Jim Peters, who’s married to the sister of the late Paul Tsongas, shares some thoughts on campaigning for his sister-in-law, Niki Tsongas, and on the upcoming election:
Being related to the Democratic candidate for Congress has its ups and downs. I get my pick of overly large T-shirts with the appropriate logo for that year etched on it, and that’s a plus, especially when you run a landscaping company and you need many shirts to do your work. Functions are really quite enjoyable. You have some cheese and crackers, and talk with people you agree with about politics. You try to figure out how to appeal to those voters who are on the fence or even on the other end of the spectrum. It is good mental exercise.
You have to have a thick skin in the political spectrum. You have to defend the right of a friend or an enemy to disagree with you in the most fundamental way. You have to allow them to scream everything they believe at the top of their lungs while you wait your turn to scream the things that you believe in at the top of your lungs. And, in the end, you need to still be friends at the end of the day.
Most of my friends are conservatives who are voting for Niki because of her outstanding (my word) support for the Veterans, and for the City of Lowell. I mean, Lowell Public Schools just got a bundle from the state which will help us continue to post increases in our standardized testing. We can hire more teachers and retain the good ones we have. Under this governor, Police and Fire Departments have not been as hard hit as they could have been. I like this governor but that is the stuff of another article.
It is hard to see your family and its good reputation tossed around like a piece of chicken in a picnic basket. You lived through some incredibly difficult times, saw persons of great learning and ability die from cancer. Your wife remembers when she was twelve and she met her sister-in-law to be for the very first time. It was exhilarating. read more »







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