As Iyam scribing this week’s missive to you, honey bunch, things are beginning to come outta the summer doldrums here in the Asylum by the Sea. Things are starting to percolate with the beginning of the school year coming next Monday – yeah, hard to believe. That means everything else hereabouts will be percolating.
The wag was in t’other afternoon, and he had some interesting remarks concerning this summer and how things are in the berg. He called it “the summer of our discontent.” The wag believes, and I tend to agree, that this is the summer that all the chickens came home to roost in West Haven. All those years we were jest getting by with taxes and wherever else we could cobble together some funds, we did it. Well, that ain’t possible anymore and John and Jane Q. are beginning to understand the problems.
For decades, politicos in this little corner of Long Island Sound were jest lookin’ fer the next election or the next handout by the state, not worrying about – or at least putting off – that those funds were ‘t gonna be forever. Now, we are, for the second time in a quarter-century under the scrutiny of a state bored of review.
They are lookin’ at every jot and tittle of what is going on, and they are probably gonna put us in a Tier IV position where they have all the control, and the elected officials have none. Whilst we can quibble about whether Edward O’Brien, erstwhile mayor of the city, should have bonded to pay off the debt and set off this chain of events, the fack is we’re in it, and we have to get through it.
For too long, the taxpayers were kept outta the loop with steady tax rates, whilst all kinds of number-crunching was going on. Then we have the last four years where we’ve been painting our books with red ink. A reckoning had to happen, and it, unfortunately, is on this administration’s shoulders to get us outta it. People are griping about it, but when push comes to shove, it was gonna happen sooner or later.
Even if the voters determine to make this administration a one-and-done matter, the fack is the ball is rolling, and no matter who comes in next time, things are not gonna change – at least not in the short term.
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On that same tack, Iva Lootey sez that she was perched around the berg and the word is out that Ed O’Brien might be lookin’ to get back into the Third Floor of the Actors Colony. I made mention of this last week, but there seems to be more of an indication that friends of his are raising kopecks for a campaign. So, effen yew think there is a hiatus in the bitter feelings betwixt the various factions of the party, think again.
Meanwhile, one wonders what the campaign is gonna be for O’Brien. He made the decisions to bond, he put us under a review board. What is he gonna say that will change what’s been done so far? Iva sez that one voter hearing about it sez that the campaign for O’Brien would be like spittin’ in the wind. It’s gonna come back and hit him, not anyone else.
It’ll be interesting to see how this all breaks down, cuz the City Council does have a split on it concerning who supports whom. Stay tuned. Politics in this town is anything but boring.
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Nelly Nuthatch came by t’other afternoon and sez the kiddies in her neighborhood are startin’ to git that look on their faces – yew know, the “school’s about to start” scowl. The fun and games are over – almost – and things will be getting back to normal again.
Heck the number of notices has already taken an uptick here at the papyrus, and we ain’t through Awgus yet.
Word is school-wise that Merlie Mae is recovering from her mishap earlier this summer. As yew remember she had a fire in her domicile and was burned perty badly. She is recovering after some post-fire setbacks and there is wonder if and when she’ll return to school. Merlie is the English Dept. chairman (no, she wouldn’t want “chair” or chairlady,” she’s a grammarian), and we’re sure her colleagues are looking forward to her return.
We also know there are a few in the system, and we could name ‘em effen we were so inclined, that wouldn’t mind seeing her not come back. But we know our Merlie. She’ll be back in the classroom before yew know it.
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Before we go on, we wanna give our condolences to the members of the Jennie Marchitto’s family. The Grande Dame of the Republican Party was released from this mortal coil last week. She was a feisty gal and one who had many stories to tell. We’re sure she’s meeting up with her ole pals and they are catching up.
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Last week, of course, we had the primaries for the gubernatorial and other offices for this year’s state elections. The Republican and Democratic candidates are finalized in Bob Stephanowski and Ned Lamont, respectively.
Cobina knows one thing. The balloting could not have come soon enuff. The number of radio and TV ads that were being broadcast were just a bit more than a body could take. And, unlike in our heyday, the negativity of those ads was perty stark. I remember a time when we thought blisteringly negative ads were a product of New Yawk or Jersey, and that we had a bit more finesse in the Nutmeg State. No more. The ads were perty bad, and got awful to listen to or watch.
Just wait until the campaign gits into full swing. We are sure that it’s gonna be a knock-em-down, drag-em-out fight until election day. Not a pleasant thought when yew git right down to it.
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As I told yew last week, word came via Sammy Bluejay that the Charter Revision Commish is really working up a storm and is hoping to have its report done much earlier in 2019 than its mandate requires. Sammy was perched by the meeting room the last couple o’ times, and these people are really taking a gander at the charter and the way the city operates.
Sammy has been an onlooker at the last three or four charter revision attempts and he said there is one big difference this time around. The last few times, the recommendations have been initiated perty much by the poltiicos in town. They kind o’ set the agenda and worked through surrogates to git things done their way. The result has been a lotta gas bagging but not a lot of change.
This time round it seems like much of the discussion is coming from the commish itself, and the questions that are generated from the members. That has led to a total look-see at the charter, and, from what Sammy has been able to glean, many recommendations fer change. Some might even work to make the city run better.
How this is gonna set with the powers that be will be anyone’s guess. The City Council has to approve any recommendations before they go to the voters – usually. Effen it’s a fair and open procedure there should be no problems, but in this town one never knows.
Cobina expecks there are gonna be fireworks concerning this panel and the decisions they make. Keep yore eyes peeled honey, it could be a very interesting few months to start off the year. The commish hopes to have details to the public sometime late winter or early spring, Iyam told. That’s a while off, and much earlier than the July deadline the panel was given.
With that bit o’ chatter, I’ll close this time till next, mitt luff und kizzez,