The Celtics enter game three of their playoff series with the Indiana Pacers tonight tied at one game a piece. After giving the wounded Pacers a sound thrashing in game one the Celtics inexplicably let game two slip through their hands by squandering a 6 point lead with 4 minutes and 50 seconds to go by scoring a grand total of 3 points down the stretch.
It is no secret that the Pacers are ripe to be knocked off. The suspension of Ron Artest, the loss of Jamal Tinsley, the less than one hundred percent Jermaine O’Neal and the age of Reggie Miller severely tests the limits of the club physically in a seven game series. Being ripe and being exploited however require execution by the Celtics and until they prove they can do that on the Indiana home court this series is up for grabs.
There are a number of keys to focus on tonight. First and foremost is Reggie Miller. The Celtics must make Reggie look like he is 39 years old. In game one a combination of Tony Allen, Ricky Davis and Delonte West held Miller to 7 points on 1 for 7 shooting from the field. The same Miller and defenders resulted in Reggie torching the Celts for 28 points, shooting 9 for 18 from the field and 7 for 8 from the line.
The Celtics must get more balanced scoring from the entire club. In game one Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce took 27 out of 74 shots versus game two in which they went for 32 attempts out of a total of 67 shots taken. Game one resulted in the two combining for a total of 25 points in a convincing win while in game two they combined for a total 52 points in a disappointing loss.
Another factor is Ricky Davis as a scoring option. He is unlikely to repeat the 1 for 8 performance of game 2 but he has to focus more on the game and less on trash talking. Mark Blount has so far contributed virtually nothing to the Celtic cause. If he continues to look like a dead body then Coach Rivers has to act swiftly to give his minutes to Al Jefferson and Kendrick Perkins. If the team goes down in this series then at the very least the younger players should be able to benefit from the experience meaningful playoff minutes will provide.
Indiana is a seasoned club with excellent coaching however they are severely wounded and should be able to be over come however they are not going to rollover. If the Celtics want to advance they are going to have to provide a maximum effort in the next two games and win one on the opponent’s court in order to regain the home advantage. Regaining the home court and winning the series would be made a great deal easier if they buckle down and take care of business tonight.
Thursday, April 28, 2005
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
The ride to work
I enjoy being a townie. Townie of course is a description that is up for debate. I have lived in town for 50 years but was not born here so in some cases the native born still consider me a carpet bagger. Despite what others might think, for me it is an appropriate label because I feel like a “townie”.
Nothing reinforces that feeling for me more forcefully than my ride to work in the morning. Although I have a number of options which are more direct and more economical in terms of time, I always go the same way. I start on Francis Wyman Road, head up Bedford Street across 3A, down Center Street to Winn and on to Route 128. I go that way because I start my day every day with a fond trip down memory lane. In this one 2 ½ mile trip most every good thing that has occurred in my life happened along this trail.
It starts kind of slowly by passing by the old Wildwood Elementary School where I attended 2nd grade through 5th grade. These memories are somewhat dim except for the fact that I still see some of my classmates around town. What’s more fresh is the fact that both my children went to the same school and we all three shared the same 3rd grade teacher.
Next up is the local parish where the kids were baptized and we were all confirmed. A little further up the road is the cemetery where my parents are buried as well as many of the local luminaries who I grew up admiring in local politics.
At the top of Bedford Street the memories begin in a huge rush. At the top of the Bedford Street hill there is the oldest church in town where I got my first kiss one night at a church sponsored dance. I will always be grateful to the Protestants for that! On the opposite side is Simond’s Park. This is the scene of so many memories I will condense them into a stream of consciousness. My first home run I hit, the first of many hit off of me, 25 stitches in my face, two broken feet, 6 chipped teeth, numerous sprains, poker games, cigarette smoking, parking, and so many belly laughs I smile just thinking about it. Those were just as a kid. As an adult I have had even more memories there watching my own children and others that I have had the joy of coaching.
On the right side at the lights is an old building that once served as the town’s library. I came from a family of readers so it was not uncommon to see paperbacks lying all over the place. There were always a large selection to choose from in the throne room. Never the less I can remember my first trip to the library and being in awe of such a collection. I can remember just walking down each row and wondering how long it would take me to read all of them.
