Aspiring politicians running for higher office need to keep in mind that their sense of humor may not always be understood. It can be argued that Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., lost support for a second chance to run for president in 2008 last autumn when he told a group of college students that they needed to study hard to succeed or else they’d end up in Iraq, fighting a war.

Kerry insisted it was a "botched joke," aimed at the policies of President Bush.

The remark was not well-received by many on either side of the political aisle.

Back in February 1982, another aspiring politician, New York City Mayor Edward I. Koch, had his eyes set on becoming the next governor of New York.

Koch had been interviewed recently by Playboy magazine. The magazine hit the stands, and Koch said that suburban life was "sterile" and rural life "a joke." In fact, the Playboy article hit the stands the day after Koch announced his intentions for governor.

It might’ve been the "media’s fault" for picking up on this article for news, but shortly after Playboy hit the stands, Koch insisted he was just "trying to be amusing" in that article. Residents in our region were not amused.

Koch was asked in that interview why people would live in New York City, given "lousy city services, late subways." Koch replied:

"As opposed to wasting time in a car? Or, out in the country, wasting time in a pickup truck? When you have to drive 20 miles to buy a gingham dress or a Sears Roebuck suit? This rural American thing -- I’m telling you, it’s a joke."

Additionally, Koch said he’d much prefer living with people, rather than animals.

"I’d like to build a concrete wall around New York City and leave it there," Roger Collins, then-Oneonta town highway superintendent, told The Daily Star.

"Why are all the New York City people buying property in rural Otsego County to get out of the city if it’s so bad here? It’s cleaner living," Collins said of this area.

"We have nice clean water,’’ he continued. ``We have scenery. We can walk outside our house without getting shot at."

John Hamilton, a dairy farmer from Meridale, said, "I like living with animals. Right now, there’s probably 60 cows looking at me."

Hamilton said of the city, "Let’s face it, we feed them. I wonder if he just finished a meal and was full when he said that? Maybe if he was hungry, he might not have said things like that."

Jerry McEligot, vice president of the former Fendick Dodge dealership in Oneonta, said that New York City had its fair share of two-legged animals who are packed each day into filthy moving cages called subways.

Assemblywoman Gail Shaffer, D-Schoharie, said, "I don’t even own a gingham dress.

``But what can you expect from someone who never goes north of New York City except to come to Albany occasionally with his hat in his hand to ask for money?" Shaffer added.

The former Syracuse Herald-American newspaper launched a drive to keep Koch out of the race for governor in March, saying the mayor’s interview in Playboy proved "the biggest rubes live in Manhattan."

During the campaign, Koch was in Otsego County in May. He addressed a conference of the New York State Society of Newspaper Editors at the Otesaga Hotel in Cooperstown.

Afterward, Koch was asked by a reporter if he knew what county he was in right now.

Finally, he replied, "Would it be Oneonta? Oneonta County?" Throughout the campaign, Koch always denied he was making fun of rural residents.

In September 1982, Koch lost in the Democratic primary to then-Lt. Gov. Mario Cuomo.

This weekend: We’ll go fishing in downtown Oneonta and visit a deep ravine near today’s City Hall.

City Historian Mark Simonson’s column appears twice weekly. On Saturdays, his column focuses on the area during the Depression and before. His Monday columns address local history after the Depression. If you have feedback or ideas about the column, write to him at The Daily Star, or e-mail him at simmark@stny.rr.com. His website is www.oneontahistorian.com.