Shattered Lives

Kids can be cruel...and kids can be fragile.

A 15 year old girl in Massachusetts, Phoebe Prince, took her life after what has been called "an unrelenting series of harassment" by other students.  Now, 9 of these students are accused of crimes associated with this tragedy.  One life is irrevocably lost, and nine more may be irrevocably ruined...because adults didn't or couldn't do their jobs.  Click here to hear an insightful radio article on this issue.

I have heard from a family from West Haven about a bullying instance that is all too similar to the recent tragedy in Massachusetts.  Thank God, our child's parents were able to discern this problem, and the system seems to be responding correctly.

We shouldn't expect kids to fully understand the implications of what they do....because they're kids. 

But we must expect the adults in the school to be sensitive to such situations, and to intervene to ameliorate the issue (and to correct those who have caused the problem).

Part of the problem is the dual role we assign our educators:  in loco parentis  - Latin for "in the position of the parents" - has been replaced (mainly by legal decision) by in loco provitor: "in the place of the caretaker".  In short, the authority of our schools has been reduced to the level of babysitters.  And we wonder why our kids "isn't" learning?

We ask too much of our educators:  we demand that they: (a) make all our kids learn, when some of them aren't motivated to learn;  and (b) simultaneously keep enough control to give those students (who are motivated to learn) the opportunity to do so.  At the same time, we decline to provide the education system the tools to enforce these two goals.  And, again I ask, we wonder why our children "isn't" learning?

Even more importantly, we have no way to educate our children about the value of the diversity which has  made this country the best on earth.  Kids naturally tend to aggregate with those who are most like themselves: this is only natural at that time of their lives.  Things are changing which they don't fully understand; those who are experiencing different changes - or are experiencing the same changes at a different rate (or who are dealing with these changes with less difficulty) are singled out and despised as "different", and thus are "fair game" for being made fun of.  This reaction will come easily to children, who are unexpectedly insecure about the changes going on in their young lives.

But we as adults have already have experienced this same insecurity; we should be able to educate our young as to how to channel this insecurity into productive channels.  And we have failed in this responsibility.

And what about this Westie kid...who expected and deserved assistance from the teachers in this environment (including the administrators)?????  What scars will this child bear through life, thanks to the West Haven Public Education System?  Is this the future we want in this town?  Is this the future we want to build?  And how many more of these futures are we creating?

The small bits of information I've received about our local problem have cut me to the heart, because I was the victim of bullying while I was in school.  I made the damnable sin of insisting on befriending the least attractive of my class-mates; I refused to join in with the general denunciation  and ridicule of the "class faggot" (remember, this was the '60's and '70's).  I also had the unforgivable sin of being a nerd: I was into computers, math and science well before they were "cool".  I was also thrown into a new environment, in middle school, after a lifetime of a very steadily unchanging environment.  To put it simply, I didn't adapt well.  That's the short story.

I had the advantage - like our current West Haven student - of a strong family environment.  I survived (though I will never attend a school reunion!)

But how many kids in West Haven are out there, experiencing the same Hell, but who haven't the same family foundation?  How many more shattered young lives are we to accept?  And, are we ready to accept the consequences and future costs of these lost children?

For those who want to hear more,  I have many more papers on this matter; email me for this info.

That Old shakedown

You'd think they'd have learned by now.

Last night's meeting at the high school drew a capacity crowd of citizens angered by the Education plan to lay off 54 teachers and close Molloy and Thompson schools.  This little gem of a plan was hatched  by our very own $155,000.00-a-year genius, Superintendent Neil Cavallaro:

Leaving aside all the emotional considerations (for the moment), there's some hard facts that have to be faced.  First of all, it's no secret that school boards around the state and all over the country are facing declining student enrollment, declining tax revenues, and skyrocketing costs.  So it cannot be argued that West Haven's schools are facing a real crisis.

Having said that, it's also true that the steps proposed by Cavallaro to address this problem should properly be the last option: before we start cannibalizing our assets, we should first attack our costs.  

We should look at the bloated administration staff at Ogden Street: a mare's nest of petty patronage jobs and over-compensated individuals.

We should look at finding savings in non-essential programs:  perhaps requiring athletic teams to pay for equipment and the upkeep of the physical plant (such as Ken Strong Stadium, Bennett Rink, and so on).

