Easter Rebirth-Love to the World

Love to everyone

Martha Coakley announces new Open Meeting Post

Your browser may not support display of this image. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Office of the Attorney General

ONE ASHBURTON PLACE

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02108

(617) 727-2200

(617) 727-4765 TTY

www.mass.gov/ago


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT:

March 31, 2009 Emily LaGrassa

(617) 727-2543

ATTORNEY GENERAL MARTHA COAKLEY NAMES ROBERT NASDOR TO LEAD OFFICE’S NEW DIVISION OF OPEN GOVERNMENT

New Division will Focus on Education and Outreach as AG’s Office

Assumes Responsibility for Open Meeting Law Enforcement
BOSTON – Attorney General Martha Coakley has named Robert Nasdor as the Director of her office’s newly-created Division of Open Government. In this role, Nasdor will oversee the Attorney General’s Office’s work to enforce and provide education and training on the state’s Open Meeting Law. On July 1, 2010, the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) will assume responsibility for enforcement of the Open Meeting Law (OML) from the state’s District Attorneys, who previously enforced the law as it pertains to municipal bodies.
“The recent changes to the Open Meeting law provide for greater transparency and clarity—both of which are hallmarks of good government,” said Attorney General Martha Coakley. “Our office’s approach to enforcement of the Open Meeting Law will focus on education and training, and it is our hope that if all local government officials understand the law, we will prevent violations. Bob is a seasoned attorney whose career has focused on public interest advocacy and he shares my commitment to open government. I am confident that he will bring top-notch leadership to this new division and will be a great resource for municipal officials.”
Nasdor, a Sudbury resident, is a graduate of Rutgers University School of Law. He previously served as the Legal Director at the National Center on Homelessness & Poverty in Washington, DC, where he directed the law and policy agenda for this national homeless legal advocacy organization. From 1997 through 2005, Nasdor served as the Executive Director of the Legal Assistance Corporation of Central Massachusetts, directing a 20-attorney civil legal services program serving 3,500 low-income clients annually.
Under Ethics Reform legislation enacted in 2009 the AGO will assume responsibility for all enforcement of the OML. Previously, the AGO was responsible for enforcement of the OML as it pertains to state boards and committees, while the state’s 11 District Attorney’s were responsible for enforcement of OML as it applied to municipal and county boards and committees. In order to allow for more consistent enforcement and to provide for more training

and education of municipal and county officials, all enforcement was transferred to the AGO, effective July 1, 2010.

Recognizing that most OML violations are the result of a lack of awareness or understanding of the law, the Attorney General’s new Division of Open Government will focus on providing training and educational resources to public officials who are subject to the OML. The Division of Open Government will provide training through two key means:

1. Online: The AGO will develop a comprehensive website that will provide updated OML guidelines, links to the OML and the AGO’s regulations, links to the advisory opinions and hearing decisions that we will be issuing, and other educational materials and resources.
2. In-person: The new division will also conduct in-person, regional trainings. In addition, the AGO will also continue to accept requests to speak from associations representing municipal officials, city managers, city solicitors/town counsel and city/town clerks, and other officials subject to the OML, as well as the news media.



The new division’s goal is to be a recognizable and readily accessible resource for officials, the news media, and the public.

Because the AGO has the authority to issue binding interpretations of the OML—something that the District Attorneys did not have—the AGO will be able to help officials avoid violating the law by providing guidance before action is taken. The AGO will provide both formal and informal guidance to municipalities and other officials. For example:

* Officials and other interested parties can ask for a written opinion from the Division of Open Government, which will apply the OML to a specific set of facts.
* The Division of Open Government will be able to respond to questions and concerns posed by local officials over the phone.



In addition, the AGO plans to issue procedural and substantive regulations that will help to fill in any gaps in the OML and respond to issues that arise.

Mike Ross's Citizen Committee announced

Mike Ross announced in January that he is putting together a citizens committee on how Boston can be better. His announcement says the committee is full of innovators who have brought fresh energy and ideas to Boston.

I contacted Mike and the chairperson Ed Glaeser expressing my interest in the committee, but I didn't make the cut.