I look back and completely understand how impressionable kids are when I see this building that I was so with taken with at the time is now an old relic to little to serve any purpose except as the only museum in town.
Crossing Route 3A brings me to the Union School or what is now the police station but 80 years ago or so was the first major school building in the town. When I got there it housed only 6th graders as the town was busting at the seams with school age children. It was here that I met my wife for the first time in Mr. MacDonald’s room. More on that later. The friends I have today were for the most part made on that play ground.
Next up is the Center school which in the 30’s was the town’s first high school but housed just 7th graders by the time I got there. When we started there we were busting out all over socially with dances and the Friday night roller skating bus and 13 year old Hell raising in general. The principal of the school was one Mabel Keating. A stern woman that would strike the fear of God in any of us who she confronted. She patrolled everywhere. Your shirt had to be buttoned to the top, your lunch better be eaten and if you were hanging out in the boy’s room she would damn well come in there and pull you out by the scruff of the neck.
It was against this back drop that one of the funniest events of my short life occurred. A bunch of us including one Martin Hill were hanging around at recess and I lit off some firecrackers I had brought to school. Mabel came through the parking lot like a whirlwind and grabbed poor Marty Hill by the throat. For the moment we all thought this was hilarious. Later on in class we heard Ms. Keating’s voice on the intercom to all the classes say that Marty was in deep deep trouble. We could almost hear Marty whimpering in the background. Ms. Keating said that Marty denied having set off the firecrackers and she expected the guilty party to show up in the office at once. I am not sure if I was feeling sorry for poor Marty or I wasn’t sure he could stand up to the interrogation so I walked up to the front of the room and told my teacher that Ms. Keating wanted to see me as I was the guilty party.
I got up to the outer office and the lady at the desk said not a word but pointed to the half opened door of Ms. Keating’s office. Through the crack I could see a poor forlorn looking Marty sitting with moist eyes. I knocked on the door and walked in and said to no one in particular that it was me. A very angry looking Mabel looked at Marty and pointed to the door and Marty was gone like the wind.
Strangely enough I wasn’t all that scared because I was well deserving of the ruler that was coming to me for this transgression and many others. Everyone knew that Ms. Keating beat the Hell out of kids with the ruler although none of us knew anyone who had actually been struck. Much to my astonishment, Ms. Keating came around the desk with a plate of cookies and offered me one! In a tone of voice which I had never heard from her she said “well Phillip, you are a very honest boy.” We chatted amicably for a few minutes and she sent me happily on my way. Later that day at a school assembly she made me stand up in front of everybody as an example of honesty. It took years to live that down with my peers.
There are two more stops rich with years of memories down the street. On Winn Street is the now middle school which the served as our high school at the time. By the time I was a senior we had had two years of double sessions. It was the early sixties and the system was out of control. I was part of a class of 35 males and rocket science was not our major. Hi jinx of every kind was the order of the day including cocktails and other assorted delicacies. Most all of that subject is to be left for reminiscing with the boys but the best part for me was again being re-acquainted with my later to be bride.
On the first day of school in my junior year I showed up in a Problem’s of Democracy class. Two things I noticed immediately were that people I recognized were actually students so my being there was a mistake. The other was this raven haired beauty sitting in front of me. I told Eddie Hosmer two things, I am transferring out of this class and I am going to marry that girl. About 200 yards down the street on the right is the church we got married in 4 years later.
Those are just a few of the things I like about being a townie and the ride to work.
Nothing reinforces that feeling for me more forcefully than my ride to work in the morning. Although I have a number of options which are more direct and more economical in terms of time, I always go the same way. I start on Francis Wyman Road, head up Bedford Street across 3A, down Center Street to Winn and on to Route 128. I go that way because I start my day every day with a fond trip down memory lane. In this one 2 ½ mile trip most every good thing that has occurred in my life happened along this trail.
It starts kind of slowly by passing by the old Wildwood Elementary School where I attended 2nd grade through 5th grade. These memories are somewhat dim except for the fact that I still see some of my classmates around town. What’s more fresh is the fact that both my children went to the same school and we all three shared the same 3rd grade teacher.
