By Rosalie Tirella
This is why people hate politicians – this is why voters have a “Throw the bums out!” mentality.
Case in point: my meeting yesterday with Holden’s own “Lew” Evangelidis. (or maybe in Lew’s case, it should be: “Please God, don’t let this bum in!”
State Rep. “Lew” Evangelidis is running for Worcester County sheriff, and in my almost 10 years of publishing InCity Times and dealing with politicians of all political stripes and leanings, I have never ever met a pol who was more amped up, revved up, possibly coked up! I have never been more turned off by a politician. This guy is every pol stereotype come spookily to life: fast, fast, smooth talker; making no effort to be personable, get to know you (me). AND THEN THE KICKER: Practically right off the bat Lew says to me: If I – InCity Times – endorse him for sheriff, then he will take out an ad with me!
He said something like: And on my ad I can say endorsed by InCity Times!
I wanted to spit on him. No politican has ever treated me with such disrespect. InCity Times may be poor, we may be downtrodden but we are not stupid or bribe-able. Memo to Lew Evangelidis: INCITY TIMES CANNOT BE BOUGHT!
And all the good will I brought into the meeting evaporated on the spot.
We sat down at a table after Lew weakly shook my hand (why do politicans always have such soft hands?!). Then Lew exploded: he talked up his wonderful self and how he was best buddies with Dismas House’s Dave McMahon, and how he did this and that. rat tat a tat. I thought to myself, how can you, Lew, be for all these prisoner rehabilitation programs (Dismas House), if for the past 10 years as a state rep you have VOTED AGAINST such programs? In typical Republican fashion! But you said you told Dave you would back him if he had his troops vote for you … .
How many deals are you making? Never have I seen this tit for tat so blatantly out there. But hey, fast talkin’ politicians DO this all the time!
During our meeting Evangelidis dumped on Governor Deval Patrick for not slashing away at more state programs – he complained that Patrick just pared away at programs every so slowly and used stimulus money to keep our state going. He should have slashed away with a machete, it it were up to Lew.
That would not have been a good thing. Governor Patrick did the right thing – the humane thing. Patrick’s smallish cuts/steps meant state workers who cared for the disabled or elederly or kids or the poor were able to keep their jobs and when new money trickled in Patrick kept them on the payroll. He was – and still is – hoping the economy turns around. And when it does – and it will – Patrick will not have canibalized state services the way Lew Evangelidis and the Republicans would have.
And the state IS in excellent shape compared to the rest of the country. Our bond rating is great and our public schools tops in the nation – to mention just a few great things Patrick has done.
Why be a Neandethal and wreck on of the country’s most progressive states?
But I digress.
There was just something so creepy about this Lew Evangelidis! He was so ON! Like I said – we met at a local Donkun’ Donuts to talk about ads and where he stands on the issues. It is nice, when you walk into a coffee shop, to have a SANE person greet you. It is even nicer to have that sane person offer to buy you a cup of coffee.
Not Lew.
Then when it was time to leave, and I noticed Lew was checking out some hot babe in the DD coffee shop. Maybe he would have bought her a cup of joe.
Being overly ambitous is like greed or adiction or … Lew Evangelidis.
Then it was time to leave. Lew flew out of the Dunkins Donuts like a politican who has been in campaign mode since 1977. I was then able to go to the DD counter and buy myself a cup of coffee and a most excellent pumpkin muffin.