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Wednesday, August 25, 2010

MAYBE WE DO NEED AN "ANTI-RACISM" ORDINANCE


Pictured above: State Representative Minnie Gonzalez, on right in striped shirt, being threatened with arrest as she yells at Sean Arena to "stay the f**k out of Puerto Rican politics" Tuesday night at City Hall


I have been getting a lot of comments from people who have been wondering what Councilman Luis Cotto was thinking when he referred to "lily white people". Maybe it is time to remind people that racism is not a one-way street.

I have read the comments posted here about "Puerto Rican politics" and wondered who would use such terms. Do we also have special ways to deal with Black or white politics? Is it proper for lawmakers to design or gear laws to benefit only one group? Is there really such a thing as "Puerto Rican politics"?

Well, after witnessing the behavior of State Representative Minnie Gonzalez at Tuesday nights Council meeting, I have confirmed there apparently is such a thing. Gonzalez was yelling quite loudly at former Democratic Town Committee Chair Sean Arena outside the Council Chambers. The shouting attracted quite a bit of attention and at one point Gonzalez was swinging her arms at Arena and yelling at him to "stay the f**k out of Puerto Rican politics".

A Hartford Police officer assigned to City Hall stepped in and told Gonzalez that she would be arrested if she didn't stop her behavior. The altercation was pretty intense and the picture above was taken as the officer stepped in.

This divisive politics is childish and racist at the very least. Should Hartford voters vote only for for candidates by race and if we do that are we being properly served by the system? As long as nothing is said about the statements "lily white" and "stay the f**k out of Puerto Rican politics", we are condoning racism and allowing it to divide us as a community.

We need to look for, elect and support political leaders who can look at their constituents as "color blind" and serve each and everyone of their constituents as equals. Until we can do that, Hartford will be stuck with political leaders that belong in the deep south of the 1960's, not a multicultural community like Hartford in the year 2010.

It is one thing to represent a heavily Hispanic area or District, but to advocate for a single group when you are elected to represent all is wrong and offensive. If politicians can't learn to be "color blind" then maybe it is time to show them the door and elect people that treat everyone as equal.

YOUR WORD IS YOUR BOND...EXCEPT IN HARTFORD POLITICS

Does anyone in Hartford politics understand the words honesty and integrity?

Monday night I was surprised to find myself having dinner with rJo Winch and her mother Prenzina Holloway, Jan Appellof,Sean Arena and a couple others. Surprisingly, the conversation was cordial and I thought I saw a side of Councilwoman Winch that I might be able to work with.

One of the people who had thrown his name in for the vacant Council seat was also there, A.J. Sierra. Councilwoman Winch was talking about the need for new ideas and we needed to stop recycling people through City Hall. She had promised her support to Sierra and was not going to support anyone else.

It was strange agreeing with her on her ideas for the future of Hartford, and to also be in agreement with Jan Appellof and Sean Arena made me feel that maybe people had seen the light and that Hartford's corruption and scandals might just be leading to a new beginning. I actually thought that the following night, maybe, just maybe, the Council would make a good decision and select the right person to fill the Council vacancy.

During the conversation it was also discussed about the potential "baggage" at least two of the other candidates might be bringing to City Hall. The conversation focused on a food stamp fraud investigation that has become pretty much common knowledge in which one of the individuals is believed to be involved. I usually prefer to deal in facts and documents, so Tuesday I tried to confirm whether the allegations were factual.

It didn't take long to confirm the facts through sources in and out of law enforcement. One law enforcement source confirmed the investigation was ongoing and confirmed the facts as I laid them out as to what I knew although they wouldn't provide any additional information.

I then received a call from an attorney who also had first hand knowledge of the investigation due to the fact that they were representing a "co-operating witness" in a current Federal Investigation involving a potential Council candidate. The attorney also confirmed the basic facts of the investigation that involved the laundering of food stamps through some of Hartford's "bodegas".

Essentially individuals receiving food stamps could find someone that would pay cash for them at a fraction of the face value of the stamps. The money and the receipts from the food stamps would then be "laundered" through sham LLC's (Limited Liability Corporations)set up by an attorney and the profits were then passed through.

The attorney said he could not say with 100% certainty that criminal charges would be brought, but he felt the odds are pretty good that Federal charges would be filed.

I relayed this information to several Council people and it didn't really seem to phase any of them, except one. I guess when it comes to Hartford's image, corruption and possible criminal activity isn't a problem. Only one of the Council people I spoke with, Dr. Deutsch, actually seemed to pay attention and in the end voted against the replacement nominee.

Councilman Ritter said he asked about it and the nominee said the allegations were untrue. Would I expect anything else from Hartford's political circle? Perez said his allegations were untrue and apparently a jury thought different. Hector Robles says his allegations were untrue and everything was settled. The recently released IAD report paints a much different picture.Councilwoman Airey-Wilson claims her arrest was bogus, as the clock ticks down on her date to accept the State's plea deal arrangement. So honesty when it comes to less than flattering allegations of potential criminal wrongdoing is not a strong suit of Hartford's politicians.

