Inside the Bubble.” In this week’s cover story, this is a very good place to be — a place dedicated to creativity, where “the outside world would sort of stand still and all that would matter would be the art.” It’s a great story (p.42) about an indie recording studio that’s one of those special environments that still thrive in so many places in Austin, where community still matters, and is nurtured.

The phrase is used in politics, too, and then it doesn’t have such a positive connotation. It refers to being so caught up in the rigors of campaigning — the controlled messages and controlled appearances — that you never see anything outside your cocoon. In his masterful book on the 1988 presidential campaign, What It Takes, Richard Ben Cramer describes George Bush the Elder being told that he was out of touch with a restless populace — but George just couldn’t believe it. Everywhere he went, he said, people were happy, and smiling, and agreed with him on the issues, and were … well, just like him.

He was Inside the Bubble.

Well, we all have those moments. Here at the Chronicle, we’re emerging from the tunnel at the end of SXSW. Meanwhile, politicians (and those who write about politicians) are just heading into election hell, trying to Get Out the Vote four times in 11 weeks. And our three incumbent council members (presumably still the core of the council’s liberal wing) have already been in term-limited campaign mode for months, before they even got to file for re-election.

Now, I’m not suggesting that Austin politics is quite up there with presidential politics as far as the Bubble effect goes. But I am suggesting that the demands of running political campaigns take a lot out of you. At least, that’s the kindest interpretation I can give for various council members’ dithering and inaction, on decisions that ought to be easy. Among the currently pending no-brainers:

  • Folks, Toby Futrell is already the city manager; just hire her, already, and let her get to work.
  • You get what you plan for; put muscle, money, and emphasis into the comprehensive planning process, and you won’t have to make ugly decisions piecemeal and in a vacuum. (And why, exactly, are we not committed to Regional Vision?)
  • The Villas … well, don’t get me started. One incumbent, who used to say she’d never vote against a valid neighborhood petition, did. And another, who put in enough time at the old Chronicle office across the street that he ought to know better, says the traffic around 29th & Guadalupe isn’t so bad yet. They both miss the point: Is this — a block-long monolith-cum-parking-garage with no pedestrian-friendly features — the right development for this spot? If not, why on earth would you change the zoning to permit it, when, without your permission, the developers will have to go back to the drawing board and come up with a plan that actually works?

    Please, people, snap out of it. Think outside the Bubble, and remember that the reason you’re up there is to help nurture the kind of community that you want Austin to be. end story

    This article appears in March 29 • 2002.

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