"To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them?"
Shakespeare's Hamlet is a tragedy of failure. He wants to avenge his father's murder, but he delays. It is this indecision which leads to Hamlet's death. The poison on the tip of Laertes' sword is but a metaphor for the poison of poor choices. The Democratic party in Richland, and Richlandtown, has similar dilemmas.
First, to accept Z, or not to accept Z? Do they bear the slings and arrows of public criticism that surely will result from Mike Zowniriw's campaign support, or do they disassociate themselves from the man they backed just two years ago?
Starring in the role of Hamlet is Bill Brosius, the chairman of the 145th Assembly District (this whole area) Democratic organization. The lead donkey. The guy who calls the shots.
Zowniriw, a lifelong Philly Democrat, rounded up enough signatures on a petition back in 2003 to get on the ballot for Richland supervisor at the last minute as a Greenie. The local Dems knew nothing about him, but had no candidate of their own, and lent their support. Anything to defeat the Republicans. They ignored Hamlet's advice, to "bear those ills we have, (rather) than fly to others that we know not of".
They now regret it. Z's shenanigans, both as a supervisor and in his own neighborhood, have been a constant embarrassment. What Hamlet called "the insolence of office". The last straw was when Z cut off the water to his elderly neighbors, and built a wall to prevent them from even getting to their own well. He then ignored a court-ordered agreement to open up the wall.
Those neighbors, as it turns out, are long-time Democrats. Friends of Bill Brosius. The wife is Bill's travel agent, and had donated the use of her office and phone in past elections. Brosius apparently felt bad about the way they were treated, because, according to the neighbor, he came into her office on August 22 and told her he sent a mailing to Democrats saying that the party is not behind Z, nor supporting him anymore. And he allegedly said the support was one of the biggest mistakes they ever made.
When I asked Brosius about this, he denied that the conversation ever took place. His email reply also stated " There will be no such letter. I think this 'rumor' is fiction. Neither Mr. Zowniriw nor his wife is a Democrat."
" Ay, there's the rub". Amy was a registered Dem last year. Live-at-home daughter Molly still is. Mike used to be. And, despite Brosius' denials, the party has been embracing them, and they have certainly hugged back. For instance, the Z's were invited to the annual district Dem fundraiser in June, and Mike took a full-page ad for his business in the program book.
At the dinner, a letter was handed out titled "Stevens for Supervisor", referring to Vic Stevens, the blue candidate in Richland. The first sentence is the most telling: "This year the Democratic Party has the opportunity to take control of the Richland Township Board of Supervisors...".
Fuzzy math? The current board has two Republicans, Rick Orloff and Steve Tamburri, and one Greenie, Zowniriw. Tamburri is retiring, but even if Stevens is elected, how does one Democrat "take control"? The answer, of course, is that, despite Brosius' denials, the Democrats do see Zowniriw as a donkey in a very thin disguise. His Green Party candidacy was just a ruse to get on the ballot. Once elected, he has shown his colors to be true blue.
The letter goes on "By electing Vic Stevens this year, we have a better chance of defeating State Representative Paul Clymer next year". News flash - it will take a lot more than the spectres of Vic Stevens and Mike Zowniriw to defeat Clymer, who has long been popular with voters of both parties. He received 65% of the district vote in the 2004 election. His opponent, bread truck driver John Norvaisis, could attract only 39% in his own home of Richlandtown .
You might remember that Norvaisis misled us on his resume about having graduated from Boston University when, in fact, he attended only a three-month cooking program! Just what we need as our State Representative.
And, by the way, he's baaaaaack. Norvaisis, and his clouded baaaackground, are now running for borough council in Richlandtown. He received 10 write-in votes in the primary to get his name listed as a Democrat on the November ballot. His three Republican opponents, meanwhile, received the highest vote counts of any candidates for any office. If the Dems are concerned about being associated with Zowniriw, they should be absolutely freaked out about Norvaisis.
The letter continues with a checklist of the tasks that Stevens is seeking volunteers for - door knocking, yard signs, phone banking, write letters to the editor. Write letters to the editor??? The Stevens campaign is actually recruiting non-residents for the purpose of planting letters in the newspapers! Keep that in mind when you see those missives praising Vic, or attacking his opponent. The writers were actually recruited from outside Richland! And, dare we think, it - coached?
Near the end of his soliloquy, which is just awash in famous quotes, Hamlet laments, "conscience does make cowards of us all" . Poor Bill Brosius is awash in problems of the conscience - Zowniriw, Norvaisis, Stevens. With a cast like that, the final line of the soliloquy is incredibly appropriate:
"Be all my sins remember'd."