tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62414566140188287722024-03-05T02:29:38.525-05:00AN INSIDE LOOKAN INSIDE LOOK - Commentary and opinions on local politics and life in general in Southeastern Massachusetts! Featuring the writings of Bill Gouveia, newspaper columnist for the Sun Chronicle and local cable TV talk show host. Feel free to read, comment and enjoy!An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.comBlogger447125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-40213914908869954992022-03-21T22:23:00.002-04:002022-03-21T22:24:07.059-04:00Using Kids For Partisan Political Reasons<p> </p><p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span> </span></span></p><p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: large;"><b><u>AN INSIDE LOOK</u></b></span></p><p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><b><u>BY BILL GOUVEIA</u></b></span></p><p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: center;"> <span style="font-size: medium;"><i>(This column appeared in the Sun Chronicle on March 21, 2022)</i></span><br /></p><p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: left;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span> </span><span> </span>Beware
those who use the local political system to push national, fringe political
philosophies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They aren</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t
doing it for their community, but rather to advance themselves and their
political parties.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span> </span>Such is the case in Mansfield, where
Republican Town Committee member Robert O</span>’<span face="Arial, sans-serif">Connell has submitted
a petition article for the upcoming Annual Town Meeting. </span>“<span face="Arial, sans-serif">His</span>”<span face="Arial, sans-serif">
article is yet another version of the boilerplate propaganda put forth by
conservative extremists seeking to solve a problem that doesn</span>’<span face="Arial, sans-serif">t
actually exist </span>–<span face="Arial, sans-serif"> namely, the so-called teaching of
Critical Race Theory (CRT) in Mansfield and other local public schools.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><br /></span></p><p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span> </span>Mind you, O</span>’<span face="Arial, sans-serif">Connell
has not provided any proof that such a theory is being taught anywhere in the
state. Nor does he recall where he got
his version of the proposed bylaw change, although he notes similar ones are on
the internet. He says the Republican
Town Committee has discussed it, but does not say if they or other officials
support it.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif"><span> </span>His proposed bylaw consists of
right-wing talking points thinly disguised as educational reform. Any such proposal should be offered at the
state level and not in individual communities.
But that wouldn</span>’<span face="Arial, sans-serif">t generate the local attention O</span>’<span face="Arial, sans-serif">Connell
so obviously craves.</span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Perhaps O</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Connell
took his concerns to the local school superintendent and school committee first.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope he did, because if not that would
reveal a lot about his motives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Scott
Cohen of the Mansfield Educators Association which represents local teachers, said
this topic is </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">not a subject matter I</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ve
seen in Massachusetts or the curriculums we</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ve purchased or we</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">re
required to teach or even discuss.</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>O</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Connell is well-known
for his letters to the editor and local political and social media activism supporting
President Trump, the claim the 2020 election was stolen, and referring to
President Biden as </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Dementia Joe</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is a retired attorney who previously
worked in state government.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>His actions in this regard are
possibly the first in Massachusetts, but hardly the first in the nation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Similar proposals have been submitted and
considered in several states, usually by pro-Trump conservative groups.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although no actual instances of teaching CRT
have been documented, the concept of providing new regulations to prevent what
does not exist has effectively disrupted school board meetings across the
country and stirred many emotions.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So make no mistake, this is not
about education, or Mansfield, or protecting kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a petty political stunt trying to scare
parents and citizens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is about
Presidential and Senate races rather than local officials and policies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is an attempt to inject partisan politics
into the nonpartisan Town Meeting process, and to intimidate educators.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Some will tell you there is no harm
in voting on this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That some of it makes
sense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is also part of the
deception and disguise.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">stirring
the pot</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> at the local level for political
purposes only. Take the issue to Beacon Hill where it belongs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Leave Mansfield kids out of your politics.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Fortunately, Mansfield citizens and
voters are more than capable of seeing beyond this political ploy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will no doubt continue to support and
respect the local elected officials, professionals and educators who guide
their excellent local school system.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify; text-indent: 27pt;"><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and
longtime local official.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He can be
emailed at </span></i><span class="Hyperlink0"><i>billsinsidelook@gmail.com</i></span><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> and followed on Twitter at
@Billinsidelook.</span></i><o:p></o:p></p>An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-84075804862433276662021-01-11T10:12:00.001-05:002021-01-11T12:13:46.213-05:00Trump Supporters - This One Is On You<p> </p><p class="MsoTitle" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>This column originally appeared in the Sun Chronicle on Monday, January 11, 2021.</i><br /><br />AN INSIDE LOOK<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoSubtitle" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">By Bill Gouveia</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>After days of watching Republican
and conservative elected officials, commentators, columnists and citizens try
and distance themselves from the president they consistently supported, I want
to say something directly to them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>This is on you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You bear much responsibility for the
treasonous, seditious mistake that is Donald Trump.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe he fooled you the first time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s somewhat
understandable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if you voted for him
twice, you have no excuse.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Don</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t give us this
nonsense about how Trump suddenly went too far and undid </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">all
the good things</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> he accomplished.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How this attack on the Capitol and his
complicity in it is new and different.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s a pathetic attempt to excuse your own
bad choices.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Administration officials resigned
saying they </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">hadn</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t signed up for this</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
and Trump </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">is not the same as he was eight months
ago</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>That</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s pure, unadulterated
bullshit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trump is exactly the same
person and president he was four years ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He is the same racist, lying, self-serving fraud he was when he came
down that escalator in 2015.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You now </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">former
supporters</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> knew that when you </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">signed
up</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Trump never pretended to be anything
but what he is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His character </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">–</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
or lack of same </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">–</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> has always been clear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now his politically motivated enablers suddenly
express shock after they milked this ignorant, narcissistic, mentally unstable
man-child for all they could before being forced to cast him aside.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>You sold your souls to Donald Trump
in exchange for what you considered most important.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
traded your integrity for the promise of Supreme Court justices, tax breaks for
the wealthy, and advancing conservative agendas that could not pass without his
lying, bullying and manipulating.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And he delivered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You now have a conservative court.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The tax code now favors the rich over what is
left of the middle class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Immigrants
have been put in their place and kept out of the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He didn</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t empty the </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">swamp</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">,
but filled it with creatures you like as opposed to ones you don</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>All it cost was the honor of our
nation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The death of a police officer
defending the Capitol, a peaceful protestor in Charlottesville and maybe a
million dead Americans by the time a mishandled pandemic is over:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the largest deficit in our history and the
incitement of a riot that endangered the lives of every member of Congress and
