All the young dudes

What was up with 1992 and the name Ryan?

Of course, we all know the fictional Jack Ryan.

You know, . . .the humble Tom Clancy character who routinely saved the world from a cadre of evil forces while also writing a thesis about the importance of granola in the post-Soviet socio-economic structure.

But what about the other guys named Ryan? The ones who were born in 1992 and grew up in Biddeford?

One of them made a short-lived bid to be Biddeford’s mayor, and the other one is wreaking havoc with the city charter.

Both Ryan Gavin and Ryan Fecteau are all of 20 years old, and, make no mistake: they are politically ambitious.

Nearly a year ago, Ryan Gavin, fresh off the heels of learning how to shave and graduating from high school, decided he was the most qualified person to become Biddeford’s next mayor.

After all, Gavin had all sorts of  experience built up after serving two terms as an un-elected student representative on the Biddeford School Committee and a valid driver’s license.

Sadly, he was more qualified than many others who tried to become the city’s mayor. Karl Reed’s 2009 campaign comes to mind.

Ryan Gavin put on his best Sunday suit and a pair of sunglasses to make his public announcement from the back stairs of City Hall on a weekend afternoon.

Sadly, the media actually covered this event that included 11 people listening to a kid who looked an awful lot like John Belushi’s character from the Blues Brothers.

Jake was on a mission from God. Ryan was on a mission to save Biddeford from the clutches of Darth Vader, more commonly known ’round here as former mayor Joanne Twomey.

Gavin was smart enough to remove his sunglasses halfway through his press conference.

He was also smart enough to  quickly figure out he had a snowball’s chance in hell of ever getting elected in a city brimming with old people who vote like clock-work.

Ryan Gavin eventually became an important part of Alan Casavant’s mayoral campaign team.

Let’s pause for just a moment and give out a shout-out to Ryan Gavin’s parents.

If I could be half the parent that Ryan’s parents were, I would be thrilled and could die feeling as if I accomplished something decent in my lifetime.

Ryan was an exceptional student at BHS. He is, today, an exceptional student at UMO.

He is polite, smart, articulate and — unlike many of his peers — he not only cares about what is going on in the world around him, he’s also willing to step up and fight for it.

All of which brings us to our next point: Ryan Fecteau, a 2010 graduate of Biddeford High School who also served as a student representative on the School Committee.

In November, Fecteau began what will probably be a long and notable political career by actually winning an election.

Fecteau was one of five people elected to serve as a commissioner on the city’s charter review commission, a previously described group of dorks who want to sit around and debate whether the city’s bylaws should include more semicolons.

There were seven slots available and only five candidates on the ballot, so it’s not like Fecteau proved himself to be a tactical genius.

But you still have to respect a kid who is willing to tinker with the city’s charter when most young men his age are doing more important things like getting laid or drinking beer.

But not everyone in Biddeford is happy about Ryan Fecteau’s grand plans for Biddeford.

In fact, during last weekend’s downtown winter festival, I heard some people complain that Fecteau is actually living in Washington DC and is unable to attend the charter meetings in person. I wish I had figured out how to do that.

His critics also said he was trying to ram through “a lot of stupid ideas.”

So, I picked up the phone and called him, half-expecting to get his receptionist who would politely tell me that Congressman Fecteau was in a meeting with the Secretary of Commerce but appreciates my concerns and will have a form letter sent to me.

Actually, Fecteau is a sophomore at Catholic University of America, and it should come as no surprise that he is studying political science.

Fecteau said he saw an opportunity to get more involved in Biddeford politics, and he seized it.

“It’s a rare opportunity, even though we had a charter commission five years ago, who knows when I would have another chance to do this work,” he said.

When asked his opinion about the city’s police and fire commissions (two of the charter’s more controversial items), Fecteau said he would like to see the two combined, if not eliminated.

So far, so good. The city of Biddeford has more commissions and committees than the state of New York.

Fecteau also says he will only miss one more of the commission’s seven monthly meetings.

“The telephone is not a new invention,” he patiently explained to this over-40 geezer.

Asked to explain one of his recent Facebook posts in which he described Joanne Twomey as “a real Democrat” when compared to State Rep. Paulette Beaudoin, also a Democrat who may be challenged for her seat by Twomey in the June 12 primary, Fecteau chose his words carefully.

“I don’t agree with Joanne on everything,” he said. “Paulette is my neighbor, and we’ve had many, many conversations. The Democratic Party has a plank for a reason. I just think Joanne would be a better advocate for many of the party’s core issues.”

Again, so far…so good, but then we started talking about one of his new ideas.

Fecteau would like to see voting day moved to Saturdays instead of Tuesdays. He thinks such a move will increase voter turnout, completely forgetting that such a move would require Biddeford voters to go to the polls twice in one week: once for state and national elections, and then again for local elections.

“Yeah, I guess that’s an idea that needs more work,” he conceded.

I also told him Saturday voting would infringe upon the voting rights of normal college sophomores who spend the bulk of their weekends drinking beer and getting laid.

But for all you old farts who think these young punks ought to learn how to tie their shoes before running around and changing our government, you ought to take another sip of your Geritol and consider this:

There was a young punk from Bangor who got elected to his city council at the age of 23 before becoming one of the youngest state senators in the Maine Legislature. That little twirp named Johnny went on to serve in the U.S. Congress before becoming Maine’s 73rd governor.

On the other side of the political aisle, another young punk from Bangor became the youngest person to ever get elected to the Maine Legislature. Tarren Bragdon, former CEO of the Maine Heritage Policy Center, has had a big impact on Maine politics and public policy.

And no one should forget the impacts of two of our nation’s youngest presidents, Republican Teddy Roosevelt (42) and Democrat John F. Kennedy (43). Of course, Roosevelt was not elected at 42 because he was sworn-in after President McKinley was assassinated, but still . . . the U.S. Constitution says you can be president when you’re 35; a senator once you hit 30 or a member of the House at age 25.

Congressman Fecteau?… it’s not as implausible as you may think.