Left In Lowell

Like, having a big public inaugural outside the state house instead of inside which fits mostly legislators. I’m with David.

And you are all of course invited to the Patrick Merrimack Valley/North Shore inaugural reception on Jan 5th!! Buy tickets online. It’s going to be really really cool. (Art and entertainment from across the region, for starters!)

Tomorrow on Thinking Out Loud (English portion 10-11am, stream it live here), we will interview US Representative Marty Meehan live about both national and state proposals to address global warming. With the changeover in the US Congress and our State House, we can finally start a serious discussion about the nature of climate change, solutions for preventing worse catastrophe, and how this is not just imperative for future generations, but an opportunity! The US lags other industrialized nations in working on renewable technologies and energy conservation. Can Massachusetts be on the forefront of reversing our attitudes on climate change?

Coming off his very well-attended Climate Change Town Meeting in Lowell last Saturday (which I didn’t have time to write about, but sco did), Representative Meehan will tell us how he and others plan to leverage the obvious will of citizens in Massachusetts to do just that.

Rep. Meehan also has co-authored an op-ed in the Globe with Dr. Paul Epstein, who participated in last weekend’s town meeting.

[Update: it’s news like this that really make me want to throw global warming deniers onto the melting north pole ice sheet.]

I’ve been meaning to write this for ages because I am deeply saddened by the news that Clear Channel will be has switching switched the formats of 1200 and 1430 AM to some sort of music. If you have never heard of Boston’s Progressive Talk, that’s the stations that currently run shows from Air America and the Jones Radio Network (Stephanie Miller, Ed Schultz). I listen to it (streaming and in the car) all the time. I’m addicted to Stephanie Miller.

Of course, conservatives will start to bloviate that see…this means progressive talk isn’t viable, if it can’t survive in Boston it can’t survive anywhere. (Never mind the ratings even in places in the South and Midwest…) But I don’t think that’s what happened. I think Clear Channel appears to never have wanted it to really succeed in the first place. Why do I believe this? Because they never did much advertising about their presence on the Boston radio scene. I can’t tell you the number of solidly progressive friends who even now look at me funny when I ask them if they ever listen to 1200/1430 AM. They had never heard of it. We have progressive talk in the Boston area?

The station was badly managed by its corporate masters (probably not the same people running the actual programming), because I believe if they had done the requisite get-out-the-word ads to possible listeners, they would have had three times or more the audience, and growing.

There are some people looking to save progressive talk. First thing you can do is write to or call the station and tell them how unhappy you are that they are changing format (be polite). You can also join the Yahoo group being formed too, by sending an email to Save_progressive_radio_boston-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. I believe you do need a Yahoo ID to join.

I got this email from the Director of United Teen Equality Center (UTEC) about an event today, and I thought I would post it:

Today, December 21st, another young person will be buried in Lowell before the age of 20 because of senseless violence.

In response to all 14 people that were lost due to violence this past year, the most recent being a 19 year old young man just the other day, UTEC is organizing a community event (“Voices For Change”) to make the statement that this type of violence is not ok…that young people being killed cannot be seen as “normal” or something that cannot be changed…and we are specifically asking for this to be a call to action for other young people to step up and speak out against such violence, making a commitment toward choosing peace.

“Stop Killin’.
Start Talkin’.”

This is the slogan that one of our teens came up with to best describe the message of today’s event.

There will be a short walk within the downtown area followed by a symbolic candle lighting and a brief event. We are asking everyone to assemble at UTEC (106 Merrimack Street) by 4:15pm today (Thursday). Please wear white.
Though we are specifically targeting young people for this event, we absolutely welcome all interested community members to join.

Please join us in remembering all those we lost this year and letting everyone know that young people are not ok with this type of violence. Any questions, feel free to call me at 978.265.7173.

Thanks again!

Gregg

UTEC has created a youth community that is a model for how to build teen confidence. The empowerment they give kids in Lowell is something that can’t be quantified. Let’s hope that this event will give our teens a space to express their grief, and to understand that they can make the future better.

Yesterday evening, Lynne and I attended a meeting of the Lowell City Council Sub-Committee on Marketing. The meeting was called by the Chairman of the Sub-Committee, CC Kevin Broderick. CCs Eileen Donoghue and Bud Caufield were also present.

They were joined by City Manager Bernie Lynch and both Assistant City Managers, T.J. McCarthy (Operations) and Matt Coggins (Department of Planning and Development) as well as the City’s downtown coordinator.

The meeting focused on how to maximize the City’s efforts to attract new business, visitors and stimulate the economy. In attendance were representatives of a number of organizations: COOL, Convention and Visitors’ Bureau, the Lowell Plan, the Auditorium, and the National Park and of course, Lynne, from the Western Avenue Studios. Other entities which are crucial to the overall marketing effort should have been in attendance. But since this is the beginning of these kinds of meetings, perhaps next time everyone can make an effort to be present and participate in the discussions.