our entire democracy.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Hope it was worth it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And yes </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">–</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I am talking to you,
whether a supporter on the national or local level.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Spare me your pious statements of
how Trump has disappointed you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stop
pretending this comes as a shock.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
got what you paid for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Yeah, I know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hillary</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s emails.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hunter Biden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Radical liberal left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Riots in
the summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>BLM.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like any of that would excuse what happened
on Wednesday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of the more ignorant
of you actually say Antifa members </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">–</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> disguised as Trump
supporters </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">–</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> were the ones who attacked the
Capitol.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those claims are clearly a
mixture of gullibility and stupidity, and I won</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t get into which
makes up the larger percentage.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>You who elected and enabled this
president are more a threat to America than Donald Trump.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Until you change, Democracy remains in peril.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It would be better to have you just
admit you sold out and move on.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify; text-indent: 27pt;"><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime
local official.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He can be emailed at </span></i><span class="Hyperlink0"><i>billsinsidelook@gmail.com</i></span><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> and followed on Twitter at
@Billinsidelook.</span></i><o:p></o:p></p>An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-15667498281908261532020-09-14T07:23:00.003-04:002020-09-14T07:23:49.958-04:00Despite Editorial, In-Person Meetings Not Yet Worth Risk<p><span style="font-size: large;">Still Not Time For In-Person Meetings</span></p><p>by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle <br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><br />Recently this fine newspaper ran an editorial stating it is time for the larger local public boards and committees to hold public meetings in person again, allowing citizens to attend.</span></p><div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">With all due respect — this is shortsighted, irresponsible and wrong. It would unnecessarily expose both the public and the volunteer officials to a serious health risk for little reason or gain.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">As a citizen, former local official, and newspaper columnist I look forward to all meetings once again being held in person with people in the seats. I agree with the editorial when it says “This is important business, after all, the public’s business. It needs to be conducted in public.”</p><div class="tncms-region-ads" id="tncms-region-ads-fixed-big-ad-top-asset" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div id="blox-ad-position-fixed-big-ad-top-asset1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto 40px;"></div></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_top" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">But in fact, it HAS been conducted in public throughout the pandemic. Boards and committees have conducted their meetings via Zoom and other internet-based applications, so people have been able to both watch and participate. In some ways this has allowed more participation and access than available before.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">The public’s business has been conducted in public, and inferring it has not is again just wrong.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Yes, technology remains a challenge for many citizens, including the elderly. The need to have quality sound and video is crucial. Teaching folks the proper use of the mute button can be a challenge. And not everyone has access to a computer and the internet.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">But it certainly is a valid and proper substitute for exposing people to a virus that continues to kill close to 1,000 Americans each day. An elderly individual struggling with the mute button is much preferable to an elderly individual struggling with a ventilator.</p><div class="tncms-region-ads" id="tncms-region-ads-fixed-big-ad-middle-asset" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div id="blox-ad-position-fixed-big-ad-middle-asset1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto 40px;"></div></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_middle" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">And using the excuse that “If it is safe to go shopping and dining, it is certainly safe for a committee to gather, especially in larger meeting rooms” doesn’t hold up either. Going to a store or a restaurant is generally a short trip. There is no sharing of microphones, no public speaking to many individuals. It is also much more of a necessity.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">What do you gain with in-person meetings that makes it worth the risk of spreading the virus? If you have to limit the number of attendees, who decides who can attend and who has to leave? Other than the ability to look your officials in the eye — which I am not at all discounting — what is it about a live meeting during a pandemic that justifies this danger?</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">The editorial also praises the Brockton City Council, which has resumed in-person meetings, as a “champion of government transparency in the coronavirus era.” But it offers no reason why other bodies are somehow not deemed transparent.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Meetings are not being held on Zoom to avoid transparency. All the actions and votes of the public boards are still conducted in the open, with the public and the press watching. They are transparent, and any inference to the contrary is again just wrong.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Getting back to in-person meetings is important. We should do so — when the number of daily infections gets to a safe level. Let the government achieve that first, and then bring back the live audiences.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Meanwhile we can continue to celebrate that government — like newspapers — continues to encourage opposing viewpoints.</p><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_bottom" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_bottom_content" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div class="inform-container inform-video-player-3" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="inform-embed" data-aspect-ratio="16:9" data-placement-id="inform-video-player-3" data-tracking-group="90566" data-width="100%" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div></div></div><div class="asset-tagline text-muted" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #777777; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding-top: 20px; position: relative;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Bill Gouveia is a Sun Chronicle columnist and longtime local official. Reach him at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a>; follow him @Billinsidelook.</p></div><div class="share-container content-below" data-subscription-required-remove="" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 20px 0px;"><ul class="social-share-links hidden-print list-inline icon" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; text-align: initial;"><li class="social-share-link fb" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; opacity: 0.8; padding: 0px; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; width: auto;"><a class="tnt-share-link fb" data-new-window-height="300" data-new-window-width="500" data-tncms-track-dmp="Social Media Share" data-tncms-track-event="{"app":"editorial","metric":"social_share","uuid":"b07ca344-d9c9-5870-8f5a-1cfb818a4e8a"}" data-toggle="new-window" data-track="{"network":"Facebook","socialAction":"post","url":"/opinion/columns/bill-gouveia-a-risk-not-worth-taking/article_b07ca344-d9c9-5870-8f5a-1cfb818a4e8a.html"}" href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesunchronicle.com%2Fopinion%2Fcolumns%2Fbill-gouveia-a-risk-not-worth-taking%2Farticle_b07ca344-d9c9-5870-8f5a-1cfb818a4e8a.html%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook%26utm_campaign%3Duser-share" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: transparent; 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That body has now unanimously supported a proposed new charter.</span></p><div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><div class="subscriber-preview" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Their new preliminary plan has been released, calling for major changes from the present governmental format. It would eliminate both the select board and open town meeting in favor of a seven-member elected town council, as well as make other important changes.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">That will lead to some spirited debate from those who favor change as well as those who cherish the current format and want to preserve it. That discussion includes both the details of the changes as well as their philosophical impact. The commission has held two public hearings on the preliminary document thus far — one virtual and one in-person, socially distanced outdoor session.</p></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_top" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Most of the public debate thus far has been respectful and based on facts and strongly-held opinions. But it is clear as it leaves the fact-based portion of the process and heads towards the political voting part, there will be a nasty undercurrent aimed at personally attacking those who seek to modernize government.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">At the hearing on the library park grounds, lifelong Norton resident and political activist John Freeman expressed his opposition to many of the proposed changes, but didn’t stop there. He also once again pushed the tired, old story that Norton is being overrun by those who move here, sap the bountiful town resources, and have no real concern about the community itself.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Addressing the commission, Freeman stated, “You people don’t care about the people that live in this town. You only care about the people you talk to, probably on social media.”</p></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_middle" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">And as the hearing closed, he addressed chairperson Laura Parker saying, “And I don’t know why you need that mask on, you’re under there I think social distancing, like a good little communist.”</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">It’s sad that arrogant comments like this have to even be discussed here, but they highlight the need to focus on fact and not fiction, common sense and not emotion when determining the future of a town.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Freeman’s ignorant, demeaning and rude statements were not only wrong, but completely opposite the truth. It is in fact those who share his narrow, self-serving viewpoint on government reform who “don’t care” about people.