Time again to grade your councilors for the second quarter of this year. How do you think the current council is doing?
How can the council do better?
What issues do you want your councilors to deal with and are you more apt to participate in your town government.
With two council seats coming up in March, who do you think will step up to the plate and put their names in the "ring"
Also I would like to know what the current council has done that you consider to be a good thing for the community.
Lets hear it!
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54 comments:
Buckley - "B" - fabulous job as chairman, as a councilor he could communicate better the history of issues WITH forward thinking of those issues; Our Statesman.
Chirchiello - "B+" - a solid performance on Manning Street (made a credible case and in the aftermath, he has moved on).
Coyle - "F" - "sandbagged" & his leading role in the Burtis' recent tragic comedy.
Ferrante - "C+" positions are well thought out; please speak up & often.
Fairbanks - "F+" East vs. West, conservation accusations....
Carney - "F-" A smart kid listening far too much to Janet & Kevin. Don't growth minded politicians expand their circles?
Metts - "B+" - has rescued "some" progress on a few issues headed for the heap.
Stenhouse - "A-" I don't believe in handing out "A's" but he reminds me of Truman.
Burtis, Rose, and Dimmock should be sent back a grade or expelled.
Apparent candidate Newell openly believes in nothing tangle, only the abstract or unsubstantiable.
Would Burtis dare get his little toe wet? Would he actually dare try to do something constructive with his time?
Brian, I would like to know how you would grade yourself.
D3,
For myself, I'd probably say C+.
Anonymous 3:43PM....you were doing great until you gave Stenhouse an A-. What I have witnessed from the few council meetings he has sat in on, he would not be deserving of such a high mark.Where's the motivation, the direction, the courtesy???? A first impression is a lasting one and I'm sorry, my impression of our new administrator falls below an acceptible grade.
BC,
Any explanation...
who are the incumbents and are they going to run again?
anonymous 8:56,
Well, I think I could explain some of the inner workings on town issues a little better. I would like to put together a better effort pulling people together for the downtown issues. ie.. create new Main street program with the downtown merchants. I wanted to talk about elderly exemptions and veterans credits again this year and when I did-no other councilors wanted to/or forgot to.. And I would like to help bring businesses into derry that help offset our taxes. lets face it nobody likes paying them. I will say that I'm very happy about the cemetary expansion that we purchased last year and it was a one year purchase.
Now, its your turn to critic me!
anon 11:44,
The incumbents are Councilor at Large and Chairman Craig Bulkley and District #3 councilor Bev Ferrante. I'm not sure who is or who is not running for their seat. I think the deadline for sign-up is in January. So after the holidays, we will see who is running for these seats.
shouldn't you guys have taken an inventory of derry's assets b4 you offered yor visions for development? visions are nice for the cameras and headlines, but this is a brick by brick process.
my guess is that the biotech thing is such big stretch for what we have to offer...there is no basis or foundation to that end. medical, yes, biotech no way. biotech is not an extension of medical, it's a whole different field.
the outlet thing is also more viable than biotch with respect to what we have and what is needed in the marketplace. a mini freeport maine?
highly skilled workers? let's be honest - do you live next door to a biochemist or a nuclear physicist? Do you have 30 colleges or universites within 20 miles of your home? dedicated workers? - absolutely. proudly, we are a blue collar town.
it's also noteworthy to me that Derry is an aging town...like most of nh...is there a way to take (economic) advantage of that? out-of-the-box thinking on this one, please?
carneys letter today kinda touches on the larger point, but again is is off the mark on the biotech thing and he did not mention our value of conservation - now that can easily be exploited - our investemnt in open space, our recycling rate...with small sensible investments we could gain the reputation of the "green" place to be. no, i'm not a member of greenpeace...but it's making more direct sense nowadays in $$$ terms, let alone the marketing benefit. can you name the town that is the "green" leader in this green state? I can't either...a hole to fill?
agree on the inventory first and i think many things would fall into place.
last, i agree with a recent hotline about our state delegation - where the heck are they? who are they?
