Well honeybunch, things in the Asylum by the Sea are a bit on the quiet side as one would expeck at this time o’ year. Even though we ain’t had much in the way of snow, we’ve had cold and rain and that leaves things indoors fer most, including the politicos around here. Things will start perkin’ up very soon.
This year is especially quiet since it seems the Jan. 29 deadline went the way of all flesh, and there seems to be no petitions for town committee primaries! Thin about that, m’girl. When was the last time we were able to say that there wasn’t gonna be a primary for town committee? Effen I was a bettin’ gal I’d say we were talkin’ about Clinton’s second term.
The Demmies, especially, are prone to having these intramural fights every two years as they, like all Gaul, are broken into three parts: the former Picard faction, now the Rossi faction, the Borer faction, and the Morrissey faction. Usually, there is something of a free-for-all at this time with people lookin’ for others to sign their petitions to get on the ballot, and we spend boo-coo bucks for an election that brings out about 500.
This time, it seems the Demmie factions are biding their time. There seems to be a cease-fire for the time being. That don’t mean they’re getting along any better, it jest means that the other factions know that the Rossi people are ridin’ a crest right now, and it’s not the time to play “king of the hill.” This is smart politics. Like I said, they ain’t likin’ each other any better, jest biding their time.
The big surprise was the GOP. Sammy Bluejay seemed to think that there was some angst amongst the faithful concerning the town committee and having new blood. Sammy sez that there was some movement on the town committee at the caucus last month, and it seemed that with the personae put on the panel, a donnybrook of a primary was somewhat forestalled. We shall see.
Sammy and I were tryin’ to remember the last time the GOP had a primary for town committee, and we think it was way back in the 1970s when Al Conte was the chairman. Those were the days when both parties were in play and both had great numbers on the rolls. Times have changed.
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People are still getting used to the fack that we’ve gone to twice monthly. We got a call last week from a well-wisher, who hopes that things toin around. We hope so, too. Things are pickin’ up somewhat, and the response from the community has been nothing short of remarkable; but, we ain’t at the pernt yet where we can go back to every week, though, we, like the readers, are hoping.
Still, we’re able to give people the coverage they want and the stories they’ll read. So, I guess, in a way, it’s working. Again, we shall see.
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Nelly Nuthatch was here t’other afternoon and sez that things are moving to have public forums to teach the voting public about the new charter revisions that are gonna be up for vote. Before the end o’ the last term, and reiterated in the new term, the City Council wants the former Charter Revision panelists to give the public a series of public meetings concerning the proposals.
There will be a schedule in the near future, and when there is, we’ll let yew know about it, Felicia. The proposals made by the committee have been the topic of scrutiny by the council and the barristers representing the city. The concern was whether there could be only one question or several.
Luckily, the barristers agreed that the way the proposed changes are intertwined, it would be almost impossible to break things up into several questions.
Given that reality, one question will go before the voters. That necessitated the forums, and getting the public on board. We shall see how successful these are. Yew know as well as I do that they could have 20 of them, and there’d still be people who will cry ignorance.
Nelly did say that the council is now considering not having a vote until next Election Day in November. The thought is it’s a presidential election and there will be a better turnout than if they have a special vote; and, the vote won’t cost the city any extra kopecks cuz they hafta have the election anyway.
There is a down side to this. The vote will be 15 months after the commission issued its final report, and when and if it’s adopted, the city will have only one year to implement the changes cuz they would go into effect with the 2021 election. That would be interesting.
Needless to say there is some angst about things waiting this long. You don’t need me to tell yew why.
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Iva Lootey fluttered by the new high school complex t’other day. I guess the new gymnasium is almost completed, and now will join the media center (it was a library in our day, hon), auditorium, and cafeteria. The story about the gym was a lesson in bureaucracy. Originally, the gym that is currently there was gonna be retained as part of the new school complex.
Then some pencil-pusher decided that current flood plain regulations would not be conformed and, even though the place precedes the regs, it had to go. Needless to say, that was an addition no one expected, and not exactly one that people wanted.
So, we had an example of our own as how the “deep state” gits involved in things that the government was never intended to be part of. It caused a little indigestion cuz new plans had to be made. But when yore sitting in a federal office somewhere, and can be a pooh-bah, what do you care?
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The wag came in and was chuckling about the way politicos in the Peoples Republic of Connecticut, especially those in Hartford, seem to live in one o’ them bubbles we hear so much about. Of course, the assembly’s consideration of tolls for truck (yeah, right) was the opening salvo. But we were talking about the new “fee” that has been imposed on things like cars, and homes. Yew know, the “conveyance fee.” This is nothing more than another tax, but the yokels in Hartford think the rest of us rubes don’t understand that “fee is jest another word for “tax.”
The funny thing is that the wag had a discussion with a state persona about his and the discussion got heated when the Wag insisted it was a “tax,” and the state persona insisted a “fee” is different. Natchurly, when said persona was asked how in Goodness’ Name was it different, the explanation got a bit muddled.
There is not difference excep’ in the minds of the people who put these bills forward. Yew jest hafta use the “duck principle.” It smells, acts, and sounds like a tax, so it is nothing else but a tax. The politicos jest use these differences cuz they wanna say they didn’t raise taxes.
It’s all soooooo tiring.
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With tthat bit o’ chatter, I’ll close this time till next mitt luff und kizzez,