I was glad to see Taney Brazeal’s letter in last week’s Fairhope Courier and welcome it. People should write more letters about the issues they believe in, so even Taney’s tired old rhetoric of “shoot the messenger” and leave the poor mayor alone should appear next to factual, well-written letters about real issues and problems the city is facing.

Perhaps this is the beginning of an insightful dialog between Taney and me in which someone from the mayor’s camp will actually answer questions about unusual financial dealings or why certain developers get special favors and others don’t. Perhaps one of the mayor’s pals will explain what’s been going on in the police department and what all these battles over who controls it really mean.

As to the election, Taney, if you recall, I won the first round and had to be outspent nearly 8 to 1 in the last six weeks. Did you notice, Taney, that individuals, PACs and others who contributed handsomely to old Tim’s campaign have, since the election, received huge amounts of business using our tax dollars?

The editorial that appeared in last Wednesday’s Courier was all about freedom of speech and how for years people who groused about how bad Fairhope’s politics were, when invited speak openly in the newspaper about local issues, declined because they had to live and work here. What does that mean?

Years ago, when I was involved in trying (successfully) to stop illegal dumping in Fairhope, I was confronted on the street by a prominent businessman who angrily told me, “The problem with you, Mosher, is you don’t know when to shut up and look the other way.” You know, he’s right! I never have and never will shut up and look the other way if I think something is wrong, and I am so glad we have several courageous folks on the City Council who will not follow the Good Old Boy playbook and/or look the other way.

This isn’t the mayor and council disagreeing on policy, folks. This is people out to return our government to all of us and not just the special few. The mayor has fought each and every action the council has taken toward any form of shared responsibility, to the point where any hope of cooperation seems remote.

No, ladies and gentlemen, this has to do with power and control, who’s had it and who has to keep it. The big question to come out of this is why he is so desperate to hang onto it.

Dean Mosher, a Fairhope resident for 35 years, has chaired numerous committees and boards. He currently serves as vice president of the Fairhope Single Tax Corp. and is a professional artist known worldwide for his epic historical paintings.