I was interested that in the announcement it noted that committee person Klare Allen is a resident of the Boston Housing Authority, but it doesn't mention where any of the other people live. I wrote the following note to Councilor Ross, I'll let you know what response I get:

Dear Mike,

I was disappointed that you weren't interested in having me on your committee. I had spoken to ChairPerson Glaeser about it and he thought I might be able to add something to it. Anyway, I wish you and the city well with it. I would suggest saving libraries or having a real long term plan and discussion about libraries would be a great way to make a great city.

I have one question. In your announcement it mentions that Klare Allen is a resident of the Boston Housing Authority. I have met Klare and I know she is a poor black woman. I also notice that the announcement doesn't mention where any of the other people live. Is there a particular reason that you only identify where poor black women live? I'd appreciate it if you would update your announcement and
let everyone know where all the appointees live. I know you care about equality and transparency.

I look forward to your response.

Kevin McCrea

Mike Responds:

It was to highlight that she lives in public housing - yes - that is important to me, and I hope to the public, that a member who lives in public housing is on this committee because this isn't just about CEO's and academics - that our city is strong enough to attract talent internationally, but lift up talent who currently lives here. She and I spoke.

Hope to see you at the meeting, and we will produce more complete bios.

Mike

My editorial against closing libraries

This printed in these weeks edition of the South End News.

Recently it has been reported that there is an emergency fiscal "crisis" with the Boston Public Libraries and that 10 of the 26 branch libraries may have to be shuttered. But, the numbers do not add up, and there is no real emergency. The crisis is one of honest government, proper planning, and responsible investigative journalism.

First the numbers: according to the Boston Globe, the library budget this year is 41.1 million dollars, for which it is reported there is a 3.6 million dollar shortfall, which is about nine percent. The announced response to this is to close 38 percent of the branch libraries? Clearly, more than meets the eye is going on here. Three million, six hundred thousand dollars is less than two tenths of one percent of the 2.4 billion dollar City budget, and hardly rates as a crisis forcing us to board up public institutions without a proper vetting of how important they are to our civic life.

As thoroughly explained in the enlightening book "Shock Doctrine" by Naomi Klein, governments and politicians have moved away from being honest with their citizens by creating false "crises" to force "reforms" on people that they could not do democratically. In a debate last year, Mayor Menino trumpeted the fact that he had not closed one library during our national economic meltdown. I pointed out that he had indeed closed the Kirstein library, and he retorted that it just moved to Copley Square. Will he use the same logic for these 10 branch libraries? He certainly didn’t run on a platform of closing 40 percent of our civic institutions. Closing libraries is the modern equivalent of book burning, as Adrian Walker’s bank robber subject John McGrath so aptly put it this week.

I believe the media is most to blame for this state of affairs. Why aren’t they asking these basic financial questions? As I and others such as the Municipal Research Bureau and the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation have been pointing out for years, we have an unsustainable financial model, especially when it comes to pensions and health care for government workers. This didn’t just happen in the last month, and it is no excuse to ram the shuttering of all these libraries down our throats without an honest, transparent analysis and discussion of our long-range civic goals and priorities. Last year at this time, City Hall was telling the press that we were facing 900 school layoffs and 200 police layoffs. As I wrote last year, this was again another fake "crisis" and was just being used to scare the populace so that the politicians looked good when they cut far fewer jobs, or none as in the case of policemen. I am saying it here now: the City of Boston is not going to close 10 libraries this year, City Hall is not being honest with the citizens, and if I am wrong I will personally donate $50,000 for books to the library system. I believe for the media to have their own sustainable economic model, they need to start doing their job and asking these questions, instead of asking where Tom and Gisele were last night.

We espouse that we are the Athens of America, but the recent news would suggest otherwise. We are talking about closing schools and closing libraries because of lack of money, but yet when two convenience store clerks are murdered the politicians are quick to come up with funds and proposed rules for requiring security cameras. I feel I am living more in Oceania than in Utopia. Yet the facts again point out the fallacy in their thinking. Surendra Dangol was killed in a convenience store with a security camera; it took 20 days to arrest his alleged killer. Gerardo Serrano was killed in a convenience store without a security camera; it took only four days to arrest his alleged killers. I didn’t hear a single politician ask about the cost of those proposed cameras and rules. It takes real leadership to say to a shocked and grieving public that to make a just and safe society we need to spend more on libraries and schools, and less on security cameras.