Bulkley = B
Carney = D
Chirichiello = B
Coyle = F
Ferrante = B
Fairbanks = F
Metts = B
With regards to Carney's Letter to the Editor today, I don't think the Biotech jobs will ever be in Derry.
These types of jobs,as well as the healthcare industry,don't pay enough to attract employees to work in NH.
Many people I know in these fields choose to live in Derry because it is far enough away from the large Mass. cities. They choose to still work in Mass. because it pays sooo much more than if the same job were here in Derry or Manchester. Even after the Mass. income tax, it is still more profitable to work in Mass. and live in NH. Even if there were jobs in NH, most would rather drive 30 or 40 minutes to make thousands more. This is why Derry IS and will continue to be a bedroom community.
anon 1:52
You may be right that biotech is a stretch. I for one would be happy to settle for making Derry a medical center for Southern NH. The aging population helps there as do our existing assets such as Parkland.
Not sure I agree with the blue collar town profile. Southern NH has one of the largest concentrations of technology workers in the country. Climb on a bus going into Boston from Londonderry and look around. Check out the values of the cars headed down 93 any given morning.
As for the "Green" idea, sorry but I can't see someone moving a company to Derry because of the conservation land. I can think of 100 towns within 100 miles of Boston have as much or more open land. If that were a major selling point Vermont and Maine would be thriving. (they are not)
annon 4:27,
i like your thought of derry as a medical center - it expliots a current strength.
i'm reminded of peter druckers practical guide to recognizing opportunities...strengths, waeknesses, technology, etc.
i feel that those expensive cars you see in the morning are coming from windham, bedford, hampstead, etc.
and i see "green" as a rapidly emerging industry - maybe growing even faster than biotech. i'm no tree-hugger, but there's a buck to made and it ain't a fad. the national perception is that nh is an environmentally friendly state, yet we have no center.
at first glance, i thought of ben & jerry's....but it's much much bigger than that. right now, open up your browser and search "top green companies" --- you'll be amazed.
Sorry D3 but I don't understand your note. Are you saying that biotech and healthcare jobs don't pay well?
Jobs pay based upon value added not the state that the employer resides in. Could you please clarify what you are trying to say?
Thanks.
anon 5:08,
Want a green company. Look no further than Londonderry. Stonyfield yogurt! They have been talking about green for the last 10-12 years. BTW they are making lots of green as well.
My point is that the jobs do pay well. However, they pay far more just over the border in MA.
I encourage you all to visit the US Department of Labor's statistics site at http://data.bls.gov/. I did a quick search in order to find a practicle example for this blog. Here's what I found:
Registered Nurses
New Hampshire
Hourly Mean Wage=$26.54
Annual Mean Wage=$55,200*
Massachusetts
Hourly Mean Wage=$34.09
Annual Mean Wage=$70,910*
Chemists
New Hampshire
Hourly Mean Wage=$32.51
Annual Mean Wage=$67,620*
Massachusetts
Hourly Mean Wage=$37.80
Annual Mean Wage=$78,620*
*Annual Mean Wage base on 2080 hours(40 hours per week)
I hope this helps verify my point. You can build it in Derry, but if I can drive just over the border to Mass and make $10,000+ more(before taxes), I'll be in Mass.
D3 I believe your facts but you are not interpreting them correctly. You don't get a $15k raise just for crossing a border. State averages can be misleading. You may get an $8k-$10k raise for communiting 3 to 4 hours a day into Boston from Derry. Many people would gladly take a job closer to home. Also ware and tear (and gas) on a car communting to Boston is about $8800 per year. Add to that the Mass Non-resident income tax (5% in a $55k nurse's salary = $2750) and you are better off working at the lower salary in Derry. We have alot to offer skilled workers.
d3...let's extend your arguement...MA takes a 5% bite out of your $80k chemist who spends at least 3 hours in the traffic per day 250 working days per year. that means that our MA chemist in reality makes:
$80,000
< 4,000> 5% tax
<18,000> 2 hrs traffic/day @ 37/hr
--------
$58,000
=======
quality of life counts for something. NH state government is failing to make the case on our behalf to major employers because for the most part...they're hicks...with all due respect to their HUGE number and in many cases extreme unproductive longevity.
where are our state reps? what do they do to attract biz to our state, let alone town?
