It was difficult to get anyone in Burbank to even talk about McConkey for an obituary, either out of deference to wishes of his family — hit hard by a chorus of criticism of McConkey, even after his death — or simply because they didn't want to comment on the man. Maybe they didn't have anything good to say. Maybe, in an election year, they thought talking about McConkey would be too polarizing a discussion. It would only dredge up uncomfortable memories.
There's no doubt those memories will continue to be bounced around, in online chats and among the city's political watchers, and it certainly won't all be through rose-colored lenses.
He could dish out the criticism, but had to take it, too. And apparently he's going to get it posthumously.
But as polarizing a figure as McConkey might have been, it's difficult to see the hell he raised as a disservice. McConkey's critiques were constant reminders to watch out for unchecked power.
