Another One Of Those Annoying "Thanksgiving" Essays

Another One Of Those Annoying "Thanksgiving" Essays By Walter Moore, Candidate for Mayor of Los Angeles, WalterMooreForMayor.com November 24, 2008 Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays not just for the hours of nonstop gluttony, but also because life's better when you count your blessings. So let me subject you to one of those nauseatingly maudlin but mercifully short "thank you" recitations: Thanks to the 890 or so of you who signed the petition to put my name on the ballot for Mayor. Today I got the good news from the Clerk's office that, thanks to you, my name will be on the ballot on March 3, 2009. I really appreciate your making the time to sign the petition. I know that many of you drove a long way to sign -- on a Saturday, no less. I know your time is valuable, and I appreciate your spending it to help. Thanks to Adam, Alf, Ann, Bari, Carol, Daniel, David, the other David, and the third David, Gina, Harry, Jonn, Judy, Julie, Karen, Kathleen, Kevin, Lora, Madelaine, Maryanne, Mike, Richard, Robert, Sharon, Suzanne, and Sydney for spending your valuable time gathering signatures. There is no way I could have gotten all of those signatures without your help. You talked the talk AND walked the walk. You showed your word is your bond. Remind me to have statues of each of you put up around town. And not those bronze ones that get stolen, but something like fiberglass. Thanks to 1,500 or so of you who have put your money where your mouth is by contributing money to my campaign. Thanks to you, I could buy radio ads, bumper stickers, and yard signs, and rent conference rooms to hold rallies. Without your financial support, our fellow voters wouldn't know they have a choice. Thanks to you, we qualified for matching funds and made Villaraigosa "chicken out" on debating me. (But we'll still try to shame him into it.) Let me also give a special thanks to those of you who contributed really early -- like Mel and Gloria -- when there was no assurance of matching funds. It's tough to be the first couple on the dance floor, as it were. Thanks to the thousands of you who subscribe to the newsletter, and who forward it to friends and family. This person-to-person contact is hugely important. It spreads the word to people who otherwise wouldn't know about the campaign. Thanks to Doug McIntyre, Kevin James, Terry Anderson, and Rob Marinko for the public service they perform by actually reporting on local politics, in contrast to others in the local media who merely recycle and re-package career politicians' press releases as news. You guys are Radio Free Europe for Vichy California. (Hey, not only do I mix my metaphors, but I do so anachronistically.) Thanks to Mrs. Moore, my family and my boss for the incredible support you have shown me. Wow. Thanks to David Berger, Kathleen Evans, Craig Wilson and James Weston for answering my call for citizens to step up and form a slate to run for office. (I hope the rest of you will visit my hope page at WalterMooreForMayor.com where you can learn more about these candidates for City Attorney, City Controller, and Council Members for Council Districts 11 and 15, respectively.) And, finally, thanks to the Shaw Family for the outstanding and amazing example of altruism, bravery and dedication you show the rest of us every day. Each day, you give new meaning to Jamiel's life. You inspire the rest of us to fight so that this City's children can grow up knowing what "normal" is -- normal, like having your biggest worry on Thanksgiving as a 10-year-old be whether you'll get a drumstick. Thank you all and bless you for your help. Just imagine what we could be thankful for this time next year if we work hard to win this election.