All I can say is this... you don't have to drive to Boston to make that much more money. Maybe a chemist is more likely to be found in Boston, but if you take healthcare, all you have to do is drive to Methuen, Lowell, or Lawrence...30 minutes each way. Do you all think that Derry is the only town with a hospital and a couple of doctor's offices? Also, you 9-5ers seem to forget that in healthcare, people work all hours of the day and night and do not necessarily work only 8 hours. Many of these people don't have to drive in rush hour both ways, or one way for that matter. Many Mass employers change the start and end times for shifts specifically so their employees can avoid the majority of the traffic. Also, because Mass pays a higher salary, many people in nursing and similar jobs are able to work 3 days per week instead of having to work 4 or 5 in New Hampshire to make the same pay.
We can go back and forth on this forever. If you know someone in the field, all you have to do is ask them for yourselves.
I huess my point is that a few helathcare facilities in any town will always be successful. Derry could even add a few more and make it work. But I can't imagine Derry being the next healthcare mecca with Boston so close. Plus you all seem to think Parkland is so great of a hospital. Well it's not. Why do you think Elliot just built in Londonderry? Because people want another choice beside Parkland's doctors. Sure it isn't a hospital, but all you have to do is tell the ambulabce to take you to Elliot, CMC, St' Joe's, SNHMC, and off you will go to their facility. Take a look at what PMC offers. Anything critical gets transferred to Manch, Nashua, or Boston anyway.
D3 you failed to address the Mass Income tax issue. Please read the text of the report BC quotes. Lower employee costs are our major advantage vs Mass.
Also we only have a chance to make it a health care mecca if we try. What's so special about Burington MA? Nothing except Lahey Clinic. Why would someone go to Burlington when they could go to Boston? Lahey Clinic.
We might be able to do it if we try.
Anon 7:14
Read my post from 11/2 4:23 pm. I do mention MA income tax.
5% of 10000 dollars is only $500
anon 7:14 Yes 5% of $10k is $500. Unfortunately I can tell you from personal experience that taxachusetts gets you on 5% of your entire salary ($71,000 in the case of our hypothetical nurse) not just the delta between the pay in the two states. 5% of $71000 is $3550. So a nurse might make $15k more in Mass but would spend over $12k of it in commuting and taxes. The remaining $3k equals $4.54 per hour for her time commuting.
No I don't think we will have trouble finding nurses who would rather work in Derry.
I'll grade them:
Bulkley - D Votes wrong most of the time, a bit too authoritarian as Chairman for my tastes. No evidence that he listens to any other perspective.
Chirchiello - C Votes wrong most of the time but I respect him. Can see the point in others side of a discussion.
Ferrante - D- Does not represent her district at all. Blindly follows Brian. We would be better off being represented by an empty chair.
Metts - B Seems like a nice guy who thoughtfully considers the issues.
Coyle – A Finally someone who asks questions about how the town is run! He is a major force for progress and responsible town government in Derry.
Fairbanks - A- OK, a bit direct for some overly sensitive souls (you know who you are) but a bulldog in representing her district. It’s good that Kevin is not alone in tenaciously protecting the taxpayers.
Carney - B+ I disagree with some of his votes but know that he has given deep consideration to each of those votes. Brent has been under vicious attack by the likes of the DEDC and some of our bloggers. That alone speaks very well of him. A good man. Someone I trust.
Anonymous 7:40a.m.
