Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign

I’ve learned lots of new things as I have moved forward with my campaign over the past year or so. I’ve learned, for instance, that despite what people may think, most folks are very polite and respectful when you knock on their door to ask for their vote.  I’ve knocked on several thousand doors in the past months, and I’ve only had three occasions when people were out-and-out rude to me.  I’ve also learned that when you knock on a door and a voice from inside tells you to “come on in,” you probably should think twice before doing so.  You might not be ready for what awaits you inside.  Most surprisingly, I’ve learned that the Five Man Electrical Band had it right back in 1971.

For the young readers out there, 1971 was the year in which the Five Man Electrical Band released the single titled simply “Signs.” The lyrics to the chorus of that song, in which the band laments the proliferation of signs everywhere one looks, are:

“Sign, sign, everywhere a sign, blockin’ out the scenery, breakin’

my mind, do this don’t do that, can’t you read the sign?”

I have to admit that I am a bit embarrassed as I drive around Marshall County these days.  Pretty much everywhere you look, there is a sign promoting my candidacy, or the candidacy of my opponent.  In many instances, signs from both camps are located within a few feet of each other.  I score a new location, and within a few days he has a sign close by.  I put out a yard sign, so he puts out a bigger one.  He puts out one, so I put out two next door.  Driving through Glen Dale on Route 2, you can’t look in any direction without seeing multiple signs for both of us.  Former Miss West Virginia Paige Madden recently lamented that even when she closed her eyes, she still sees the signs.

I truly wish that our system worked differently.  I wish that we could rely upon the fact that voters are going to be familiar with all candidates in a race, that they would study each candidate’s experience and qualifications, and cast their vote accordingly.  Unfortunately, that just isn’t always the case.  In some circumstances, success in an election depends more upon name recognition than it does upon who is the best person for the job.  Candidates therefore feel compelled to get their names “out there” in every way possible, and the signs spring up like weeds in a garden.

If there is any consolation here, it is that the signs for the judicial race will disappear in just a few weeks.  The election for this office is now non-partisan, so it will be finally decided on May 10.  Within a few days of that date, it’s safe to assume that most of the signs for my race will be gone.  A week or so after that, the 17-year locusts will emerge.  I never thought I would see the day that I was looking forward to the locusts.

Posted in In the Community | No Comments »