Imagine for a second that someone you know is a successful & smart citizen. They started a successful business and now are ready to tackle something different. Let's say it's your job to convince that person to run for office. What would you say to them? How can you convince them to run? What incentives can you show them would be there by running for city office?
Remember, there's quite a lot of people who are currently mad at the mayor, sheriff, city council, and practically every part of the city government. As a leader, that person would need to deal with all the people who are mad. Can you show why the benefits of the job are so great that they would be willing to be criticized every step of the way?
Remember, they are already rich & successful in the world of business. They don't have to take this job but your trying to convince them to.
id first like to know who im trying to convince ;)
really, the only incentive should be to make a difference. If that's not enough, or if they don't want anything to be different, then they have no reason to take office.
Many claim to have been pushed into service to cultivate an image of modesty, humility, tempered ambition, and a call to service. All fine message, but . . .
Words of campaign wisdom: Truly reluctant candidates are rarely successful.
Locally, get to know the city council, JB Coxwell etc :D and hope that you have either pedigree or some connections with the "locals"
Yup! Don't need no rookies applying for the position but don't need no retreads either! I am too old or I would think about it!
Quote from: stephendare on September 03, 2009, 11:03:51 PM
What kind of office are they looking for?
And if its for mayor, please don't. The last thing we need is another stranger to government spending four years trying to figure out where all the cool buttons are.
I can certainly appreciate the sentiment in this post. And while I do basically agree, I think you have to remember that Jax basically took it on faith that Peyton had significant control and success at Gate, which in theory, he could parlay into the government realm.
My problem with that from day one was that he did not create nor lead the company, so no one had any real idea how much leadership ability or proven success he actually possessesd. Coupled with no government experience, that was too much of a leap for me to take.
If they are dumb enough not be see the benefits themselves then i don't want them in there.
also, having started a business has no impact whatsoever on how well they may or may not perfrom as mayor.
Quote from: stephendare on September 03, 2009, 11:03:51 PM
What kind of office are they looking for?
And if its for mayor, please don't. The last thing we need is another stranger to government spending four years trying to figure out where all the cool buttons are.
And where to put the hot dog carts.
I feel that to head this City you don't have to be a successful politician; however, you should have a staunch and strong background and history in city, public and private leadership which includes heading and managing finances, economics, social services, and some type of public service not necessarily involving politics.
Good point about Peyton and this should hold true to others that head multi-million dollar companies; just because they own or run these companies don't mean that they can run, head, or hold leadership positions in Towns, Cities, States, or even the Nation for that matter. Let's get (elect) someone who has definitive plans, policies, procedures and a vision for our city in all areas and facets of its structure, and can clearly and concisely explain these to the populace and public relative to how they will accomplish those plans and goals and see them through to fruition.
Heights Unknown
Washington really didn't want to be President. However, someone had to spend quite a bit of time convincing him to. He, unfortunately for most of us here, was also a very successful businessman. In a way, Franklin was also a successful businessman too. Pretty much all of our founding fathers were. I'm guessing since most of us here don't like successful businessmen, maybe these were the wrong people to put in charge of the country back then.......
I've been reading a quite a lot of people don't want the job of a politician. Yet, someone spent quite a bit of time convincing them to take it. Look at Delaney, he didn't want the job yet Payton spent days convincing him to take it.
Where are you guys getting your information from? How are you forming these opinions? I mean, they are completely different from history. I've been reading and a lot of the good ones never had a vision for anything. They just saw problems while they were working and found solutions to fix it.
I'd like to hear the potential candidate's different stump speeches since it seems in Duval we have many single-issue voters. I would want to know the strategy to diffuse the emotional and then receive and analyze the pragmatic.
There are similarities between government and business so many skills are applicable to both.
The biggest questions that would need to substantiated to my satisfaction are (1) What problems will you solve, (2) How will you solve them, (3) What resources will be required? and (4) How will you garner enough support for these issues?
