Of Gadflys and Guardians: A Tribute to Dave Frazier

People who read this blog regularly know that I like to use Dave Frazier from the Guardian as a foil, and he’s an awfully good sport about it - and that’s just plain and simply because he’s a good dude.

Dave and I strongly disagree on the level of fiscal authority that should be accorded to Idaho’s municipalities. He likes the current set up where cities have to ask the state and the voters permission to do what is routine in the rest of the United States. I’d like to see cities in Idaho have broader authority. I think his arguments over the airport bond issues, and fire station financing were malarky (the Judges however agreed with him, not me). And, I think his no-growth vision for Boise and the Valley is wrong headed.

But I like Dave Frazier. He’s a nice guy. He’s a fun guy to have coffee with and can talk about a lot of subjects. If you spend any time at the Vista Moxie you know this. Dave is also a damn fine citizen. He cares about this place, devotes a lot of time to watchdogging local government, and has a hell of a following on his Guardian Blog, which I read regularly.

Dave sent me a note asking why I called him a “gadfly” in a previous post - he took it as an offense, and for that I apologize. But I meant it to mean a person who upsets the status quo by posing upsetting or novel questions. Dave is every bit of that. He’s a thorn in the side of city government, and that is ok. In fact it’s important. Boise would be a better place if we had a hundred more people that were engaged as Dave (I just hope they’d all agree with me, though!).

You keep being a gadfly, Frazier, and next time I see you coffee is on me.