Good morning West Texans and all you good, fine, friendly folks out there who wish you were . . .
SO TOM MARTIN, NOW YOU’RE THE MAYOR . . .
Now that Tom Martin has defeated David Miller and will be sworn in ( or is that sworn at ) as Mayor of the Hubbaplex the fun of sorting out how and why it happened as well as what will happen next for Lubbock can begin. Make no mistake; many around Lubbock will misunderstand the reasons why David Miller forfeited his mandate to lead as well as what folks are expecting from Tom Martin.
Martin wasn’t elected so much because voters were wowed by his platform as much as they wanted to issue a personal repudiation of Miller, how he conducted business and his public demeanor. The race became a referendum on Miller as much as any policy decisions. To be sure, the red-light camera fiasco, the visitor center and other examples of Miller and his buddies ignoring the will of the public came into play, but as more than anything Martin won because he wasn’t Miller.
The question then becomes what was Miller?
Miller, his cronies and advisors still don’t get the reasons why he was so ineffective at trying to lead Lubbock. Some folks think that it was Miller’s arrogance in ignoring the desires of the citizens and what they prioritize vs. what Miller’s so-called vision for the city was. It wasn’t really arrogance or even willful disregard of what most folks valued that did in Miller. It was what I call the modern day Nobles Oblige attitude that permeates some folks that describe themselves as “servants”.
While they think they are serving and are called upon to lead, they really exhibit an attitude that they know best over the poor common people that just can’t possibly understand the complex issues facing Lubbock and what needs to be done with our tax money. That’s where comments such as C.A.V.E. people come from and the idea that anyone opposed to any of “their” pet projects are “uninformed” or “ignorant”. These types of people can’t fathom that people would disagree with them on merit, so it must be for some other reason.
The modern day Nobles Oblige also believe that there are evil forces aligned against them that are trying to stop them such as the media ( whatever that entails now ) or other syndicates that don’t really reflect the will of the people but are just nuisances and are out for personal attacks only. That couldn’t be farther from the truth and is one reason why Miller and his advisors so greatly misunderstood the true nature of what the citizens of Lubbock have been telling them for the last two years.
Miller liked to use terms like “unite” and “servant-leader” and other catch-phrases to describe what he was trying to do at City Hall. His actions though said otherwise and spoke volumes about how he really operated and what he valued. At the end of the day, his words sounded more like half-baked chapter titles form Stephen R. Covey, John C. Maxwell and Jim Collins books. It was like listening to the eight-year old that knows all the words but none of the context. Miller had no context to his vision or ideas for the City.
NOW IT IS MARTIN’S TURN
If Tom Martin thinks he’s going to have it any easier just because he won with nearly 60% of the vote, think again. Martin must focus on a very few, basic things and show real progress on those issues or the Citizens will fire him too. Right now the Lubbock folks what Leaders that will put needs ahead of wants. They want roads fixed and they want a sensible water-plan and they want it done in a timely fashion. They want a Council that will come up with a simple list of priorities and execute that list.
For the next two to four years Lubbock needs to concentrate on those basic issues and not grand ideas like a Private-Public Downtown Redevelopment Plan that will be more public than private. The City needs to address the needs of people that already ACTUALLY live here as opposed to chasing mythical dollars from a few folks that might stop in someday as tourists. The growth and verily the survival of Lubbock will depend on how this City takes care of the people that want to live here, not in luring others. For that reason, so many ideas that have clogged City hall and its committees need to be shelved in order to take care of real issues like 34th St. repairs and tax appraisal creep and other items that will make Lubbock desirable place to live, not just visit.
When these issues are addressed and taken care of, then Lubbock can move on the desert-bar like list of special projects that have frustrated Citizens the last few years as real needs have been ignored. In short, it is time for Lubbock to get serious with serious leaders not afraid to say it like it needs to be said. If the private sector wants to step up and address some of the other projects, good. That’s the way it should be.
A CHANGING CITY
As I said earlier, many will misunderstand the reasons for Miller’s defeat and Martin’s win. So many in Lubbock can’t comprehend what the people are saying because they don’t trust them and don’t believe them. This is no more evident than some of the posturing by the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal’s Editorial Board over the last several months. You almost get the feeling from the tone of their editorials that they’re being written by David Miller’s advisory staff and not by a representative group of Hubbaplexans.
Over the last few months the A-J has been on the wrong side of history regarding red-light cameras, the visitor’s center and then in their endorsements of David Miller and Jerry Bell. Throw in the glowing praise for Phyllis Jones and you’ve got another example of the Nobles Oblige factor working against the A-J and a few other media outlets in Lubbock that have merely served as a mouth-piece for some of those in power, that they thought would remain in power. Another gross misunderstanding of where this City really is right now and what the people are really thinking and wanting.
Another glowing example of that Nobles Oblige occurred as the A-J refused to run reader’s thoughts on the election issues, but was more than comfortable telling them who they should vote for. That’s just not good business if you’re really trying to “build bridges’ with your customers. Of course they said you could go online and post your thoughts, but that’s not where they put their thoughts, is it?
WHAT’S NEXT?
Now the real fun begins. Can Lubbock get serious about what needs to be done and can this current council address the issues that Lubbock folks want taken care of? Only time will tell. The one thing I’m sure of is that if they don’t deliver, this current Council will face a wrath much stronger that what swept David Miller aside last Saturday.
MORE LATER
HYATT