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">He and some others cling to the current system they fully admit is imperfect, but suits their individual purposes. But they not only reject change, they assign nefarious motives to those studying it. They believe unless you have lived in town for several decades or commit to doing so, you are merely a nuisance to be tolerated — even if you pay taxes and make up the majority of residents. Your rights and opinions are inferior to theirs.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Change is hard, and this upcoming decision is important. All honest viewpoints and opinions must be heard and are welcome, but baselessly impugning the integrity of others is not. The cheap, petty politics so prevalent in the Norton of years gone by should not infect this critical process.</p></div><div class="subscriber-only" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">But of course, it already has. And wearing a mask can’t stop the spread of that particular sickness.</p></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_bottom" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_bottom_content" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div class="inform-container inform-video-player-3" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="inform-embed" data-aspect-ratio="16:9" data-placement-id="inform-video-player-3" data-tracking-group="90566" data-width="100%" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div></div></div><div class="asset-tagline text-muted" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #777777; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding-top: 20px; position: relative;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</p></div>An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-72794115753163934232020-08-24T22:46:00.003-04:002020-08-24T22:46:35.788-04:00Freedom And Responsibility Not Always Friends<p><span style="font-size: x-large;">We Talk Better Than We Listen</span></p><p>by Bill Gouveia</p><p><i>(This column appeared in the Sun Chronicle on Monday, August 24, 20200</i> </p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">Perhaps more than anything else, Americans hate being told what to do.</span></p><div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">And frankly, it doesn’t much matter who is doing the telling. Other countries, our own national political leaders, local elected officials, health experts, teachers, our parents, and even our spouses — although we might be hesitant to admit the last one publicly.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Sometimes Americans associate independence with stubbornness, and freedom with the right to act irresponsibly. Those can be admirable traits, but can also lead us into trouble. Not just the “good trouble” the late Rep. John Lewis so eloquently spoke about, but the kind of trouble that leads to bad decisions for the wrong reasons.</p><div class="tncms-region-ads" id="tncms-region-ads-fixed-big-ad-top-asset" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div id="blox-ad-position-fixed-big-ad-top-asset1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto 40px;"></div></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_top" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">And nothing brings that out in us more than a global pandemic, apparently.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">We look to our government for help in keeping us all safe and healthy, and for good reason. That’s largely what government exists to do. And we are more than happy to have them make suggestions like washing our hands, socially distancing, wearing masks, and getting vaccines for illnesses like the coronavirus and the flu.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">But making those things mandatory? Whoa, that’s a different story. Many draw the line right there. Hey, we might be willing to do the right thing to protect ourselves, our families and our neighbors. But it has to be our own idea, and done on our terms. Because as Americans, our right to do as we please is often considered greater than our duty to act responsibly.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Is that part of what has made America great over the last 244 or so years? Absolutely — no doubt about it. We have never been a meek people, doing what we are told without questioning both the wisdom and authority of those doing the telling.</p><div class="tncms-region-ads" id="tncms-region-ads-fixed-big-ad-middle-asset" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div id="blox-ad-position-fixed-big-ad-middle-asset1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto 40px;"></div></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_middle" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">And in a debate as old as democracy and freedom themselves, we often disagree on whether the rights of society or the individual wins in case of a tie. You know, that old argument often summed up by the saying “Your right to swing your fist ends just where my nose begins.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Do the overwhelming majority of Americans truly believe wearing a mask during the pandemic greatly helps contain and prevent the spread of the disease? I believe they do (though no doubt others disagree).</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">But making it a requirement to wear these simple cloth implements in public for the good of all? Well, wait a minute. That’s a different question. Because — freedom.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Sure, we require seatbelts. And yes, you have to wear a shirt and shoes into a restaurant (remember going into those?). But today, in this divisive political environment where “winning” is more important than doing the right thing — it becomes a great debate.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">We regularly require kids here in Massachusetts to be vaccinated for various formerly deadly diseases. But now throw flu shots into that mix? Well, that somehow crosses the line. The government can’t do that, even if it is safer and an example of common sense.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Americans should never stop being stubborn, or cherishing freedom and independence. But we have to understand that just because something is mandatory doesn’t make it wrong.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">And we sometimes have to listen more than we talk.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;"><i><span style="font-size: inherit;">Bill Gouveia is a Sun Chronicle columnist and longtime local official. Reach him at</span><span style="font-size: inherit;"> </span><a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; font-size: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a><span style="font-size: inherit;">; follow him @Billinsidelook.</span></i></p></div>An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-7140433788407921892020-07-27T11:58:00.002-04:002020-07-27T11:58:27.246-04:00Candidate Stands Out In Crowded Field<br />
<div class="MsoTitle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Candidate Stands Out In Crowded Field</span></div>
<div class="MsoSubtitle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">By Bill Gouveia</span><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>This column appeared in the Sun Chronicle on Monday, July 27, 2020</i></div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It may come as a surprise to many,
but in the 4<sup>th</sup> Congressional District there are currently 11
individuals on the ballot to replace Rep. Joe Kennedy, who is running for
Senate against incumbent Ed Markey in the Democratic primary.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>With so much going on in the world,
politically and otherwise, it must sometimes seem to those 11 candidates that
they are the only folks truly interested in what would normally be an intensely
watched and scrutinized election.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">m pretty involved in
local affairs, but I admit to not paying this race much attention until
recently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Having actually met only Julie
Hall, a republican candidate from Attleboro, I wanted to know more about some
others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That led to a recent
conversation with another candidate who impressed me very much.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Her name is Jesse Mermell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s a Democrat from
Brookline, the northern part of the district where a lot of the candidates tend
to be from.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is a Progressive with
politics pretty much the opposite of President Trump </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">–</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
which will not endear her to many in this more conservative part of the
crazily-drawn district that stretches from the outskirts of Boston to Fall
River and New Bedford, and includes many of the Sun Chronicle area communities.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>But if you look at Mermell expecting
to find a wild-eyed Liberal with no plans or ideas other than growing the
government, you</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ll be sorely disappointed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While her idealism clearly shines through,
she is in fact a shrewd and pragmatic political activist who understands that
positions mean very little if you can</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t bring them into
being through the political process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>She is part of a growing new breed
of potential leaders who understand that principles and politics are inexorably
linked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When asked during a recent
interview how she thought the causes she fights for (healthcare, education, women</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s
rights) could best be advanced in today</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s political climate,
her answer was short, to the point, and absolutely correct.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Win elections</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">,
she said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that is something
Democrats have either forgotten or ignored until the last two years.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Mermell says she was raised in a
very small town in rural Pennsylvania, where her grandmother instilled in her
values she has not forgotten.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She has
participated in government at the local level as a town meeting member and the
state level where she worked with groups such as the Massachusetts Women</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s
Political Caucus and the Alliance for Business Leadership.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>And unlike many current leaders at
the highest levels of Washington, Mermell understands that the major political
and social issues of the day do not individually exist in a vacuum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She notes they are tied together, and have to
be addressed as part of an overall plan<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>When asked how a progressive
Democrat from Brookline would relate to voters in the Attleboro area, Mermell said
she believes people will see in her the same basic values they hold dear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When queried on the challenges of running for
Congress in the middle of a pandemic, she chuckled and noted </span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">“</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ve