The City Budget for FY 2007 (July ‘06 - June ‘07) has $1.3M earmarked for marketing: under the DPD/Business Marketing , $300,00; under the City Manager/Marketing Development; Auditorium, $400,000; Convention and Visitors Bureau, $100,000; Special Events, $130,000; Merrimack Repertory Theater, $100,000; Special Events, $130,000; Cultural Development $100,000. (more…)

It has been months since I have complained about the City’s web site; I know that the new administration will eventually get around to making some necessary changes, but until then….

Last time I complained to a City official, I was reminded that City Manager Bernie Lynch has many other more serious issues (like the deficit) to tackle besides the web page. Fair enough! But it is encouraging that during a City Council meeting he made references to Cambridge’s web site, the best in the State in my opinion. So I am hoping that eventually Lowell government will have a web site that is comparable to theirs. The problem is not with the IT staff but with the various Department heads who provide the information or in our case, do not provide the information.

Yesterday my frustration with the web site was triggered again when I received the RSS news feed announcing “Notice of RFP Availability and Public Hearing.” So, I clicked on the feed and the press release popped up announcing that RFP for Federal Entitlement Funds (CDBG, HOME, and ESG). The link in the press release sends you to the City web site’s home page. This is not helpful to anyone who is not familiar with the City or its web site. The link should really be to the Department of Planning and Development page. (more…)

Dan Kennedy turns the tables in his latest post, which is, of course, about the dust-up with Greater Boston’s Beat the Press. In particular, he’s rightly a little miffed about a commenter on dKos misrepresenting, or misunderstanding, his stance on the Iraq war.

I just have two things to say…the “pigheaded” comment was really more regarding last week, because I think Dan’s tone was off base - lots of stuff had been pointed out to him (some nice and some not) and I thought he missed the boat in what came across like an attempt to defend his colleagues.

Second, there is, as I pointed out in comments, a touch of irony in Dan’s understandable displeasure about being misrepresented on the Iraq war in the comments of the Kos post. I mean, this commenter got her opinion from something he wrote about Colin Powell before the war (when he went to the UN), and in order to get his previous and subsequent stance totally right, she’d have to, you know, fact-check or something. I’m just sayin’.

But truce, truce! All right, so everyone’s been pigheaded these last two weeks, myself included…it’s very easy to vent your frustration on the internets before you have a chance to filter those raw feelings. But, I am getting rather weary of gazing at my own navel. Given that it’s the holiday season and my navel’s going to disappear anyhow, overeating cookies and pie…so, here’s the white flag.

Beat the Press today called their on-the-outs with the blogosphere last week “an education.” At least they seem still interested in learning - that’s something.

As I already stated here, they did address some of those core gripes, though they missed a couple points. As a “media critique” sort of show, they are well within their mission to look into the reporting of the NYTimes in their original story about bloggers, so I disagree with Dan Kennedy - if the NYT story seemed incomplete, they should have at least mentioned that. And word to the wise, when reporting what other media says, it might behoove you to talk about the caveats that were in the story.

I’ve been thinking about the reaction to last week’s BtP, including my own, to dissect any underlying reason why it was vehement (it certainly was, and I’ll admit it). I believe I know the answer - at least to my own rancor (which, for the most part, I still stick to). You see, we’ve just been watching the media do this over and over - and with far more terrible consequences than undermining Jerome’s personal credibility. The runup to the Iraq war springs first to mind.

You see, I was pretty certain that there were no WMDs or ties to Al Quada since before the first bombs dropped in shock, and awe. But the media, why…they were completely incurious. How did we (bloggers, since that’s where I was reading the truth about Iraq) know the truth but the media didn’t? That’s the core unasked question underlying much of the fervor over this last week. We are tired of seeing this same old drumbeat of assumptions and fitting situations into lazy storylines.

It’s the same incuriousness displayed last week in the BtP blogging story that got us into Iraq. The media failed us, and it failed us over and over after that, and it’s been slowly falling further and faster into irrelevance and oblivion.

Much as they were laughing and joking about the to-do about Jerome this week, it was evident last week that all of the talking heads on BtP were all to eager to beat the bloggers in a way I have not often seen them beat their own colleagues. Sure, they criticize the Globe or the Herald, but not too harshly. After all, those are their friends and fellow reporters after all. And who are bloggers? A bunch of passionate advocates who are always after too much answerability, to the point where some accuse bloggers of being egotistical. Anonymous faces behind the mask of internet accountability. I think they did learn something about internet accountability. It’s rather more like the Wild West than civilized London, but it gets the job done.

