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Sunday, April 10, 2011

A RESPONSE TO A COMMENT

Earlier today "Proud Htfd Conservative" said...

Regarding your response to Anon 9:12, you realize that there's little to nothing that you can do as a council member for education. You have to be on the Board for that. But it's a politically popular thing to run on.

also

Given the shrinkage of the Republican Party in the City, and with Cory Brinson running to actually get voted on by the people, do you think there's room for another conservative person on Council? I think you're registered Dem but we all know better. At the end of the day, you're a conservative (Safety, Controlling Taxes, Reducing Spending, Business Retention & Development)

Lastly, what would be your strategy? Go after Cory and take the one Conservative spot (provided the WFP keeps 2) or go after the lowest vote getter of the last election which was Deutch?

but my two cents, Run!! You got my vote!


It seems that many people are under the misconception that when we went through Charter change to a strong Mayor form of government, we also accepted a "weak" Council form of government. That is the furthest thing from the truth.

Because this Council has chosen to neuter themselves and give all power to the Mayor is their fault, not the Charter of the City of Hartford. Under the Perez Administration, and even now, the Council has been referred to as bobble heads, puppets and even the rubber stamp Council, which they are.

The Hartford City Council has a huge amount of power that they have chosen not to use. The fact of the matter is that no money can be spent without their approval. No Department head can be appointed without their approval. They have the power as a Council to remove any Department head appointed by the Mayor.

As far as the Council not having any control over the Board of Education, that is also untrue. The Board of Education would have a very hard time operating with their budget funds which are appropriated and allocated by the Council. The Board has no money to build schools without the Council. They might not be able to dictate how day to day operations are conducted but I would imagine a Superintendent wanting to renovate or build a new school might want to listen or react to the Council's concerns if the Council actually exercised some of their authority.

As far as the comments "liberal vs. conservative", I prefer to call it right versus wrong and what is in the best interests of the City of Hartford and its people. And I'll even go out on a limb and say that after the November election, there most likely will not be a Republican on the Hartford City Council. Corey Brinson did not arrive at the Council after some overwhelming groundswell of support for him.

There was a lot of behind the scenes arm twisting and deals cut to appoint Brinson after his aunt vacated her seat after the corruption scandal. In my mind that doesn't automatically translate to votes and support in the community. The five votes it took for his appointment is a far way from the 2,500 hundred or so he will need to get elected on his own.

Further complicating that even more is the state of the Republican Party in Hartford. The Republicans in Hartford missed an opportunity to display what they stood for when they virtually remained silent throughout the whole Perez corruption scandal. Although it is difficult to speak out on an issue when your own highest elected Republican was also neck deep in the scandal and was arrested also.

As you mentioned, I am a registered Democrat now. I was a former Republican and also a member of the Republican Town Committee. The reality is that I left the GOP after I reached a level of frustration with the lack of direction and incompetence of the party leadership and their failure to address issues and adapt to a changing political climate. You can only bang your head against the wall for so long until you realize you need to make a change if you truly want to make a difference.

And it wasn't the issue of corruption that finally "broke the camels back". At a Republican Town Committee meeting, the majority was downplaying the role of the Working Families Party. I had warned that anyone that ignored the efforts of the WFP would be doing it at their own peril. There was no WFP presence at Hartford City Hall at that point. That same year, two WFP members took 2 of the 3 minority seats on the Council and the following year a WFP member ran a campaign for Registrar of Voters and won.

Although the Working Families Party is probably even more liberal than the average Democrat, they "have their eye on the prize". They are focused, they are organized and they know how to get their candidates elected. That is something that the Republicans can't even come close to or claim that they know how to accomplish.

Unfortunately, as I said before, I predict that there will not be a Republican on the Council after the November election. The working Families Party will work hard to take all three minority seats, and I think they have the resources and the organization and probably most importantly the political will to make it happen.

With probably about 700 active Republican voters in Hartford, that is a long cry from the number necessary to win a Council seat.

As far as my strategy, it's probably quite simple. I intend to run a campaign based on facts and vision. Not a campaign based in the gutter as we see going on already in the Mayor's race. I have a history of what I believe in for Hartford and identifying waste and problems in our city government as well as responding to and working with people who have felt excluded. I receive phone calls, e-mails and even people approaching me in public with problems that they need help with.

Helping someone is not a Republican or Democratic issue or even "conservative vs. liberal. It is a matter of decency and realizing that we are all pretty much in the same boat.Not to get on a soap box here, but the old saying "united we stand, divided we fall" is something we need to focus on as a city, as neighbors. Downtown is no better or doing more for the City than Upper Albany. The Westend is no better off or facing different problems than Barry Square or Frog Hollow. We are a small city that needs to get away from the divide and conquer politics that were perfected onder the Perez years.

