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Thursday, June 11, 2015

THE TROUBLE NEVER ENDS FOR ANGEL MORALES

Angel Morales pictured , far right, at Sundays Parade with Mayoral Candidate Luke Bronin.


The problems keep coming for Hartford's wannabe politician Angel Morales. Morales, who spent several years in prison after being convicted of felony charges related to his unlawfully impersonating an attorney, is once again in hot water. This would seem to be an usual spot for the clerk of the Legislatures Law Committee to be once again running afoul of the law.

Let me start at the beginning.

Back in 2010 Morales made a decision to run against State Rep. Kelvin Roldan. Roldan had his own problems at the time. Amidst allegations of being out of touch with his constituents and being the right had for a corrupt Mayor, Eddie Perez, Roldan was going to face a tough fight.

 Morales approached me and asked me to manage his campaign. I knew he was a convicted felon and I had done some of my own research into the charges to feel comfortable I was making the right choice if I said yes.   I eventually said yes and we began fundraising to get Morales to qualify for the Citizen's Election Fund. He did and that is where the latest trouble began. After receiving his check from the State, the spending spree began.

Apparently Morales hired a campaign Treasurer from Springfield and paid him a sizeable amount. Off the top of my head I think it was $7500 he paid.  Of course he broke that news to me the same night he showed up in my driveway in a brand new Lincoln Towncar. When I questioned him on the car, he advised me it was a rental and it was being paid fro from his campaign funds. Now Morales didn't have a car and for that matter didn't even have a drivers license.

He knew my displeasure with the way he was spending his money  and I insisted the rental car be returned the following  morning. Angel refused to return it and I quickly got away from his campaign. As it turns out that was a very wise choice on my part.

As it turns out, Morales was eventually investigated by the Hartford Police on allegations that he picked up a mentally challenged young man on Washington Street and took him to his campaign headquarters on Franklin and performed lewd acts in front of the man.( Police report on the incident can be read by clicking the second link below) This was done in the car that he continued to rent after the election was over in a campaign headquarters he continued to rent after the election was over. The Citizen's Election Fund money is supposed to cease being used once the election is over except for cleaning up campaign debts incurred during the election.

Apparently, Morales opponent in the election thought something stunk with Morales's required campaign filings and filed a complaint with the State Elections Enforcement Commission .These things don't move quickly, especially in agencies decimated by budget cuts, but the matter has recently made it before the State Elections Enforcement Commission. At a hearing the Commission found that Morales had failed to account for, or provide documentation for almost $20,000.00  in Campaign expenses.

 Due to Morales's failure to comply with the requirements of the Citizen's Election Fund, Morales was ordered to repay $19,381.85 he received from the fund. Morales was ordered to pay  an additional $10,000.00 fine and his Treasurer was ordered to pay a fine of $5,000.00.

Morales has continued to work as a paid staff member on various campaigns including recent campaigns of Mayor Pedro Segarra and Senator John Fonfara.

 To read more on Morales posting on "We The People"  click here  or here for another posting

For more on the predatory allegations against Morales, read the Courant's version here

WHY THE SEGARRA SECRECY?

Mayor Pedro Segarra likes throwing around the word "transparency", but the reality is he much prefers secrecy.

Think back to the 18months leading up to the stadium deal, 18 months of secrecy. Secrecy on the part of Segarra and Deller that led to a rushed deal that was forced upon the people of Hartford. A rushed deal that now appears to have serious problems holding together.

 The  supermarket that was supposed to be part of a done deal. It was originally supposed to involve a well known supermarket, that vendor has apparently now backed away from the project.

The Hooker brewery deal is in question also now. I probably shouldn't call it a deal because apparently nothing in writing was ever in place. No memo of understanding , no written agreement, apparently nothing other than architects renderings to make the stadium look flashy. A source that spoke with me, wishing to remain anonymous,  stated that the deal wasn't dead, but was very precarious.

The source said that the owner of Hooker brewery was looking for other space  outside of the stadium to locate his operation. Hooker's owner, Curt Cameron did not return repeated calls for comment. Segarra's spokesperson Maribel Laluz also did not return phone calls for comment. The topic was brought up at Tuesday's Stadium Authority meeting  with no specifics as to the direction, only that they were working hard to save the deal.

Wednesday the announcement was made that Dunkin Donuts had been awarded the naming rights for the stadium. Once again shrouded in secrecy, no information would be released on the financials of the deal

Why?