You are obviously entitled to your opinion.As I was reading your blog I knew right away how it was going to end up. You look at this council as right/wrong. Black/white. Holding a elected position is a priviledge and not one to be use to bully, or carry on personal agenda's. Their is much civic and town experience with Buckley, Chirchiello and Ferrante. Years of serving this town. Put Coyle and Fairbanks as well as Carney's years of service together and what do you get??? There is a value to ones who have experience. Where will Coyle and Fairbanks be in 5-10 years? Will they still be serving the community on a board or committee? I think not. I have more faith in Carney.
Anon 8:23 - Sorry you lost me. What does whether or not Fairbanks and Coyle serves the town 10 years from now have to do with anything? Would you prefer consistent mediocracy to talented people serving short terms?
Is council status a payoff for sitting on many boring committees?
We seem to be looking at this from much different perpectives.
Please elaborate on "personal agendas"... is this a euphemism for strongly held convictions?
mr. carney is almost too prepared and inflexible - for the most part being very prepared is a good thing, but on a few occasions he has seemed out of touch with the discussion going on around him, I think because it wasn't in the his prepared script. how he prepares his script is another topic - it's apparently some sound research coupled with a very intent ear given to coyle and fairbanks. i would wonder if he ever sought out or received the opinion of any other councilor to help formulate his positions? grade c.
fairbanks and coyle get an f. their continual showboating, slamming dissenting views, and in janets case - total lack of knowledge or desire to learn about relevant issues - her defense is to lash out against the world. they really are discouraging people from getting involved.
anon 7:11 Let me try to translate...Carney has done his homework and makes the others look bad. That always bothered me too when I tried faking it in school. Someone was more conscientious, did their homework and made me look bad. Don’t you just hate that? Solution: perhaps the others should do their homework more often.
"Slamming dissenting views"... can't we all just get along? No, not when we are dealing with other people's money and trust bestowed upon public officials. I want them to slam tolerance of sloppy management, poorly thought through ideas or general foolishness carried out using public resources.
I want someone to call DEDC on their bogus numbers before more tax dollars are poured down that rat hole. I want someone to ask why we speak of building firehouses that will last 50 years when no one can possibly envision the fire prevention needs (if any) of a community that will have a completely different geographic dispersion 50 years from now.
We need more slamming of stupid ideas. You see, one can attack ideas without engaging in personal attacks. That concept seems to be lost on many. I just attacked the numbers DEDC uses to defend its position. I have not made any personal attacks on the people of the DEDC, some of whom may be fine individuals. A battlefield of ideas in a civil society... that sounds good to me. Wasting public funds so as not to hurt anyone’s feelings… not a chance. Too many good people worked far too hard to earn that money.
anon 9:03,
The DEDC has not had funding from the town for a year.The firehouse issue has been over for two. No need to live in the past as these issues you bring up are old news.
speaking of wasting public funds, coyle absolutely leads the way in proposed wasteful new spending - like new lawyers, bike paths, mosquito control, economic development director, paving useless roads, etc. etc. etc. etc.
its hard to imagine why the union leader would give a democratic liberal spend thrift like that the time of day.
too, maybe someday he'll come clean on his stint in chester. a couple of 91a requests there would be very telling. john, oh john where are you?
BC, so you are committing to no DEDC funding and not funding over-engineered firehouses? Outstanding, you just raised your average to C+. Now if you only understood 4A. I have real hope for you!
TO ANNON 9:03,
ONLY A POLITICIAN CAN LOOK AT THE COLOR WHITE AND CALL IT BLACK BY SAYING IT OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN.
YOU SAID "I JUST ATTACKED THE NUMBERS THE DEDC USES TO DEFEND ITS POSITION.", BUT YOU FORGOT TO MENTION ANY NUMBERS AT ALL!ABSOLUTELY STUNNING POLITICAL POSITIONING!
SOUND BUSINESS PRACTICE NEVER, EVER CLOSES THE DOOR. FOR ME THERE IS ALWAYS A SET OF CIRCUMSTANCES THAT I WILL CONDUCT BUSINESS - ADMITEDLY, IN MOST INSTANCES THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE TO THE OTHER PARTY.
