Fair Representation?

The Regional School District Planning Board will host a public meeting on December 5 and one overriding concern of Amherst residents is fair representation.  Or at least it should be.

By population Amherst makes up 88% of the current Regional School District (Amherst, Leverett, Pelham and Shutesbury) thus a School Committee of 100 members should have 88 of them calling Amherst home.

But alas it doesn't work that way as the current 9 member Regional School Committee is made up of five from Amherst two from Pelham and one each from Leverett and Shutesbury.  Not even close to that great American concept of "proportional representation."

The current attempt to bring Kindergarden through 6th grade into the mix will be even more disproportional since Shutesbury will not be joining, thus pushing Amherst to over 90% of the proposed Region.

Amherst RSDPB reps: Katherine Appy, Alisa Brewer, Andy Steinberg (Chair)

The make up of the  Regional School District Planning Board already hints at the problem with whatever "plan" they come up with, since the committee was founded with 12 members equally divided between the four towns. 

One (Pelham) member last summer somewhat addressed the potential tail-wagging-the-dog scenario by saying it would "save Amherst from themselves," a thinly veiled (nasty) reference to Catherine Sanderson's tumultuous reign on the Amherst School Committee.

A time when progress was actually being made, but bitterly opposed every centimeter of the way.

The meeting December 5 is not getting nearly the public attention it deserves.  Interestingly the RSDPB hired a PR firm to come up with a "marketing plan" back when they were attempting to fast track a completed plan to the voters by the November elections. 

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Regional School District Planning Board (RSDPB) Thursday, December 5, from 7-9 pm  in the Town Room in Town Hall

Public Safety: Barely Treading Water

 AFD on scene, Hadley

The minimum staffing level at Amherst Fire Department -- only seven on duty -- that results in routine "calls for station coverage" from Dispatch during the week will now be in effect on weekends as well, until late January when our institutes of higher education start their spring semesters.

Thus only three ambulances can be staffed.

Reacting to negative attention brought on by all the drunk students cannibalizing our ambulances, UMass wisely decided to kick in an additional $40,000 per semester to fund four extra on-duty weekend staff (13 total),  but that money ran out for this semester on November 2nd.

   AFD emergency runs Nov 22

Since then AFD used its own "regular department overtime" to fund an extra two on duty staff (bringing total to 9, or potential staffing for four ambulances) but this past weekend was the last time until start of next semester. So now we're back to only three ambulances.

Notice over this past weekend there were two separate clusters of ETOH (intoxication) events at UMass that tied up two ambulances simultaneously; and when that happens again over the next two months it leaves only one ambulance remaining for the rest of Amherst, as well as Leverett, Pelham, Shutesbury and Hadley.

Thus if you are going to have an accident over the next two months needing an immediate ambulance or firetruck, you may want to schedule it for a weekday.

Even then ...

Keep The Nuts In Amherst!

ARHS

These days if you have a problems with a decision made by a government or corporate entity, the quickest way to demonstrate that displeasure is to start a petition.

Of course back in the old days you actually had to put pen to paper and someone had to carry that paper around to each individual signer. Thank God -- or Al Gore -- for the Internet.

By almost all accounts the sudden implementation of the nut ban (pause for Amherst joke) has been handled horribly. The schools (and town) really need to hire a PR person.

Maybe I'll start a petition. 

Local Food Co-Op Opens

"All Things Local"  is already drawing a crowd to its new downtown location, site of the former Souper Bowl restaurant, with a "soft opening" this weekend.  

The co-op sells local produce and natural products on consignment or what manager Al Sax points out is a "shared risk model".

If the products sell the producer gets 80% of the sale and if it doesn't sell, everybody loses.

 

Harmony Springs (founded in Hamp)

 

Yes, even ice cream!

Open today, Sunday 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM

Out With The Old

Ye Old Hawthorne Farm house 10/9/13

Today

 

100+ year old Sugar Maples in rear meadow

Reap What You Sow

 Noah K. Pfister: home for the holidays

Eastern Hampshire District Court Judge John Payne denied the prosecution's "Motion for Pre-Trial Detention under MGL 276, Section 58A" in the assault case of Noah K. Pfister, accused slasher of  UMass student Henry Lancaster-Goguen, and set bail at $2,500.

