Left In Lowell

The fist item of tonight’s City Council meeting was a proclamation issued to the Lowell Community Health Center. I always learn something new during these ceremonials presentation. Tonight I found out that the LCHC acted as family doctor to 20,000 patients mostly from the city of Lowell. That is almost 20% of the population of our city.

I guess if these people need to turn to a social agency for medical assistance, they do not have much time or energy to focus on other issues. They must be mostly children. That statistic was eye-opening.

The Auditor was absent. I assume he was on vacation again. By the way, the CFO was also absent. They both should have been there to hear tonight’s discussion which focused mostly on the City’s fiscal situation.

CC Eillen Donoghue was not there also.

First and foremost, new CM Bernie Lynch oozes confidence and knowledge. He was well prepared. It seems that one of the differences between him and his predecessors, not only the previous one but other as well, is that he, Lynch, will come to the CC meetings prepared to provide as much information as he can on the CC’s motion discussed that evening.

It also appears that he would like a change in the rules so that he has an opportunity to address the CC and public with information on previously introduced CC motions.

I was concerned with some of the comments he made regarding the fiscal state of our city. He not only mentioned issues facing us during FY 2007 but alluded to some issues regarding FY 06. They have not yet closed the books.

As we know, there were 16 CC motions as well as a motion from CC R. Eliott to reconsider position/salaries for FY 07 Budget. It did not pass but during the conversation we learned that the Auditor had allowed jobs to be filled although CM Elliott had submitted his reconsideration motion in time to freeze any appointment. I think Wally’s World is coming to a fast end. Eliott motions did not pass.

Most of the motions did not evoke strong opositions but I was concerned by CM’s use of the phrase that we “are operating on a structural deficit.” As I had mentioned we need to close out FY 06 to see how much cash we have, so that we can determine our financial forecast; come up with a financial policy and capital improvement plan.

Why do I have the strange feeling that FY 07 Budget has issues? (more…)

This DailyKos diary sums up the recent to-do over what I think is a stupid, dirty, dumb attack on Deval Patrick. Sure, there are things to disagree with Patrick about or attacks that can be made, but the recent attacks by Frank Phillips in the Globe are insultingly unresearched.

Blue Mass Group, quoted and linked from the Kos diary, did some crack investigating that Phillips, I guess, didn’t bother to do. But of course, BMG totally rocks.

I’m so glad this council meeting prayer thing has come up as a subject to be discussed. Longtime readers will remember I’ve been ranting about this since I started this blog.

There is no legal or moral argument that supports the recitation of The Lord’s Prayer as part of the city council meeting. Not only does this mix church and state, it is promoting a specific religion, Catholicism. This is a no-brainer should someone challenge it in court. The Bill of Rights says:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…

And with the Fourteenth Amendment, these laws of the land were made to apply to any government underneath the federal level…state and local.

Long held precedent has created this wall between church and state which has stood the test of time. I will tell you, as a former Catholic (born, raised, and Confirmed) turned atheist, the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer makes me feel inordinately uncomfortable in my own city’s council chambers. It’s the sort of peer pressure (the pressure to not be left out, stand up, and recite something in which you don’t believe) that is illegal under the Constitution of the United States. I deliberately sit out the Lord’s Prayer, I certainly don’t recite it, but it is the state’s job to ensure it doesn’t take an act of courage (trust me, it is, albeit a small one) to be involved in one’s own elected government.

So I disagree with the motion made two weeks ago…we should not be examining the inclusion of other prayers in addition to this one. We should be nixing the inclusion of any sort of prayer from any religion in the official Council chambers of the City of Lowell. Unless, of course, the city wants to wait for someone to bring up a lawsuit which is sure to embarrass them.

If some of the Councilors, and members of the public, want to engage in reflective prayer before the meeting, they should feel free to do so - in a private room somewhere before the meeting starts. Then they can join the rest of us in furthering the State’s work…not the Lord’s. There is a time and place for religion and it is not during official city business.

By the way, Councilor Armand Mercier was quoted as saying, “It’s not broke. I don’t want to fix it. I have not had a complaint in all the years I’ve been there about saying the Lord’s Prayer, nor has anybody complained to me that it should be another prayer, so I don’t know where they’re coming from to say it’s not fair. What’s next, no Pledge of Allegiance to the flag?”

I think Councilor Mercier needs to hear those complaints from those of you who feel as I do - maybe you are a Catholic, but feel this is a misuse of government. Maybe you’re an atheist like me, or else of another religion. But it’s time to set aside such unconstitutional practices, just like we are hoping to set aside some ethically-challenged political practices in this city under our new City Manager. While you’re at it, send a note to all the other councilors as well. You can email them all at once or one at a time at this webpage.