate who will feed that need. I hope (and I mean that without irony) that you find and support the kind of candidate you need.

But if you are a voter who can tolerate deliberation, who can stand deep examination of issues, then I hope you can understand my position — and maybe even support me.

___
*Dr. Lawrence M. Schoen, if you must know.

Reminder: Election Day for the Cary Town Council race is October 6th. Help spread the word about my campaign! Share this post on social media or forward it specifically to anyone you know who lives in North Carolina, especially in the Research Triangle area or the Town of Cary. For additional updates and info, sign up for my newsletter using the form in the right sidebar or visit the election page on my website. Thanks!

Spending Disclosure: As of this date, my campaign has spent a total of $44.

This blog post was “paid” for, at the cost of $0 and whatever time it took Gray to write and upload it, by The Gray Man: Service, Leadership, Creativity.

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Release Day! DISTORTED VISION is Now Available!

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Almost 2 years to the day since I released Truths and Lies and Make-Believe, here comes my second musical collection, Distorted Vision.


(Album cover photography and design by Christopher Rinehart. Click to go to the Bandcamp page, to listen to or purchase the album.)

Like its predecessor, Distorted Vision is another collection of songs mostly inspired by or referencing science fiction and fantasy, as well as songs about the marvels and misfortunes of life itself. I consider it to be a second helping of “truths and lies and make-believe.”

Where T&L&MB had ten all-original tunes, this new album has eleven songs, including two which use existing tunes. I intend to write a series of posts examining each song on its own, but here’s the running order with a few basic notes:

All the above links go to Bandcamp, which is the only place the album is available at this time. At Bandcamp you can listen to the songs, purchase a download of individual songs or the whole album, and order a physical CD for me to send to you (and, yes, I ship them myself).* I will make the album available on CD Baby soon, and from there it will be available on Amazon and other outlets — and the songs themselves will be available for streaming.

If you never listened to Truths and Lies and Make-Believe,** but you’ve heard me play guitar and are a little leery of how these songs might sound, let me assure you that just like the first album I did not actually play any of the instruments on this one. My friend Mark Minervino was once again the studio musician par excellence, and also engineered and mixed the songs, and my friend Brian Ceccarelli of Talus Music mastered the CD so the sound quality would be uniform. I couldn’t have done this album, or the last one, without them!

So if this sort of thing interests you, or if you’re just curious, or even if you just want to humor me, I hope you’ll give it a listen — and that maybe you’ll find something you like enough to buy! And if you know someone else who might appreciate it, by all means send them a link to the album or to this blog post.

Thanks, I hope you like what you hear, and let me know what you think!

___
*Note that physical CDs won’t ship until close to the end of the month. Sorry!
**Really? It’s been out for 2 years, and you haven’t listened to it yet?

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Campaign Chronicle, 7 Weeks to Election: No Promises

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This week I had my first sit-down session with a group of citizens who wanted my take on issues important to them. I suspect I disappointed them a little; I’ll get to that in a moment.

First, I already have a few other such meetings on the calendar but I’m willing to add more. I’ll sit down with anyone who wants to discuss the issues. If there’s food involved, so much the better.

Second, I observed that optimistic scheduling doesn’t work with certain classes of people, among them serious politicians who tend to be a bit long-winded. In fact, I almost left when my scheduled session was delayed because the candidate before me was late arriving and continued into my time. (I had to be convinced to stay.) But once it got started the actual interview was fine, if too short to actually delve deeply into anything because I made it a point to wrap up as close to the end of my scheduled slot as possible. So if you really want me to explain my thinking on a subject, be sure to allot a good bit of time.


The ghost of Jacob Marley (Alec Guinness) visits Ebenezer Scrooge (Albert Finney). This has something to do with politics, trust me.

As I said, I suspect I left the folks in the room feeling disappointed that I had not agreed to champion their causes. They seemed to expect me to make a commitment to them, but I reiterated what I said when first started on this adventure: I am not making any promises to anyone about anything.

Why? Because I can’t break a promise that I haven’t made.

Think about the scene in A Christmas Carol in which the ghost of Jacob Marley intrudes on Scrooge’s quiet evening. What was Marley wearing? A great chain that represented his failure to care for the destitute and downtrodden, a chain he forged “link by link, and yard by yard.” Imagine if every living officeholder had to carry a chain forged of their broken campaign promises — perhaps formed “lie by lie, and pledge by pledge.” The halls of government at every level would ring with the sound of rattling chains.

Promises are cheap. Keeping them is hard.

I intend, if elected, to study every issue that comes up and listen to different viewpoints. I have stated my principle for staking out a position on proposals: since most proposals are quite clear about who they would help (or intend to help), I would like to consider who they would hurt, and how much, and then weigh whether the intended benefit is worth whatever cost is involved.

But I won’t make promises, because that way I can’t break any.