I sincerely wish that it wasn't necessary to run affiliated with a party and candidates would only be on a ballot as an individual with no party designation after their name.

I intend to run for what I stand for and not because I'm willing to pledge some sort of crazy blind allegiance to the Party line. If it works, fine, if not I'll still be around doing what I have been doing and trying to make a difference. There are plenty of other people out there doing the same thing, and that is what will change the City for the better, not whether we have enough conservatives or liberals on the council. Lets find people that make decisions based on what is best for Hartford, not what the party tells them to do.

And your comment as to what I stand for "Safety, Controlling Taxes, Reducing Spending, Business Retention & Development", are those bad things?
I realize those are goals usually associated with the Republican mantra, but they might not be a bad thing for the entire Council to focus on whether you have an "R", a "D", a "WFP" or any other combination after your name.

And thanks for your promised vote :)

Saturday, April 9, 2011

TO MY READERS: I'D LIKE YOUR ADVICE

I'm not going to over dramatize this, but I value the comments posted here and I respect your opinions.

A few months ago, several people approached me asking me to run for Hartford City Council. My first reaction was hell no. I attend Council meetings, I watch what they do, I see the nonsense that goes on and I couldn't sit there and be part of that.

I've seen ordinances that attempted to tie the hands of our Police Department but no discussion about crime or the perception of crime that keeps people from moving to or visiting Hartford. I've watched the discussions about condemning the War in Afghanistan, but hardly any discussion about the looming tax disaster facing every Hartford property owner.

I've watched a Council that supported a corrupt Mayor despite overwhelming evidence that will eventually send him to prison. I like many people feel that the majority of the members on the Council are all about preserving votes and taking care of themselves and family members while the condition of our City spirals out of control.

I am surprised when I have raised issues that this Council replies back with blank stares and no action. When I raised the issue about the misuse and abuse of City credit cards the Council did nothing. In fact at least one Council member continued to spend on hers and initially denied expenses for a trip to San Antonio Texas. A City Hall source eventually told me that after I raised the issue, they figure that the City saved at least $1.5 million dollars in the first year that the card misuse was exposed.

I don't need to go on, but anyone who reads this blog should know pretty well what I stand for and the issues that I have raised. With that being said, I want your opinions on a simple question...should I move forward on running for Hartford City Council. I have spent the past couple weeks meeting and speaking with people to gauge their opinions and I would appreciate yours.

Thanks

MORE ON THE CYLE OF VIOLENCE

The more I see first hand the violence in Hartford, the more aggravated I get by the entire system.

I spent a good part of the day Wednesday at the intersection of Thomaston and Ridgefield Street in the Blue Hills neighborhood, the site of Hartford's latest homicide. Mid afternoon a man approached me and a reporter standing there and asked us what happened. He was told a shooting had taken place and the victim was dead. He told us he thought that it might be his cousin, Gregory Parker, were we sure he was dead. The reporter told him that was what the police were saying.

At about that time the homicide victims car was towed out of the driveway where he was shot. The man kind of let out an "oh no" and said that was his cousins car. Right about then his cell phone rang, and although I only heard one side of the conversation, it was a conversation no one wants to have. He kept repeating "no Gramma, he's dead, I said ,Gramma he's DEAD". What a way to break the news to a young mans grandmother that her grandson was now a statistic, Hartford's 10th homicide for 2011.

I try to go to as many community meetings as I can and I am a supporter of Reverend Henry Brown. People ask me if I am out of my mind when I go stand on Edgewood Street or Albany Avenue when Rev. Brown holds a vigil. Lately, they seem to be used as campaign stops by those running for political office.

Since I'm not usually shy about calling people out, last nights vigil on Thomaston Street was very well attended by community people and family members of the victim, 24 year old Anthony Parker. It was also attended by Hartford's politicos who I don't recall seeing at any other vigils on a regular basis. Hartford Mayor Pedro Segarra in a political battle for re-election was there, one of his challengers Sean Wooden was there. Andrew Wood, who has been funded very well by the City to prevent violence was there. He also attended Tuesdays vigil on Edgewood Street.

For the Mayor and Andrew Wood to show up at the vigil might be nice to show respect for the family, but I would have preferred to see them touting Anthony Parker heading off to college rather than a cemetery.

