Look Ahead Starkville!
Republicans and Democrats don’t agree on much. We are increasingly partisan in our politics and divided on many fronts.
That’s why when Republicans and Democrats agree on anything, we need to sit up and take notice. They agree that Starkville would benefit from changing to the mayor-council form of government.
I have had the opportunity to discuss this issue with many people lately and the most pleasant result has been the encouragement this idea has received from people on the left and the right. From staunch Republican businessmen to retired African-American women, support is building for changing the form of government in Starkville.
This is fitting because there is nothing ideological about making our city government more effective and paving the way for more economic growth. Those are benefits Starkville can reap if we change to the mayor-council form of government.
The movement for this change now has a name, “Look Ahead Starkville.” Find us on Facebook and like us! And be sure to check out our cool new logo.
“Look Ahead” was a motto of the late Senator John C. Stennis, and those words adorned a sign on his desk. The USS JOHN C. STENNIS aircraft carrier adopted the motto when it was commissioned in 1995. The motto is future-oriented.
“Look Ahead Starkville” implies that changing the form of city government is not about the present or the past; it is about the future. “Look Ahead Starkville” is not concerned with who is currently in office. “Look Ahead Starkville” is about changing the framework that gives us the freedom to think beyond our immediate concerns to how we can work together more effectively in the future.
Think about our form of government as a railroad track. We have been traveling on the same track for a long time and gotten about as much mileage as we can out it. It served us well for a long while, but we have outgrown it. We need to rip up the old track and put down a high-speed rail track for a 21st century train. We need to replace our current form of government with the more modern mayor-council form that is more suitable for larger cities.
We do not know who will drive that new train in the future. In other words, we do not know who our future elected city leaders will be in 10, 15 or 20 years from now. But our children and grandchildren will be riding on that new train, unless we bequeath them the old, rickety one. The leaders and citizens of Starkville in the future need us today to install a new framework of government to make their lives better.
This is an opportunity that comes along maybe once in a generation. We as citizens of Starkville, who love our city and want to see it continue to improve, need to seize this opportunity. We need to get on the right track. Look Ahead Starkville!
Brother Rogers is a guest columnist for the Starkville Daily News.
That’s why when Republicans and Democrats agree on anything, we need to sit up and take notice. They agree that Starkville would benefit from changing to the mayor-council form of government.
I have had the opportunity to discuss this issue with many people lately and the most pleasant result has been the encouragement this idea has received from people on the left and the right. From staunch Republican businessmen to retired African-American women, support is building for changing the form of government in Starkville.
This is fitting because there is nothing ideological about making our city government more effective and paving the way for more economic growth. Those are benefits Starkville can reap if we change to the mayor-council form of government.
The movement for this change now has a name, “Look Ahead Starkville.” Find us on Facebook and like us! And be sure to check out our cool new logo.
“Look Ahead” was a motto of the late Senator John C. Stennis, and those words adorned a sign on his desk. The USS JOHN C. STENNIS aircraft carrier adopted the motto when it was commissioned in 1995. The motto is future-oriented.
“Look Ahead Starkville” implies that changing the form of city government is not about the present or the past; it is about the future. “Look Ahead Starkville” is not concerned with who is currently in office. “Look Ahead Starkville” is about changing the framework that gives us the freedom to think beyond our immediate concerns to how we can work together more effectively in the future.
Think about our form of government as a railroad track. We have been traveling on the same track for a long time and gotten about as much mileage as we can out it. It served us well for a long while, but we have outgrown it. We need to rip up the old track and put down a high-speed rail track for a 21st century train. We need to replace our current form of government with the more modern mayor-council form that is more suitable for larger cities.
We do not know who will drive that new train in the future. In other words, we do not know who our future elected city leaders will be in 10, 15 or 20 years from now. But our children and grandchildren will be riding on that new train, unless we bequeath them the old, rickety one. The leaders and citizens of Starkville in the future need us today to install a new framework of government to make their lives better.
This is an opportunity that comes along maybe once in a generation. We as citizens of Starkville, who love our city and want to see it continue to improve, need to seize this opportunity. We need to get on the right track. Look Ahead Starkville!
Brother Rogers is a guest columnist for the Starkville Daily News.