It is a public facility funded in most part, or at this point entirely, by public (taxpayers) dollars. The suspicion is that the deal fell short of the Mayor's estimates of the amount needed to make the project viable. If the announcement has been made, the deal should already be in place and negotiated so releasing information to the public, the people footing the bill for the stadium is important. And if the deal has already been negotiated, why not?

Mayor Segarra was quoted in the Courant as saying "I have not been given exact figures" Nonsense. Any good manager would be on top of the project  and know exactly what was going on, especially when the annual deal is critical to the project making its financial projections. More likely, the  projection made by Segarra is off the mark of the final deal. $500,000 was needed or the projections would fall short.

 Whether it is deals done in secrecy or secret "public excluded" meetings held in the Mayor's Office, it raises suspicion about Segarra's operation much more than it builds public confidence and trust in City hall.

I have FOI'd the documents from the Stadium Authority to see the real numbers

Monday, June 8, 2015

FROM HPD:17 ARRESTED AT RUSH HOUR PROTEST

FROM HPD:


On June 8th, 2015 at about 4:01 p.m. Officers from the Hartford Police Department responded the vicinity of Central Row and Market Street on a call for service regarding a demonstration, “Black Lives Matter”.  This demonstration included an act of civil disorder by the participants who held hands while standing in the crosswalk blocking eastbound and westbound vehicular traffic on Central Row, greatly impeding travel during the traditional onset of the evening commute.  Additional Hartford Police personnel were requested and responded.  The demonstrators were given orders to disperse by Hartford Police which were ignored.  Seventeen demonstrators volunteered to be arrested.  The arrests were made without further incident.  Each of the seventeen individuals arrested were transported to booking, processed, with bond set at $5,000.00 each on a single charge of Disorderly Conduct.  Court dates have been set for June 17th, 2015.

 

The seventeen demonstrators arrested are listed below

Alan L. Benford, age 54 of Manchester, CT. 

Anthony L. Bennett, age 49, of Bridgeport, CT. 

Sofia W. Buyniski, age 59, of Colchester, CT. 

Jan M. Carlsson-Bull, age 72, of Middletown, CT 

Debra Cohen, age 63, of Wethersfield, CT. 

Christopher J. Doucot, age 47, of Hartford, CT. 

Vanessa Gonzalez, age 40, of West Hartford, CT. 

Brian M. Kavanagh, age 71, of Hartford, CT. 

Cornell Lewis, age 65, of Bloomfield, CT.  

Robin McHaelen, age 60, of Manchester, CT. 

Matthew B. Mclaughlin, age 30, of Hartford, CT. 

Jessica Offir, age 50, of Coventry, CT. 

Joshua M. Paweler, age 46, of Glastonbury, CT.

John L. Selders, age 52, of Hartford, CT.  

Angela Swagner, age 64, of Kensington, CT. 

Oshun-Anna M. Vicente, age 46, of Hartford, CT. 

Michael T. Walton, age 39, of Bridgeport, CT.

 

Sunday, June 7, 2015

PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO READ THIS...PLEASE

A friend of my sister posted this on her FACEBOOK page. It is a posting on how to avoid the early warning signs of a stroke. Since I have been there and done that, twice now, I think it is important to post.Since recognizing the early signs of stroke and getting early treatment.is quite possibly. the difference between life and death or at least permanent neurological damage. Luckily for me, my sister and a good friend did not take no for an answer the first time it happened. If I had  had my way I would have gone to sleep. Luckily for me the first time, my sister called 911 and summoned emergency help  and not getting treatment was not an option  The e-mail says getting 10 people to read this could save at least one life. If I have a typical day, possibly a few thousand people will read this on the blog
 
 
 
from the Facebook e-mail:
 
I URGE ALL MY FRIENDS TO READ & SHARE THIS; YOU COULD SAVE A LOVED ONES LIFE BY KNOWING THIS SIMPLE INFORMATION!!!

Stroke has a new indicator! They say if you forward this to ten people, you stand a chance of saving one life. Will you send this along? Blood Clots/Stroke - They Now Have a Fourth Indicator, the Tongue:

During a BBQ, a woman stumbled and took a little fall - she assured everyone that she was fine (they offered to call paramedics) ...she said she had just tripped over a brick because of her new shoes.

They got her cleaned up and got her a new plate of food. While she appeared a bit shaken up, Jane went about enjoying herself the rest of the evening.

Jane's husband called later telling everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital - (at 6:00 PM Jane passed away.) She had suffered a stroke at the BBQ. Had they known how to identify the signs of a stroke, perhaps Jane would be with us today. Some don't die. They end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead.

It only takes a minute to read this.

