Editorial: Political blight

Do as I say, not as I do.

Sadly, candidates for office continue to show how aptly that old adage applies to the political scene.

Fall River City Councilor-elect Steve Camara has removed his "thank-you" signs from Fall River streets after being questioned about his contradictory actions. The self-described anti-sign candidate said he wanted to show gratitude to voters for their support in his successful run for council. So he erected eight large signs - reading "Steve Camara thanks you" - around the city.

His was a noble effort, to be sure. But couldn't he have come up with a better method for reaching out to supporters (a full-page ad in his local newspaper, for example?)

Granted, it's not as if Camara defaced St. Anne's Church. Campaign signs are fairly benign examples of urban blight that residents have grown so used to, they're hardly noticed anymore. But the point is, he brought it up and campaigned rigorously on it. During his campaign, he criticized his opponents for littering the city with campaign signs, which he called a blight on the city.

Camara's explanation about erecting his own signs did little to clear up confusion over the contradiction: "The city is cluttered for months before - even a year before - elections every year," he said. "My signs went up after the election."

Oh. Apparently, campaign signs are only blights on the city before an election.

Voters don't ask much of political candidates. They want ideas. They want passion. But mostly, they want honesty and consistency. Camara's signs may be a minor issue, but such small issues are sometimes indicative of a larger problem. If he isn't consistent about the little things, how will he fare on major issues?