The best PR flack in the business--even the guy who came up with “More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette”--would have a hard time selling today's municipal election. B-O-R-I-N-G.Almost exclusively due to a lack of competition. For the second election in a row, no contest for Select Board--the highest elected position in town government. And since the schools are the only thing that matters to a whopping percentage of the electorate, the lack of a contest for Catherine Sanderson's School Committee seat (at least hers until 8:00 PM this evening) dampened markedly any election buzz.
No lawn signs, post cards, radio ads, bumper stickers, nasty emails, Facebook pages or stand outs in town center. Nada.
Ironically Aaron Hayden is the candidate hurt the most--fortunately not fatally--as virtually all the 'Amherst Center' types who would have flocked to the polls to vote against Catherine Sanderson would have supported Mr. Hayden's reelection to the Amherst Redevelopment Authority for his sane, smart growth approach to enhancing our commercial tax base (thus creating more tax revenues for the schools); the exact opposite of Vince O'Connor's touchy-feely, no-growth-is good-growth attitude.
But I'm still going to write in Catherine Sanderson for School Committee anyway. She deserves the Medal of Honor and a Purple Heart for three long years of banging her perky head against a brick wall. Like the innocent kid who cried out the emperor has no clothes, only in this modern version a royal goon squad then beats the tar out of her.
Chris Hoffman also took some heat last summer for calling attention to the hatchet job underway at the Jones Library, where cutthroat-Carol Gray was setting up long time director Bonnie Isman for a death by a 1,000 cuts with an "evaluation" longer than 'War and Peace'.
Since three candidates are vying for two Library Trustee positions a voter can choose two candidates. I'm going to "bullet vote" for Hoffman, but if you feel it's your patriotic duty to use that other vote then cast it for ANYONE BUT Pat Holland (also part of the hit squad with cutthroat Carol.)
Traditionally Amherst voter turnout for municipal elections held in the Spring is usually an embarrassing 15 to 20% (30% for an Override or Charter change in government ballot question) but the Presidential elections every four years in November always brings out around 75%.
That's Amherst for you: always thinking nationally (or internationally). Today's turnout will be the most pathetic in years, possibly under 10%.
Catherine Sanderson: out of the hot seat
Amherst: two forms of complacency talking past each other
ReplyDeleteOne form of complacency on development or the lack of any need to do it.
One form of complacency on our schools or the lack of any need to improve them.
Rick Hood put it best just as he knuckled under: "If you ignore it, it will go away."
Yes, and we're about to embark on a new dawning for an Age Of Unreason.
ReplyDelete"She deserves the Medal of Honor and a Purple Heart"
ReplyDeleteVery surprised to see you reference these two highly valued honors in relation to little Amherst's small town school committee concerns.
You spend days weeks moths and years harping about the honor and glory of military service and then you drag these honors into petty local politics.
Typical lack of foresight, Kelley. Guess it's ok for you to do this but if some lefty were to do the same, you'd never stop whining about it.
Funny, I was just talking about you this morning: the Cowardly Anon Nitwit guy who comes here daily looking for the tiniest little molehill to fashion into a mountain.
ReplyDeleteBut hey, at least you spelled my name correctly.
On the library trustee race, definitely vote for Chris Hoffman, but also vote for Michael Wolff. Maybe the vote totals will send a message to Pat Holland (I've given up on Carol). However, Pat might not get it either. Even some simple messages, like this one, aren't getting through. Pat, you shouldn't have run again!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely write-in your vote for Catherine Sanderson for School Committee -- if only to say thank you for all her hard work, bringing attention to critical problems and actually getting things done.
ReplyDeleteSpring's a-comin'! FORE!
ReplyDeletehttp://cherryhillgc.blogspot.com/?spref=fb
Turnout is very low--for example only 95 voters in Precinct 7. It makes me worried because strange things can happen when the turnout is that low.
ReplyDeleteHave you voted yet? Not worried about the outcome? Maybe you should be.
I have not. But my ARA meeting just adjourned, so I'm running over to the Bangs Center to vote now.
ReplyDeleteAaron Hayden did not look overly worried...
I wrote in Larry Kelly for select board. Strange things might happen...
ReplyDeleteHow many write-ins did Sanderson get?
ReplyDeleteThe question is who cares how many write-in votes Sanderson got?
ReplyDeleteCatherine Sanderson deserves credit for not only going herself into harms way but continuing to do so even after they started going after her children.
ReplyDeleteEven the Mafia doesn't go after little children --- it says a lot about the mentality of Sanderson's opponents that they would target her *children* when the most bloodthirsty Mafia hitman would never dream of doing that.....
Amherst owes Sanderson far more than Amherst will ever know....