From a reader on my Outtakes: Grudge Politics: Kudos to you, Rick!
Finally, someone had the guts to “tell it like it is†around here. My wife is a 5th generation Pensacolian.
When I moved here with her 9 years ago [after 15 years in Hawaii, following 15 years in Silicon Valley], she warned me that progress in this town is S_L_O_W… And that politics is run by “the good ‘ol boysâ€.
But nobody talks about it much. Except the “NIMBY’sâ€. And the “WCIGM’s –[ pronuunced “wikgmâ€s; “Who Cares I Got Mine†— my neologysm}… anyway,,,
We just lumber along, year after year. And wallow in the same old stuff. And watch the out-migration of our families and friends who can’t find jobs.
Today happens to be “Mothers Dayâ€. We moved back here from Maui to be with her daughters and grandkids. They’ve all since relocated from Pensacola to Tampa, for better jobs.
What a travesty! All the genuine, valuable resources of this area – the weather; the gulf, the bays, the beaches, the universities, the land, and oh, the talent! – being so grossly underutilized.
I just wonder where we could go if the Nimbys became “YIMBYs†[Yes in My Back Yard], and “WCIGMs†changed to mean, [Why Can’t I Get Moreâ€].
Just imagine what we could accomplish if all that negative energy was put to constructive use. I hope you continue to tell like it is.
-Tom