We should be able to open discussions with the various unions to investigate possible savings in health and pension costs (that is, we should if our administrators were acting in good faith; and it's clear that they're doing everything possible to avoid that.)

We should also look at the costs of closing these schools and the loss of these teachers.  West Haven received millions in grant money to upgrade these schools...money that will have to be repaid if these schools are closed.  We will lose the inestimable future value of these young, dedicated teachers of our children.  And how much fuel and time will be wasted carting kids willy-nilly all over the City?  And how much additional costs will be incurred helping these kids to become acclimated to a new school,  new friends, and new teachers?

The administration seems to think of our schools like a warehouse:  it's one thing to ship a bunch of boxes from one location to another.  But our children are living, thinking, and vulnerable human beings: the intangible cost of this proposed upheaval has to be considered.

It is obvious that this dog of a plan is likely to end up costing the taxpayer - in real dollars and indirectly -  for many years to come.  And so, the plan should be shelved, and the administration be directed to explore other means of saving the money necessary to continue their vital mandate of properly educating our most precious asset: our children and our future. 

Sadly, though, it's also obvious that this ill-advised route has been chosen.  The powers-that-be will give vent to the righteous anger of the people, nod sagely and make comforting statements about how they understand and feel this pain...and then will do whatever they damned well please. 

The Problem with the Kids these days...

...is that they cost too damned much to educate, and this cost is affecting our annual salary increases.

This, it seems, is the unspoken viewpoint of those who run our education system.  But...there's a problem with this "me-first" outlook:

Just like paying into Social Security provides for those who passed us our country, paying into education provides for those whom we'll do the same.  Our democracy (or, if you prefer,  our republic) requires that we ensure that  every voting citizen have the ability to participate in her or his government, and have the tools to live and prosper in this country.

Let's cut to the chase.  Our schooling system eats up about two-thirds of every tax dollar we pay.  I don't think many would quibble with paying this amount....provided our tax dollars were spent wisely.  However, it is clear to anyone who looks into the matter that fiscal wisdom has long been sadly lacking in this area:  the West Haven Board of Education has become worse than the worst of the Federal excesses.  Its administration has become bloated with overpaid individuals whose sole qualification for taking taxpayer dollars is which political power with which they are (or were) friendly.  This is not caused by the current administration; but - by not stopping this practice - they have wrecked the system.


It is time to take the power away from the politicians who have dominated this snake pit of political patronage.  However, there is no obvious political party or group which shows any promise of fixing this situation.  The Morrissey Group? Fuggedaboudit!  The Picard Group? Fuggedaboudit!  As far as our "independent" chairman.... Fuggedaboudit!  

 No...the only political faction we can depend on is: We the People. 


We have the power to make the City government do what we want.  All that is needed is the people to make this happen.  The City Charter has a provision for this:

CHAPTER XVIII - INITIATIVE, REFERENDUM

POWERS OF INITIATIVE: The electors shall have the power to propose to the City Council any ordinance or resolution appointing or removing officials, specifying the compensation or hours of work of officials and employees, appropriating money, authorizing the levy of taxes, or fixing the tax rate. If the City Council fails to adopt such ordinance or other measure within thirty days after a petition making such a proposal shall have been filed with the City Council, the electors may adopt or reject the same at an election held within ninety days after such proposed ordinance or measure was originally filed with the Council, provided such petition shall be signed in ink or indelible pencil by qualified electors of the City, equal in number to at least ten percent of the registered voters at the last municipal election. Said petition shall be accompanied by affidavits signed and sworn to by each circulator of such petition, certifying to the authenticity of the signatures of such petition. The Town and City Clerk shall determine the sufficiency of the petition and the affidavits. A majority vote of the electors qualified to vote shall be necessary to initiate such ordinances or measures. Unless at least twenty percent of the electors entitled to vote on the question shall have voted, such proposed ordinance or measure shall not become effective and the result shall be construed as against adoption. No ordinance or other measure which shall have been adopted in accordance with the provisions of this Section shall be repealed or amended by the Council except by petition and vote of the electors.

If those in office don't listen to the voters who hold  the power, we still have the ability to make them hear us.  If we don't use our power, we can blame no one but ourselves.

It's up to us...can we do this? 