___

Election Day for the Cary Town Council race is October 6th. Help spread the word about my campaign! Share this post on social media or forward it specifically to anyone you know who lives in North Carolina, especially in the Research Triangle area or the Town of Cary. For additional updates and info, sign up for my newsletter using the form in the right sidebar or visit the election page on my website. Thanks!

Spending Disclosure: As of this date, my campaign has spent a total of $10. But I’m probably going to spend a few bucks later this week.

This blog post was “paid” for, at the cost of $0 and whatever time it took Gray to write and upload it, by The Gray Man: Service, Leadership, Creativity.

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Campaign Chronicle, 8 Weeks to Election: Collaborative, Social Media Politics

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More fun from Campaignville, where even if you don’t live here in Cary, North Carolina — even if you live far, far away — through the magic of social media, you can help spread the word about the Gray Man’s campaign for Town Council!

How, you ask? Simple! Print a campaign flyer and put it up in your office, or on your front door, or in the window of your car! (There’s even a place where you can put your name or initials if you like.) Then, wherever you post a flyer, take a picture and send it to me — or post it on Instagram or Facebook or Pinterest or Twitter or wherever, and call your North Carolina friends’ attention to it. Be creative, and have fun!

Gray Rinehart 2015 Town Council Campaign Flyer
Print-It-Yourself Flyer! Click to enlarge, or download a PDF in either color or black and white.

If you live in the Research Triangle area, you could even print more than one if you wanted to, and put a few where people will see them: on the bulletin board at your favorite coffee shop, maybe, or above the urinals at your local bar. Unfortunately, since I’m not raising any campaign funds — I don’t want to get used to spending other people’s money — we will not bankroll the production of these flyers. If you want to spend your own money in your own way, of course, that’s okay with me; I’m not going to stop you.

Two Words of Caution:

  • Do NOT affix any flyers to permanent structures without getting the express permission of the owners.
  • Don’t print more than maybe two or three of these and certainly don’t print poster-sized ones and put them anywhere. If you do that, chances are someone is going to notice and complain to the Board of Elections that you’re contributing to the campaign, and the board might ask you how much you’ve spent and you’d have to report it. Nobody wants that kind of headache.

This is my version of free market politics, as opposed to the more oligarchical model that we have nowadays. You could think of it as entrepreneurial politics, or maybe “open source” politics or even the politics of the new collaborative economy, rather than the traditional, corporate model of politics. And speaking of collaborative politics, you can help spread the word about this campaign without printing any flyers at all.

The very best way you could help spread the word would be to forward this blog post to anyone you know who lives in North Carolina. Ask them to forward it to anyone they know who lives in the Research Triangle area or the Town of Cary, and point them to the election page on my website. You can do that by e-mail or by sharing the link on your favorite social media site(s).

In the category of “fair warning,” in a couple of weeks I will start walking around some of the neighborhoods in District D. That seems like the best way to connect with real people and find out what they really think about how things are working in the town. At that point I’ll hand out a few of these little flyers, along with some basic information about the foundation of my campaign — Service, Leadership, and Creativity, with emphasis on economic development, emergency management, education, and the environment — to anyone who wants it.

If you’re local, and want to make sure I hit your neighborhood or want me to come chat with you and your friends, get in touch!

See you out on the campaign trail … or maybe just walking on the greenway!

___
Spending Disclosure: As of this date, my campaign has spent a total of $10.

This blog post was “paid” for, at the cost of $0 and whatever time it took to write and upload it, by The Gray Man: Service, Leadership, Creativity.

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Campaign Chronicle, 9 Weeks to Election: Candidate Surveys

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Politics, where the fun never ends! Or something like that.

One of the more interesting developments of the Town Council campaign has been receiving invitations from various groups to discuss whatever issues interest them. The local real estate association, the home builders group, the Chamber of Commerce, and other groups have either asked for information or scheduled times for me to chat with them (or both). In some cases they’ve sent actual questionnaires for me to fill out and send in.

Do You Need Pants? Questionnaire
Just for fun, a survey. No, none of the groups that contacted me sent this particular survey. (Image, “Do You Need Pants? Questionnaire,” by Jason Eppink on Flickr under Creative Commons.)

It’s been interesting seeing what different groups want to know. A couple of the groups asked how much money I planned to raise for my campaign, I suppose so they can decide whether they want to contribute. I’m not sure what they’ll think when they find out I’m not raising any money — and, in general, I’m hoping to spend very little of my own. (Not that I’m averse to other people spending their own money on me, or even giving me money of their own free will. But that has nothing to do with my campaign.)

Some of the surveys have been easier to complete than others. The ones that just asked my opinion of different issues have been fine — I don’t have any problem telling people what I think! One group sent me the questions they plan to ask when we sit down together, which was a little different and actually pretty nice of them. And a couple of the groups asked very similar questions, which was convenient because I could pretty much cut-and-paste the answers.

One group was particularly straightforward, and actually asked if I would support this policy or that if I were elected. I’m afraid I’m destined to disappoint them: Sorry, but I don’t plan to make any promises to you or anyone else.