never run for Congress without a global pandemic, so I guess I don</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">’</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t
have much to base it on.</span><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Arial;">”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>That alone got me to like her.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and
longtime local official.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He can be
emailed at </span></i><span class="Hyperlink0"><i>billsinsidelook@gmail.com</i></span><i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> and followed on Twitter at
@Billinsidelook.</span></i><o:p></o:p></div>
<br />An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-4627676859781931072020-07-20T10:51:00.002-04:002020-07-20T10:51:42.489-04:00Norton Needs To Fix The Water "System"<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>It's The System, Not Just The Water</b></span></div>
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<b>by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle</b><br />And the sad saga of the Norton Water/Sewer Commission continues.</div>
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Last week that elected board (more on that later) voted to remove the water dispensing machine outside town hall providing for residents who have had ugly, undrinkable, unusable brown town water in their homes for years. The machine had been disabled since March, when commissioners decided that unlike private machines, it was not safe to operate given the coronavirus pandemic.</div>
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In addition, commissioners cited their “fiscal responsibility” to the townspeople in getting rid of the dispenser. They said the cost could no longer be justified since the new filtration plant has “mostly eliminated” the brown water issue.</div>
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There are a few glaring problems with those statements.</div>
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First, brown water is still an ongoing issue in a good number of homes. Those people still have to pay to bring in clean water, even while still paying their water bills for the town water ruining their clothes and appliances. They have been spending extra on water for a while, so the commission’s spending complaints ring hollow.</div>
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Second and most amazing is that any of the water/sewer commissioners has the gall to use the term “fiscal responsibility” when discussing their board, given their failure to properly manage the major ongoing piping project that has now doubled in cost from the original amount of the contractor’s bid.</div>
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Just last month the board came back to taxpayers for another million dollars on this out-of-control boondoggle. It is at least the third time they have had to go to town meeting for more money. They cited “unforeseen issues” such as extra rock and ledge, claiming the project could not be finished without additional funding.</div>
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Coming back once is understandable. Twice is more than questionable. Three times is both inexcusable and unforgivable. It represents a lack of planning, a lack of preparation, and gross mismanagement. What it most definitely does not represent is “fiscal responsibility”.</div>
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But you know what? At this point, Norton citizens have to stop blaming the water department and the commissioners. Instead, they should put the blame where it truly belongs — on themselves.</div>
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At least three times in the last few decades voters have had the opportunity to eliminate the elected water/sewer board. Each time they declined, keeping it the ineffective, obsolete, ridiculous entity it is. Norton voters — you have had your chances.</div>
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But you kept it an elected board, which has not worked out. In fact, you currently only have two members on the three-member board. Why?</div>
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Because in last month’s election, no one ran for the open seat. Not a soul.</div>
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Despite all the trouble, complaints, issues and problems — absolutely no one stepped up to seek the office. And usually, when there is a candidate, that person is unopposed.</div>
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Having two or three well intentioned part-time volunteer officials completely in charge of a multi-million dollar water/sewer system is the height of foolishness. Those departments should come under the auspices of the professional town manager with centralized authority placed in a department of public works.</div>
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When Norton votes on a new town charter this April, they should remember changes like this are essential. Sort of like access to clean water.</div>
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<i><span style="font-size: inherit;">Bill Gouveia is a Sun Chronicle columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at</span><span style="font-size: inherit;"> </span><a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; font-size: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a><span style="font-size: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-size: inherit;">and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</span></i></div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-84094497576824144712020-07-14T17:35:00.003-04:002020-07-14T17:35:46.413-04:00We Have To Do This Together<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Young And Old, We Need Each Other Now</span></b></div>
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<i>by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle July 13, 2020</i><br />The coronavirus has inspired a lot of conversations about making important and difficult changes in our behavior and lifestyles — at least temporarily.</div>
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But people over 60 like me are finding they aren’t always in charge of their own situation. We are not always able to exercise a reasonable amount of control over our own risk of contracting and dying from this deadly and highly contagious disease. And that can at times be almost paralyzing in the fear it causes.</div>
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We can stay out of restaurants, not go to bars, avoid large crowds and family gatherings, and wear masks whenever we do have to go out — just like everyone is being asked to do.</div>
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But some of us still have to work. We still have to go to the grocery store. We can’t hermetically seal ourselves in a mayonnaise jar and hide under the porch for the next year or two (nothing like an old Johnny Carson reference to show your age).</div>
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So unless the “youngsters” do all those things too, this disease can still kill us. Young people are far less likely to actually get sick, but still prime candidates to carry the virus back to those who are more highly susceptible. The fact you may be more resistant is great, but does not decrease the risk to your parents, grandparents, extended family and older acquaintances.</div>
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The burden for the health of older Americans is still squarely on their own shoulders. They have to stay at home, wear face coverings, and do all the things our health experts tell us (even when our president flaunts and regularly ignores them). That’s on us. That’s our responsibility.</div>
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But it is also yours, younger generation. And we need your help.</div>
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It’s horribly unfair that schools and colleges have had to close. Many young people have been cheated out of what should be some of the best and most meaningful times of their lives. You should be free to live life to the fullest, go out and have a good time, enjoy your families and friends. There’s nothing wrong with the fact you’d like to go out to a bar and socialize, or play some hoop with a bunch of friends.</div>
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But please avoid all those things for a while longer. We hate to ask, but it affects us greatly. We’d like to live as long as possible, and to a significant degree that now depends on you helping to contain COVID-19.</div>
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Some believe this disease is part of “natural selection,” or “thinning the herd”. Perhaps we are supposed to die off to balance the scales of nature that were so badly disrupted by this virus.</div>
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We know you have sacrificed heavily and struggled to provide for your families during this difficult time. We understand what you have had to endure. We were young once, and frankly we think what you are going through really sucks.</div>
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But we still have things to contribute. We want to see our grandkids grow up. And to do that, we desperately need your help. We are not ready to pack it in.</div>
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Thank you for your sacrifices. When we can — the next round is on us.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-30449444363205778792020-06-29T10:25:00.001-04:002020-06-29T10:25:37.524-04:00Local Budgets Will Also Be Victims Of COVID-19<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>COVID Budget Burden Trickling Down to Local Area</b></span><b>by Bill Gouveia</b><br /><i>This column was published in the Sun Chronicle on Monday, June 29, 2020)</i><br /><br />This is a difficult and dangerous time for local cities and towns, as well as the nation. Voters must pay careful attention to what’s happening, because it is going to affect their pocketbooks in the short-term and the security of their children and grandchildren in the long run.</div>
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We are all aware of the pandemic and its threat to our health, though some take it more seriously than others. But the less obvious danger is to our communities, our local services, our educational and public safety systems, and maintaining a quality of life considered acceptable.</div>
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You hear a lot about the national debt and the exploding deficit we are running these days in Washington. Local communities are not allowed to deficit spend like the federal government. But many are draining their already low reserve funds to sustain a level of services and funding they may not be able to support going forward. Without new funding or a shifting of responsibilities, local communities are going to face either huge tax increases or a dismantling of basic services.</div>
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Most city councils or town meetings will dip deep into their reserve funds just to remain afloat. Local government and budgets have not been high on people’s priority lists given the overwhelming economic and health disasters brought on by COVID-19 and the nation’s scattered and often unfocused response. It’s hard to think about your town’s budget when you are out of work and choosing between buying groceries and paying the mortgage or rent.</div>
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But city and town governments still have to function whether we pay close attention or not. And while drastic measures and spending are not questioned under current conditions, months from now — when tax bills start increasing and services decreasing — everyone will be looking with a much sharper eye.</div>