I do hope they begin to take these lessons to heart. We’d rather go back to our own boring mundane lives, instead of having to be riled up at everything the press does wrong. But if we don’t do it, who does?

[Just to add: I also want to educate the mainstream press that the other point that must be made, if you truly want to understand blogs, that we are as harsh on each other as we are on you. Bloggers with assertions that don’t make sense and aren’t giving supporting facts are soon piled on as unreliable, and shills for candidates are quickly found out. Blogs without comments are not often given the same weight as blogs that do. Hell, on my own little blog I’m dumped on all the time. One of the pundits on BtP mentioned they saw the “immediacy” of reaction on blogs. That immediacy and direct accountability with readers, that constantly being challenged, is just as much a part of blogging as fact-checking and sourcing supposedly is for “real” journalists (or for that matter, bloggers).]

You only hurt the ones you love. Apparently!

I still wonder why Trav would say it in the first place…even in the context of nicer statements and hypotheticals it did sound like he was trying to undermine the new governor and issue vague threats. I’ll still be watching to see if the money is where the mouth is.

They’re cute when you first get ‘em, but then they just keep multiplying. So it goes with the Massachusetts legislature; when we get rid of one or two hacks, more keep popping up. Just when we thought Finneran-style Mafia politics was dialing down…the mantle is picked up by Senate President Travaglini, who’s issued nothing less than a veiled threat against popularly-elected Patrick:

In remarks that shocked some in the audience, the Senate president said that he wants to work with the governor-elect, but he strong-ly suggested that if things don’t go well, the Senate will block Patrick’s legislative efforts.

According to the notes of one audience member, Travaglini said: “I told the governor-elect, if you’re willing to share and you care and you prepare and are ready to deliver, then everything will work out. If not, I have senators across the state who share my vision and my approach and if forced to choose, I’m comfortable with whom they’ll choose.”

[Bold mine.]

First of all, I can’t understand when Deval Patrick ever said he wasn’t going to work with the legislature. After all, we do have three branches of government. Way to start off on the right foot, Oh Quickly Becoming Irrelevant One. Your type is the reason that we’ve lost the governor’s office time and again - people were afraid of unmitigated one-party rule if it was going to be of the sort you offer. The wave that overcame that (the Patrick election) scares you…I know…it’s only human. But if you’re going to act so obviously like a wounded animal backed into a corner, people are going to figure you out. Then there’s this:

The audience members also reported that Travaglini said Patrick downplayed his promise to slash waste in the budget, though yesterday Patrick’s office insisted he stood firmly by his vow to cut inefficient spending.

Travaglini said that in recent discussions with Patrick, he warned the governor-elect to stop making public promises to cut $1 billion in waste. The Senate president said he told Patrick that the pledge insults the Legislature. If there is that much bloat in the budget, Travaglini said, then he hasn’t been doing his job.

Patrick has repeatedly said he can find $735 million in wasteful spending in the yearly budget. According to audience members, Travaglini said when he objected to the figure, Patrick backed off and said he didn’t really mean it.

Great, now we have hearsay about a private conversation from Trav, who has done a lot less than Patrick to gain my trust. Is he lying about what Patrick said, or misrepresenting it? I have to wonder. It appears that Trav has decided to undermine Patrick even before he gets into office, and biting into his credibility on campaign statements would certainly deliver that. Before I believe such a charge, I’d have to see more evidence than a statement from wounded-animal Trav.

Maybe his actions have something to do with this:

Legislators have also been concerned that Patrick may move to cut earmarks, money that is directed by legislators to local projects. “They are not pork,” DiMasi said earlier this week. “They are legislators’ priorities.”

Riiiiiight.

Personally, I have never liked Trav. He’s watered down more good legislation, in the interests of the connected few, than a cheap bar trying to save money on beer. He’s of the old school of legislative politics, except far less effective than Finneran at it. He weilds his influence like a blunt instrument, or an old Don. My hope? His style of politics doesn’t survive much longer. It’s been as much a drag on good solutions to tough state problems as the Republican governors that worked against and with them. You wouldn’t see me cry if his vice-grip on the state legislature unravelled.

I’m not asking that the legislature give whatever Patrick wants…loyal opposition, even amid one’s own party, is crucial to making sure all interests are represented. However, this sort of whining about your little pet projects isn’t going to look good to the people who elected you (or Patrick). I’m looking for Trav to step down probably within the next two years or less, if he keeps defending the indefensible.

[Update: interesting comment by someone apparently at the breakfast. If it weren’t for Trav’s past hackery, I might be inclined to be so generous…yes the Globe took what it wanted from Trav’s remarks, but he still made them. And he still acts like an old-school Finneran Democrat.]