IF THE DEDC, A GROUP WITH FORMIDIBLE RESOURCES, CAME TO THE TABLE ASKING FOR $1.00 FOR SOMETHING THAT IS WORTH $1.25 - YOU WOULD OBVIOUSLY SAY "NO WAY". YOU WOULD DO SO BECAUSE OF POLITICS.
AND TO ANNON 7:11,
YOU ARE SPOT ON THAT CARNEY COMES TO COUNCIL MEETINGS WITH NO ROOM FOR ADDITIONAL INPUT, PARTICULARLY FROM BUCKLEY, CHIRICHIELLO, FERRENTE AND METTS. BUT ALSO THE PUBLIC. ALBEIT ON AN INFREQUENT OCCASSION, I'VE SEEN HIM TALK RIGHT BY VALID POINTS AS IF THEY DIDN'T EXIST.
TO ANNON 7:40,
OBVIOUSLY MORE POLITICS FROM THE PEANUT GALLERY, YOU ASSIGNED THE COUNCILORS WHO ARE UP FOR RE-ELECTION THE WORST GRADES - YOU ARE OBVIOUSLY DESPERATE FOR THOSE SEATS. MORE CREATIVITY IN YOUR POLITICS, PLEASE.
Anon 8:51 I do not believe the DEDC has formidable resources, at least not financially. If they completely opened their books, I believe we would see an organization on life support.
I agree that the DEDC should be paid what they are worth. That payment should be on performance not on promises. They should also not get to count increases in valuation based upon the town selling off assets. The town council generated an increase in the tax base (moving the fire station onto the tax rolls) through the decision to sell that firehouse. This is one of the bogus figures in DEDC presentations.. .(They claim credit for taking the downtown fire station from $0 to its current valuation. That was a significant part of their $20 million claim).
We need hundreds of millions of dollars in commercial development to make a dent in our tax bills and the DEDC's grossly inflated claim is that they have provided $20 million across many years. A big win for them is another restaurant in town. We need to think much much bigger and there is no sign that the DEDC is capable of that.
As for my ratings, rumor has it that Beverly is not running again so her dismal performance is simply history. In March we can move on and improve.
By the way, anon 10:14 are you opposed to spraying to control EEE? I am pretty cheap with the public dollar but favoring a painful death for citizens over mosquito control???...wow. I hope it is not your family or mine that has to deal with the results of such frugality. Please come to the next council meeting to sing the praises of insect borne diseases, we need the entertainment. Or were you kidding? Sometimes really stupid ideas and humor are indistinguishable on a blog.
Re: 11/9 6:08 You said that Coyle and Fairbanks are"talented people serving short terms". The only so call 'talent' that I have seen is the skill of causing dissention and upheavals to the meetings.During the 2 rountable forums,Ms. Fairbank looked very disinterested.Her body language spoke volumes. Head down, doodling constantly, making not much eye contact with anyone. You can be on a committee, board and not agree all the time, but this goes beyond that. They ( C. & F.)just can't seem to 'get along' with their counterparts. They are there to serve their constituents. Not to self-serve. People voted them in.I'm not expecting yes/yes councilors, but I do expect professionalism, courtesy, and some forward thinking.Our town is their hands!Keep in mind, whether it's for one term or many...these men and women effect each and every citizen with their vote and actions. The buck ends on the taxpayer!
brian c. was surely red meat last year when he was up for re-election...now he's ok. hmmmm.
i don't look at the dedc as being a potential financial service institution...so i don't much care about their finances. as was said, if they can deliver a bucks worth of service for less than a buck, i'm good with it. to attempt to justify otherwise uncovers certain other motives.