It was even more disturbing this morning when I spoke with Chief Roberts and he told the story of meeting with Anthony Parker's mother about four years ago. He explained how Parker and his younger brother were identified as being on the fast track to trouble. Chief Robert's said that after meeting with Parker's mother and offering help to try to get them on the right track he was surprised by the mothers response.

She said that she was placing her sons in God's hands. Well we now know how that worked out. Anthony is clearly in God's hands now and his younger brother is in the hands of the Connecticut Department of Correction, serving time in prison.

I guess my big question is what do these organizations that are funded very well by the City actually do in return for Hartford. We know under the previous administration that many of Hartford's non-profits were expected to return votes at election time in appreciation of their City funding. Organizations that knew how to play the game with our former Mayor got their funding, those that wouldn't play had their City funding cut.

Last year I requested a record from the City Treasurer of all the funding given to organizations that Andrew Woods was affiliated with or the "director" of. The result was very interesting. According to the records, from 2001 when Eddie Perez became Mayor until the time of my 2010 request, the Treasurer gave me records showing that $2.3 million had been paid out to Hartford Communities that Care, Hartford Behavioral Health, Stump the Violence and various other organizations.

What have we received for that money? We know that adults are making a very good living off of the City, but Hartford's youth are still dying. The interesting part is that we have no way of tracking most of this money. Ask for reports on how the money is spent, who is served, what are the demographics served and no one can provide the answers. It seems like a very poor system where the money is thrown around without any real accountability.

I ran into the perfect example last year when I looked at the amount of money given out by the City to the Ebony Horsewomen.Although the money was supposed to be used for youth programs, the fact of the matter is that the President of Board of Directors was channeling over a $100,000 a year back to herself through an LLC that both her and her husband ran.Click here to read the details from 2010. Surprisingly, or maybe not so surprising if you realize how Hartford works, not a question arose on the part of the City Council when I raised the issue when the group was up for funding again.

I think it is a legitimate question to ask to these groups receiving funding for violence projects, how did Anthony Parker end up dead? If Chief Roberts and his staff identified Anthony Parker and his brother as "bad dudes", what was done from that point on. The Hartford Police are not meant to be social workers, but Andrew Woods and the others are.

Since there is no real follow up, I guess we will never know. What efforts were made to deal the Parker's? Not everyone can be saved from themselves, but it would be interesting to know what was done from the day Chief Roberts met with their mother to ensure that the Parker boys "got into God's hands" later than as we saw this week, far too soon.

Here is the latest Federal Tax Form 990 for Hartford Communities that Care for 2009, it shows almost $280,000 in income for the period 2007-2009 for this one group alone. Note the expenditures, the majority was paid out to "consultants", it might be interesting to know who those individuals are. Also note that one of the Board members, Patricia Kelly, is the subject of my Ebony Horsewoman post linked above

HartfordCommunitiesThatCare

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

HOW DO WE CHANGE THE CYCLE OF VIOLENCE?

The "you tube" link below was sent to me by a regular reader of "We the People". I hadn't heard of the documentary previously or when it was produced.Unfortunately it was filmed right here in Hartford, not Detroit, not Los Angeles, but here on the streets of Hartford.

I think too many of our leaders have their heads buried in the sand when it comes to what is going on in our City. Anyone watching this video would have to question the rationale behind possibly cutting the next class for the Hartford Police Department as the number of police officers on the street continues to decrease.

We should also be questioning the dollars that are continuously dumped into programs run by Hartford's "poverty pimps" without any, or very little,results in return.

Something is wrong when a 14 year old girl has to tell her 11 year old brother that their mother was gunned down on the street in front of their home. Where are the adults in their lives, besides their dead mother? No child should have that burden on their shoulders.

HARTFORD RECORDS TENTH HOMICIDE FOR 2011


A 22 year old man was shot at least eight times this morning as he sat in a car in the driveway of 13-15 Thomaston Street in Hartford's Blue Hills neighborhood. This brings to ten the city's number of homicides so far , just a little over three months into the new year.Chief Roberts commented to the media and his remarks can be seen below, turn the volume up since he was somewhat soft spoken.

Chief Robert's comments are below:

Friday, April 1, 2011

NOLAN VINDICATED...CLEARED 100%


The Labor decision in the termination of Hartford Fire Department Deputy Chief Dan Nolan is official now. In the hearing officers report received today, Nolan was cleared of all charges and ordered reinstated to the Hartford Fire Department with all back pay and seniority. Apparently none of the charges were substantiated.

The full report is on the way to me now and will hopefully be posted here this evening.

Nolan is out of town and unavailable for comment at this time, but something tells me he will have plenty to say.