EXITING THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS, I TOOK the long way back to my quarters, needing to stretch my legs after the hours' long meeting. It did strike me as impressive that I hadn't been tempted to nod off even once. I felt almost professional, having held my own, challenged the Councillors and finally got one thing put in place.

The council meetings almost seemed more like debates for the members, not really focused on results rather than scoring points against each other in front of ...