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The new rules will be different. Schools and public safety departments have to change from the way they have done things. The days of placing 30 kids in a classroom are over, but we haven’t added more classrooms or more teachers. If schools and childcare businesses can’t open, families with two working parents have a serious problem. Local costs of virtually everything are going to soar, while at the same time local revenues from things like meal taxes, excise taxes, and state aid are plummeting.</div>
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Municipalities are going to have to pay a lot more money just to provide the same services they were operating pre-pandemic. And it seems unlikely much extra money will be coming from the state or federal government. So that leaves one basic source of additional revenue: Local taxes. From all of us.</div>
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Plainville is already having an override election. They will not be the only community to do that in the next year or so. Cities and towns are going to bear the brunt of this huge financial disaster, and unlike their elected federal counterparts — they have to present a balanced budget.</div>
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There are tough choices coming up. None of them are going to make everyone happy or satisfied. None of them are going to be easy or enjoyable.</div>
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Stay informed on the local level, folks. It’s going to get messy.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-37073615929397382442020-06-22T14:19:00.003-04:002020-06-22T14:19:25.081-04:00Strange Not To Be A Local Official<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>There's A Time For Everything...</b></span><br />
<b>by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle</b><br />
<br />When I got up Sunday morning and looked into my bathroom mirror, my face (a scary sight at any time, but particularly in the morning) looked just a little different. Maybe a tad more relaxed, though also a bit sad.<br />
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For the first time since 1974, the guy looking back was not an elected or appointed Norton town official. And honestly, it feels a bit strange.</div>
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Saturday evening my time as Norton Town Moderator ended. I chose not to seek reelection, opting to move on after four terms. That caps more than four decades as a town official in one capacity or another, from the town’s highest elected office to many other boards or committees less recognizable.</div>
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It’s been an interesting journey.</div>
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As an 18 year-old Norton High senior, I became the youngest town official in Norton history when Moderator Joseph Yelle appointed me to the finance committee. I served 15 years there over a couple of different shifts. At 23, I was elected to the board of selectmen, and would be elected twice more over the next two decades.</div>
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In 2008, I won a sticker campaign against an incumbent to become moderator, where I would stay for 12 years.</div>
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In between I served on the local cable advisory committee, the extended school year study committee, a few town manager search committees, a bylaw review committee, a couple of charter review boards, and some others that I and everyone else have forgotten.</div>
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With the exception of a few years in the 80’s when selectmen made $50 a month, it’s all been as an unpaid volunteer.</div>
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To serve in those type of capacities in one municipality for that long is unusual for several reasons.</div>
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People don’t stay in one town as much as they did “back in the day.” Volunteering in town government is a difficult pastime. Maintaining the necessary intensity and desire is not easy — and I can attest that losing an election is not a pleasant experience either.</div>
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I’d like people to know it is worth the effort. Whether it makes you popular or not, making a difference at the local level matters.</div>
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But public service has sort of been my thing. I can’t hammer a nail, coin and stamp collecting bore me, and my mom threw out my baseball cards years ago. So local politics and working to make my hometown better has been my hobby for a long time. Along with being a Patriots season ticket holder for 49 years, of course.</div>
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And writing. I’ve been a newspaper columnist for more than 20 years. In fact, this particular piece you are reading is coincidentally the 1,000th column I have written for this fine newspaper. I guess if nothing else, I’m consistent.</div>
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I’m not going anywhere. I’ll still be active in local affairs, and hope to keep filling this space for quite a while. But you’ll forgive an old guy if he just takes a moment to reflect on not officially being part of his town’s government for the first time in 46 years.</div>
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And now there are no sports to watch on TV. In life, as in politics — timing is everything.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and (now former) longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-12752283835116260452020-06-08T08:17:00.001-04:002020-06-08T08:17:46.204-04:00Our Country, Protests, Police - And Being An American<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;"><font size="4">What It Means To Be An American</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;"><font size="4">by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle<br /><br /></font>There have been times when some have questioned just what it means to be an American. This is one of those times.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">We are a country born of protest and rebellion. Those we call the “Founding Fathers” were termed “Treasonous Criminals” by the lawful government at the time. Had they strictly obeyed the laws and patiently waited for fairness, rather than taking a radical, dangerous and sometimes violent path — the America so many claim to love would not exist today.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">This country condoned the enslavement of an entire race for over 80 years. Then fought a vicious, bloody, civil war in large part to allegedly “free” that race.</p><div class="tncms-region-ads" id="tncms-region-ads-fixed-big-ad-top-asset" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px;"><div id="blox-ad-position-fixed-big-ad-top-asset1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto 40px;"></div></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_top" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">It took another 100 years before a sweeping civil rights movement would bring African-Americans even remotely close to the equality our Constitution promises. It was modeled after peaceful protest but marked by disobedience both civil and otherwise, and sometimes violence.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Today, things are much better. America has improved. We have re-written and passed many laws to protect the rights of minorities.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">But better is not good enough. In this regard there is no such thing as “more equal.” There is only equality or inequality. And inequality has been tolerated for far too long.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">In our area, the impact of systemic institutional racism may not seem as obvious — unless you are a victim of it. It may be more subtle than in Boston or Providence or other cities, but it is real nonetheless. That is a fact we can no longer deny.</p><div class="tncms-region-ads" id="tncms-region-ads-fixed-big-ad-middle-asset" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px;"><div id="blox-ad-position-fixed-big-ad-middle-asset1" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px auto 40px;"></div></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_middle" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px;"></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">I don’t pretend to understand it. I am a white man. I grew up and still live in Norton, a town the last census showed was over 90% white. In school in the 60’s and 70’s we had only a handful of black students. Even now, most people I know and interact with are white. That’s just a fact.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">So although I read about the problems of race, talk to people about it, and watch it on television — I have little actual experience. I consider myself to be an open and accepting person. But is that enough? Have I done anything to truly help the situation? Or have I contributed to the problem by just saying racism is wrong, but not actually doing things to expose and expunge it?</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Let us concentrate on that. Not on the looting, which is wrong and should stop. The truth is, that’s the easy part. And as Americans today, we are too often all about taking the easy path. The hard stuff? That’s somebody else’s problem.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">This is not just about policing. It is about how society views black people, especially young black men. It is about our attitudes, our obvious prejudices and the ones we don’t even know we are projecting. It is about confusing “better” with “equal,” and mistakenly believing “white privilege” is just another made-up term instead of the truth it so obviously is.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">And it is about the lack of positive action from people like me, who just simply haven’t had the experience. Who haven’t had their lives directly affected. Who need to better comprehend.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: 16px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">I think today, understanding that is to understand being an American.</p><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_instory_bottom" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px;"></div><div class="tncms-region hidden-print" id="tncms-region-article_bottom_content" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px;"></div><div class="inform-container inform-video-player-3" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px;"><div class="inform-embed" data-aspect-ratio="16:9" data-placement-id="inform-video-player-3" data-tracking-group="90566" data-width="100%" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div></div></div><div class="asset-tagline text-muted" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #777777; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; padding-top: 20px; position: relative;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #444444; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 24px;">Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</p></div><div class="share-container content-below" data-subscription-required-remove="" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin: 20px 0px;"><ul class="social-share-links hidden-print list-inline icon" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; text-align: initial;"><li class="social-share-link fb" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; opacity: 0.8; padding: 0px; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out 0s; width: auto;"><a class="tnt-share-link fb" data-new-window-height="300" data-new-window-width="500" data-tncms-track-dmp="Social Media Share" data-tncms-track-event="{"app":"editorial","metric":"social_share","uuid":"17cf7ff4-b51b-5483-bc80-a1809a34989f"}" data-toggle="new-window" data-track="{"network":"Facebook","socialAction":"post","url":"/opinion/columns/bill-gouveia-what-it-means-to-be-an-american/article_17cf7ff4-b51b-5483-bc80-a1809a34989f.html"}" href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesunchronicle.com%2Fopinion%2Fcolumns%2Fbill-gouveia-what-it-means-to-be-an-american%2Farticle_17cf7ff4-b51b-5483-bc80-a1809a34989f.html%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook%26utm_campaign%3Duser-share" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: transparent; 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<span style="font-size: large;">Doing A Commercial With Tiger and LeBron...</span>by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle<br /><br />So let me tell you all a story about how I recently wound up making an appearance in a Nike commercial on national TV with LeBron James, Tiger Woods, Serena Williams and a host of other famous sports stars during a golf match featuring Peyton Manning and Tom Brady.</div>