What is the solution? First of all, pray for Mother Nature to give us $7.5 million during this Easter season. What do I mean? Well, with help from Councilor Ayanna Pressley’s office I have figured out that we budgeted 15 million dollars for snow removal this year, and thankfully, we have only spent $7.5 million so far. So, if we can somehow make it through to Easter without breaking out the plows we will have a pot of gold that can help us survive the "crisis" for another year while we have a well-thought-out discussion on the future of libraries in Boston.

Mayor Menino has been talking about using eminent domain downtown; he could take back Heyward Place and put the $2 million his friend collects for parking fees tax free back into City coffers. We could ask why we are giving $30 million in tax breaks and grants to Liberty Mutual, or perhaps ask their CEO Ted Kelly to at least make a 3.6 million contribution from his $27 million dollar salary to the libraries in exchange for those credits. Most important of all, perhaps, we should ask how the taxpayers got put on the hook for $800 billion in TARP debt, but we couldn’t get 3.6 million dollars for libraries?

When my mother was working a full-time job and raising her three children on her own, we didn’t have money for a TV, let alone childcare. She had us go to the library after school and wait until she could pick us up. I sat for hours safely reading, learning, and imagining wonderful things. I wouldn’t want any child in Boston to lose out on that same sense of wonder, safety and potential that is enclosed within each and every library because of a dishonest, fake "crisis."

Kevin McCrea is a South Ender and former candidate for Mayor of Boston.

Editorial which could be written for Mass. and Boston

When the Legislature convened its fiscal session a year ago, Louisianians expected lawmakers and Gov. Bobby Jindal to streamline the state's bloated bureaucracy without crippling our future.

The Times-PicayuneLouisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal.What we got instead was a one year fiscal Band-Aid.

So lawmakers begin this year's session Monday facing an even worse fiscal outlook. Despite $248 million in mid-year cuts, they may need to trim as much as $400 million more from this year's budget. Then, they have to slash another $1 billion in expenditures to balance the 2010-2011 budget.

To say that lawmakers will have to make hard choices is an understatement. Yet they must find the vision to look ahead and pass reforms that help stabilize the state's finances for years to come and end the current cycle of jagged cuts that are eviscerating vital services.

To that end, Louisiana has to significantly reduce its number of state employees and slow down the growth of salaries and benefits, which are asphyxiating the state's budget.
Despite significant efforts by the Jindal administration to trim the bureaucracy, Louisiana has more than 100,000 state workers. That's unsustainable. This session, the governor and lawmakers must pass serious measures to cut that number, such as state Treasurer John Kennedy's unsuccessful proposal last year to eliminate 15,000 jobs over three years. That would save hundreds of millions of dollars annually.

The state also needs to reform a structure that for years has led to automatic pay raises for most state workers. Last year, 98 percent of classified state workers got a pay hike. The number is down to 61 percent this fiscal year, and that's progress. But giving pay increases to six of every 10 state workers is still jaw dropping in the face of monster deficits and while most Louisianians are seeing their income drop or stagnate.

Legislators shouldn't buy the old argument that state workers deserve special treatment because they earn less than their private counterparts. That's just not true, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The department said private employees nationwide earned $27.42 in salary and benefits per hour worked in December, while employees of state and local governments got $39.60 in salary and benefits per hour worked the same month. The complete report is on the Web site of the department's Bureau of Labor Statistics, at www.bls.gov.

Another fallacy is that the public sector needs to pay more to attract or retain employees. But governments are not having trouble filling positions, in great part because people are attracted to the relative stability of public work compared to the private sector.

Lawmakers also need to reform the state's pension program to adjust it to our new fiscal reality and to place it more in line with the benefits most Louisiana workers receive. That means revising provisions that let some state workers retire with almost full benefits at a very young age. Those terms were created decades ago, under more auspicious fiscal conditions and lower life expectancy. It's also unfair to ask taxpayers, many of whom don't have traditional pension programs anymore, to finance much better benefits for state workers, especially in the current economic climate.

Even these reforms would not be enough. Lawmakers also should make it easier to spread the pain of deficits, by expanding the governor's ability to make budget cuts across the board and at higher percentages than now allowed. Legislators and Gov. Jindal also need to have a frank discussion about repealing constitutional restrictions that have left higher education and health care exposed to disproportionate cuts.

Of course, Louisianians expect lawmakers not to make matters worse. Ignoring warnings of fiscal disaster, the Legislature last year passed unaffordable tax breaks, including a repeal of the Stelly tax plan that is helping balloon this year's deficit and will hurt state government for years.

