tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11405707.post111489895195745993..comments2023-10-24T06:48:54.181-04:00Comments on Kevin McCrea for Mayor: Voting date informationKevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02934047220331334056noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11405707.post-1116237297499682502005-05-16T05:54:00.000-04:002005-05-16T05:54:00.000-04:00By Howie Carrhttp://mlin.lib.ma.usYou, too, could ...By Howie Carr<BR/><A HREF="http://mlin.lib.ma.us" REL="nofollow">http://mlin.lib.ma.us</A><BR/><BR/>You, too, could land a cushy council seat<BR/>Boston Herald (MA) > News<BR/>May 15, 2005<BR/>By Howie Carr<BR/><BR/> Are you still looking for that dream job?<BR/><BR/>It's not too late, friends, but you have to move quickly.<BR/><BR/>Tuesday is the filing deadline for the Boston City Council<BR/>elections.<BR/><BR/><BR/> Here's what you get:<BR/>Base salary, $75,000.<BR/>Two - count 'em, two - downtown parking spaces.<BR/>Another $135,000 for "aides."<BR/><BR/><BR/> As they would say on a TV game show, actual retail value<BR/>$250,000. And that doesn't even include however many Red Sox<BR/>tickets you can steal, or scalp, or both.<BR/><BR/><BR/> It's a shame Vinny the Animal Ferrara doesn't get out of the<BR/>stir until Thursday, because otherwise, Paul Scapicchio, the<BR/>incumbent from the North End, might be looking over his shoulder,<BR/>in more ways than one.<BR/><BR/><BR/> If the Animal stands up at a candidates' night on Hanover<BR/>Street and tells everybody he knows how to twist arms, who could<BR/>possibly doubt him?<BR/><BR/><BR/> The current city councilors, as well as the mayor, Mumbles<BR/>Menino, a former councilor, know just how sweet their deals are.<BR/><BR/>That's why they've changed the filing deadlines, to keep you from<BR/>trying to grab their parking spaces and their pensions.<BR/><BR/><BR/> It used to be that a Council candidate had until late July to<BR/>submit his signatures.<BR/><BR/>Now, the deadline has been silently moved up to May 24.<BR/><BR/>But first you have to get down to City Hall, by Tuesday, and<BR/>apply to get your nomination papers printed up.<BR/><BR/><BR/> Then you, or any other unemployed layabout, have another week<BR/>to round up the signatures.<BR/><BR/>Unfortunately, members of the city's largest demographic group -<BR/>illegal aliens - aren't allowed to sign, or at least they're not<BR/>supposed to.<BR/><BR/>Still, you should be able to get signatures from 200 Americans.<BR/><BR/>That's the number you need to get on the ballot for one of the<BR/>nine district seats.<BR/><BR/>For an at-large seat, it's 500. (That number used to be 1,500,<BR/>but it was just too darned much work.)<BR/><BR/><BR/> You read a lot of hooey about the "new Boston," but the reality<BR/>is, most of the at-large candidates are still Irish, just like,<BR/>as always, the High Sheriff of Suffolk County and the former<BR/>Speaker of the House are in photo finishes with the grand jury.<BR/><BR/>The more things change. . . .<BR/><BR/><BR/> You ask, what exactly does a city councilor do?<BR/><BR/>Well, first of all, you know Ch. 24, the cable-access channel in<BR/>the city?<BR/><BR/>It's the other MTV - Mumbles TV.<BR/><BR/>It's all Mumbles, all the time.<BR/><BR/>So when Mumbles comes to your neighborhood, you stand behind him<BR/>and somberly nod as he promises to reduce the rate of murders in<BR/>city parks to a more manageable number.<BR/><BR/><BR/> The original idea behind having nine district councilors was<BR/>that they actually would be advocates for their neighborhoods.<BR/><BR/>Unfortunately, that would have required work, and work is a<BR/>four-letter word, especially on the fifth floor at City Hall.<BR/><BR/><BR/> So here's how the councilors operate.<BR/><BR/>First, unless you're a developer, they won't take your call.<BR/><BR/>When a constituent phones with a complaint or a request, the<BR/>first question the councilor's coatholder asks is, "Have you<BR/>called the state rep?"<BR/><BR/><BR/> Then the aide gives the caller the rep's phone number at the<BR/>State House.<BR/><BR/>If the caller says he's already talked to the rep, and nothing<BR/>happened, the councilor's aide badmouths the rep and offers the<BR/>constituent the phone number of the local state senator.<BR/><BR/>If that doesn't work, the ultimate "nuclear option" is giving the<BR/>voter the number for the mayor's hotline.<BR/><BR/><BR/> Then the aide tells you the councilor will be glad to get back<BR/>to you . . . if you need Red Sox tickets.<BR/><BR/><BR/> Howie Carr's radio show can be heard weekday afternoons on<BR/>WRKO AM 680, WHYN AM 560, WGAN AM 560, WEIM AM 1280, and<BR/>WXTK 95.1 FM.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://mlin.lib.ma.us" REL="nofollow">http://mlin.lib.ma.us</A><BR/>By Howie Carrtheszakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02671109875431805540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11405707.post-1115149251010748702005-05-03T15:40:00.000-04:002005-05-03T15:40:00.000-04:00Please ask the election department to put1) candid...Please ask the election department to put<BR/>1) candidates' names on their website and<BR/>2) images of specimen ballots when available.<BR/><BR/>It can be confusing when going to vote not knowing exactly the layout of the ballot text !theszakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02671109875431805540noreply@blogger.com