So after having dinner with the Councilwoman and seeing and hearing her give her word to Mr. Sierra to support him, I felt good that maybe the right thing would be done the following night.

Imagine my surprise when the final vote was called and an individual potentially caught up in a Federal food stamp fraud investigation received the support of the very same Councilwoman that less than 24 hours earlier had spoke of change and getting the right people involved in politics. The horse trading was obvious and it quickly became apparent that nothing is done for what is best for Hartford, everything is done on how individuals can benefit from the system.

November 2011 is only 14 months away and the opportunity to put the right people in place can be ours, not the horse traders we have sitting on the Council now.

Saturday, August 21, 2010

OFFICER BATES ARRIVES BACK IN HARTFORD


Hartford Police Officers awaiting the arrival of the hearse contaning Officer Bates earlier today at the Ahern Funeral Home (sorry for the quality of the pic)


Hartford Police Officer Jason Bates, who passed away in Boston from cancer this week, arrived back in Hartford today. The hearse carrying Officer Bates was escorted back from Boston this morning by members of the Hartford Police Department and a police motorcycle escort.

A line of Hartford Police Officers, including Chief Roberts and Deputy Chief Horvath, stood at attention as the procession pulled into the Ahern Funeral Home at 180 Farmington Avenue in Hartford The officers attended the tribute in uniform, most of them on their own time, to honor one of their fellow officers.

As the hearse pulled into the front lot escorted by six police motorcycles, the motorcade passed a line of Hartford Police cruisers parked with their red and blue roof strobes and their headlights flashing. Bagpiper Pat Whelan added to the tribute as he piped traditional music as Officer Bates was carried into the funeral home by six Hartford Police officers and Chief Roberts.

From what I have been told, the wake for Officer Bates will be Monday and the funeral will be Tuesday. I don't know any more of the details yet than that.

YOU KNOW IT IS GOING TO BE A BAD DAY WHEN......



There are many ways to answer that question some days. But it can't get much worse than when you finish that sentence "you know it is going to be a bad day when a prisoner handcuffed in the back seat of your HPD cruiser finds a way to slip out of his cuffs, climb through a broken partition between the seats, get into the driver seat and take off and escape with your stolen cruiser".

That was how the sentence ended today for a Hartford Police officer who shall remain nameless, mainly because the incident is under investigation at this point.

The officer was at Hartford Hospital with the prisoner when the incident occurred and apparently much of the incident was caught on video. After the prisoner fled, nearly striking a few individuals, he eventually ended up at the Windsor boat launch where he ditched the car on a trail that ran along the river.

The prisoner for some reason removed the laptop from the cruiser and disconnected the battery. The damage to the vehicle did have some new dents and also was driven over a rather large downed tree laying across the trail.

The suspect is still at large, but that will most likely change quickly, it is never a good idea to steal a police car.

Friday, August 20, 2010

MESSAGE TO THE COUNCIL: HURRY UP AND PASS THE COTTO ORDINANCE BEFORE THIS HAPPENS AGAIN

The following story was posted on line this afternoon. If only the Council had passed the proposed "Cotto" ordinance sooner, we could have hosted 46 of the people arrested. The 47th was already here as a guest of the Connecticut Department of Correction. I wonder how this would have been handled in Hartford?

The crimes alleged seem relatively minor,attempted murder, carjacking, assault and battery with dangerous weapons, assault to rape and possession of firearms.
I can see why we would want to welcome them with open arms and prevent the Police from asking unnecessary questions of these stellar individuals. I'm sure they were only looking to start fresh in the Land of Opportunity. And how dare they "target" foreigners without giving the same opportunity for arrests to regular citizens.

Here is the full story:

IMMIGRATION AGENTS NAB 47 IN MASS, MAINE, CONNECTICUT


BOSTON — Federal immigration officials say a three-month operation in Massachusetts, Maine and Connecticut has led to the arrest 47 of people suspected of being gang members or having ties to gangs.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman Harold Ort said on Friday that many of the suspects had histories of violent crimes including attempted murder, carjacking, assault and battery with dangerous weapons, assault to rape and possession of firearms.

The operation targeted foreigners and those born abroad. They will appear before immigration judges, but their criminal status renders them removable from the country within 10 business days.

They include residents of Boston, Chelsea, Dartmouth, East Boston, Fitchburg, Leominster, Lynn, New Bedford, Randolph and Springfield, all in Massachusetts. One person who was already in custody at Hartford Correctional Center was also arrested, and others were detained in Providence, R.I., as well as Portland and Westbrook in Maine.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

THE PRIMARY NUMBERS ARE IN

Apparently these are the official voter turnout numbers for the August 10, 2010 primary as being reported on Courant.com, where you can search by town for the results.

TOWN Hartford
Eligible Democrats 33829
Democrats Voted 7484
Democrat Turnout 22.12%
Eligible Republicans 1719
Republicans Voted 404
Republican Turnout 23.50%

Pretty dismal numbers, but the number of eligible Republicans surprises me. It looks like the Republican vote is shrinking more and more each year. A few more years and they should be non-existent.

How is the budget for the Republican Registrar of Voters justified with such small numbers compared to the Democratic numbers?