Next up is the local parish where the kids were baptized and we were all confirmed. A little further up the road is the cemetery where my parents are buried as well as many of the local luminaries who I grew up admiring in local politics.
At the top of Bedford Street the memories begin in a huge rush. At the top of the Bedford Street hill there is the oldest church in town where I got my first kiss one night at a church sponsored dance. I will always be grateful to the Protestants for that! On the opposite side is Simond’s Park. This is the scene of so many memories I will condense them into a stream of consciousness. My first home run I hit, the first of many hit off of me, 25 stitches in my face, two broken feet, 6 chipped teeth, numerous sprains, poker games, cigarette smoking, parking, and so many belly laughs I smile just thinking about it. Those were just as a kid. As an adult I have had even more memories there watching my own children and others that I have had the joy of coaching.
On the right side at the lights is an old building that once served as the town’s library. I came from a family of readers so it was not uncommon to see paperbacks lying all over the place. There were always a large selection to choose from in the throne room. Never the less I can remember my first trip to the library and being in awe of such a collection. I can remember just walking down each row and wondering how long it would take me to read all of them.
I look back and completely understand how impressionable kids are when I see this building that I was so with taken with at the time is now an old relic to little to serve any purpose except as the only museum in town.
Crossing Route 3A brings me to the Union School or what is now the police station but 80 years ago or so was the first major school building in the town. When I got there it housed only 6th graders as the town was busting at the seams with school age children. It was here that I met my wife for the first time in Mr. MacDonald’s room. More on that later. The friends I have today were for the most part made on that play ground.
Next up is the Center school which in the 30’s was the town’s first high school but housed just 7th graders by the time I got there. When we started there we were busting out all over socially with dances and the Friday night roller skating bus and 13 year old Hell raising in general. The principal of the school was one Mabel Keating. A stern woman that would strike the fear of God in any of us who she confronted. She patrolled everywhere. Your shirt had to be buttoned to the top, your lunch better be eaten and if you were hanging out in the boy’s room she would damn well come in there and pull you out by the scruff of the neck.
It was against this back drop that one of the funniest events of my short life occurred. A bunch of us including one Martin Hill were hanging around at recess and I lit off some firecrackers I had brought to school. Mabel came through the parking lot like a whirlwind and grabbed poor Marty Hill by the throat. For the moment we all thought this was hilarious. Later on in class we heard Ms. Keating’s voice on the intercom to all the classes say that Marty was in deep deep trouble. We could almost hear Marty whimpering in the background. Ms. Keating said that Marty denied having set off the firecrackers and she expected the guilty party to show up in the office at once. I am not sure if I was feeling sorry for poor Marty or I wasn’t sure he could stand up to the interrogation so I walked up to the front of the room and told my teacher that Ms. Keating wanted to see me as I was the guilty party.
I got up to the outer office and the lady at the desk said not a word but pointed to the half opened door of Ms. Keating’s office. Through the crack I could see a poor forlorn looking Marty sitting with moist eyes. I knocked on the door and walked in and said to no one in particular that it was me. A very angry looking Mabel looked at Marty and pointed to the door and Marty was gone like the wind.
Strangely enough I wasn’t all that scared because I was well deserving of the ruler that was coming to me for this transgression and many others. Everyone knew that Ms. Keating beat the Hell out of kids with the ruler although none of us knew anyone who had actually been struck. Much to my astonishment, Ms. Keating came around the desk with a plate of cookies and offered me one! In a tone of voice which I had never heard from her she said “well Phillip, you are a very honest boy.” We chatted amicably for a few minutes and she sent me happily on my way. Later that day at a school assembly she made me stand up in front of everybody as an example of honesty. It took years to live that down with my peers.
There are two more stops rich with years of memories down the street. On Winn Street is the now middle school which the served as our high school at the time. By the time I was a senior we had had two years of double sessions. It was the early sixties and the system was out of control. I was part of a class of 35 males and rocket science was not our major. Hi jinx of every kind was the order of the day including cocktails and other assorted delicacies. Most all of that subject is to be left for reminiscing with the boys but the best part for me was again being re-acquainted with my later to be bride.
