Washougal’s council races: An Either/Or affair?
Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard came to mind Friday morning as I read comments Washougal Mayor Sean Guard made underneath an article I wrote about the city’s upcoming council elections.
More precisely, the name of a Kierkegaard book came to mind.
This might seem odd at first glance, I realize. What is a 21st century Cajun-American doing referencing a 19th century Danish philosopher? Bear with me.
Guard mentioned he believed the council races in Washougal would “be more about philosophy than anything else.” You can read his full comments by clicking here and scrolling down.
Guard’s use of the term philosophy and his comments about councilman Jon Russell afterward brought to mind Kierkegaard’s seminal work, Either/Or.
The Washougal council races seem to be shaping up as an Either/Or proposition, as in either you vote for Guard’s candidates or you vote for those Russell supports.
Of course free will exists in Washougal, like everywhere else, and I would expect voters would make their decisions on a candidate by candidate basis.
Guard says he favors candidates who will make decisions that are best for Washougal, as opposed to decisions based on ideology. Russell says he favors fiscally conservative candidates who will best guide the city through the recession.
The two men differ on all four council races.
Here’s a breakdown:
Position 2: Guard favors incumbent Rod Morris; Russell favors challenger Caryn Plinski.
Position 4: Guard favors challenger Joyce Lindsay; Russell favors incumbent Michael Delavar.
Position 5: Guard favors challenger Niki Anderson; Russell favors incumbent Jennifer McDaniel.
Position 7: Guard favors incumbent Molly Coston; Russell favors challenger Connie Jo Freeman.
It’s important to note I am only aware of Russell formally endorsing one candidate, Freeman. He voiced support for the other three candidates in the comments section of the aforementioned Washougal council election story I wrote.
So what do you think? Are Washougal’s council races an Either/Or proposition? And should I have bypassed Kierkegaard’s Either/Or and referenced Portland singer-songwriter Elliott Smith’s Either/Or album instead?