Yet some lawmakers are still in fiscal wonderland. They have filed numerous bills that would exponentially increase deficits for state and local governments, including proposals to raise the already generous homestead exemption. Another ill-conceived measure, by Rep. John Alario of Westwego, would raise the state supplemental pay to most police officers, sheriff deputies and firefighters. Those employees provide important services, but their salaries and benefits seem competitive enough already. And every penny in additional pay has to be cut from other services, mostly education and health care, that have already been severely affected.

Most Louisianians appreciate the gravity of our fiscal situation and the need to publicly evaluate our state's priorities while protecting our future. Some lawmakers do as well, judging by some of their recent statements on the matter. They should not let this session go by without major fiscal reforms.

Some positive thanks!

I called up Ayanna Pressley's office to get some financial information. They were very polite, and got back to me about a week later with the information I requested. I wrote an editorial for the Boston Globe about what a farce the closing of the libraries is, but they seem to have ignored it.

Anyway, it might seem as if I'm bashing politicians here all the time, so I'd like to say something positive about one who has lived up to her campaign process of "access".
I am still waiting for a call back from Councilor Connolly on why he thinks the Open Meeting Law is restricting his work as he told a group in Brighton. It has only been 3 or 5 months.....

wooohoooo!

Here I am getting blisters on my palms and trying out my new gppro camera, thanks to raoul and our team usa hovercraft shirt!

morning in Baja

This trip has been the most physically grueling I've taken. We get up at 6:30, eat and are on the road at 7:30, we ride until just before the sun starts to set, with just a lunch break over the Baja 1000 course. Today will be the 6th and final day of riding. We started out with 6 riders, and by day 4 we were down to just me and the two guides, the others all needed time off, including an ex-police officer about my age, in excellent physical shape. The three amigos rode like the wind down the pacific coast, often at top gear 3/4 throttle through sand, rocks, washboard dirt roads and through rivers. No fun at all.

I picked up a bug somewhere and was fighting that off for the last two days, I feel a bit better this morning after 6 delicious steak tacos. Mexico is muy tranquillo (very calm) and everyone is nice, the kids line up at the side of the roads to give us high fives as we come into the tiny towns along the way.

Looking forward to Cabo tonight, 1000 miles of dirt trails in 6 days deserves a drink!

having no fun at all in baja

amazing scenery, toughest trails ever, we were supposed to do 210 miles today and ended up doing 67 in 11 hours, leaving five guys stranded in the desert mountains with no water. An almost potentially dangerous situation.

Saw a mexican eagle, a rattlesnake, and some men with bravado fall by the wayside.

viva mexico!

Petition to save the Libraries--please sign up

There is a petition drive underway to try and stop the
> closing of a number of Boston Public Library branches,
> including locally, the Fields Corner Branch. The Dorchester
> Reporter has a fuller description of the issue.
>
> http://www.dotnews.com/2010/neighbors-stir-support-library-branches
>
> Also, the Globe reported on the public hearing last week.
>
> http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/03/09/rankings_to_decide_fate_of_libraries/
>
> I am collecting signatures via email for the petition
> drive. If you would like me to add your name, please respond
> to this email and say that you want to added, and give you
> full name and address (for example):
>
> Please add my name to the petition:
>
> John Doe
> 123 Main Street
> Dorchester, MA 02122
>
> I will attach hardcopies of any emails that I receive to
> the petition sheet I submit, so that your source email will
> be confirmation of wanting to be on the petition.
>
Mike Cote

city council hearing on giving liberty mutual 16 million in tax breaks

shirley kressel has a post at blue mass group:

My comment:


I don't know when people are going to wake up that our business and political priorities are contrary to what is good for the majority of the citizens.

The leaders and executives at Liberty Mutual don't need libraries, they live in communities that value education and libraries, not the inner city neighborhoods of Boston. If they do live in Boston, you can be sure that they are relatively close to Copley which will always be there.

What they do need is even more money for their pockets, and few well placed contributions to candidates is well worth the return on investment. I believe John Keith at Universal Hub did the research and showed that Liberty Mutual executives gave about $16,000 to Mayor Menino last year, what is that rate of return? $16,000 to 16 million?

This tower will be near the corner of Berkeley and Columbus the old Salvation Army building. Blighted? Hardly.

