Cary Mayoral Candidate McAlister's Disability

[obha]

I read in the 10/29 edition of the News And Observer that McAlister has a mild form of Multiple Sclerosis (MS), which forced his early retirement from the banking industry.

I am impressed that the issue hasn't arisen in any part of negative advertising on any of his opponents' campaigns.

I wonder if this is cause for concern in a Mayoral candidate. I read that one of the symptoms of MS is extreme fatigue. It worries me that we have a candidate, who when elected into office, may be too tired to carry out his duties.

Any thoughts?

[Karen]

I read in the 10/29 edition of the News And Observer that McAlister has a mild form of Multiple Sclerosis (MS), which forced his early retirement from the banking industry.

I am impressed that the issue hasn't arisen in any part of negative advertising on any of his opponents' campaigns.

I wonder if this is cause for concern in a Mayoral candidate. I read that one of the symptoms of MS is extreme fatigue. It worries me that we have a candidate, who when elected into office, may be too tired to carry out his duties.

Any thoughts?

If you really want to learn about MS one of the best places to get information would be through the National Multiple Sclerosis Society right here in Raleigh. My friend Kaye works there and would be an excellent resource for any information you may need.

Having worked with many MS patients myself, it is extremely difficult to "generalize" any one person's condition. MS affects everyone differently. From serverly dibilitating conditions to mild symptoms. My hairdresser has had MS for the past 11 years and I'd say she'd do fine as a Mayor as far as taking just her MS symptoms into consideration.

So my opinion and feeling on the subject is that his MS should really have no bearing on his ability to perform his duties as Mayor. And I feel that if for some reason his symptoms are exacerbated during his term he would look at his options, so to speak, as far as stepping down if he felt he needed to.

Again, the best thing to do would be to learn more about MS and the varying degrees that one can have.

Karen Griffin

[kellyc]

Its concerning, but not a deal breaker. Im not a doctor, and I dont know a whole lot about MS. My only concern would be (again not knowing) is if it would get progressively worse. He and his family have to make the decision if it is so bad that he cant do the duties of being mayor. But I think if he thinks there will be less stress as Mayor, then he might be kidding himself. It depends.

Kelly

[Karen]

Its concerning, but not a deal breaker. Im not a doctor, and I dont know a whole lot about MS. My only concern would be (again not knowing) is if it would get progressively worse. He and his family have to make the decision if it is so bad that he cant do the duties of being mayor. But I think if he thinks there will be less stress as Mayor, then he might be kidding himself. It depends.

Kelly

This is where "generalizing" MS is unfair for Mr. McAllister. I do know a lot about MS and the symptoms are just so varied that we can't just lump these folks into one catagory. How can we be sure that ANYONE is going to remain healthy throughout his or her term? MS can be put into catagories of remissive and progressive. We don't even know where he falls. Again, I've known, do know, and have worked with MS patients for years. Some are completely dependent and some are completely independent. I have a gut feeling that Mr. McAllister would not be running for mayor if he felt his MS would be a factor in his ability to serve his term. And I agree Kelly, if it does progress, I think he would make the right decision on whether or not he needed to step down.

Karen Griffin

[TJ]

This is much ado about nothing. It could easily be said that his opponent is female and more subject to breast cancer than he is as a male. Equally far fetched but a point never the less. The truth is that neither candidate knows what their medical condition will be two years from now nor even if they will be alive at that time. FDR seemed to handle adversity pretty well didn't he?

As for the question of whether Ernie McAlister will be hurt by the email one of his contributors sent out, don't forget that his opponent had a far greater problem to deal with in her first campaign. She did agree to pay back the money that helped get her elected and that was ruled improper but the issue is/was still there. The problem with trying to capitalize on an error like that is that your own petticoats have to be pristine and, in this case, are not.

[Anonymous]

The same people making an issue over Ernie having MS would explode with fury if anyone dare suggest JULIEFORCARY! shouldn't be mayor because she's a woman and might get pregnant while mayor.

This is pettiness, if not cheap shot, dirty campaigning by the JULIEFORCARY! camp.

Sadly, it's getting predictable.

[Brent]

This is pettiness, if not cheap shot, dirty campaigning by the JULIEFORCARY! camp.

Sadly, it's getting predictable.

Sorry, John, you're wrong there. Julie's campaign, to my knowledge, has never once raised the issue. When the N&O raised the issue, the article I read had exactly zero "cheap shots" from anyone.

[dhyatt]

[snip]

This is pettiness, if not cheap shot, dirty campaigning by the JULIEFORCARY! camp.
[snip]

Julie's campaign has not even mentioned this and continues to stay quiet on the issue. I'ts something that many of us have known (myself included) becuase it was one of the first things Ernie said to his supporters (as noted in the N&O). The only reason I allowed it stay on the forum is because the thread quickly took an honorable, non-judgemental approach. I am far more concerned about things I've heard (and will not pass on here) about all candidates than I am about this. The fact is we have 4 excellent people running for office with clear policy differences between them. There is certainly enough information for voters to decide whom to vote for without having to get into personal issues.

[Anonymous]

Close-minded people like to stereotype people with disabilities (genetic or environmentally induced) and would probably lock these individuals away if they had their way. However the disabled need role models just like any other subgroup. No- though the disabled may appear, speak or walk differently, they are still human beings and should be respected.

Ernie appears to be in great shape and could probably beat me, Julie, Harold and Michael in the quarter mile. If anything, just the fact that he still wants to serve as Mayor after being diagnosed with MS is an attribute that should be admired. This should not be a campaign issue.

I am also excited to see that Karen Moye-Stallings, an advocate for people with disabilities who has cerebral palsy has made it into a runoff for Raleigh's District B Council seat.

A couple of days ago I saw a disabled veteran with a missing limb working in a grocery store. There is a mute man that I respect who works at the local Home Depot. Though they never said anything to me, I can tell by the expression in his eyes that they really care about serving customers unlike many workers today. It would have been easy for them to drown in self-pity, given up and live off the government dough.

Professor Stephen Hawking, diagnosed with ALS and a recipient of twelve honoree degrees states: "... Before my condition had been diagnosed, I had been very bored with life. There had not seemed to be anything worth doing. But shortly after I came out of hospital, I dreamt that I was going to be executed. I suddenly realized that there were a lot of worthwhile things I could do if I were reprieved. Another dream that I had several times, was that I would sacrifice my life to save others. After all, if I were going to die anyway, it might as well do some good. But I didn't die. In fact, although there was a cloud hanging over my future, I found to my surprise, that I was enjoying life in the present more than before." http://www.hawking.org.uk/text/disable/disable.html Christopher Reeve, who nearly severed his spine in a horse-riding accident, disclaims in his book titled "Still Me", "… I don't know if I could have pulled through. Because it had dawned on me that I was going to be a huge burden to everybody, that I had ruined my life and everybody else's." But fortunately Professor Hawking and our real life Superman stuck it out and have made wonderful contributions to humanity.

I applaud McAlister, in spite of his recently reported medical condition for stepping up and running for Mayor.

[Anonymous]

Look Don, the fact that you are a supporter of JULIEFORCARY! is clear.

Let's be sober for a moment though shall we? The NandO is to the Democratic Party in this state what Tass and Pravda were to the Communist Party in the Soviet Union. Nothing more, nothing less. When the Democrats pushed slavery and segregation, so did the NandO. When the Democrats push nationalized health care and Smart Start so does the NandO.

The NandO is NOT an objective source of news and information, it is a tool for and about the Donkeycrats and their candidates. The NandO will do whatever it takes to get JULIEFORCARY! and other Triangle Donkeycrats in office.

I find it hard to believe the NandO picked up this tidbit of info without a nudge and a wink. Planting nasty stories is a stunt as old as elective politics.

JULIEFORCARY! and her campaign trolls will be run this attack for all the mileage they can get. Especially if they can maintain plausible deniability about it's origins.

Maybe JULIEFORCARY! would be willing to make a public statement disavowing any responsibility on her part and on her campaign's part for tipping off the NandO? Perhaps she could round it out by assuring us she and her campaign staffers will cease using that as an attack on Ernie as well. It'd take her all of 2 minutes Don.

:wink:

[dhyatt]

Look Don, the fact that you are a supporter of JULIEFORCARY! is clear.