Anon 11:54- What is your fixation on harmony? There has been a minority speaking out against the way things have been run here for many years. Paul Hopfgarten manned the barricades single handedly for years. Hugh Lee was there in a minority trying to bring sanity to the town government. Tolerance of dissent is not one of the strong points of your faction. It’s ok to have an opinion as long as it’s yours. Recently NFW wrote in this blog about his group counteracting “vocal minorities.” If you want more harmony, electing more people like Kevin should accomplish that. We won’t be part of a vocal minority anymore.
As for Mrs. Fairbanks at the development forums, perhaps she was just reacting to the inane remarks of the state bureaucrat who thought that if the council would only just start getting along better, development would someday follow. Based upon those remarks coming from someone who took several decades to develop Pease, I was considering stepping out of the meeting and getting a root canal, as that would have been less painful.
Anon 12:17 “certain other motives”? I think you are getting a little paranoid here. I can’t imagine what other motives I might have. They are a local group trying to promote development in town. If they were doing that effectively, I would be their strongest supporter. They are not and I see no relief in sight for the high property tax bills caused in part by the lack of development. I view DEDC as Keystone Cops, perhaps well meaning but totally ineffective. It’s time to try something else.
Hey BC-- check that out (anon 5:17) I think we can make the pack turn on you simply by suggesting we don't hate you. Be good or I'll shake you hand in public.
Anon. 3:59,
You’ve stated “Recently NFW wrote in this blog about his group counteracting “vocal minorities.”
For the record, what I actually said was, “I have worked as part of a group effort to encourage community involvement (a bad thing?) and sometimes that has involved calling out those who fear that community involvement will make a small vocal minority less vocal.” As you have chosen to interpret that incorrectly, I will try to clarify my position.
Neither I nor Community for A Better Derry is trying to counteract or silence anyone. We are trying, through BOTH words and actions, to get more people involved in both the community and the processes which drive it. Not just people of a particular political party or mindset, but everyone. People routinely do not know either what is in, or what’s going on in our community. I myself lived here for several years before discovering some of the great things our town had to offer.
The fact that voter turnout for town elections is routinely below 15% is also indicative that the community is not engaged in the decision making process. This should concern everyone in that it not only means that the voice of many people is not being heard, but also, people and ideas can have a major influence in the decision making process with very little overall community support.
I believe that the reason Paul H. “manned the barricades single handedly” is that the majority of the community does not subscribe to his views. If they did, they would have elected a majority of people with those views to the council. They didn’t. And in the last election they rejected Paul H. overwhelmingly. They did elect Brent Carney, a staunch democrat (vs. Paul's republican/libertarian views) who is far more moderate and by both of there admissions, a near polar opposite of Paul. And Brent has, at different times, shown that he is not always tied to a particular agenda or position.
As to Kevin and Janet, clearly they were elected because there are people out there who support their views as well. But having been elected, they are now in the position of having to deliver results to their support base while not motivating people who did not support them and/or sat on the sidelines to vote them out when their terms are up. That can be tricky, but if they do it, more power to them.
Ultimately, the community is responsible for the direction that it moves. If people are engaged in what’s going on in the community, it will likely result in a better decision making process. If there is no sense of community, they will remain disinterested on the sidelines and that benefits no one.
So the bottom line comes down to this. Let’s get as many people as we can involved in the community and involved in the process and let the people of the community decide how the community will be run. Getting 40 to 50% turnout for a town election would be far more of a true “representative” form of government than what we have now. And if that means the council is made up of more people from the so-called minority, so be it. For us, it’s not about agendas, it’s about involvement.
Would you suggest more people being engaged and involved is bad for our community?
I agree that harmony is not the ultimate goal, results are; unfortunately factious and divisive behaviors have hampered results. There is certainly not better example of that than Janet Fairbanks - other than Coyle and Carney just who does she have a strong working relationship with? You do need working relationships to achieve results, right? Just what results has she produced for her District?
Electing more "Kevin Coyles" will lead to more harmony? Here's my take what would happen:
The DEDC would be banished from existence.
The Fire Department would be reduced to a couple of water gun toting bicyclists.