But then again, the Mayor signed off on nearly 6 million in tax breaks a year for 1 Beacon Street because it is in a blighted area. Perhaps being 180 steps away from so many lawmakers at the State House makes an area blighted.

Margery Eagan outlines the facts!

Margery Eagan in the Herald today finally outlines the facts of a recent study showing how government workers make more than the private sector, especially when health and other benefits are included.


When I was in Las Vegas a few weeks ago as a birthday present from my wife, we went to Denny's on Sunday morning because they give you a free breakfast on your birthday. (Yes, I am always trying to save money. If its free it's for me!) Our waitress was clearly exhausted as she was rushing around to a packed house. She looked to be in her 30's with braces. When she got to our table she apologized in advance and told us she was tired, we empathized with her. She said she was a nurse and had done 3 straight night shifts but she had to do this shift at Denny's as well.

I don't know why, but I started to get angry and sad, and literally a tear came to my eye, and I thought of: Steve Murphy. These politicians just don't understand how hard average citizens are working just to try and make ends meet. A women works as a nurse and then works at Denny's on weekends clearly to pay her bills?? Meanwhile, all last year Steve Murphy goes from campaign stop to campaign stop telling everyone how much he loves his job and then 2 months after getting elected he is off running for a statewide office? Amazing.

Update on McCrea v. Flaherty: Don't believe the City Council!!

Believe it or not, the McCrea v. Flaherty case is still not over, nearly 5 years after it began. We were supposed to go to court in February but the presiding judge was busy.

We asked the City Council if they would allow us to video tape the hearing. You will see councilors such as Mike Ross and John Connolly talking about how they care about transparency and how they are making sure that the BRA boards have to be videotaped.

But, when it comes to their own transparency????? NO, NO, NO. They wrote a letter to the court explaining why it was important that they and their attorneys were not videotaped while they were explaining to the court about how transparent they are!!!!

And, of course, the court decision came back in their favor. So, in a court case about how important transparency is, the City Council and the Courts have acted against such a horrible thing as someone quietly standing to the side and video taping the procedures. I'm so proud of our democracy!

You can't make this stuff up!

Greetings from Nicaragua

I have had a lovely few days here in Nicaragua. I am thinking of opening a motorcycle dealership here because it is less corrupt than Boston. I cleared some land with a couple of locals and a chainsaw for a friends project, met with his builder and laid out the new buildings, and talked about how we can make it as ecologically friendly as possible, such as solar hot water heaters, recharging rain water, using grey water to irrigate the garden, etc.

I was out surfing with my friend who i was staying with and his girlfriend. we had a perfect quarter mile long beach to ourselves. just at dusk an oliver riddley turtle came ashore and i got into a foot race with a local with a machete to save the turtle. i was able to convince the gentleman that it would bring him good luck to let the 100 pound turtle go, and back into the surf i directed him. i love turtles, and to see one hacked up on a perfect evening would be terrible.

ive been staying in total surf shack. we have a composting toilet out side, one tap of running water for dishes which hadnt been done for eons until i washed them this morning. i havent had a shower since i left the states 5 days ago, just making frequent trips into the ocean to swim, surf, and body surf. played soccer with the local kids on the beach, and bought some souvenirs for friends back home.

it turns out that this weekend was motorcycle weekend, so about 300 bikers and i enjoyed the beach side shacks, the ac-dc coverbands, and the dancing and the drinking and the partying went on well past when i went to bed at 3 am, after helping two american girls get rides on motorcycles with guys who knew how to ride, and werent drunk!

It has been very relaxing, and the people are friendly, and you really get a sense of how much we use and waste in the western world. do we really need a wii, a flatscreen, 3 cars, movie theaters, etc. why not get out for a hike, play some ball with the locals and be exhausted leading to a good nights sleep!

still, cant wait to get home to see Dr. Lora!

many young folks here, very idealistic, very fed up with the futility of governments. they are starting eco tours, trying to save parklands, and trying to educate and enpower locals. very rewarding.

hope everyone is doing well in boston, i watched the usa lose to canada in hockey in a room full of canadians (tons of them here) so i was happy for them.

adios!

Email reply from the Governor's Office

I got an automated email from the Governor's office:



Dear Mr. mccrea:

Thank you for taking the time to apply for appointment to a state board or commission. All of your information was successfully added to our electronic system, which allows us to search for civic-minded constituents whose interests and expertise match the requirements for any given board.