On the first day of school in my junior year I showed up in a Problem’s of Democracy class. Two things I noticed immediately were that people I recognized were actually students so my being there was a mistake. The other was this raven haired beauty sitting in front of me. I told Eddie Hosmer two things, I am transferring out of this class and I am going to marry that girl. About 200 yards down the street on the right is the church we got married in 4 years later.
Those are just a few of the things I like about being a townie and the ride to work.
Saturday, April 16, 2005
Defensible resistance?
During the campaign, one of the items I had made as an issue was making arrangements for televising the meetings of the Ways and Means Committee. The Ways and Means or more commonly known as the finance committee in other forms of legislative government is the primary advisory committee to the Burlington Town Meeting. Let me properly define the importance of the Ways and Mean Committee by entering an excerpt from the town bylaws. The committee “makes written recommendations on all financial articles that involve the appropriation, transfer, expenditure, or raising and borrowing of money. The Ways and Means Committee may make recommendations on any and all questions involving Town affairs.” This committee plays a central role in the business of the people.
During the course of the preparation of an 85 million dollar budget each department through out the town must individually bring their budget before the W+M’s for scrutiny. The process begins with the supervising authority and the department heads meeting with a sub-committee chairman. After agreement is reached the sub-committee presents the results to the entire committee for a final recommendation.
Arrangements in order to televise these proceedings included making the main hearing room at town hall through the cooperation of the town administrator available for the committee. The main hearing room is important because it is outfitted with robotic cameras and has an audio system that enables the public access governmental channel to produce a very high quality image of the meeting with a minimum of production staff. Other arrangements included lining up a volunteer to run the robotic console as well as placement of the meetings on the channel schedule.
The committee currently chooses to meet in a room at the police station that is barely large enough to hold the 15 members and has approximately four seats for any member of the public who might wish to watch the proceedings in person.
Televising of public meetings is not new to Burlington as the Town Meeting, Board of Selectmen, School Committee, Board of Health, Board of Appeals, Planning Board and Conservation Commission have all been placed on the schedule and shown live one by one for the last decade or so. At no time has the public access corporation received any resistance except once. The subject of the Ways and Means committee was brought up over four years ago and has been resisted ever since.
The situation began to come to a head last year when the body that the Ways and Means reports to, Town Meeting, passed a non-binding resolution requesting that the committee be televised. Apparently the committee responded by having thoughtful conversation about it and deciding on their own not to comply but to prepare a “show” of some of the deliberations that they deemed appropriate for the viewing public.
The central problem here is that the committee’s approval is not necessary for the taping of their meeting. They are a publicly posted deliberative body that cannot prevent its public viewing. When apprised of this Wednesday night the committee was shocked and appalled and insulted! I was a tool of the executive boards that wanted to “stifle” the committee. The committee could not “discuss sensitive information” and gain “tidbits” of legal and labor issues if they were on television. This is the opinion of some, despite the fact that like everyone else in town, they can go into executive session to discuss such matters. I was “arrogant” to spring this surprise on them. This despite the fact that it has been an issue for four years and I just campaigned on the subject for 8 weeks.
At this point it appears as though the committee may choose to dig in its heels. The chairman has sought a legal opinion as to whether or not he can prevent filming of the sessions. There have been suggestions of negotiations and study and delay. The answer is no. The simple fact of the matter is that anyone with a camera can tape the proceedings and play them on the public access government channel and it can’t be prevented. The choice for the committee is a high quality production with good quality audio and camera angles or a shoddy single camera, one microphone shoot in an old converted school building.
As a community we are in a period of time that may include some financial distress. For that reason alone we need to have more public awareness of our system, so that if hard decisions do have to be taken we may have helped build public confidence by showing the taxpayer how those decisions were deliberated upon and arrived at
The taxpayers of the community have every right to view those proceedings. By watching the professional and painstaking process that town government volunteers and town management professionals follow in order to construct a municipal budget I believe it is possible to build interest, respect and trust in local government. This is precisely what public access government programming was designed to promote.
During the course of the preparation of an 85 million dollar budget each department through out the town must individually bring their budget before the W+M’s for scrutiny. The process begins with the supervising authority and the department heads meeting with a sub-committee chairman. After agreement is reached the sub-committee presents the results to the entire committee for a final recommendation.