[snip]

Maybe JULIEFORCARY! would be willing to make a public statement disavowing any responsibility on her part and on her campaign's part for tipping off the NandO? Perhaps she could round it out by assuring us she and her campaign staffers will cease using that as an attack on Ernie as well. It'd take her all of 2 minutes Don.

:wink:

There was no tipping off to be done. Both the N&O and The Cary News have known about this from the beginning. Equating the fact that Ernie's MS was "outed" by the N&O with an attack by Julie's camp implies you believe Ernie's MS just may be a liability and that's too bad. Otherwise you (and anyone else) could just as cynically claim that Ernie decided to try to get some of the "sympathy" vote. And because I can play hardball with the best of them; maybe this was suddenly "reported" to help deflect nagging rumors that Ernie was directly involved in several bad loans and mounting losses that Capital Bank is going through - and that that was the real reason for his early retirement. My support for anyone has been tepid to this point. However, you're working hard to change that... :?

[kellyc]

John

If a candidate is having a press conference to announce his candidacy as Ernie did and says:




"After McAlister, 46, retired from Capital Bank, he launched his campaign in June. Standing before nearly 200 people at Montague Lake, he explained why he needed a lifestyle change.

"Many of you are aware that five years ago I was diagnosed with MS," McAlister said he told the crowd..."

How did Julie tip off the press?

Kelly

[obha]

As titillating as political conspiracy theories and campaign smear tactics are as a topic of discussion (i mean come on ...), let's set those aside, and talk about whether or not you feel Mr. McAlister will be able to perform his duties as Mayor.

Job Description From the NandO [1-Oct-2003]:
CARY MAYOR

Annual salary: $12,995

Hours: Part-time, four-year term

Perquisites: Not many. Must share office and desk with council members. No assigned parking space.

http://www.newsobserver.com/front/digest/story/2911300p-2677971c.html

Ok, so I feel a little sheepish starting this thread.

I will say that I strongly believe that personal matters specifically pertaining to the officials that we elect into office should have a strong influence upon a voter's decision-making process.

To take a side-track to illustrate this point, it's disappointing to me that Ron Margiotta was elected to the Wake School Board, especially considering he didn't go to college.

To argue the relevance of personal issues affecting professional efficacy as it pertains to the Cary Mayoral race: I think it's fair to ask the question, as un-PC, or uncomfortable the issue may be, because I feel that voting an official into office results in an act of reciprocation between the candidate and her constituents. If I vote you in, I want to make sure not only that you'll do what you said you were going to do, but even more simply, that you will be able to perform the minimum requirements of the job description.

I'll end this post by saying that as an informed voter, I now feel that the issue of fatigue should not be a factor for Mr. McAlister, since anyone in this role won't be expected to put in monster hours if he can't, or even if he doesn't want to.

[Brent]

I find it hard to believe the NandO picked up this tidbit of info without a nudge and a wink. Planting nasty stories is a stunt as old as elective politics.

Hey, John, why don't you just ask the reporter? He's Demorris Lee. I've met him. Nice guy and seems like a fine reporter. I'm sure he'd be interested in answering your ridiculous accusation. He's demlee@newsobserver.com. Ask him. I have a much higher opinion of him, myself.

Maybe JULIEFORCARY! would be willing to make a public statement disavowing any responsibility on her part and on her campaign's part for tipping off the NandO? Perhaps she could round it out by assuring us she and her campaign staffers will cease using that as an attack on Ernie as well. It'd take her all of 2 minutes Don.

:wink:

No one "tipped off" anyone. You're imagining things. In order to "cease" doing something, you have to begin in the first place. Please cite any "attacks" by Julie on Ernie over this issue. Good luck. Bet you don't find any.

[Anonymous]

Come on Brent, you and I and every other sober reader of this forum knows full well and good that a newspaper reporter will not divulge confidential sources.

There is NO WAY JULIEFORCARTY! or her staff would go on the record with a reporter in providing a tip like that. That removes her plausible deniability. Off the record and anonymous she or an underling can drop a hint and get the job done. :wink:

At which point Ernie has to make a pre-emptive strike and address the issue in public, regardless as to whether or not this private medical information is relevant to the campaign or not.

By the way, you really should be more careful of your defense of JULIEFORCARY! Brent, Don posted a news story today on this website in which she made statements proving my point about her campaign style (concerning the supposed anonymous donation 'scandal').