The parents were in the courtroom on Friday to support their son, who was handcuffed and wearing leg shackles.  And they would need to scramble to find a Bank of America to post the cash bail, since the proceedings concluded around 4:00 PM.

The 58A hearing was called so the prosecution could present evidence that the defendant is dangerous and should be held in jail pending trial.  But the witnesses for the prosecution were hardly compelling with their testimony.

Victim Henry Lancaster-Goguen, age 21, admitted he was "very intoxicated" after attending parties at Townhouse Apartments and another at a house on Sunderland Road earlier in the evening.  When police first arrived at the 66 Pine Street location he told them a fall caused his injuries.

Asked to explain that discrepancy by the Prosecutor, Lancaster-Goguen explained he was in shock and "delusional" from the assault. 

He also admitted sending a text message threatening Pfister, age 24, and he could not remember who pushed first when the fight started.  And when asked by the prosecution how he would feel if his attacker were released on bail, Lancaster-Goguen replied, "slightly concerned". 

The most devastating testimony came from Pfister's girlfriend who had previously had a "physical relationship" with Lancaster-Goguen but had broken it off last summer.

She testified the victim had threatened Pfister, her new boyfriend, many times; called her a "whore" and "slut" in text messages; and that Lancaster-Goguen initiated the fight that night by pushing Pfister while calling him a "faggot."

Amherst Police Detective Greg Wise testified that Pfister told him during an interview that he pulled the knife "to prevent further attack," and that the victim had grabbed the knife by the blade after starting the fight.  

Although it did not come up at the hearing, Henry Lancaster-Goguen is no stranger to the Amherst Police Department, having been previously arrested for noise along with the brother of his accused attacker.

The Judge set the next pre trial hearing for January 23 and told Pfister to stay out of Amherst and away from the victim until then.  The parents confirmed they were taking him back to Camden, Maine. 

A Half Century Ago ...

The ornate condolence certificate, autographed by the President, arrived two months after the sudden death of my father—a combat veteran who helped overthrow the Japanese in the Philippines but never discussed it with any of his four inquisitive children.

That letter brought radiance into our home on an otherwise dreary late November day.

So, suddenly transformed into a proud 8-year-old, I pestered my mother for the honor of bringing the document to school the following day. My pragmatic Irish mother denied the request--worried I could lose or damage the precious parchment.

Friday began as unremarkable as a hundred before: Morning prayers chanted effortlessly, the Pledge of Allegiance parroted as we stood with our right hands over our hearts facing an American flag.

I was having trouble concentrating on the curriculum, typical for a Friday when the weekend beckoned. But this time all I could think about was a letter that had arrived just yesterday from a revered man who could have met my father less than a generation ago.

With only an hour of captivity remaining, a high-school boy suddenly entered from the right door bearing a message. Snatching the note from his hand the nun appeared almost angry at the interruption. I could, however, see her face suddenly turn white—matching the mask-like habit all ‘Sisters of St. Joseph’ wore.

She crumpled the memo with one hand while reaching back to grab her desk with the other, slumping as though absorbing a blow from a heavyweight boxer. With a trembling voice she said, “Please stand.” Although puzzled, we responded immediately.

“Now extend your arms sideway, shoulder high, and hold them there,” she said still struggling to gain control. So there we stood, 26 of us, rooted near our desks like cemetery crosses wondering, as our shoulders started to ache, what could possible cause such a break in routine?

She regained the commanding voice of authority to announce, “President Kennedy has just been shot” Tears trickled down her cheeks as she concluded, “He needs our prayers.”

At St. Michael’s school in the year of our Lord 1963, President John F. Kennedy was fourth on the list of most beloved: just under the Holy Trinity and tied with Pope John. And in my home he was tied for second with St. Patrick just under my recently deceased father.

The big yellow bus rumbled back to Amherst with an interior as quiet as a crypt. The astonishing event blurred short-term memory like one too many drinks. I began to question whether the letter from the now martyred leader was actually real, or did I simply imagine it?

Bursting thru the front door I quickly spied the prized possession lying on a cluttered kitchen table. With relief and reverence I held it aloft, taking in the brilliant gold calligraphy etched on a pure white background: “It is with deepest sympathy…”

A feeling the entire nation now shared.

Originally published 11/22/07