Time Is Now

There are many good people running for office locally. It is time to take stock of the situation facing El Paso as a political and economic community.

With so many families affected by the out-of-control Justice Department and the incessant harassment and coercion of defendants to obtain guilty pleas, it is an opportunity for new candidates to make important changes in the way things are done.

First, it is imperative the sniping and back biting stop. Although there are some folks that love to play the holier-than-thou role, it is best to be humble, generous and forgiving. "There, but for the grace of God, go I" should be the mantra of those in office.

Second, transparency is not difficult but it is extremely politically tortuous. As long as the primary consideration is reelection, there can be no transparency regardless of the lip-service coming from elected officials.

On the economic front, the reality is that the economy will continue to slow and eventually contract. This means no more general bonds or certificates of deposit. It also means the potential loss of investments. In a contracting economy, the expansionary philosophy of tax and spend will have to come to an end, not because, elected officials choose it but rather because they will be forced into it.

Therefore, it is imperative to prepare. 2012 and 2013 will be unlike any two years in the city's history. The sooner we deal with that reality the better off we will be.

I strongly urge the state delegation to begin working on getting the onerous state surcharges and other impositions off the back of the weakest. You are playing with matches in a tinderbox if you continue to pressure those currently without work and no prospect of improvement.

If the new crop of politicians proceed under the 'normalcy bias' (that all things will keep moving along and eventually right themselves), there will be hell to pay both in terms of long-term political success and in terms of public suffering among the population.

Crime has been stable only because of the strong family ethic here. However, economic deprivation and the stresses associated with unemployment and increasing family dysfunction will result in devastating consequences for the community as a whole.

I urge all my good friends running for office to do the right thing by this community.