Time to Talk, Videography
♦ Video: Tuesday’s “Time to Talk” Salisbury City Council Candidates Forum at East Square Artworks was attended by somewhere in the vicinity of about 40 folks.
At the Rowan Free Press we hold that videos of candidates forums tell a much fuller story of what was actually said, including not only the words, but capturing such important nuances of facial expression, intonation, body language, emotion, presence, and sincerity. Candidate forum videos, unless highly edited, rinse out “slant” and words purposely left out often present in some “media” reports.
The 2015 Salisbury City Council race shapes up as the first time in over a decade that non-incumbents possess a very high likelihood of being elected. Throughout Salisbury a strong disaffection exists with City Hall and its lack of connection with the city’s many communities outside of the Historic District and the Country Club. Crime, the current city council’s cover-up of its broadband Fibrant’s failure ($12.6 million dollars negative in the 2014 budget audit) and the mutual termination of its former city manager. Add to City Hall’s lack of any transparency, the very loud call for the removal of Chief Rory Collins, 11 unsolved murders, and the fact that working class people both black and white are unloading their homes and moving elsewhere for safety and a better life. The young have scattered to a new cities and towns far from their hometown and parents seek alternative forms of education for their children in the light of Salisbury’s public schools D and F report cards, behavioral problems, campus drug abuse, and gang activity.
Last night at the candidates forum, challengers Kenny Hardin, Todd Paris, and William Peoples stepped up and dis an outstanding job. Incumbents Maggie Blackwell and Brian Miller seemed flat except when Miller took a swipe at former city “employee”. Karen Alexander was a no show, being out of town. Former city councilmen Mark Lewis, the major driving force behind Fibrant and Empire Hotel fiascos whose financial repercussions did enormous harm to the city’s finances, city services, and the Downtown area, and Scott Maddox who many voters don’t recall from his youthful stint on council appear to be the status quo’s heir apparents for council seats. Mark Lewis, voted off city council several years ago, drags a pile of very loud tin cans behind him making his candidacy an easy target for non-incumbent candidates.
The Complete Salisbury City Council Video:
