I reckon all of us in Richland are jus' a buncha hicks. Country bumpkins. Right outta "Green Acres", or "Homer and Jethro". Shucks, our newest supervisor just learned us that.
On the day after Ronald Reagan died, most people found good things to say about the Gipper. But Mike Zowniriw took the opportunity to again object to Ronnie's name being used on a local street. Then, the ol' city slicker, who has lived here for all of five years, let us Hatfields and McCoys know just how we should really name our roads.
Z has got hisself some real fancy book-learnin', and he sure 'nough must know more about these high-falutin' things than us poor dumb farmhands. So what do y'all think about Mike's suggestions - "Soybean Way" or "Corn Row"? They sure sum up what Richland is about these days, don't they? You can almost smell the manure on our boots as we tumble off the turnip cart.
And what is wrong with Ronald Reagan Drive? Z explained, "My feeling is this is a rural township, and a rural road". How could the hayseeds possibly have the intellect and good conscience to name a road after a president? Only big cities like Philadelphia, where Mike spent most of his life, get to honor famous people. All we understand is soybeans and corn. Tarnation.
If it seems like Z's name appears frequently in this column, it's only that he continues to put himself in the news. Like his blue ribbon performance at the May 10 Board of Supervisors meeting. The biggest issue of his short government career. Was everyone ready to discuss accepting the township solicitor's findings in the suit over the placement of the new YMCA?
Mr. Orloff? "Yes".
Mr. Tamburri? "Yes".
Mr. Zowniriw? "Unprepared".
"Unprepared". That's it. God's honest truth. That's exactly what Z said. You can check the tape. Unprepared. Hadn't read the materials handed out the week before to all supervisors. Hadn't read the transcript of the hearing. Didn't even understand the three issues! And, to make this even more incomprehensible, he was actually at the meeting in March which spawned the findings! Yet, two months later, he still was unprepared.
This wasn't just any issue. It was the centerpiece of Z's election campaign. Some members of the Richland Citizens Alliance, his campaign committee, filed a lawsuit to prevent the YMCA from building near their homes. There really was no question how Z would be voting, and there was no question that he would be on the short end of a 2-1 decision.
But to be unprepared to even discuss the matter? His lack of sensitivity to some of the most important matters in the township is a slap at all citizens, especially those who voted for him. But his excuse for being unprepared was an even bigger embarrassment:
He wasn't prepared to discuss, or vote on, the solicitor's report because, he claimed, he was preparing his own report instead. Without asking anyone. His personal opinions. Not what the judge asked for. The township solicitor determined that it could not be used.
And during his six months in office, he has yet to offer a single workable proposal to better the township. You can check the tapes.
It is my personal opinion, having spoken privately with Z, that, deep down, he is a well-intentioned, caring, and somewhat pensive individual who is way over his head in the role of supervisor. Not totally clueless. But anyone who has seen him at Richland meetings can tell that he has gained little understanding of township issues, supervisor's duties, or the need for consultation with the professional staff.
He offers personal opinion instead of applicable laws. He introduces ideas without first checking on their practicality and legality. And he embarrasses himself by delivering pre-scripted monologues that he probably did not write, and can not even follow on the paper in front of him. You can check the tapes. It's hard to advocate for something when your audience senses that you don't know much about it yourself.
Z's campaign preached tolerance, and valuing a difference of opinion. In practice, however, he has phoned to intimidate at least three residents who have written letters to The Free Press. He demanded a volunteer's resignation because he disagreed with his views. And he backed his wife's application for the Preservation Board after both he and she advocated disbanding that very group.
So who may have written those speeches that he can't read? Where do the ideas come from, if not from him? It isn't much of a stretch to look first at wife Amy, a freelance writer, who once worked as an independent contractor for The Free Press. On her web page, she blames the newspaper, the police chief, and township politics for her dismissal.
Whether or not you believe the content of her story, she has some writing skills. And resentment toward a lot of people. And she was the co-chairman of Mike's election campaign. And she refers to herself as the "first lady of Richland". And he refers to her as the fourth supervisor. And she is the webmaster for his website.
And if you want to check the tape again, Mike originally endorsed a project by Greenway Development - said it looked good to him - but then changed his position after Amy stood up and spoke against it .
We shouldn't expect our supervisors to be geniuses. Or world-class orators. Or prize-winning authors. Even the American President uses a speechwriter. But we should demand that they be prepared for meetings, and treat us with the respect due to Homer and Jethro.