Arrangements in order to televise these proceedings included making the main hearing room at town hall through the cooperation of the town administrator available for the committee. The main hearing room is important because it is outfitted with robotic cameras and has an audio system that enables the public access governmental channel to produce a very high quality image of the meeting with a minimum of production staff. Other arrangements included lining up a volunteer to run the robotic console as well as placement of the meetings on the channel schedule.
The committee currently chooses to meet in a room at the police station that is barely large enough to hold the 15 members and has approximately four seats for any member of the public who might wish to watch the proceedings in person.
Televising of public meetings is not new to Burlington as the Town Meeting, Board of Selectmen, School Committee, Board of Health, Board of Appeals, Planning Board and Conservation Commission have all been placed on the schedule and shown live one by one for the last decade or so. At no time has the public access corporation received any resistance except once. The subject of the Ways and Means committee was brought up over four years ago and has been resisted ever since.
The situation began to come to a head last year when the body that the Ways and Means reports to, Town Meeting, passed a non-binding resolution requesting that the committee be televised. Apparently the committee responded by having thoughtful conversation about it and deciding on their own not to comply but to prepare a “show” of some of the deliberations that they deemed appropriate for the viewing public.
The central problem here is that the committee’s approval is not necessary for the taping of their meeting. They are a publicly posted deliberative body that cannot prevent its public viewing. When apprised of this Wednesday night the committee was shocked and appalled and insulted! I was a tool of the executive boards that wanted to “stifle” the committee. The committee could not “discuss sensitive information” and gain “tidbits” of legal and labor issues if they were on television. This is the opinion of some, despite the fact that like everyone else in town, they can go into executive session to discuss such matters. I was “arrogant” to spring this surprise on them. This despite the fact that it has been an issue for four years and I just campaigned on the subject for 8 weeks.
At this point it appears as though the committee may choose to dig in its heels. The chairman has sought a legal opinion as to whether or not he can prevent filming of the sessions. There have been suggestions of negotiations and study and delay. The answer is no. The simple fact of the matter is that anyone with a camera can tape the proceedings and play them on the public access government channel and it can’t be prevented. The choice for the committee is a high quality production with good quality audio and camera angles or a shoddy single camera, one microphone shoot in an old converted school building.
As a community we are in a period of time that may include some financial distress. For that reason alone we need to have more public awareness of our system, so that if hard decisions do have to be taken we may have helped build public confidence by showing the taxpayer how those decisions were deliberated upon and arrived at
The taxpayers of the community have every right to view those proceedings. By watching the professional and painstaking process that town government volunteers and town management professionals follow in order to construct a municipal budget I believe it is possible to build interest, respect and trust in local government. This is precisely what public access government programming was designed to promote.
Sunday, April 10, 2005
A sunburn, a cold and a win
Political office is always a two part formula. First you have to win election to the post and then you have to serve. Saturday I got past part 1 with a 1475 to 943 victory. That makes me the new town moderator when I get sworn in Monday morning,
The turnout was a little below 20% and somewhat stronger than expected. There were only two other contested races, neither of which was extremely intense. The overall voters who turned out was unofficially pegged at 2488 so if you add the total you can see that there weren't many blanks cast in the race. Most everyone who showed up had decided on a candidate in the race. Still the turnout was not nearly the 4100 who turned out for last year's more vigorous contests.
Election day is quite hectic and almost a blur afterwards but during the day it seems like it might never end. The troops had been out late Friday evening preparing the polling place with strategically placed signs to greet the voters as they arrived Saturday. Our poll presence was good as beginning at 8 o'clock when the polls opened I had a steady stream of family, friends and supporters holding signs. I maintained my position all day with the exception of about an hour and a half to go watch the little kids at first communion in the afternoon. I knew I had put in a pretty solid effort when at about 7:58p.m., the town clerk came out of the polling place to look for any stragglers who if they didn't hurry would miss their chance to vote. At the time most all of the other candidate workers had gone while myself and one of my supporters still stood with our signs to exhort the very last voter to hurry her way in to the polls. My only proof of my day long duty at my post is the rather nasty sun burn I got on my face and for the first time ever sun burned bald spot. (note to self, aren't you glad people don't hold it against a candidate who is to stupid to put on sunblock?) My only defense on this subject is that for most of my life when I have been working for a candidate or running myself, I have either had an umbrella or frozen my behind off on election day.
