Tuesday March 13th was a great day indeed.  Sidney Crosby announced he will be playing for the Penguins tomorrow; Kool and the Gang and Van Halen played the Verizon Wireless Arena; and Brian Shaughnessy won by a landslide.  Does it really get much better?  Well, the Dolphins could always pick up Peyton.

No doubt that yesterday's election was the most closely-watched and emotionally charged since the days of the High School elections.  Interestingly enough, several of the naysayers for OUR High School were also the ones who were the loudest in favor of Ryk Bullock.  Not sure what that means, but it is what it is.

Yesterday proved that the three things which I said over and over during the past few weeks were true; 1) voters care about integrity; 2) voters care about honesty; and 3) voters care about paying property taxes.  The other thing that it proved is that Bedford voters are a lot smarter than some people gave them credit for.

The turnout in Bedford was great to see in a Town Election.  Not since the High School elections have we seen such a turnout for a Town and School election.  People came out to support the teachers, and they came out to support Brian Shaughnessy; plain and simple.  And, there were many newcomers; both first time voters and first-time Bedford voters.  I hope that yesterday will be the first of many Bedford and other elections that they will participate in.

Unseating an incumbent in any race is no easy task.  It really takes both a desire for change (for whatever reason) and a groundswell from the voters.  Yesterday we clearly saw both.

What about that pesky tax issue?  It will go away for now and we will move on to other issues and other focuses.  However, with Bullock most likely to be on the ballot for School District Moderator next March, the red signs and the like will simply hibernate and not completely disappear.  Despite criticism from a few folks about the signs and the website, they did their job in terms of bringing the tax issue to the forefront of discussion.  I took a risk with both the signs and the website, but the issues of integrity, honesty, and property taxes was well worth it.  That may have caused Brian Shaughnessy a bit more stress as well as some concern, but frankly, as I said to reporters last weekend, my focus was on that issue and not what impact it might have on Brian.  For me, the issue would have been the same regardless of who was in the race.

For those who cry "foul" and make the claim of negative campaigning, let me say this yet again; telling the truth and pointing out facts is not negative and out of bounds; it is what elections should be based on.

Thanks to everyone who came out yesterday and made their voices heard.  Thanks, too, to all of the people who called, emailed, texted, and came up to me over the past few weeks with words of encouragement and support.  Those who know me realize that I have never been concerned with being "popular" or being "liked".  Instead, I stand up for the things and the people whom I feel deserve it, regardless of circumstance.  Moving forward, I will continue to do the same and I hope others will join me as well.  You can never go wrong by doing what you believe to be right.