[RE-POST due to popular demand] Commissioner Andy Amoroso and one of those rare, hilariously funny ("Where's Waldo") moments in Lake Worth politics

[Please scroll down for new blog content. And, as always, Thank You! for visiting my Lake Worth blog, Wes.]

When I first heard about the mailer sent out by the Frank McAlonan campaign attacking Commissioner Amoroso's record in the last elections, like almost everyone, the first reaction was anger—which is partly the intent. If I were to guess, McAlonan was as surprised as anyone else to learn about that ridiculously, bizarre mailer (see below).

This is a tactic that's used prior to elections to depress voter turnout. Its purpose is to get people angry about the political process and tune out "all the noise". The risk is you might depress your own supporters too. It was a 'roll of the dice' and McAlonan's campaign organization took the chance. Ooooops.

Of all 4 challengers, only Mr. McAlonan called his opponent to offer congratulatory comments.

This is the mailer in question:

This mailer from McAlonan's campaign organization was "throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks." Continue reading as we try to solve the "$5 million" mystery:

Nobody can figure out for certain where this "$5 million" figure comes from, other than from desperation leading up to election day. I've tried to figure it out and you can read more about that here. A few days after this mailer was dropped is when the fun started and people started asking things like, "Where's Waldo?" about the $5 million. One of the jokes was Amoroso buried the mystery money in the Park of Commerce, stuffing it down a Gopher tortoise hole. There were a lot of other funny jokes, too.

Here is what the consensus is about $5 million mystery: The City did receive grant money in the amount of $1.4 million from the Economic Development Administration and is waiting on additional money from the state legislature for the same purpose. But that still leaves $3.6 million in mystery dollars.

Commissioner Amoroso was Vice-Chairman of the CRA when the agency received $23 million in NSP2 grants to improve the housing stock in our most blighted neighborhoods. But that would mean this 'conspiracy' involved a whole lot more people. 

Joking aside, this mailer is akin to throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks. It doesn't have to be true or even make sense.

And, that folks, delves into this question: What happened to all the campaigns looking to unseat Mayor Triolo, Vice Mayor Maxwell, and Commissioner Amoroso when they all became so frantic in the weeks prior to election day? Read more about that using this link.