By Dee Richard
“Let the games begin” is the ancient clarion call of the Roman and Greek emperors signaling the official start of entertainment for the masses, unless you were one of the ones being fed to the lions. It is not different from today’s bloodsport, otherwise known as politics.
Come to think of it, though, some of our duly elected officials are not all that entertaining. The ancient games were those requiring skills, for they were to the death. The similarities are endless and it gives credence to the old bromide, “No matter how things change, they still remain the same,” an enduring constant. The political games are lots of fun for spectators and gamesmen alike.
In Game No. 1, in southeast Queens, we have Councilman Leroy Comrie being challenged by Helen Cooper-Gregory, who has held several successful fund-raisers recently.
While it is true that Leroy only beat her by 171 votes last time, he is now the incumbent and he is Archie Spigner’s favorite candidate. Archie, as we all know, is a powerhouse in southeast Queens.
Lots of luck, Helen, you are going to need it since you are facing a tough uphill battle. You and your campaign crew are going to have to work awfully hard to pull this one off. Then again, nothing is impossible.
In Game No. 2, also in southeast Queens, we have another incumbent. Councilman Allan Jennings is being challenged by off again, on again candidate Yvonne Reddick. When asked at the recent Queens Chamber of Commerce St. Patrick’s Day luncheon, “Are you or aren’t you running?” her reply was, “I really haven’t decided yet.”
Another possible scenario for Allan is if Judge Gerard Rosenberg’s decision is upheld regarding the City Council’s tweaking of the term limits law. If upheld, this would allow Tom White, who has been salivating in the background, to run for his old council seat again. That would be a tough row to hoe, Allan.
In Game No. 3, Florence Fisher is having a fund-raiser on April 14 at Angelos on Main Street in Flushing. Her target is Councilman Jim Gennaro. Jim takes his councilmanic seat very seriously and has been working hard to serve his constituents. Florence is a “dark horse.” No one seems to know that much about her and her qualifications to define her political aspirations, but stay tuned.
In Game No. 4, the new Flushing state Assembly district was supposedly carved out to become an Asian seat, representing the fast-growing Asian population in that area.
But the wonks successfully pitted two Asian candidates against each other. You guessed it; they ended up canceling each other out in the Democratic primary. This made it possible for a non-Asian, Barry Grodenchick, to beat both Asian candidates and slide into victory even though he doesn’t live in their district— or has he moved into it yet? I haven’t heard, but the election law allows one year to make the move.
The rumor mill has it that Jimmy Meng plans to take Barry on again and trounce him this time. Jimmy plans to unite the Asian communities behind one candidate, rather than allowing themselves to split their votes among the different Asian factions.
If Jimmy is able to pull it off, it could spell trouble for Barry; then again, John Liu enjoys being the one and only elected Asian in Queens County. The question is will John Liu help another Asian to get elected, or will he back Barry if only to protect his status? Time will tell.
That’s all the time we have for games this week, but as things are starting to warm up there will be lots more to comment on. “Tis the season for hat tossing in the political ring.”
Back to basics. The entire New York State Community Newspaper Association had its annual spring convention in Saratoga Springs April 11 and April 12. I hated to miss out on this weekend’s cloak and dagger stuff. But catching up on what’s new in the world of journalism is important. Otherwise, how would we be able to disseminate all this “you-can’t-just-live-without-it information and gossip?”
You remember the Alice Roosevelt Longworth drill, call me at 718-767-6484 or fax me at 718-746-0066 if you care to share invitations or information about your upcoming events.
Till next week,
Dee Richard