Winning is exhilarating, humbling and exhausting all at once. After the polls closed I jumped in the car and went for a drive while a couple of the troops went in to wait for the results. Fortunately, with the new counting technology it is a very short period of time before the results are totaled so it was about 15 minutes before I got the call. You kind of hold your breath when the cell rings because you know a lot of effort by everybody is condensed into just one answer. I had felt both ends of the emotional spectrum during the day. Early, wondering if I had done enough and then later gaining confidence as when the voters began to thin out I could really focus on who they might be and to my great relief I knew a lot of them. I counted the last forty or so and speculated on who they might be voting for, I came eerily close to what the final percentage of victory was.
The cell rang about 8:15p.m. and the words were "your ok" which allowed for a sigh of relief but also brought a thought of the opponent who was experiencing the polar opposite feeling. Anybody who has run and lost can sympathize with the opponent at that moment. The old timers at the hearing of disappointment will always say there is another one next year but still it is not easy news to swallow for the candidate. So its over and I am the winner but up next comes the serving and this can be as dicey as the campaigning but in a much different way. Dan Aykroyd said once in the film Ghostbusters "I have been in the private sector and they expect results". This particular job is on the ballot every year just for that reason. If you aren't producing an expected result your stay can be short.
My face is killing me, I feel like I haven't slept in a month, I caught a wicked cold and I got a win. I am in perfect shape to head into part 2.
The turnout was a little below 20% and somewhat stronger than expected. There were only two other contested races, neither of which was extremely intense. The overall voters who turned out was unofficially pegged at 2488 so if you add the total you can see that there weren't many blanks cast in the race. Most everyone who showed up had decided on a candidate in the race. Still the turnout was not nearly the 4100 who turned out for last year's more vigorous contests.
Election day is quite hectic and almost a blur afterwards but during the day it seems like it might never end. The troops had been out late Friday evening preparing the polling place with strategically placed signs to greet the voters as they arrived Saturday. Our poll presence was good as beginning at 8 o'clock when the polls opened I had a steady stream of family, friends and supporters holding signs. I maintained my position all day with the exception of about an hour and a half to go watch the little kids at first communion in the afternoon. I knew I had put in a pretty solid effort when at about 7:58p.m., the town clerk came out of the polling place to look for any stragglers who if they didn't hurry would miss their chance to vote. At the time most all of the other candidate workers had gone while myself and one of my supporters still stood with our signs to exhort the very last voter to hurry her way in to the polls. My only proof of my day long duty at my post is the rather nasty sun burn I got on my face and for the first time ever sun burned bald spot. (note to self, aren't you glad people don't hold it against a candidate who is to stupid to put on sunblock?) My only defense on this subject is that for most of my life when I have been working for a candidate or running myself, I have either had an umbrella or frozen my behind off on election day.
Winning is exhilarating, humbling and exhausting all at once. After the polls closed I jumped in the car and went for a drive while a couple of the troops went in to wait for the results. Fortunately, with the new counting technology it is a very short period of time before the results are totaled so it was about 15 minutes before I got the call. You kind of hold your breath when the cell rings because you know a lot of effort by everybody is condensed into just one answer. I had felt both ends of the emotional spectrum during the day. Early, wondering if I had done enough and then later gaining confidence as when the voters began to thin out I could really focus on who they might be and to my great relief I knew a lot of them. I counted the last forty or so and speculated on who they might be voting for, I came eerily close to what the final percentage of victory was.
The cell rang about 8:15p.m. and the words were "your ok" which allowed for a sigh of relief but also brought a thought of the opponent who was experiencing the polar opposite feeling. Anybody who has run and lost can sympathize with the opponent at that moment. The old timers at the hearing of disappointment will always say there is another one next year but still it is not easy news to swallow for the candidate. So its over and I am the winner but up next comes the serving and this can be as dicey as the campaigning but in a much different way. Dan Aykroyd said once in the film Ghostbusters "I have been in the private sector and they expect results". This particular job is on the ballot every year just for that reason. If you aren't producing an expected result your stay can be short.