Every town employee would be required to be a lawyer.
Taxes would go up.
All seven Kevin's would be seen daily jogging on a gold-paved bike path.
Any business looking to relocate to Derry would require a 2/3 vote of of all 7 Kevins.
All 7 Kevin’s would be free break the council rules re: respecting the chain of command.
John Burtis would be appointed Police and Fire Czar. His first act would be to tail anyone who makes a 91A request.
In breaking with tradition and in favor of gender equality, a man would be named Ms. Greater Derry. That man would be Mr. Al Dimmock.
The 7 Kevins would clone themselves, making an 8th to appoint as Town Administrator. It would be a lifetime appointment. True harmony?
There would be 6 more developers who would get a favorable audience on issues like the well ordinance.
Exit 4A would not be built because all 7 Kevins would have to recuse themselves on the biggest matter in our generation.
There would be charter change vote every other year.
Other than that, all those Kevins would certainly argue among themselves on every other matter and almost certainly would end up in court on a regular basis.
NFW You will understand how saying your group "will make a small vocal minority less vocal" might be interpreted differently than you now suggest. The English language is funny like that. "To make less vocal"... how does one do that? What is the ultimate of to make less vocal? Well, that would be to silence wouldn't it? Can we name any others who sought to silence opposing views? (I'll let you fill that one in yourself.)
Your two personas generate some difficulties. Do you want to sing cumbaya or crush Newell, Burtis Coyle, Fairbanks, et al like bugs?
Anon 9:13- I’m glad you got that out of your system. That much b.s. can be bad for you if you don't purge. Of course you did manage to lose any credibility in this discussion that you might have had. (Good thing for you this is anonymous)
Tell me anon 9:13 do you think Kevin eats babies raw or does he cook them first? Where do you think he was in late November of '63. On a grassy knoll?
More importantly, anon 9:13 did you ever witness anything but civility and thoughtful discussion in the Charter Commission that Mr. Coyle chaired? Careful with your answer... the proceedings were taped and it would be so easy to disprove rash statements and verbally rub your face in it.
Seriously now. I'm not being picky, but at one point, didn't he have to stop the proceedings, call the police and have a little old lady escorted out?
I'm not anon 9:13, but I will say this: Of course it was easy for Coyle and his cronies to be civil during the Charter Commission meetings. Almost all of the people on the Commission share the same views as him. Most were a part of ADT. It's easy to proceed through meetings where everything is predetermined before the meeting. For the most part, those Charter Commission meetings were a joke. It's easy to see why the voters turned down there suggestions.
I bet even 9:13 wants to distance himself/herself from 9:13.
Brilliant! 7:45 you have discovered that if the people on a committee or council hold the same core beliefs there is more harmony. Next question... is that a good thing?
I will certify that nothing was "predetermined" prior to Charter meetings. You speak based on ignorance on that subject.
Finally, the Charter Change lost by a few votes. It is entirely possible that it would have past if the Commission did not get bogged down debating with the school board the merits of changing the election date. As you can point to the loss at the polls of the proposed charter change, I can point to the Charter Commission's composition being unified because the voters defeated every one of the Derry insider political hacks who ran against us.
7:05am regrets the spelling error in his last post. I should get a cup of coffee before blogging.
I'm prett sure Metts was against the charter change...at least this sign at his business sais he was. He won the election!
Anon 11:03,
In response to your question, I can never remember all the words to cumbaya, so that’s out.
Mr. Newell was already squashed like a bug by the voters March in his failed school board bid. He came in behind a guy who never even put up a single campaign sign. He gave the voters far too little credit and gave himself far too much and from what I’ve seen of his posts here and in the paper, it appears he learned nothing from the experience except that he thinks he needs to better explain to said voters that he does in fact have ALL the answers .
Mr. Burtis has been relegated to stalking our town administrator and quoting dead presidents in the Derry News. That combined with his other relevant contributions makes him a non-factor.