A neurologist says that if he can get to a stroke victim within 3 hours he can totally reverse the effects of a stroke...totally. He said the trick was getting a stroke recognized, diagnosed, and then getting the patient medically cared for within 3 hours, which is tough.
>>RECOGNIZING A STROKE<<

Thank God for the sense to remember the '3' steps, STR. Read and Learn!

Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer severe brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke.

Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:

S *Ask the individual to SMILE.

T *Ask the person to TALK and SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently)
(i.e. Chicken Soup)

R *Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.

If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call emergency number immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

New Sign of a Stroke -------- Stick out Your Tongue

NOTE: Another 'sign' of a stroke is this: Ask the person to 'stick' out his tongue. If the tongue is

'crooked', if it goes to one side or the other that is also an indication of a stroke.

A cardiologist says if everyone who gets this e-mail sends it to 10 people; you can bet that at least one life will be saved.

I have done my part. Will you?
See More

IS IT REALLY THE RIGHT TIME TO PLAY A GAME OF CORPORATE CHICKEN OVER THE TAX PLAN?

More on this later today after I get back to write it, but I have serious concerns over information I received the last few days. Is it all a bluff or would GE and Aetna actually consider moving and what would the fallout be to our communities and State?

LIKE HIM OR NOT, THE MAN CAN PREACH

As of Friday, I wasn't sure if I was going to attend the Sharpton Rally.  I don't always care for his messages. Right now in Hartford, I wish we had leaders that were respected enough to unify and guide our community so that we didn't have the need for outsiders to come here. Since we don't have those leaders in place currently I guess we need to take what we can get for help.

The lack of those leaders at the initial kickoff from Mount Moriah Church was noticeable. Councilman Kyle Anderson was inside the Church, as was Mayoral candidate Judge Bob Killian and his wife Candace, Congressman Larson was there also as well as many other community leaders. But no Mayor, no Council President, no Council Majority Leader, or even the Council Minority leader.  The Rally started with a lot of energy as the community gathered to try to bring peace to our City

A singer identified only by his first name , Cedric, was called up to the altar to lead the group in song and he sang accapella a religious song that was very inspiring and made me realize the untapped talent we have among us. From there the group moved to  Barbour Street, less than a block away from a recent homicide scene and about two blocks from where a young man was shot in the face last week.

As usual , the posers in our Community made themselves apparent.  The lead of the march was quickly filled with the late arrival politicians trying to show themselves as leaders by being in the front of the crowd for the media cameras.

The back of the group was also important to note as the people that were there for the right reasons, to support a community in fear and grieving.  Congressman Larson and Judge Killian as well as several ministers,  Reverend Paul Ritter and others,  brought up the rear. I guess their leadership is already known so they don't have to pose for the cameras like the front of the pack.

 The march proceeded through some of Hartford's more dangerous streets, Barbour Street, Martin Street, Garden Street and eventually ended on Albany Avenue at  Shiloh Baptist  Church. As we proceeded south on Garden Street I couldn't help but think how many vigils I have attended on Garden Street in the single block between Mather and Albany for homicide victims. Far too many.

Once inside a fully packed Shiloh, the preaching began by the ministers in attendance. Reverend Henry Brown, who has been on the forefront of Hartford's violence problems for over a decade was exceptional  in his words. Al Sharpton eventually came up to the pulpit and gave his words to the community in attendance. His words were not without conflict, especially when he made a plea for donations to his America Action Network . Probably not the best timing, but Sharpton is not only a minister but also a politician and politics requires money.

One person claiming to be a pastor headed for the main aisle and began shouting "How dare you?" at Sharpton. And while his point was valid, I think his timing was more for the theatrics of the event. I have never seen him out in the community advocating for Hartford's poor and impoverished nor have I ever seen him at a vigil for a homicide victim to support their families But at least he got his few seconds of fame. Sharpton's rebuke of him was also quick and severe, I think he will hopefully find a more suitable way to deliver his message next time.

Sharpton definitely knows how to preach and he brought the gathering to their feet to cheer and applaud his words numerous times, as well as leading the group in song with the Shiloh choir throughout the event. In the end, I think most people left with a sense of hope for Hartford's turnaround. We will see .

 We also need to keep an eye out for the promised memorial and see how that moves along. All of the cash raised was promised to build that memorial with the names of homicide victims on it. With over 300 homicide victims in the last several years, that should be a good size memorial.

 The video below is part of Sharpton's remarks. I apologize for the quality and the layout. I just upgrade to the I-phone 6 plus Friday and I still haven't got the hang of it yet, but the audio is good