Hartford City Clerk John Bazzano and his staff have taken a monumental step forward in election transparency.
The required Municipal Campaign Finance reports can now be viewed on line, In the past , it would have required a trip to the City Clerk's Office and go through the drawers of filing cabinets to actually read the reports and then pay for any copies you wanted.
A huge thank you to John Bazzano and his staff for setting this up and making it happen.
I have never given much thought to Paris's Notre Dame Cathedral until I saw it engulfed in fire yesterday. I guess it is true what they say, "We don't realize what we have until it is gone." As I watched the news coverage into the night, I along with most people observing probably thought there was no way any of it would survive. In the end, it was not gone, but severely damaged
As I wondered how they would ever rebuild the Cathedral if some of it did survive, I began to start wondering what type of craftsmen could have built this colossal cathedral hundreds of years ago. I am sure that type of craftsmen do not exist or are even trained in the various arts these days.
How many lives were lost working at such heights with very primitive safety equipment and regulations compared to today. The heights alone must have been a challenge without our modern day scaffolding and harnesses.No hydraulic cranes or loaders or forklifts. Real craftsmen using hand tools and techniques passed down through families, from grandfathers to fathers to sons for centuries to create such a masterpiece.
Just imagine the detail in the stone carving, the statues, the gargoyles that serve as drain spots, the magnificent stained glass lead windows. Al the stones lifted into place without machinery, just men and ropes and pulleys. Not to mention the architectural designs without any computer assistance
I haven't heard anything specific yet, but it will probably be a modern day craftsman that set the building on fire using a modern day torch or cutting tool on the renovations.
A couple of videos below explain more of the history and majesty of Notre Dame Cathedral that I found interesting.
We all know discrimination exists in many different forms. Unfortunately, people that make up baseless discrimination claims undermine the valid complaints by people who have actually suffered from discrimination themselves.
We just saw the example of Jussie Smolett in Chicago and his phony hate crime claims and the extent he went to fabricate his claims. Now anyone coming forward with legitimate claims will be looked at with skepticism.
Now, if you actually read my posting highlighted above, here is another baseless discrimination complaint that a Hartford Police Lieutenant was passed over for promotion because she is female. This at the same time that other females were being promoted to various ranks, including a Deputy Chief and other Lieutenants.
Maybe the Lieutenant filing her discrimination complaint needs to take a look in the mirror and realize that she was not passed over because she is a female. No, she was passed over because she is a terrible supervisor and devoid of any leadership skills. Her track record of sexual harassment against male officers as well as other ridiculous moves she has made over the years should have got her terminated and definitely not promoted..
Hopefully much of her track record will come out as the City and HPD defends themselves against this ridiculous claim. In the meantime, I hope she realizes how she is damaging and hurting people who want to come forward with real claims based on facts.
The complaint was obtained through a Freedom o0f Information request to Hartford's Corporation Council as a public document.
Why is it that what we are sold at campaign time is hardly ever what we get after the election?
Politicians seem as though they think theycan tell us whatever sounds good to get elected and then we never follow up to find the truth.
No tolls, remember that promise? How did that work out for you with your blind faith and allegiance. I think we would have more respect and trust in a politician who would say "I'm new to this and until I actually get in there and start looking under the hood, anything is possible" Is that too difficult to do, or maybe it is being too truthful and politicians seem to have a hard time dealing with the truth.
I'm really not opposed to tolls because our roads are a mess, and if the tolls actually go to road repairs and transportation, I'm OK with that. But I think we were told the same thing about Casino revenue going to Education. I wonder how that worked out?
Politicians can't be truthful during a campaign because that might cost them votes. So, instead mislead us on and once you are elected , you are safe to do whatever you want.
Remember the Ned Lamont initial campaign commercial where he is sitting behind the wheel of his personal car, pledging to not use a State vehicle and that his own car was "good enough for him" Does anyone know where that car is now? Definitely not at the Governor's Mansion, his State Police detail troopers drive him everywhere.
Maybe if candidate Lamont had a conversation before that ad was shot with Governor Malloy he would have learned a few things. On the day of Governor Malloy's swearing in, his Troopers told him to put his license away because he would not be driving at all during his elected term. And that actually makes sense .
Here is a little refresher for you:
Maybe our politicians, instead of making it look like they support "the little people" and marching on the picket lines at Stop and Shop while streaming it live on Facebook. A real leader might be more productive working to resolve the situation to get the people back to work with a contract so they start making an income again.
Last night at the Maple Avenue NRZ monthly meeting, there were 5 representatives from Mayor Bronin's Office, all talking about the wonderful things the Mayor is doing. I don't think it is a coincidence that I have never seen any of these people before and they appear as City staffers just in time for the next Mayoral election.
I guess that is the benefit of incumbency. They probably should have introduced themselves as "Bronin Campaign staffers" paid from the City's payroll.
Hopefully Chief Thody and HPD can keep it a quiet summer because it will be a messy summer if Bronin and all the other candidates start racing around the City to be the first to be seen by the media consoling the families of shooting victims.
Thar was a regular occurrence by Bronin and Segarra last go round during the campaign, I think that concern and sympathy ended on election night after the final vote was counted.