And you have selectively quoted me once again by leaving out the first part of “those who fear that community involvement” will make a small vocal minority less vocal. And therein lies the rub.
Our system of government is founded on majority rule, yes? The more involvement from the community the better, right? Then why do so many people seem to fear and discourage more community involvement? Would you prefer to see the status quo maintained? You know, the status quo where 800 or 900 people can force an agenda on a community of nearly 40,000 simply because most of them don’t come out to vote.
No sir. The status quo is broken. Unfortunately there are people in this town who would like to continue to advance their agendas with little support from the community. 800 people trying to advance their agenda when 1500 come out to vote may give the illusion of broad based support. But that same 800 or even 1000 when 4000 to 5000 come out to vote paints a far different picture. Democracy is funny like that. But with active participation, democracy works.
Anon. 7:05,
So let's see if we've got all this right.
The unified and harmonious Charter Commission receives a mandate from the voters to get something done. They’re unburdened by having to compromise with any Derry political insider hacks. They spend 8 months working on the Charter Change Proposal. And yet this harmonious and unified “dream team” of alleged political outsiders ultimately accomplishes nothing but it was really the school boards fault? Come on now.
First, the commission was made up of past and present town councilors, state reps etc., i.e. hacks of a different feather. Second, you were elected because you promised (as all true politicians do) to lower taxes. The proposal you came up with provided no mechanism to make that happen and people saw it for what it was and realized they’d been had. Your harmonious dream team couldn’t even convince voters that allowing them to vote on the budget, bonds etc. was in their best interest. Certainly not what one would think of as a hard sell.
Despite your pointing to a narrow margin of loss the fact is that given your mandate you should have won in a landslide along with the candidates that supported the charter change. You didn’t. They didn’t. Get over it.
NFW- I must agree, your posting of 3/11/07 11:14 AM was far too incoherent for anon 11:03 (or anyone else) to correctly interpret your words.
You do assume that a larger voter turnout will favor your perspective. I find that unduly pessimistic.
Anon 11:19
Your creativity is impressive but I do not believe I ever said that the Charter change lost because of the school board's fault. Is there anything else you would like to incorrectly attribute to me?
I think the defeat of the Charter change is an established fact. As you say, we should move on. However, keep in mind that good ideas have a habit of reemerging. (Want to sign my petition?) By the way, how well does your opposition of the Charter Change (that would have given the voters a say in bonding) mesh with NFW's glorification of increased voter involvement(see 12/11/07 10:39 AM)? Perhaps you should have a word with him (unless you are him... which would be very confusing as he would then have 3 personas.)
you two guys (1/2 of the active members of the adt) are ganging up on nfw for favoring higher voter turnout, very telling indeed.
anon 8:55 Please pay closer attention. My comment "You do assume that a larger voter turnout will favor your perspective. I find that unduly pessimistic." is not opposing increased voter participation. It is suggesting that increased participation will not favor NFW and his buddies.
Sorry, I'll slow down so that you can catch up.
like doug newell math????...
"2+2=1000"
"$72,000 per kindergartner"
"20 Super Walmarts"
ANON 10:26 -It would be nice for once to see someone respond to a blog post, and offer their opinion, without being so stinking condescending and patronizing. The exchange of ideas in this town is not the problem. Its the attitude of those exchanging the ideas that brings everything every time to a screeching halt.
To anonymous 1:00pm.
THAT WAS PERFECT!!! You hit the nail right on the head. The problem is all in the ATTITUDE. There is a negative 'cell' out there who constantly ridicule and tear down efforts of others. Let's see if they 'belly up to the table' come election time. I doubt it. They rather stay where they are and complain!
To anonymous 1:00pm.
THAT WAS PERFECT!!! You hit the nail right on the head. The problem is all in the ATTITUDE. There is a negative 'cell' out there who constantly ridicule and tear down efforts of others. Let's see if they 'belly up to the table' come election time. I doubt it. They rather stay where they are and complain!
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