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Talk about a sentence I never thought I’d write.</div>
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The story starts on Feb. 5, 2017, at my house in Norton. The Patriots were playing the Falcons in Super Bowl LI in Houston.</div>
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My oldest son Aaron, best friend Rick, his son and my godson RJ, and my son’s friends Mike and Vicky were all watching the game.</div>
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The Patriots were losing 28-3 late in the third quarter, and we were not in a good mood.</div>
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But as the game got closer, we got very excited.</div>
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Toward the end, my son gave his cell phone to Vicky. He asked her to record as we paced, yelled, cajoled, exhorted, cursed and prepared for either the thrill of victory or the agony of defeat.</div>
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We all know how it turned out. Most of New England went a little nuts. We jumped around, hugged, screamed and generally celebrated like idiots. And Vicky got it all on video.</div>
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My son eventually posted it on his well-known “Daddyfiles.com” blog, and it got around the internet.</div>
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Fast forward to two weeks ago when a production company called Aaron to inquire about using a very short clip from that video for a promotional Nike project. They got releases from all of us, and we joked about how cool it was. We had no idea what would come of it.</div>
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Then came the golf match on Memorial Day weekend. I wasn’t watching, but suddenly my phone started ringing and beeping. Most of the calls and texts began with some variation of “Was that you I just saw on a Nike commercial?”</div>
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That led me to YouTube where I watched the commercial. It is a great one, with LeBron James doing the narration as well as starring. It is an inspiring video, particularly given the current state of the world. The theme is “We Are Never Too Far Down To Come Back.”</div>
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It shows athletes coming back from huge deficits, people overcoming the odds to eventually emerge from the shadows. It is a great symbol of a country hungry to move on from its current problems, looking for the bright spot in an otherwise desperate and dark period.</div>
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And there, 50 seconds into it, is an old fat guy celebrating a historic moment. Nobody special. Just a season-ticket holder of nearly five decades enjoying a moment with family and friends. Living an experience that is meaningful because he could share it.</div>
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Now my standard joke when someone brings up my fleeting appearance is, “Yeah, Tiger and LeBron and Serena have been after me for years to do a commercial with them. I finally got tired of listening to them beg and said I would do it.”</div>
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So that’s my story. Next time you celebrate something, check if anyone is recording you. You never know what might happen.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and obsessive Patriots fan with a face for radio. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-68113593098395881602020-04-20T09:43:00.000-04:002020-04-20T09:43:21.407-04:00Hey Democrats- Stop Whining And Step Up<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">
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<b>Note To Democrats - Stop Whining</b></div>
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<b>by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle</b><br />One thing that stands out as a major difference between Democrats and Republicans at the national level is this: Democrats whine more.</div>
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I believe that whining and pettiness cost the party the presidency in 2016, and there is an excellent chance it will pay that same price in 2020. Quite frankly, Republicans are more focused on the ultimate prize than their opponents. When Republicans assemble a firing squad, they face the target. When Democrats assemble one, they form a circle.</div>
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Nearly 90 percent of registered Republicans support President Trump. If you think that’s because they agree with his ideology (he literally does not have any) or his adherence to party principles (he is loyal only to those useful to him), you are kidding yourself.</div>
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After a very nasty and contentious primary in 2016, Republicans rallied around Trump for two distinct reasons. First, they saw a strong personality who had harnessed the public anger and could ride it into the White House. Second — and perhaps most importantly — they absolutely could not stomach the thought of Hillary Clinton as president.</div>
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Republicans overwhelmingly support Trump because he wins and gives them control of the system. Many know and understand he is a pompous, arrogant, narcissistic egomaniac. But he is THEIR pompous, arrogant, narcissistic egomaniac. And they would rather be in control of the system with him, than on the outside looking in without him.</div>
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Democrats have been unwilling or unable to reach that realization.</div>
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You could see that in 2016 when Bernie Sanders supporters stayed home and sulked rather than support the person they thought “cheated” their candidate. They took to what they saw as the moral high ground, refusing to support an imperfect candidate who did not embody many positions they felt were important. In essence — they took their ball and stayed home, whining about the unfairness of it all.</div>
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And the reward for their efforts (or lack of same) was — Donald Trump. Congratulations, folks. You must be so proud of what you have accomplished.</div>
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If Democrats nationally truly want to win rather than whine, they need to take a page from the Republican playbook. They have to accept the candidate their party has chosen, forgive him where he differs from themselves, and focus on the unacceptable and unforgivable alternative: Four more years of Donald Trump, who would then be unrestrained by the need to seek re-election.</div>
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Those Democrats disappointed Joe Biden will be the Democratic nominee have to suck it up and get involved if they care about their country and their party. To those folks, I say — think of it this way:</div>
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If Joe Biden is three times worse than whoever you wanted to be the nominee — he’s still 100 times better for your national objectives than Donald Trump. Now go back and read that last sentence again.</div>
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It’s okay to not be totally enamored with your nominee. I believe many Republicans think Trump is a nut. But they need him to accomplish their goals. They get past their individual preferences, and advance their cause with the tools they are given.</div>
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If Democrats are smart, they will quit whining and do the same.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-46200062285434996652020-03-30T11:58:00.000-04:002020-03-30T11:58:06.117-04:00There Is Nothing Worse Than The Problem, Mr. President<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Cure Is Not Worse Than The Problem</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><b>by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle</b><br /><br /><i style="font-size: 16px;">“We can’t have the cure be worse</i></span> <em style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px;">than the problem</em><em style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px;">.</em><em style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px;">”</em></div>
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— President Donald Trump, March 22</div>
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Maybe President Trump doesn’t understand, but the “problem” is people are dying. The numbers are rapidly rising. In Italy, people over 60 are sometimes denied ventilators because there aren’t enough and they are being “prioritized.” Is the “cure” worse than that, Mr. President?</div>
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I’m concerned about the economy, my job and my employees. I’m terrified at the thought of not being able to pay my bills. I hate not going out, find social distancing difficult, and can barely stand not being able to hug my grandchildren.</div>
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But I like being alive. I want my spouse, my family, my coworkers and my friends to be alive also. And I do not want to seriously and knowingly be a party to spreading a new disease that can kill people — all for purely economic reasons. I don’t want to intentionally increase the chance of people dying in order to protect my 401K.</div>
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In this country we ask people to go to war, risk their lives, leave their families and suffer severe hardships. They do it, and thank goodness they are willing to make those sacrifices for us. Same with our courageous doctors, nurses and health workers. But the rest of us can’t survive what we hope and pray will be a relatively short-term period of severe sacrifice to save the lives of Americans and others across the world?</div>
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There is no doubt what is going on can and will have severe economic impact which will affect millions of us in a negative way. No one should make light of that.</div>
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But the mere suggestion that what is being done to keep people alive is even remotely “worse than the problem” is idiotic. A statement made out of immense selfishness, immaturity, a lack of empathy and common sense and failure to understand the responsibilities of leadership.</div>
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We can recover from economic devastation. America has shown before it can handle terrible financial woes, although at great cost to many. It is heartbreaking to watch everything you have worked so hard for be threatened in this manner.</div>
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But it is far, far worse to watch your parents die while waiting for a respirator. It is worse to infect thousands around you without even knowing it, and having that contact lead to more deaths. Far worse to further risk the lives of healthcare professionals</div>