If those questions cannot be answered without generic responses, then I wouldn't be convinced that person is a viable candidate.
Quote from: cityimrov on September 04, 2009, 05:14:45 PM
Look at Delaney, he didn't want the job yet Payton spent days convincing him to take it.
Where are you guys getting your information from? How are you forming these opinions? I mean, they are completely different from history. I've been reading and a lot of the good ones never had a vision for anything. They just saw problems while they were working and found solutions to fix it.
That comment about Delaney is a new one on me. By Peyton, do you mean Herb or John?
I have never seen a truly successful Mayor that wasn't a visionary.
Okay! okay.... I'll do it.
Well, of course after they decide to run, then they can create the vision but I'm thinking about the phase before the candidacy.
http://columns.ink19.com/minorityreport/section8Interview.html
According to this, Herb.
Quote from: sanmarcomatt on September 05, 2009, 08:49:17 AM
Isn't the main motivation to become a politician in Jax to provide high paying jobs to friends and family?
That is just a small perk. The real money is made in controlling who gets contracts for services and construction, as well as having an inside scoop on where to buy land on the cheap, then funnelling developement dollars towards the area while the value skyrockets.
Anyone remember when JTB was a pine view ride to nowhere? I'm sure that the people who owned that land were not well connected. ;)
QuoteThe real money is made in controlling who gets contracts for services and construction, as well as having an inside scoop on where to buy land on the cheap, then funnelling developement dollars towards the area while the value skyrockets.
You don't need to be in politics for that, just be a good sound business person. The Skinner family owned much of the late around Gate Parkway/Town Center that was developed. I do not know many Skinners who serve at the request of the mayor on the council, they just purchased land through generations. They have been purchasing land west of Jax, in preparation for future generations of Skinners.
Good business people are all around you, and with land, development costs, and city fees, you have to be smarter rather than luckier to pull off some of these projects. This is a good example where Cameron Kuhn failed, he thought he could apply Orlando politics to Jax, and it backfired for him. That and a mountain of debt and uncontrollable ego.
There is an easy formula for being rich in Florida; choose grandparents who were in the dairy farming business. Skinners, Grahams, McArthurs, etc. In the old days of difficult refrigeration, dairy farms had to be close to cities and took a good deal of land.
So, Florida, lots of land, close to cities....land for development! Second and third generations get into politics i.e. Bob Graham.
JTB was built on land owned mostly by Hodges & McCormicks to open up southern Duval and Northern St. John's Counties to development. Worked, didn't it?
Were these families lucky? Did they have brilliant forsight? Were they well connected?
I would guess a combination of the three with varying degrees in each case.
Perhaps my cynicism is unfounded, but I remain so in regard to those with politcal aspirations.
Wouldn't the motivation come from within the person for whom you speak? One would need to have an interest in politics and the drive to want to be in a position that can make a difference. You could convince someone that's what they want, but if it's not what they, themselves want, then what's the purpose....
QuoteWhere are you guys getting your information from? How are you forming these opinions? I mean, they are completely different from history.
Years in and around politics, as well as writing for and advising politicians.
Campaigns today are largely media driven -- for better and for worse. It's a different animal than the founding fathers who didn't really campaign, and who worked in a political landscape with little media and a restricted franchise. Historical anecdotes of reluctant candidates remain popularly captivating for all the reasons I already stated.
Being an elected official is a tough job, with long hours and a heap of draining public and media criticism. It tests personal relationships; it affects careers; it strains family members. I would be skeptical of anyone who was not a little cautious and pensive about jumping into the fray. However, I also want leaders assertive enough to want -- and be a good fit for --the job for which they are running.
Also, I said reluctant *candidates* were problematic. Just because someone may be a problematic candidate, doesn't mean they couldn't (or shouldn't, or wouldn't be great at) the job if elected. It just makes a campaign much more difficult. Plenty of people are bad candidates and great people/business people; plenty of good candidates end up being terrible elected officials.
Good luck -- it's a slugfest out there!