“Leaping to escape the tower, Icarus felt a rush of exhilaration as the wings his father Daedalus had crafted bore him upward on the wind. Alas, in a fit of hubris Icarus decided to continue upward to approach the glowing sun. The heat melted the wax holding the wings’ feathers in place, and Icarus plunged to his death in the sea.” —from the Greek myth of Icarus, 1st century BC
Call it winner’s syndrome. You’ll recognize it from the world of sports, where a long string of victories builds overconfidence until the undefeated team is humbled, often at the hands of a seemingly lesser opponent. Wags tell us that sometimes a loss is needed to bring a measure of humility to those once thought invincible.
A similar malady afflicts the world of city politics. Think Tom Noe, once king of the local GOP world when that party held all statewide elected offices and both legislative houses. The winning streak seemed like it would never end. Until it did, with Noe indicted and eventually convicted of misusing funds and all state offices but one reverting to Democratic control in 2006.
Enter our own rock star, Toledo Mayor Michael P. Bell. Earlier this year we started a series looking at contenders to topple the incumbent in next year’s municipal elections. Then we terminated the series with a column noting how popular Mayor Bell was and opining that no one with political sense would dare take on Goliath.
Yep, Hizzoner was soaring to new heights, getting within sight of god-like political pinnacles. The trouble is, he mistook god-like reputation for actually being a god. And like the fate of Icarus, we now see the possibility of the wings coming apart, precipitating a disastrous fall into the sea.
Don’t get us wrong, Mikey P. has had a long string of gaffes and SNAFUs to his discredit, from alleged mishandling of federal funds at the Department of ‘Hoods to backing last year’s unpopular anti-labor initiative of Guvnah Kasich, SB 5. We’ve chronicled them in previous columns. It just seemed that those problems didn’t resonate with John K. Voter.
His recent fit of hubris leaves a trail more likely to bring about his demise, however. Here are the latest.
Pushing for raises for his top executives after pleading poverty to extract concessions from thousands of lowest wage city workers. This is the sort of thing John and his fellow T-Town voters get, and it sticks in their craw. The average Toledo voter is in the same boat as the average City worker. Heck, thousands of Toledo voters ARE City workers. These are folks who haven’t had a raise in years, have seen cuts to their bennies, and are therefore losing ground to the cost of living. Yet Hizzoner wants to reward those at the top of the pay scale, some of whom don’t even live in Toledo? Shocking.
Purchasing a luxury SUV for driving around potential investors. Believe me, John would love to do the same, toodle around T-burg with corner strobe lights a-flashin’. Problem is, John is barely making ends meet, feels lucky to have his unsteady income at all, and is hoping the patches on his ’98 jalopy hold long enough to get him to work next week. In the meantime, Hizzoner gets to insulate himself and his double-public-pension-plus-current-six-figure-public-income behind tinted glass for his trips with the uber-rich while the hoi polloi like John can only watch from their crumbling sidewalks.
Driving around investors from one particular country. We aren’t necessarily xenophobic and understand that investment is needed for a T-Town revitalization. Folks with cash who want to lavish it thisaway are welcome no matter their nation of origin. But frankly we’re tired of looking at that dirt patch along the river with the million dollar road leading no where still untouched over a year from the, quote, groundbreaking, unquote, for the Marina District. You know the foreign origin of the best recent investment in Toledo? Michigan. As in Lansing, from whence come the investors in the beautiful new Standart Lofts. Yet Hizzoner insists on continuing to court folks from the Pacific Rim. The country-crush Mikey P. seems to have on China, given the lack of results, frustrates John and his ilk.
Take heed of the ancient wisdom, Mayor Bell. What you need is a healthy dose of humility. Get out from behind the tinted windows of your rise to prominence and really get to know John and his neighbors, who continue to struggle even as the recession slowly lifts its crushing weight from the Swamp.
Or like Icarus, your fall may be even swifter than your flight.