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The economic impact pales in comparison to the cost of human lives. Listen to the medical experts. Ignore the selfish and stupid leaders who don’t listen to them. And rally around leaders who are doing the right thing.</div>
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Stay at home when ordered. Deal with a toilet paper shortage. Survive the extreme anxiety that comes with having your financial future in jeopardy.</div>
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The cure isn’t worse, President Trump. You — and people who can’t stomach the inconvenience of sacrifice — are what is worse. Your rhetoric and recklessness are damaging our country and putting lives at risk. This isn’t politics, this is people’s very lives. Can’t you understand that?</div>
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Be more worried about doing your job than running for it. Please.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-42660785934016346822020-03-17T12:28:00.001-04:002020-03-17T12:28:06.577-04:00Coronavirus Hit Local Government Also<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Coronavirus And Local Government</span></div>
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by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle<br /><br />As the effects of the coronavirus continue to be felt across the world, it’s time to start thinking how it will affect our lives here in the Sun Chronicle area.</div>
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I’m not talking about the testing aspect, or the ability to get supplies, or even the economic impact on local businesses and families — as serious as those things may be.</div>
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For just a minute, I’d like to focus on an under-appreciated yet very dangerous aspect of the coronavirus pandemic: The effects it can have on local government, the officials who serve in and work for it, and the people who participate in it.</div>
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We all have to be cognizant of the danger to first responders as this contagious virus works its way around the planet. Public safety personnel are the people who come when we call, who often put their lives on the line for the rest of us. It’s one thing to ask them to battle what they can see, but now more than ever they also have to beware of things they can’t.</div>
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But the danger doesn’t stop with them, it gets spread to the people working back in the stations. The dispatchers, the mechanics, the clerks and all the other support staff who allow the police and firefighters and emergency personnel to do their job. They become exposed, and they bring that danger back home to their own families and friends.</div>
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In fact, the people who work in your city and town halls face tremendous exposure just for doing their jobs. They interact with a wide swath of the public, and as a result can become infected.</div>
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For just a second, think of those who chair or serve on local boards and committees.</div>
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They hold public hearings on many matters, interacting with crowds and gathering facts and opinions. Sitting in meeting rooms where others have been, at the same tables and chairs. Exchanging papers and exhibits and microphones.</div>
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And for those communities with open town meetings — how will those be handled in light of the coronavirus pandemic? If you think about it, that’s quite an opportunity for the virus to spread.</div>
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You gather a few hundred people (depending on a lot of conditions) in a school gymnasium or auditorium, in relatively close quarters. You have many of them sharing microphones and standing in line to get to them. You have people checking in attendees as they enter. You have tellers tallying ballots, or mingling among the people as they count those who stand to vote.</div>
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Already there has been legislation drafted to extend the time frame during which town meetings can legally be held, in an attempt to perhaps outwait the virus or let mitigation and containment efforts progress. Not to exaggerate the threat, but how much risk is acceptable for ordinary citizens to assume in order to participate in their local government?</div>
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Municipal government may rate fairly low on the priority list of things the average citizen worries about given the pandemic today. But let’s remember those governments are made up of people who work to represent us all. They are our friends, our neighbors our family.</div>
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They are us.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-56716364969791150042020-02-24T19:07:00.001-05:002020-02-24T19:07:27.824-05:00Sharing My Stories With My Grandkids<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Stories Help Us Share A Part Of Ourselves</b></span></div>
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<b><i>by Bill Gouveia</i></b></div>
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<i>(This column appeared in the Sun Chronicle on Monday, February 24, 2020.)</i></div>
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So let me tell you a story about — well, stories.</div>
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About a decade ago, I was trying to put my first grandchild (did I mention his name is William?) to bed during a weekend trip to New Hampshire.</div>
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My wife had run out to the store, and Will was having trouble getting to sleep. So primarily out of desperation, I asked him if he wanted me to tell him a story.</div>
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He happily agreed, and at that point it occurred to me that I now needed an actual story to tell. The first one that popped into my mind was “The Three Little Pigs.”</div>
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A few minutes in, I realized I didn’t remember a lot of it. But with a rapt audience hanging on every word, I couldn’t stop. So I made it up as I went along.</div>
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That’s why in my version, the first little pig had a house made of grass, and the second a house of newspapers. When my wife returned and listened, her muffled laughter was quite a distraction.</div>
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But a few weeks later, Will asked for the story again. When the details differed somewhat, he would correct me. That taught me something important.</div>
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A story told can be more lasting and memorable than a story read.</div>
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Since then I have told stories to all my five grandkids. Some they quickly forgot, others they ask for time and time again. Granted, the now 11-year-old eldest is pretty much done with them. But most of the others still request some of their favorites.</div>
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Granddaughters Avery and Addison, along with grandson Sam, are particularly taken with the tale of “Harold The Left-Handed Dog Catcher.”</div>
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This is a story I made up one night when one of them insisted on a “new” saga. For those who missed it, this involves a man named Harold who loved dogs and worked for a small town that couldn’t afford a good truck. So he drove one with no door on the driver’s side and no brakes, having to learn to rescue dogs with his left hand and put them safely in the truck as he drove by.</div>
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Grandson Tommy, the youngest, is obsessed with the story of “Grandpa’s Giant Shoe.”</div>
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I made that one up when his impatient brother Sam had to spend some time with me in the car. That centered — surprisingly enough — around a giant shoe created by Grandpa’s Fairy Shoe Godmother when I was just a lad.</div>
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Other stories are “The Yellow Tomato,” “Stinky The Garbage Truck,” and “Bosco Bisquik” — the latter being the adventures of a talking pancake.</div>
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The look on their adorable faces when asking me to relate one of them is worth its weight in gold.</div>
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My wife says I should write them down, but to me that defeats the purpose.</div>
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They remember these stories better than I do.</div>
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And it is my fervent hope they will continue to remember them, and maybe tell them someday to their kids and grandkids.</div>
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The trick to connecting with kids is to share something of yourself with them.</div>
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I’m happy to have discovered that, even if it involves a left-handed dog catcher.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-62067069189630383512019-12-23T09:28:00.003-05:002019-12-23T09:29:27.401-05:00Mayor's Removal Action Is Overreaction - Again<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>MAYOR'S ACTION ILL-ADVISED IN ATTLEBORO</u></b></span><b>by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle</b><br />
“Board and commission members are appointed by the mayor to help support the mayor’s agenda.” – Attleboro Mayor Paul Heroux.</div>
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If you agree with that statement, you would see nothing wrong with Mayor Heroux’s decision to remove veteran traffic study commission Chairperson Joe Caponigro, despite reappointing him to a three-year term just nine months ago.</div>
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But if you believe the main responsibility of appointed city officials is to serve the citizens first by doing their particular job honestly and openly, then you might find Heroux’s approach a bit self-centered and political. Maybe it’s just a matter of perspective.</div>
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Heroux recently demanded Caponigro resign or be removed. Caponigro can contest that removal via a hearing before the city council, but the sole judge is the mayor. So in effect, Heroux is firing the official who has served for more than a decade.</div>
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The mayor won’t specifically cite reasons other than referring to “ideological differences” and a failure to support his agenda. When pressed, Heroux said he had no obligation to reveal the details.</div>
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This raises questions. Are appointed city officials simply tools designed to implement and support their leader’s policies and plans? Or should they respectfully voice to the people their honestly held views regardless of the mayor’s agenda?</div>
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No one denies Mayor Heroux has the legal right to remove an official for virtually any reason. But is that the right way to run a city government?</div>
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Heroux says he is merely carrying out the expressed will of the voters. He noted he was re-elected in what this columnist called a mandate. He says that means officials should be working on advancing his goals and promoting his plans for the city. He argues those who differ should back him or resign and run for office.</div>
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He likens it to the administration of a president or a governor. He says President Trump or Governor Baker would never put up with officials acting in such a manner.</div>