My face is killing me, I feel like I haven't slept in a month, I caught a wicked cold and I got a win. I am in perfect shape to head into part 2.
Wednesday, April 06, 2005
Getting near the end
Three days to go and the campaign will finally be over. The most aggravating part of a political race is the end where you wait by the phone after the polls close to get the call that gives you the result. I have been on both sides of the coin in that situation and by personal experience I can tell you that winning feels better than losing.
The bride has a very good outlook on this race. Her opinion is that I win either way. If I do win the race then I go along and serve and try to accomplish the task in a way that brings respect to the position and the process. If I don’t win then it is a pretty simple statement by the electorate that my public service days are over. It is clear cut in the sense that my opponent has criticized the outgoing moderator and has staked his run on various improvements to the process, however he also readily admits that he has participated in town meeting just once in the 42 years he has lived here.
Considering that town meeting is a pretty lengthy, involved and complex process, my opponents analytical skills must be quite impressive in order to formulate an improvement plan after just one visit. Conversely, I have served in some capacity or another at town meeting for nearly 28 years, including the moderators position. Given this cavernous difference in experience and the fact that I have probably out spent the opponent 4 to 1, out advertised him, and outworked him, then to find a reason for the loss would simply only require looking in the mirror. If my opponent prevails it would be hard to hide from the fact that that it would be a public repudiation.
No sense dwelling on the negative while there is still work to do. The campaign has peaked at the right time. I have 3200 pieces of mail going out this week that include a letter with over 175 names from people who are endorsing me. For the most part that includes the majority of members of the governing boards in town as well as a variety of individuals. The recipients will be a list culled from the voters list that identifies them as frequent voters. We have quarter page ads in the daily going in the next three days and we have a visibility Friday afternoon that will include a group of supporters standing on the street corner.
Election day will consist of the usual effort of having sign holders at the polling place all day long. We have considered a phone effort to get the vote out however that will be decided tonight. In the meantime I am continuing to work the phones personally to get out some supporters.
I have no prediction other than to say it will be close. The opponent got 1600 votes last year in a rather heavy turnout of approximately 30%. I don’t expect anywhere near that this year as the intensity of the other races are not comparable to last year. If 15% turnout then that means approximately 1950 voters will turn out and a winner will need 976 to become the next town moderator.
The bride has a very good outlook on this race. Her opinion is that I win either way. If I do win the race then I go along and serve and try to accomplish the task in a way that brings respect to the position and the process. If I don’t win then it is a pretty simple statement by the electorate that my public service days are over. It is clear cut in the sense that my opponent has criticized the outgoing moderator and has staked his run on various improvements to the process, however he also readily admits that he has participated in town meeting just once in the 42 years he has lived here.
Considering that town meeting is a pretty lengthy, involved and complex process, my opponents analytical skills must be quite impressive in order to formulate an improvement plan after just one visit. Conversely, I have served in some capacity or another at town meeting for nearly 28 years, including the moderators position. Given this cavernous difference in experience and the fact that I have probably out spent the opponent 4 to 1, out advertised him, and outworked him, then to find a reason for the loss would simply only require looking in the mirror. If my opponent prevails it would be hard to hide from the fact that that it would be a public repudiation.
No sense dwelling on the negative while there is still work to do. The campaign has peaked at the right time. I have 3200 pieces of mail going out this week that include a letter with over 175 names from people who are endorsing me. For the most part that includes the majority of members of the governing boards in town as well as a variety of individuals. The recipients will be a list culled from the voters list that identifies them as frequent voters. We have quarter page ads in the daily going in the next three days and we have a visibility Friday afternoon that will include a group of supporters standing on the street corner.
Election day will consist of the usual effort of having sign holders at the polling place all day long. We have considered a phone effort to get the vote out however that will be decided tonight. In the meantime I am continuing to work the phones personally to get out some supporters.
I have no prediction other than to say it will be close. The opponent got 1600 votes last year in a rather heavy turnout of approximately 30%. I don’t expect anywhere near that this year as the intensity of the other races are not comparable to last year. If 15% turnout then that means approximately 1950 voters will turn out and a winner will need 976 to become the next town moderator.
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