Outside the box

Patty Bode's chilling diatribe
So my friend Mr. Morse accused me of "obsessing about the Open Meeting Law"--even though as a (grumpy) prosecutor he should appreciate that the state has agreed with me more often than not on both Open Meeting Law and Public Documents appeals after initial stonewalling from town officials.

But even a zealot like me has to question a guest column in today's crusty Bulletin, one of many attacking School Committee black sheep Sanderson and Rivkin's overly dramatic Column two weeks ago comparing the abuse they get for speaking their minds and questioning authority to the Bush administration questioning the patriotism of critics at a time when patriotism was considered a good thing.

Patty Bode, a former Amherst teacher naturally, worries that Sanderson's blog could violate Open Meeting and Public Documents because it discusses "school committee business" outside the arena of a school committee publicly posted meeting, and that her blog attracts a high number of Anons who could very well be other school committee members thus creating a quorum.

And she also worries about certain postings that have been "disrespectful and slanderous to school personnel," but fails to give any examples. Kind of ironic considering her slanderous charge that some fellow School Committee members could be masquerading as Cowardly, Anon, Nitwits in order to circumvent the Open Meeting Law.

And would that really be a violation anyway?

The purpose of the Open Meeting Law is to ensure that business is transpired in public. So what the Hell does Bode think a blog is? A private little antiquated listserve? A smoke filled backroom? Sanderson teaches aerobics so it's a safe bet she doesn't smoke. A blog is the public arena.

Bode closes with the question, "Why would a public official want to establish a forum that tolerates disrespectful communication?"

Well how about that most basic, fundamental, bed rock American value: the First Amendment!
Don't stray from the flock!

"Ich bin ein" NIMBY!

Okay, so as you tell from the photo taken from my private driveway the DPW fortress is within spitting distance of my abode. So anything I say should be taken with a truckload of salt. But I'll say it anyway.

Sure, the idea of having round-the-clock shifts (4 a.m. to noon, noon to 8 p.m. 8 p.m. to 4 a.m.) to create cost efficiencies makes perfect sense--on paper. Just like an engineer can demonstrate, on paper, that bees cannot fly.

Last year snow and ice removal was over $200-k and much of the work was done by workers garnering overtime. Under the new system, crews would be on duty anyway and thus only be receiving regular pay.

The union last week voted not to give up their negotiated COLAs next year. The 38 men and women are some of the lowest paid town workers and those raises would only amount to the salary of one employee. Besides, the Town Manager refused to guarantee no-layoffs even if they did give up their raises. Not much incentive there.

While police, fire, and emergency dispatch are 24/7 operations Public Safety employees knew that when they signed on. The DPW workers, some who have worked many, many years built their lives around a normal work schedule. So not only will morale plummet, but safety as well. As the sign once displayed in the garage area window said: "Warning: Every machine in this place can hurt you."

Digging ditches is hard enough during normal hours, I can't fathom doing it routinely in the middle of night.

The Bully reports:

Scott Brown wins!

UPDATE: 9:20 PM

So the Washington Post is tweating that Martha Coakley has called Scott Brown to concede the race. Now if only she showed that personal touch with the voters over the past six weeks...


ORIGINAL POST : 1:00 PM

So in a sense Scott Brown has already won. He shook up the complacent, take-voters-for-granted, uber-liberal establishment in this state like a once in a lifetime perfect storm.

Back in my days as a nationally ranked karate competitor we called it "fighting not to lose": A highly-ranked, well-known competitor fighting some unknown upstart knew they could rely on the judges to give them the benefit of the doubt on any exchanges, so they could safely somewhat coast.

Thus it all came down to how you define "somewhat coast." Martha Coakley went into a complete stall after winning the democratic nomination and made the biggest mistake in the history of competition: underestimating your opponent.

While at the same time arousing the normally complacent voters by taking them for granted.

Obviously Scott Brown will not win the People's Republic of Amherst (even with my vote and that of my wife.) But Amherst is out of touch with the rest of the state--except of course for Cambridge--so it should be interesting...very interesting.

Let the Judge decide!

State Ethics Commission, Enforcement Division
One Ashburton Place
Room 619
Boston MA 02108

Dear Sir or Madam,

I wish to file a formal complaint over the inappropriate use of a taxpayer funded town digital asset (High School website) to further a partisan political cause--the passage of a Proposition 2.5 Override ballot question.

Although the Amherst Select Board has not yet formulated the structure or amount for the Override, Select Board Chair Stephanie O'Keeffe has publicly confirmed they will place an Override question on the March 23 local ballot.

