By Treva Harper, Candidate for Amarillo City Council Place 2
So our City Council has reportedly made comparisons between the citizens of Amarillo and their children. This is very telling about how they look at us and our role in our city. I would like to explain how I see our relationship with the City Council using the nuclear family as a template.
To me, the people of the city are the “breadwinners” since they do the work and pay the taxes the city uses to pay our bills with. You are the ones who provide for the general welfare of the city or the “family” as I am describing it here.
The City Council is like the stay at home spouse that pays the bills, cleans the house and directs the children while the Breadwinner is out making the money the other individual is going to spend on the necessities for the home. If the second individual does not make good decisions, spends the Breadwinner’s money foolishly, or refuses to manage the household as the Breadwinner desires, they risk being replaced with another who will be responsible, properly manage the home and who will direct and watch over the children.
The children, in my analogy, are the many boards, agencies and offices that conduct the cities business. While one may take out the trash, another may trouble shoot the maintenance issues until the Breadwinner can come and fix it or call someone who can. Another folds the laundry or walks the dog while the other individual pays the bills and negotiates with contractors that are there to fix the plumbing or what ever issue needs repair.
When the day is done, the Breadwinner comes home to a clean house, with paid bills and working facilities. All because the other individual paid the bills and directed the children to take care of the things he couldn’t while he was out making the money to pay for it all.
So for anyone on the City Council to refer to the good citizens of Amarillo as “children” is, in my humble opinion, to reveal just how much they look down on us and disrespect the sacrifices we make to pay taxes and how much we should have a say in where the money is spent.
This is why we need to elect those who care about the city, who want to raise up the whole city and who will direct the cities business remembering that it is your hard eared money that pays for it all.
Note from the author: This is an analogy, meant to make a point about how our City Council operates in relation to the people and not to comment on family structures.
City Council/Photo by City of Amarillo