One-Term Mayor Ballard

I gave in and went to Family Christmas today. Despite it all, none of 'em are getting any younger.

I did get a nice "every time I see a hunting show, they're using AR-15's. Why do they need an assault weapon to hunt deer?" lecture from a nephew who ought to know better; he looked nonplussed when I pointed out A) the 5.56 x 45 is less powerful than many "deer rifle" cartridges and B) the appeal of the AR-15 platform is the flexibility and the sheer number of gadgets and widgets available for it. (Not to mention they're pretty cheap if you assemble your own). Didn't address the "need" thing 'cos the guy isn't talking about justifying ownership, he honestly seems to think it's some sort of laser-guided full-auto critter exploder.

An okay time otherwise and I have a very smart and funny set of nieces, nephews and great-niece and nephew.

But that's not what I'm here to write about. Nope. See, Mom X lives in adjacent small town another county and I could help but notice that all, a-double-l all of the streets were plowed. Clear of snow.

Meanwhile, down here in The Big City? Not so much. Oh, the main roads were plowed, the secondaries got a quick pass of the blade, a lot of salt and traffic did most of the work. Back where Roseholme Cottage lurks, nothing. You're several blocks in on icy ruts. Days, there's a thin coating of slush, dirt and maybe some salt; a few hours after sunset, it's hard snow if you are lucky, slick ice if you're not.

And one-term Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard? He tells us we will only see a plow on residential streets if there's more than 6 inches of snowfall in a single event; otherwise, tough tootsies, Toots.

There's another two to three inches of snow headed our way next week, maybe more if the odds break wrong. In all likelihood, that means Roseholme Alley will become impassable without snowblower and shovel work. As for the streets leading out to the major thoroughfares, I can only hope by the time I dig my way out to them there will have been enough SUV traffic to clear a path. Got the picture?

Now multiply it by some hundreds of thousands, all over the city.

And that's why I write, "one-term Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard." Y'know, you can be pretty lousy on guns (and he is) and still stay mayor. You can have lousy cops and still stay mayor. Look at Chicago or Columbus; look at Memphis. Look at at NYC! But you don't mess up on plowing the streets and get another turn.

Greg Ballard. Former Marine. Republican. What a disappointment. And the guy from the other team who replaces him will only be worse.