Maybe I’m just in a mood to boil my blood today. An article in the Asheville Citizen-Times announces Brownie Newman will not be seeking reelection for Asheville City Council. Newman apparently has decided he would prefer to push a green agenda through the marketplace than government. So far, so good. Newman has always demonstrated economic sense. Maybe I’ll be sending him a resume.

But then, the article explains Newman will continue to use government to “make a difference.” He was “particularly proud” of city council’s leadership in the field of energy independence.

Newman also said he was proud of work to protect the environment, extend benefits to same-sex couples employed by the city and investing [sic.] in repairing the city’s water line infrastructure while holding property taxes in line.

The list of candidates running for council includes three whose names I have never heard while attending every city council meeting and reading every staff report for about the last eight years. They are duly qualified for their involvement. There are another two whose names I had not known until they started to run this time.

One candidate is really excited about the progress the city has made in giving gay people more rights. He wants to extend greenways and fight electronic billboards. Another just wants to make a difference.