I’ll study any issues that come up, and listen to all sides, but I’m not going to commit to anything beforehand. If I don’t make a promise, I can’t break a promise. That’s part of what I mean by “politics as UNusual.”

So that’s the latest as of right now. And along the lines of the “candidate survey” kind of thing: If you’re local and want to chat about some issue that’s important to you, get in touch and we’ll see what we can do.

And if you’re of a mind to support a candidate whose approach is unconventional and who doesn’t take himself too seriously, feel free to share this blog post on social media or send the link to any friends who live in the Research Triangle of North Carolina. Let folks know that the Gray Man is a candidate for the Cary Town Council, District D, and if they want more info they can check out the election page on my website or sign up for my newsletter (using the form in the right sidebar).

On we go!

___
Spending Disclosure: As of this date, my campaign has spent a total of $10. Yes, really: ten dollars. (Okay, it’s really $12 including parking fees, but it’s a pain to get receipts for parking so the official tally is $10.)

This blog post was “paid” for, at the cost of $0 and whatever time it took Gray to write and upload it, by The Gray Man: Service, Leadership, Creativity.

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Campaign Chronicle, 10 Weeks to Election Day: Paperwork and Junk Mail

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Hey, I’m running for Town Council!

Okay, you probably already knew that. If not, almost 2 weeks ago now I filed for election to the Cary (NC) Town Council in District D, which serves the southwest portion of town. If you’re familiar with Cary, you could draw a big circle centered on Bond Lake and encompass a good portion of the district.


My first political campaign has launched! (USAF photo of a Titan-IV liftoff.)

When I filed, I was handed a booklet which explained the various forms I had to submit in order to establish a campaign committee. That took me by surprise, because I’m just one fellow and don’t have any kind of organization, but it was required in order to have something to print on the bottom of ads, along the lines of “Paid for by the Committee of People Who Think They Know Better.” So I did it.

Of course, being me, with my history of Anti-Candidacy and my contrarian nature, I was determined not to establish the run-of-the-mill candidate’s committee. No “Gray for Town Council” or “Committee to Elect Gray” or anything like that. I tried out a number of different possible committee names, including but definitely not limited to:

  • Folks Who Don’t Want to Run Your Life
  • The Mugwump Brigade
  • Arrogant Megalomaniacs for Hire
  • Reluctant Bureaucrats
  • Step by Step to World Domination
  • The Bearers of Dangerous Messages
  • The Artist Formerly Known as the Anti-Candidate

But, as was pointed out to me by several people, being too unserious about the whole thing would not be to my benefit. So, I swallowed my pride, tamped down my forced attempts at silliness, thought about the things I bring to the table — specifically, years of Service, experience in Leadership, and a bit of Creativity. So I named my committee The Gray Man: Service, Leadership, Creativity.

At the same time I turned in the committee organization forms, I had to turn in the first round of financial reporting forms. Those were a bit harder to make heads and tails of, and it seemed a bit extreme to have to file several different pieces of paper in order to report spending $10 so far (i.e., the filing fee — I dropped the dollar I spent on parking because I hadn’t gotten a receipt), but I got the forms turned in. I haven’t heard yet if I did them right.

While all that was going on, I started getting phone calls and letters and junk mail related to my own campaign. The phone calls were okay — mostly other candidates, plus one fellow who asked if he could send me a survey for his organization to gauge my position on the particular issues that interest them. I’ve gotten a couple of letters along the same lines, which I’ll report on as time goes by.

But the junk mail … oh, goodness.

I should’ve expected it, but honestly I hadn’t. First was an invitation to a “campaign training session,” which promised — for a fee, of course — to help me strategize and plan and raise money and other such things. I tossed that right out, since my strategy is to emphasize things I know about and have experience in (more on this in a future post), my plan is to talk to folks and find out what issues they most care about, and I don’t intend to raise any money. Nor do I intend to spend much money, which is why I haven’t responded to most of the other letters I received from people who want to help me stratify the voter rolls and send out mass mailings, or who want to print handouts and other materials for me, or the people who want to make yard signs for me. I don’t intend to spend my own or anyone else’s money on things like that.

Plus, with 10 weeks until the election — the Cary municipal election is on 6 October, so there can be a runoff in November if needed — nobody’s paying much attention yet anyway.

As we get closer to election day, I’ll suggest ways that you might help me spread the word to folks who might want to vote for me — for instance, by sharing this blog post on social media or by sending the link to a friend who lives in the Research Triangle! Meanwhile, you’re welcome to sign up for my newsletter using the form in the right sidebar; I send out occasional notices about my various projects, of which the election is only one. And you can always check out the election page on my website.

As for me, I’m going to have fun with the process — because as I always told my students and folks who worked for me, if you’re not having fun doing what you’re doing, you ought to be doing something else!

So, thanks for reading this and now, go have some fun!

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This blog post was “paid” for, at the princely sum of $0 and whatever time it took Gray to write and upload it, by The Gray Man: Service, Leadership, Creativity.

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