“Man,” I cried, “how ignorant art thou in thy pride of wisdom!” – from Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Translation: the most dangerous thing in the world is being a smart guy who isn't actually as smart as he thinks he is.
Why? Hey, this is Frankenstein we're talking about – because you might end up creating monsters that come back to haunt you later. Today's example? This quote from the Burlington Free Press:
Kurt Wright is the man on the spot. He is the Republican City Council president of one of the most un-Republican cities in the country.
It's old news, but in light of recent conversations about backing anti-choice, anti-gay rights Republican Senators as de facto Dem candidates, it bears repeating. Rep. Kurt Wright is playing savvy politics in positioning himself as a real threat – not simply in the Burlington mayor's race, but for statewide office through his position as leader of the Burlington City Council. For those of you who don't remember, the reason he has that position is that a Democrat put him there, rather than see a Progressive get the position. This is what's known as cutting off one's nose to spite one's face – or possibly shooting off one's face to spite one's head.
Wright is well on the way to becoming the latest Frankencrat Monster. Also on the list is General Michael Dubie, brother of the other Dubie, who was promoted to the position of Adjutant General by the Democratic legislature, and wasted no time in speaking out against progressive legislative priorities vis-a-vis the VT National Guard and Iraq.
Think I'm being alarmist? When we don't challenge these guys and instead enable them or give them free passes, they come back bigger and better, even when we thought we were being clever when we did it in the first place. In 2000, the Democrats did not field a candidate for State Treasurer, allowing the Republican incumbent to walk in with a gazillion percent of the vote and build up a phony bipartisan feelgood narrative that made him into an electoral juggernaut.
If you're new to the state, the Treasurer's name was Jim Douglas.