Does anyone remember the candidate forums for the last Mayoral campaign? Only one candidate seemed to have a grasp on reality and expressed the truth to people attending. Judge Robert Killian spoke very honestly about the financial mess the City of Hartford was in and that bankruptcy was a definite possibility without serious structural change. None of the others in the field of candidates seemed to understand that but instead told us what they thought the voters wanted to hear instead of the truth
Voters need to open their eyes and then be willing to hold politicians who lie to us accountable. That is the only way this will change and the truth will begin to matter
The Hartford Police Department today released its initial conclusions in the Officer Baerga Internal Affairs report to investigate claims of sexual harassment against her by her supervisors..
The conclusions pretty much lays out the claim and the validity of some of those claims.
On a larger scale though it exposes a greater power struggle by Lieutenant West and his efforts to sway opinion in his efforts to become the next HPD Chief and the hidden agenda behind those efforts.
It is also interesting to read the actual timelines and it appears as though Baerga was vocal about the delay in her complaint being investigated, much of that delay may have been her own doing in delaying the investigation and Lieutenant West having to be chased down repeatedly by investigators to obtain his testimony.
It is also interesting that the claims of HPD being "unsafe for women" and a toxic environment , to me, would seem questionable. I would have a hard time encouraging anyone I claimed to care about to go work in such an environment. Yet in the IAD report it states that Baerga's wife , or significant other, is currently in the HPD Academy. Would that be safe if the conditions were "toxic"?
It also seems deceptive that after report was released, Officer Baerga released a statement regarding the investigation. The deceptive part is that it was e-mailed from Attorney Cynthia Jennings e-mail account, no where does it state that Jennings is also representing Lieutenant Paul West, so she has a definite motive to discredit the IAD Report.. It might be nice if she was transparent enough to disclose that also.
At the very least, both Lt Paul West and Sergeant Andrew Rodney, in my opinion, do not deserve their positions of rank for the behaviors they admitted to in the interviews. NUMEROUS CHARGES WERE SUBSTABTIATED AGAINST BOTH WEST AND RODNEY BY IAD INVESTIGATORS
Nothing would make me happier than to see Hartford's Little Prince dethroned in the upcoming election. In fact, I would have loved to have seen a different outcome four years ago before Luke Bronin's coronation as Emperor of Hartford when he first bought the Mayor's Office and the Hartford Democratic Town Committee endorsement.
Hardly a day goes by when I don't wonder where we would be as a City with Bob Killian in the Mayor's Office and imagine the progress we would be making daily. Unfortunately though, Hartford's politics being what they are, we blew the opportunity to put in our first real "Strong Mayor" since Charter reform.
Again, as much as I would like to see Luke Bronin run out of City Hall, (and Hartford as well) Eddie Perez is not the person to drive him out Neither of them are 1/100th of the leader Bob Killian is and neither of them have the understanding and love for our City like Bob.
I won't rehash the whole corruption investigation probe and arrest, but Eddie Perez did huge damage to the City of Hartford. People want to go after Jussie Smolett for his costs to the City of Chicago, but has anyone ever calculated the costs of Eddie Perez's corruption investigation and Grand Jury to the taxpayers of Hartford. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent on lawyers to represent City Hall employees that were called before the Grand Jury investigating Perez. And those figures don't include the costs to the State's taxpayers for the investigation to uncover his criminal acts.
And now all of a sudden, Perez sees the opportunity to dethrone a very unpopular Mayor. Isn't it a little bit disingenuous that we now are hearing Eddie Perez "apologizing" for his indiscretions. I think that is the first time since his arrest, and even since his conviction, that I have heard him apologize. Now isn't that convenient. I guess you only need to apologize to the community you defrauded when it suits your need to fulfill your thirst for political power. Oh ,and just like John Rowland, Perez has apparently found God. Too bad he didn't do that 10 years ago before screwing us over the first time
I am sure we will see constant comparisons to another convicted felon who was reelected to his previous position, Mayor Joe Ganim of Bridgeport. Huge difference between Perez and Ganim
Joe Ganim took responsibility for his actions and paid his dues by spending several years in Prison before returning to his community and starting over.
Eddie Perez never paid a price for his crimes. Not one day in Prison , and until he decided to run again , he never took responsibility. In fact he tried to sue the City of Hartford to recover the costs of his legal defense for raping the taxpayers of Hartford. I am not sure why we would be responsible for the legal fees for his attorneys to defend him against his criminal acts. But most likely about as much thought went in that decision to sue as went into his decision to run for Mayor again. Does he really think we are that ignorant as a Community? We just may be, only time will tell
The worst that happened to Perez is that a Judge recently decided to revoke his ill gotten pension. A pension he received while in Office , his salary being paid by the people of Hartford, supposedly to run the City of Hartford, not to commit criminal acts and shaking down City vendors and businesses.
Eddie Perez didn't even come close to getting what he deserved for his corruption and the last thing he deserves is a shot at fleecing the residents of Hartford once again .
And just to refresh your memory, here are Perez's felony convictions from the Judicial website
THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED ON THIS BLOG ARE STRICTLY THAT, MY OPINIONS.After getting fed up with the lack of openness in Hartford City Hall, I decided to begin a program on Hartford Public Access Television called "WE THE PEOPLE". Through tips received we have been able to expose numerous issues that the Perez Administration would prefer to keep quiet.
Any information received is kept in strict confidence, feel free to e-mail me at krbrookman@earthlink.net or call me at 860-883-2297 with any information.