I pasted portions in another thread.

[Anonymous]

Brent,

Like I said, all it takes is a minute or two...she can take the issue off the table and assure the voters of Cary that she is better than that....all she has to do is utter a sentence or two to the effect that she does not believe nor support using Ernie's MS as an issue in this campaign by herself or by her staff.

That is all she has to do Brent. She can show us all she is above that type of sleazy campaigning.

[kellyc]

"I never questioned it," said Robison, a public administration specialist at Research Triangle Institute. "It's an issue between him, his family and his doctor. I never raised the issue and for me, it's not an issue that I consider my business."

[Brent]

Come on Brent, you and I and every other sober reader of this forum knows full well and good that a newspaper reporter will not divulge confidential sources.

There is NO WAY JULIEFORCARTY! or her staff would go on the record with a reporter in providing a tip like that. That removes her plausible deniability. Off the record and anonymous she or an underling can drop a hint and get the job done. :wink:

So, you asked him, did you? If you don't want to, I'll be happy to.

At which point Ernie has to make a pre-emptive strike and address the issue in public, regardless as to whether or not this private medical information is relevant to the campaign or not.

By the way, you really should be more careful of your defense of JULIEFORCARY! Brent, Don posted a news story today on this website in which she made statements proving my point about her campaign style (concerning the supposed anonymous donation 'scandal').

I pasted portions in another thread.

Saw it. Love how you picked the citations you liked and ignored the others.

[Brent]

Brent,

Like I said, all it takes is a minute or two...she can take the issue off the table and assure the voters of Cary that she is better than that....all she has to do is utter a sentence or two to the effect that she does not believe nor support using Ernie's MS as an issue in this campaign by herself or by her staff.

That is all she has to do Brent. She can show us all she is above that type of sleazy campaigning.

As Kelly has pointed out, she already has; you just choose to ignore it.

Please cite examples of "that type of sleazy campaigning".

[Anonymous]

Brent,

It doesn't matter how many times I post comments from JULIEFORCARY! or her staffers neither you nor any of of the other JULIEFORCARY! cult members are going to accept the fact that she is throwing muck around.

In todays mail I received two fliers, one from Ernie the other from JULIEFORCARY!.

Ernie never mentions his opponents directly or indirectly. He lists his priorities on one side of the card and on the other addresses the city's financial situation. Period.

JULIEFORCARY! has a paragraph beneath a photo of her which reads in part:

"We don't need to turn backt he clock in Cary. We don't need leadership who will create turmoil, havoc, and instability."

No matter how you may want to deny the obvious this is a personal attack on Ernie. She is NOT addressing any pressing issue of city business. This has nothing to do with city finances, budget priorities, or anything else. This is a smear against Ernie that he supposedly will cause all sorts of foul and nasty things to occur if elected. It is a cheap shot against his character and person.

JULIEFORCARY! has been wallowing in this type of filth all through this campaign.

It really is too bad she can't stick to the issues and run her campaign on the things that matter instead of firing off cheap shot after cheap shot at other candidates.

Oddly enough, it is JULIEFORCARY! who is being divisive where in that same postcard she says:

"Your vote could elect her the first woman Mayor of Cary."

So what. Does she believe that her sex makes her a better candidate than Ernie? If not why even bring it up if not to divide the electorate along trivial, unimportant matters like that? Should Jess Ward have run for Mayor claiming his race would have made him a better candidate? What difference does either make?

The funny thing is that that postcard came addressed to my wife, not me. I wonder if that postcard was addressed only to female voters in Cary.

That would be appallingly tacky, but predictable.

[Anonymous]

"My support for anyone has been tepid to this point. However, you're working hard to change that... "

That is utter nonsense Don.

If your support for a candidate/ is based on anything other than that candidate's record and position on the issues it is a good thing ~you~ aren't on the city council.

That is the type of justification for supporting a particular candidate I would expect to hear from some others here, certainly not you.

[Brent]

Ernie never mentions his opponents directly or indirectly. He lists his priorities on one side of the card and on the other addresses the city's financial situation. Period.