Governor Patrick deeply appreciates your commitment to serving our communities. We will remain cognizant of your areas of interest as the Governor moves forward with appointments to the over seven hundred state boards and commissions. Should you have any questions or concerns, or if you would like to add additional information to your profile, please reply to this message or call us at 617.725.4055.

Sincerely,
The Appointments Team
Office of Governor Deval L. Patrick



I called the phone number and asked when the decisions would be made by and I was put through to the voice mail of Madelin (sp?) Grant. I left a message asking when the decision would be made, with my phone number.

I will keep you apprised of the situation loyal readers!

What does it take to get good schools?

There are two articles today which, I believe, approach the same topic. In the Boston Globe there is an article about how the City of Boston has not evaluated teachers in order to get rid of bad ones and improve education for all. In the NY Times there is an article about the head of several successful schools about how the most important thing in a successful school is getting good teachers.

Do I need to explain further?

How much does the Governor care about filling posts?

These are the positions on the Finance Commission which are appointed by the Governor to oversee the independent Financial Commission which is supposed to be the watchdog agency for the City of Boston. As you can see, 2 positions are open, 2 positions expired and only former Mike Ross worker Reuben Kantor is legitimate. With a hat tip to the Zak, you can apply for this position (unpaid) at:

http://appointments.state.ma.us/BoardDetail.aspx?brdid=160218


Mr. Paul J. Minihane Chairman Chair 10/09/2009
Mr. Reuben Kantor Seat 1 07/17/2013
VACANT Seat 2
VACANT Seat 3
Mr. Robert O'Connell Seat 4 08/09/2007


Kind of hard to believe that the State or City really wants anyone overseeing their finances when no one is appointed to the commission overseeing the finances.

Happy Mardi Gras!

VEGAS, BABY!!!

KEVIN WITH HIS GIANT BEADS AT THE VENETIAN !!

Valentine's Day is my birthday, so this year my wife surprised me with a weekend in Vegas. We left friday morning and came back Sunday night and the fun almost never stopped. We had a wonderful suite at the Venetian, we saw Cirque du Soleil "O" at the Bellagio, saw Penn & Teller at the Rio, I played in a Poker tournament at the Mirage and came in second, won money playing craps, saw some other sights, Clara went shopping, and because I miss New Orleans and Mardi Gras so much, I bought the biggest pair of beads I've ever seen. They were quite the topic in the airports flying home!

As usual, on the flight out of Boston the TSA official didn't know what security level we were at and told me that the public is on a 'need to know' basis and then proceeded to give me an overly hard time. Penn & Teller have a very funny bit in their show where they purchased one of the airport metal screening devices for $4800 and they showed how they set it at different levels for different types of passengers (the one at Boston City Hall is set very low, like for first class passengers). They also showed a number of dangerous weapons you can bring through the device such as plastic 'comb/knives'. They also sold the Bill of Rights printed on a metal plate the size of a credit card to carry in your wallet. They are sold for $5 (www.securityedition.com) and I got Penn to sign mine after the show. They are avowed libertarians, and Penn is an atheist. Funny enough a Haitian cab driver the night before the show told us he doesn't like Penn because he has vanity license plates which say "NO GOD" because he is an atheist as well. My hat is off to them for being boldly patriotic and against the erosion of our civil rights during their show, a potentially bad thing for their bottom line. They are also very funny, although I was a bit disappointed they were still doing tricks I saw them do in Boston over a decade ago.

Happy Lundi Gras!

please support sarah wenig!

I'll never forget being at their candidates forum the very day The Globe broke the story of the deleted emails. The 3 of you each spoke well about the issues at hand, Menino - well, you know. Then he was endorsed by adults old enough to remember Watergate and so smug they didn't even consider their own credibility. It was the scariest thing I ever witnessed in civic life. These people would endorse the slightly veiled second coming of George Wallace if they were told to by the right person. So I'm running for delegate and in that crowd, I need to bring my own votes. PLEASE refer to your lists and encourage friends and supporters to come to the Ward 5 caucus, Saturday 2/20 @ 9:00 am - in the Guatemala Room of the Community Church, 565 Boylston st, 2nd fl, Copley Sq. My # is 617.835.2565. Give it to your friends. Ask them to vote for me, one more independant voice needed in the Back Bay area.


Sarah sent this to Sam Yoon, Michael Flaherty and I!