Dancin' In The Park(ing Lot?)

I'd like to apologize to (both) my regular readers for my long silence; but an unexpected personal emergency prevented me from posting.  And so much has been going on during my exile...let's start from the most recent.

Just as we're getting ready to welcome the good weather again...just as we're looking forward to outdoor activities...

The Register reported this weekend that the city is trying to shut down the volunteer-run dance sessions held on "Captain Tony's Deck" on the boardwalk.

To hear the city tell it, it's not trying to shut this popular activity down; it's only concerned about the potential liability should someone get hurt while doin' the "Electric Slide" (or maybe the "Chicken Dance").  They'd prefer these sessions be performed next to the bathrooms (doesn't that sound like FUN?) on the concrete.

Certainly, West Haven shouldn't allow any activity on City-owned property that could be injurious in any way, right?  There certainly isn't any other place designed in such a way that people could get hurt, right? Oh.....wait a minute: 

My point is:  this is a very popular part of our summer experience, and brings in people from surrounding towns - many of which also spend money in West Haven.  Whatever is done to limit the city's liability at the skatepark  could certainly be adapted for the far safer activity of dancing on the Deck. 

Or is safety and liability the city's REAL issue?  Could it be that they have (gasp!) political motives? (Cue scary music!)

You see, within hours of trouncing the Morrissey faction in the recent DTC primary, the city notified the popular live band "Flash Back" that they wouldn't be part of the summer concert series.  "Flash Back", if you don't know, has a musician with THAT LAST NAME (the name that Must Not Be Spoken).  Similarly, one of the most popular volunteer DJ's (HINT: not one of the guys) is seen by the administration as being, um, "NAFOTAD" (Not A Friend Of The Administration, Dear).

I almost hesitate to ascribe petty politics to our highly-esteemed political leaders; they are of course women and men of the highest ethical standards (I'll leave it to someone else to determine which are men and which are...you get the point).

Maybe we should print out and take the image below to the P & R meeting at City Hall on March April 5th: 

Sorry for the Silence!

West Haven Bob has had to deal with an unexpected emergency...I'll be posting again later today!

An (Alleged) Crime in West Haven

UPDATE (3/18/2010 7:30 am) - The Register is reporting that Gene Sullivan is under investigation for registering his car out-of-state - thereby avoiding CT Property taxes.  See the end of this post for more.

UPDATE (3/15/2010 2:00 pm) - I have been informed that the warrant has been served, and an arrest has been made.  More to come...

The phones are a-ringin', and the politico's are a-cluckin', about the impending arrest of a prominent Campbell Avenue merchant on various charges connected with the burglary of a Police Commissioner's home.

As I currently understand the matter - and it's quite likely that some of the following is incorrect - some idiots decided it would be a bright idea to break into the home of a Police Commissioner (has anyone ever heard of a smart criminal?).  They made away with quite a haul, including several pieces of jewelry.  The "perps" brought their swag to the businessman, ostensibly to sell the goods, and said merchant bought them. He REALLY likes gold, you see:

Now, I just sold a gold ring (at a different establishment); I had to produce photo ID, and I was told they would have to hold the ring for some days (ironically, to ensure it wasn't "hot").  Apparently our boy failed to follow these strictures, and melted the items down immediately.  If these allegations are true, I believe this is known as "receiving stolen goods" and "aiding and abetting".



The reason why this sordid little tale warrants (oops, bad word!) merits my attention?  Well, this merchant just won a seat on the Democratic Town Committee, and has been widely touted as the next Party Chairman.



It's been said that everything he touches turns to gold, and I can believe it: why, he obviously touched his cars' license plates years ago, and turned his Connecticut plates into Florida ones (hey, Florida is "the Sunshine State", and sunshine is golden, right?)

This is nothing new...in fact,  I reported on this situation almost exactly a year ago.  It still is a mystery as to why it's taken so long to come to a boil.  Surely, political pressures had nothing to do with it, right?


 

The end of a LOOOONG Primary

   The eternal (or is that infernal?) primary is finally in the bag...click on the image above to enlarge.

   The bottom line is that no major changes occurred; any candidate who was a winner on March 2nd is still the electee.

  I'll post more...as soon as I catch my breath.  In the meantime, I'll email the results (above) to any and all who ask.

Well, Well...Lookie HERE!

Well, I'll be the first to admit it when I'm wrong.

You might recall that back in September (just before Team Picard last got its head handed back to it on a platter), I reported that West Haven Bob was blocked from all City computers. Well...as it turns out, not all computers got blocked (though I am blocked from most machines). Oops...my bad!

Now, using my nearly 30 years' experience in this area, I can definitively state that there are two - and only two - possibilities here:

• The company that instituted the block (at Mayor Picard's behest) screwed things up, or:

• Somebody arranged to get themselves exempted from the block.

The company that put the block in was owned by a family member of our Human Resources Director (seems like I heard that song played in West Haven before!), and was paid beaucoup buckaroos by the taxpayers for their work. Hmmmmm?

On the other hand, I can name only two persons who have the horsepower to demand an exemption...and they work across the hall from each other on the Third Floor. Hmmmmm?!?!

So...who do YOU think it is? The Tearful Tiger or Der Barron?

This sort of game is my major problem with the gang who infest the upper floors of the City Hall. They have no objection to the blatantly fawning "West Haven (urp) VOICE" being delivered into the vestibules of the building (or do they think City employees read this on their own time?)

The Picard forces have shown time and again (as I have shown on this blog) that their main motto is:

"The laws and the rules only apply to the little people; not to us!"

Two Bite the Dust

And the games go on....

Just when I thought that this might just be a straightforward election, news came in that two challenging candidates in the Fifth District have dropped out from the upcoming DTC primary.

Now, at first glance, this isn't that unusual: candidates drop out for all sorts of (good or bad) reasons all the time. But, in this case...

You see, it's been said that Ms. Martha Bell - the "Paula Deen" of the Dirty Tricks cookbook - applied pressure to the families of the candidates. Martha, of course, is running on the endorsed slate...and by doing so, induced them to quit.

Now, on the one hand, if these candidates were so susceptible to such pressure, maybe they weren't the best choices. Certainly, a better vetting job could have been done...and maybe a little preparation beforehand would have prevented this issue from coming to a boil.

However, I've heard that Mme. Bell's spiel was that these candidates were "running with Rich Borer"; and that the aforementioned Mr. Borer was the reason why West Haven's taxes were going to rise. (Never mind that Borer's been out of office since 2005; and fuggedabout the, ahem, "minor" tax increase by the current administration supposedly to address these financial issues).

It just seems to me that going after the family of a candidate is way out of bounds. If it is true - and I believe it is - then this is just another job out of the Democrat's Dirty Tricks Department...and the voters should take notice.

We are "ALL ALONE"?

Well, not here in West Haven. We live our lives almost on top of our neighbors...but it is true that we don't know them. Their habits can drive us crazy...and little issues can get magnified.

It wasn't always like this...people once had the time to get to know the people who lived near them. And by becoming familiar, they then became neighbors...and thus a neighborhood was created.

We don't have the time anymore...or do we?

I propose that we take one evening - the first good night in July comes to mind - to take the barbeque out to the curb, or to make up a "pot-luck" dish to bring to the curb. And then everyone can meet each other and take the time (over food) to get to know each other.

It won't solve all our problems...but can't it prevent just a few neighborhood squabbles? And wouldn't it make all our lives here better?

I plan on doing this for my area. Email me if you want to participate, or to make a similar plan for your area. This is the time to plan for July!

The Political Tango (as seen from the CHEAP SEATS)

The West Haven Political Tango (aka "The Masochism Tango", by Tom Lehrer)

A few, er, "fair and balanced" observations on the upcoming DTC primary (though few would accuse me of being fair; and everyone seems to agree that I'm quite unbalanced):

This primary has the potential to radically change the political landscape of West Haven for the politicians; but at the same time, it's likely that - whichever side wins out - some things will remain the same for everyone else.

You see, for the past 20 years, the Democrats have owned the only political horse in town. Registered Democrats comprise more than 60% of all registered voters, while Republicans are now less than 10%. Therefore:

The Democratic candidates are usually the winning candidates, and the Democratic Town Committee (usually) selects these candidates.

This is what the primary is all about...to the leaders.

Neither side has shown any desire to change the way our government is run. Both sides seem to think this is all about power...and the ability to decide who gets what City job or contract. In other words, the power brokers in both factions want to have the municipal plums all to themselves; but neither seems to accept the fact that West Haven's plum tree is barren of fruit and is dying.

In other words, the gravy train hasn't left the station; the trip was canceled for lack of funds.

Nonetheless, each side will continue to try to control whatever patronage is left (since that is all they recognize as their power base). In that way, it's likely that little will change. They'll play the games of the past...ignoring the realities of the present. And we - the taxpayers - will pay the costs of these games in the (near) future.

What will change is the makeup of the opposition in the general election. It's likely that the farce called "A Better Future" will cease to be a viable opposition (since - if victorious - their main backers will have no further use for this charade); and the "Republicans" will again be the holders of the minority seats.

While I won't shed many tears for the demise of ABF, nonetheless, this would be a loss for the voters. The Republicans have relegated themselves into irrelevance; West Haven needs a true opposition party...if for no other reason than to keep honest those in power. And I don't see the West Haven GOP becoming anything more than a Greek Chorus in our political futures...meaning there will not be any real opposition. And thus there won't be real change; ergo, West Haven will continue to be sapped by the politico's who have nothing to fear.

Democrats have to come out and vote in this primary...but they must also put the candidates on notice that things are going to change. The game has changed: the leaders better change as well.

It is up to US - the voters - to DEMAND that they do what we want...or WE will have to live with what they do.

If you don't vote...your tax rate is your OWN DAMNED FAULT! Don't waste anyone's time complaining about it

It's time we start blaming ourselves for this mess, people: after all, we were the ones who voted these idiots in. I say this as one who did not vote for these idiots: no, I voted for different idiots.

My point is: until every citizen in West Haven raises enough Hell to make the politicians take notice, nothing will change. The friends (of those who are in power) will still get their jobs on our tax dollars...and those who got their jobs from the previous regime still get their "state nickel". Whatever happens, The taxpayers (me and you) will keep paying and paying MORE...unless we act NOW!

It's time for US to shut down this patronage merry-go-round...and the only time to start is now...unless we're willing to pay more later.

Act now...or shut up and take it. Otherwise, you're stuck with me continuing on with this blathering blog!

OK?

Your (Freudian) Slip is Showing...

Wow...and these are his friends. Even his opponents don't call him that (at least in print).

Beyond this humorous (at least to my juvenile tastes) point, there's the more serious issue of BLATANT BOOSTERISM from our little friend "The Truth". Apparently (to borrow shamelessly from Karl Rove), "I'm entitled to my truth, and they're entitled to The Truth". And they can keep "The Truth", as far as I'm concerned.

I make no secret of my biases; but at the very least, it has to be granted (even by my opponents) that I am the only blogger to have published the complete ballots for everyone to see. And on that point, I should make clear that those samples were simply my amateurish attempt to mimic the ballot using Microsoft Excel; they were not the actual ballots.

Though, of course,who do I think I am? I'm trying to argue against:


And ain't it really curious that - even though "fair and balanced" - they don't want their identities known....Hmmmmm?

UPDATE: 6:45 pm 02/13/10: It's nice to know that "The Truth" is at least a small part of this blog...how else could one explain the correction shown below? Might it be that "The Truth" finally got "tiered" of my jokes about her (lack of) spelling ability?

Oh, the PAPERWORK!

The games have begun.

I have heard that the "litigious" branch of the Picard team have filed, according to my best counting, about eight Freedom of Information (FOI) requests upon the City Clerk and the Democratic Registrar.

Don't get me wrong: I've been a frequent user of the FOI laws upon the elected officials of our Fair City; and I've made complaints whenever those elected officials didn't comply with my requests within the FOI rules. FOI, I believe, is a powerful tool which can be used to keep those in power answerable to the people.

But, like any other powerful tool, FOI can also be misused powerfully. In this case, those making these FOI requests are apparently aiming to disrupt the election process. The information they seek could have been obtained at any other earlier time, but they chose now to make their requests. And so, the Clerk and the Registrar must take time - unnecessarily - from their electoral duties to: amass the data requested, to make copies of this information, and to ensure the information in the office fully complies with the request.

All of this work diverts their attention away from the necessary task of making sure this election is conducted fairly and legally. And all of these requests could have been made before the election was mandated. And those who made these FOI requests will scream the loudest (and will be first to levy a lawsuit, costing the City precious dollars), if anything goes the least bit awry.

Why, then, were these requests made when they were made? The only conclusion I can derive is that:

These people WANT this election to be flawed, so that they can get through a JUDGE
what they might not get through the PEOPLE.

I'll report the facts; you will be the judge of THE TRUTH.

Godspeed, Al!

West Haven has lost a good and loyal man.

Alexander Botte, the (semi-)retired Police Commissioner, has left us. Al was a true gentleman, and a firm believer in the positive side of West Haven...just as he truly saw all the positive aspects of life. There are only a few for whom I had greater respect and admiration.

I first met Al in the late 1960's, when I was a kid working for "Big Al" Zarnowski (back then, he was "Mr. Botte" to me...later, he told me to call him "Al"). Even though I was barely into Middle School, I remember he would take the time to discuss with me various issues of the day. He always forced me to think deeper into the issues (and showed me the value of seeing the other side's point of view). This philosophy served him well over the years.

All I can add to the above is, "farewell, good and true servant!" I'll miss you.

If you have memories of Al, please post them by clicking on the comments link (below the post time) below. I'll forward the best of these to his family.

(NOTE: I wish I could have found a better photograph of him!)

I'd Like To Say...

Congratulations to the NFL Champion New Orleans Saints!

And, to the Colts: you have nothing to be ashamed of; in a hard-fought game, it all came down to one interception. Peyton is still, IMHO, one of the greatest to have ever played the game.

So: it's on to Spring Training and baseball! If you haven't yet decided that I'm annoying, just you wait until the Yankees CREAM the Red Sox!

Edgy, Cated Children

The latest issue that has roiled the political chatterers is the proposed move of the Board of Education's Administration from the current Glade Ogden Street location.

This whole thing started when someone proposed converting the former Police Department at City Hall into new digs for the Board. But this plan hit a $2,000,000 snag: the City doesn't have the estimated $4,000,000 to remodel the City Hall space; it only has about half. And when was the last time you can point to a City project that came in at or under its projected cost? Because of this underfunding, the City Council won't release the money already set aside...to prevent West Haven taxpayers from getting sucked into yet another contractor "money hole".

Now, the administration proposes to rent space at the Yale Campus (formerly the "Bayer Campus", formerly-formerly the "Miles Laboratories Campus"). They propose to take a two year lease: this term is based on the estimated time it will take to complete the City Hall renovations. And when was the last time you can point to a City project that was completed on or earlier than projected?

This grand scheme comes from a Superintendent who makes better than $150.00 per hour (in base pay...not including benefits and other, um, "perks") from the taxpayers...$168,000 per year. Not bad work, IF you can get it!

The bottom line here is that we're being set up for another monetary soaking...at a time that we're in possibly the worst financial shape since the state takeover 20 years ago. Time to watch out!

I'll have more to say on this matter...as soon as I finish reading all the info I received.

Now, About Those Finances...

First, we had the state Municipal Finance Advisory Council tell us that West Haven's financial plans were risking our financial ruin...and the Mayor told them to drop dead, that everything was just peachy. Of course, he was running for re-election, then.

Then, just after his re-election, we found out he raided the Police Pension Fund in order to make the City's December payroll. Supposedly, we came within 48 hours of a default on our obligations. But, we were assured by Da Robba that all would be OK once January's tax revenues came a-streamin' in.

This week, the state-mandated Audit revealed that our credit rating has sunk to the lowest possible...meaning that we couldn't borrow our way out of this mess even if we wanted to.

Today, the Register is reporting that we are "one or two snowstorms away from bankruptcy." And, by the way, it's supposed to snow today and Wednesday.

I guess the new plan is to pray for Global Warming....fast.

It's HEEEERE!

Well...over a month late, West Haven's Audit is finally out...and the news ain't so great.

I'll have more to say on this once I've had a chance to read the latest piece of fiction...Stay tuned.

Helping the Hopeless

They say that "Justice is Blind". Well, apparently, "The Truth" is both deaf...and dumb.

Deaf, because our little friend won't allow comments. And as for "dumb", well, read the above.

Ya think someone should get a spell-checker?

Hmmmm.....

The DTC Ballot

Word from the Registrar's office is that the above are the ballots for March 2, 2010.