On January 14 an ad appeared on the Amherst Regional High School Parent Center, a page contained within the High School website (http://www.arhsparentcenter.org/)

##################################
Petition for a Prop 2 1/2 Override
Submitted by Baer Tierkel on January 14, 2010 - 6:10pm.

Override Petition If you are interested in supporting a Proposition 2 1/2 override to help avoid the most drastic cuts to our schools, libraries, and town services, there is a petition being circulated at:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/saveamherst
#################################

Since the Override online petition drive is clearly an effort to influence the outcome of the ballot question, it should not be promoted at taxpayer expense.

Sincerely Yours,

Larry Kelley

The Brown Bomber

(Jim Young, REUTERS)
UPDATE: Monday, 3:45 PM

Okay, I have now taken my phone off the hook after the 9th or 10th political advertising call so far today.
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So previous Cover Boy and current State Senator Scott Brown must be doing something right as the desperate Dems had to dispatch heavy hitters to protect sacred ground: President Obama today, and of course Slick Willy (the other "first black President) was around on Friday before jetting off to Haiti to save that part of the world.

And of course they try to brand Brown as a right wing water boy for the failed polices of Bush/Cheney.

Fun to watch the all-powerful Democratic establishment squirm--something that almost never happens in Massachusetts (Well, except when a Republican gets elected Governor). How can you blow a 30 point lead in no time? It helps if you're business-as-usual at a tumultuous time when business is anything but usual.

My buddy Howie Carr described Martha Coakley as "Mike Dukakis in a skirt." Ouch! Remember the tank driving incident?

And of course Martha thought Curt Schilling--Red Sox Nation superhero--was a Yankee fan. Double ouch!

And the children shall lead...

With a little help from the adults--both with vested interests.

Funny how this supposedly fair and balanced "news" article in (ARHS) The Graphic extensively quotes Nina Koch, a teacher, and Rick Hood, a pro status quo School Committee member wanna-be, slamming Catherine Sanderson's School Committee blog for being too negative, and then of course they pile on some more.

Yet each of them chime in rather regularly on Sanderson's blog. A blog is a perfect example of interactive free speech: if readers don't like what you publish then they can freely rebut. As the ACLU would say, "The way to counter bad speech is with good speech--not censorship."

In the Free Market of ideas and opinions, may the best one win.

Lies, damned lies, and statistics

So in both today's Gazette and Amherst Bulletin we have the perfect example of warm and fuzzy emotional arguments trying to undermine that cold cruel scientific world of statistical data. As Commander Spock would say, "fascinating".

Two young ladies (editors of the school newspaper no less) poke Catherine Sanderson's assertion that ARHS needs Advanced Placement courses next year while she simultaneously does not bemoan the cutting of ceramics, woodcutting or gay/lesbian literature ("Vagina Monologues" anyone?) in a Guest Editorial aptly headlined "We're Students, Not Statistics."

"Simple statistical analysis cannot be the answer," the young women insist. Yeah, woodcutting is w-a-y more fun than advanced calculus, but now that Cowls Building Supply is closing down their lumber mill...

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And in the Amherst Bulletin former School Committee Chair--you know right up there with being Captain of the Titanic--Elaine Brighty decries Stan Gawle's Bulletin column from last week that used a devastating comparison between Amherst and Northampton school industries. Mr Gawle dared to ask the question:

"Why does it cost Amherst $12,344,000 more to educate our students than Northampton? Northampton has a comparable school population; has more kids in special education; zero study halls while we have two; and more advanced placement course offerings than we have."

Brighty insists "Comparing the cost to educate students in different towns and cities is more difficult than it should be." She goes on to suggest that some towns hide education costs (retirement, health insurance, and other benefits) in the town government budget rather than schools.

Even if true it would not make up a $12 million difference! And doesn't address the BIG difference in forced study halls and AP courses offered.

Mr Gawle also pointed out: "The town employs approximately 920 employees. Ten earn between $100,000 to $157,000; 24 earn between $80,000 to $100,000; and 433 earn between $50,000 to $80,000." And in the current Fiscal Year "Amherst gave $2,171,526 in raises and had only $1,459,084 in projected revenues to cover those costs."

Ms. Brighty declares: "Our employee compensation is comparable to that of other communities." Maybe, but apparently not Northampton where--according to the Mass Dept of Elementary and Secondary Education--teachers earn an average salary of $54,000 compared to Amherst Regional High School's $62,500. And 100 teachers at a $8,500 difference adds up.