"We have all seen the friction on the Council in recent years. It strains our relationships in the region and clouds any vision of the future" (from a McAlister mailer). It would be reasonable to argue that this is an indirect reference to his opponent, a current Council member. It certainly is not about the town's financial situation. I doubt that you will consider this comparable to the citation you chose from Julie's mailer. Some might.

But saying that we have "puke politics", "smears" and "wallowing in filth" is, in my opinion, extreme, uncalled for and without basis.

[Anonymous]

Come on Brent. You wanted an example. I gave you one clear, unequivocal example. Now you want to drop the matter.

AGAIN:

JULIEFORCARY! has a paragraph beneath a photo of her which reads in part:

"We don't need to turn back the clock in Cary. We don't need leadership who will create turmoil, havoc, and instability."

No matter how you may want to deny the obvious this is a personal attack on Ernie. She is NOT addressing any pressing issue of city business. This has nothing to do with city finances, budget priorities, or anything else. This is a smear against Ernie that he supposedly will cause all sorts of foul and nasty things to occur if elected. It is a cheap shot against his character and person.

JULIEFORCARY! has been wallowing in this type of filth all through this campaign.

This is what she is saying NOW, in her race against Ernie.

Nice attempted dodge though. :wink:

[dhyatt]

[snip]

If your support for a candidate/ is based on anything other than that candidate's record and position on the issues it is a good thing ~you~ aren't on the city council.

[snip]

Yet. A candidate's record and position mean nothing unless the motivation behind them is understood. Julie has my support for one reason and one reason only - I believe her motivations are more straightforward and therefore more predictable than Ernie's. I believe Ernie would scale back our stream buffer and nitrogen runoff requirements if he thought he could. Fortunately, even if he wins, he won't be able to do that. Unfortunately, none of us can peer into the minds of others and check for ouselves the purity of their motivations. The only thing I have to go on are the personal conversations I've had with both of them. I feel Julie's been more honest with me than Ernie has. That's somewhat understandable given where I fit in the scheme of things and it's still the single overriding factor in my decision. There's a bit more to this than I care to share here so hopefully we can still get together sometime.

[Anonymous]

"I believe her motivations are more straightforward and therefore more predictable than Ernie's. "

You realize that that can easily be nothing more than an act don't you? Not all good actors are in Hollywood.

Besides, weren't you one of the one's that thought Clubber Lang was such a good deal 4 years ago?

[Brent]

Come on Brent. You wanted an example. I gave you one clear, unequivocal example. Now you want to drop the matter.

Actually, I've been trying for a long time to get an example to back up your much earlier claim that Julie is making Ernie's MS an issue. That's what's still missing, aside from some references to unspecified e-mail sources.

AGAIN:

JULIEFORCARY! has a paragraph beneath a photo of her which reads in part:

"We don't need to turn back the clock in Cary. We don't need leadership who will create turmoil, havoc, and instability."

AGAIN:

Ernie has a paragraph is some of his mailers which reads in part:

"We have all seen the friction on the Council in recent years. It strains our relationships in the region and clouds any vision of the future"

Is this an obvious personal attack on Julie? Is it addressing any pressing issue of town business? Does it have something to do with city finances, budget priorities or anything else? Is it a smear? A cheap shot? Personally, I hardly think so. And the statement you've cited from Julie's mailer, in my opinion, is hardly worthy of statements like "wallowing in filth". That's just over the top, don't you think?

[johnb]

It is both an insinuation that Ernie will be a Mayor that will tear this city apart.

She directed her commments SPECIFICALLY at him.

His comments were an admission of the reality of the past 4 years. He blamed no one person nor did he accuse anyone of being responsible for it.

It is ashame you are allowing your partisanship here to blind you to the point that you cannot hold your favored candidate accountable for her hateful rhetoric Brent.

[Brent]

It is ashame you are allowing your partisanship here to blind you to the point that you cannot hold your favored candidate accountable for her hateful rhetoric Brent.

I find both the cited statments comparable. I also find them both rather innocuous. I expect both campaigns probably laughed off the statements. As stated elsewhere, I believe that there is a natural inclination for people to believe that "they and their guys" are doing just fine things, whereas "the other guys" are attacking.

However, I find absolutely nothing coming from either campaign to be hateful or filthy or anything approaching such extremes. I think that such language goes quite a bit overboard.