Comments on: an overwhelming show of apathy http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/ A very loose interpretation of the news and happenings in and around Tampa Fri, 19 Mar 2010 03:40:43 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog » Blog Archive » trib questions commission candidates http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/comment-page-1/#comment-47984 Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog » Blog Archive » trib questions commission candidates Mon, 23 Oct 2006 17:03:00 +0000 http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/#comment-47984 [...] Tribune questions commission candidatesAfter bitching about the lack of information in local political races in the newspaper, the tribune did link a Q&A piece written last week to their politics page.  Questions were asked of each commission candidate, and the answers were printed in the Tribune last Wednesday. But there were no answers from Jim Norman. He failed to respond to the Tribune’s request. [...] [...] Tribune questions commission candidatesAfter bitching about the lack of information in local political races in the newspaper, the tribune did link a Q&A piece written last week to their politics page.  Questions were asked of each commission candidate, and the answers were printed in the Tribune last Wednesday. But there were no answers from Jim Norman. He failed to respond to the Tribune’s request. [...]

]]> By: Smitty http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/comment-page-1/#comment-47804 Smitty Sun, 22 Oct 2006 19:11:13 +0000 http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/#comment-47804 16 comments about Ann Coulter, who's never held political power in her life. 3 comments about local political apathy. There's some sort of bizarre disconnect here. Part of why I'm apathetic is because I hate my choices this year. I liked Rod Smith, but Davis won, so I'm not excited about the guv race. I don't think Kathy Castor, or anyone else on the HBoCC, deserves promotion, so I'm not excited about the Congress race. Are we really supposed to be interested when the at-large commission race is between the awful Jim Norman and the ridiculous Joe Redner? I voted for Redner just to make a point, but it's not like I'd campaign for the guy. In a year like this it's just hard to be very interested. I figured out long ago that I wasn't happy with any of my choices. Filling out the ballot was enough work without being expected to care. And yes, I'm writing this while deployed overseas, theoretically defending the very right I'm being cynical about here. How's that for you? 16 comments about Ann Coulter, who’s never held political power in her life.
3 comments about local political apathy.

There’s some sort of bizarre disconnect here.

Part of why I’m apathetic is because I hate my choices this year. I liked Rod Smith, but Davis won, so I’m not excited about the guv race. I don’t think Kathy Castor, or anyone else on the HBoCC, deserves promotion, so I’m not excited about the Congress race. Are we really supposed to be interested when the at-large commission race is between the awful Jim Norman and the ridiculous Joe Redner? I voted for Redner just to make a point, but it’s not like I’d campaign for the guy. In a year like this it’s just hard to be very interested. I figured out long ago that I wasn’t happy with any of my choices. Filling out the ballot was enough work without being expected to care. And yes, I’m writing this while deployed overseas, theoretically defending the very right I’m being cynical about here. How’s that for you?

]]> By: Sandy http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/comment-page-1/#comment-47768 Sandy Sun, 22 Oct 2006 12:47:00 +0000 http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/#comment-47768 It's because everybody here is from somewhere else. THEY are the ones who don't care. I get so tired of hearing about how apathetic WE voters are here in Tampa. It's us homegrown folks who do all the voting. We just can't win against new money and purchased power. And no grass-roots, Kennedy-esque lectures, please. Politics in Tampa have been a joke for eons, all the way back to selling commission votes. Or are we still doing that? It’s because everybody here is from somewhere else. THEY are the ones who don’t care. I get so tired of hearing about how apathetic WE voters are here in Tampa. It’s us homegrown folks who do all the voting. We just can’t win against new money and purchased power. And no grass-roots, Kennedy-esque lectures, please. Politics in Tampa have been a joke for eons, all the way back to selling commission votes. Or are we still doing that?

]]> By: Joel http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/comment-page-1/#comment-47466 Joel Fri, 20 Oct 2006 14:14:29 +0000 http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/#comment-47466 The lack of interest in local politics has very little to do with media coverage. It's a cultural obstacle, one that certainly has no easy answer. If a majority of people cared, the papers would print information because it would sell. Newspapers are not cheap to run - the shrinking trend made apparent in the Times redesign wasn't just for easier handling. It still would be nice to see TBO and the Times create more online-only content. But then again whether it be online or in print, the information will only be found by those that want to find it. And now we're back to culture. I still think BayNews9 is the most essential mainstream source of local news, political or otherwise. Shame it's only available for Bright Houses. The lack of interest in local politics has very little to do with media coverage. It’s a cultural obstacle, one that certainly has no easy answer.

If a majority of people cared, the papers would print information because it would sell. Newspapers are not cheap to run – the shrinking trend made apparent in the Times redesign wasn’t just for easier handling.

It still would be nice to see TBO and the Times create more online-only content. But then again whether it be online or in print, the information will only be found by those that want to find it. And now we’re back to culture.

I still think BayNews9 is the most essential mainstream source of local news, political or otherwise. Shame it’s only available for Bright Houses.

]]> By: John http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/comment-page-1/#comment-47324 John Thu, 19 Oct 2006 23:26:22 +0000 http://sticksoffire.com/2006/10/19/an-overwhelming-show-of-apathy/#comment-47324 You know, lemme continue to lash out at local media coverage. Media General publishes a free newspaper that ends up on most people's driveways on friday and Tuesday nights. These papers are deemed to be more local than the daily North Pinellas Times and yet nothing has been noted in these papers about elections (at least not in The Suncoast News -- my local edition). BOCC in Pinellas? State Legislature? Please... "That's what the Tribune is for." Catch-22. There are other local newspapers that many of us receive in the mail or can pull out of a newspaper rack. These papers have a bad deadline because most of them are monthly but again -- they are local and fail to even acknowledge there is an election going on. This is sort of a niche that bloggers have a chance to make up... But then again? Not all readers of the Trib, the Times and other newspapers make it online in the first place. And if they do, they don't generally know what a blog is or how to look up information You know, lemme continue to lash out at local media coverage.

Media General publishes a free newspaper that ends up on most people’s driveways on friday and Tuesday nights. These papers are deemed to be more local than the daily North Pinellas Times and yet nothing has been noted in these papers about elections (at least not in The Suncoast News — my local edition). BOCC in Pinellas? State Legislature? Please… “That’s what the Tribune is for.”

Catch-22.

There are other local newspapers that many of us receive in the mail or can pull out of a newspaper rack. These papers have a bad deadline because most of them are monthly but again — they are local and fail to even acknowledge there is an election going on.

This is sort of a niche that bloggers have a chance to make up… But then again? Not all readers of the Trib, the Times and other newspapers make it online in the first place. And if they do, they don’t generally know what a blog is or how to look up information

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