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But Mayor Heroux is not president or governor. Local government is not like running a country or state. The role of citizen volunteers at the local level is largely what makes local government so much more efficient and representative than the giant behemoths in Washington and Boston.</div>
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Removing someone from office is far different than appointing or reappointing them. Removal is a punitive action that should only be taken for cause. It should not be a political tool at the local level, used to kick out unpaid volunteers because they aren’t “loyal” enough to the agenda of those in power.</div>
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It is one thing to appoint someone who will help advance your cause. It is yet another to remove someone mid-term just because you believe they have not demonstrated sufficient loyalty to your agenda.</div>
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Good volunteer public servants are hard enough to find without demanding they put loyalty to the administration over loyalty to their neighbors and their city.</div>
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This action by the mayor is ill-advised. Rather than harping on “my administration” and “my agenda,” he would be wise to remember that for Attleboro citizens, this is “our government” and “my city.”</div>
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And that is more important than any administration’s agenda.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-16742358183140717992019-10-29T13:05:00.000-04:002019-10-29T13:05:59.627-04:00Town Meeting Passes Rules Most Did Not See<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Know What You Are Voting on...</span></div>
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by Bill Gouveia</div>
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<i>(This column appeared in the Sun Chronicle on Monday, October 28, 2019)</i></div>
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<br />Even longtime defenders of the venerable town meeting system of government have to be shaking their collective heads after what happen at the Norton Town Meeting last week. In fact, had I not been there (I’m the town moderator — full disclosure) I might not have believed it myself.</div>
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The cemetery commissioners wanted town meeting to accept a newly-compiled list of cemetery regulations. The motion called on the meeting to accept the rules “as filed with the town clerk’s office.” Town counsel said this was acceptable.</div>
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There were just a couple of problems. The rules had apparently been filed with the clerk’s office hours just hours before the town meeting, thus making it nearly impossible for most voters to review them. Additionally, neither the commissioners nor anyone else had enough copies of the regulations to give people attending the meeting. In essence, voters were being asked to accept rules 95% of them had never seen.</div>
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And yet despite that, by a vote of 70-67, those in attendance did exactly that. They accepted rules they had not seen and that had not been detailed. Kind of reminded me of the old saying about “you can get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich.”</div>
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Now, this was not exactly high-level stuff. It was about adopting a list of cemetery rules. Maybe people just trusted officials who told them the rules were just “standard stuff taken from other towns.” It’s not like it was changing a zoning bylaw or voting to build a new school.</div>
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But think about it. Norton’s legislative governing body voted to formally adopt a list of rules they never saw and knew nothing about. That’s pretty amazing.</div>
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Imagine what would happen in a town like North Attleboro, which recently changed from a town meeting to a town council format, if this had happened there. Suppose a proposal came before the council to adopt a new list of cemetery rules. The councilors were told there was no actual copy of the rules available for them to review, but not to worry — a copy was filed with the town clerk’s office hours earlier, and they can view them later.</div>
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And the councilors said sure — and went ahead and voted them sight unseen. Can you imagine the public response that would generate? The charges of failing to do their duty, or even read the regulations before adopting them?</div>
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Well, that is what Norton’s town meeting did Monday night.</div>
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To be sure, folks at that meeting had the absolute right to do what they did. It is perfectly legal. They violated no rules. Town meeting is free to do as it pleases, whether it makes sense or not.</div>
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But this situation clearly highlights one of the obvious flaws in using a town meeting form of legislative government in a municipality the size of Norton.</div>
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This time it was just a list of cemetery rules. Who knows what might get through without explanation next time? Is it really too much to insist legislators — even volunteer “citizen legislators” — actually look at what they are voting on?</div>
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If local governments start voting on things without reading them, pretty soon we’ll have to start calling them “Congress.”</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a longtime columnist and local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-10916965803983604882019-10-21T14:16:00.001-04:002019-10-21T14:16:11.067-04:00Why The Debate Is Worth The Effort - Sometimes<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Why The Debate Is Worth The Effort</u></b></span></div>
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<b>by Bill Gouveia </b></div>
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<i>This column appeared in the Sun Chronicle on Monday, October 21, 2019</i></div>
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“Why do you talk to and argue with that person? It’s a waste of time, they’re never going to understand or change.”</div>
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If you have ever posted an opinion on social media, or gotten involved in a conversation concerning government and politics on any level, or perhaps occasionally penned a newspaper column — then you have probably been asked this question before. I know I have, and have probably been the subject of it also.</div>
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To be sure, there is some merit in ignoring certain folks. In today’s world where bipartisanship and compromise are seen as weaknesses instead of strengths, it can be extremely frustrating to try and have a conversation about goings on at the local, state or national level without being attacked by those who believe their opinion supersedes the facts. Or those refusing to believe anything that does not reaffirm their own beliefs.</div>
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As an opinion columnist, you get used to having your words twisted and misrepresented by certain letter-writers promoting their own political agendas, as happened this past week after I wrote a piece criticizing the president. It’s an indication of how unimportant truth and accuracy is to some.</div>
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But despite this, I am not one who subscribes to the “just ignore them” theory of political discourse. It certainly is easier to do that, saves a great deal of time, and probably reduces your blood pressure by more than a few points.</div>
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But when we stop talking to those with opinions opposite our own, we make this country’s problems worse rather than better. Doing so surrenders the hard-earned right to engage in serious debate, which is the main principle upon which this democratic nation was founded.</div>
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That does not mean you waste valuable time engaging with “professional againsters” who merely want to get you to expend energy arguing for purposes of distraction. Debating “Facebook trolls” or similar types is a waste of time (see: Russian bots, etc.).</div>
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I still see great value in debating those I know will never agree with me or change their minds. Truth is, some of these people are my friends. I care about them and what they think, even though I totally disagree. They frustrate me, as I no doubt frustrate them, and I sometimes wonder how they can possibly defend taking the positions they take and spouting the stuff they do.</div>
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But if I block them, or ignore them, or unfriend them — what have I accomplished other than making my life a bit simpler? How have I helped advance the public discourse?</div>
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Those who disagree with this line of thinking (including many of my family and close friends) are adamant in their opinion that responding to obviously provocative and wrong opinions merely gives credence to both the arguments and the makers. I understand this.</div>
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But intelligent, honest debate is a casualty of our current political wars. It won’t come back if we all just stop talking.</div>
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So I keep responding to and debating even those I know are sometimes just baiting me. But perhaps I might convince others observing the discussion. Or maybe one of us will convince the other.</div>
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But don’t hold your breath on that last one.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a longtime columnist and local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-12746841695982249672019-10-14T10:11:00.001-04:002019-10-14T10:11:13.625-04:00Trump Deserves Impeachment<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">AN INSIDE LOOK</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">By Bill Gouveia</span></div>
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<i>This column appeared in the Sun Chronicle on Monday, October 14, 2019</i></div>
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Ukrainian President Zelenskyy: “We are ready to continue to cooperate for the next steps specifically we are almost ready to buy more Javelins from the United States for defense purposes.”</div>
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President Trump: “I would like you to do us a favor though because our country has been through a lot and Ukraine knows a lot about it.”</div>
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That discussion is directly from the transcript of a call between President Trump and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on July 25, 2019 and released by the White House. A transcript Trump calls “word for word,” a call he says was “perfect.”</div>
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Trump goes on to ask Zeleskyy as a “favor” to conduct an investigation into his top Democratic presidential opponent Joe Biden, mentioning him by name and stating “…whatever you can do with the Attorney General would be great.”</div>
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To review, the president of the United States flat-out asked a foreign nation to investigate his political opponent as a favor immediately after that nation told him they wanted to buy more weapons from the US. He asked the leader of that nation to enlist the help of the top US law enforcement official in doing so. All shortly after Trump had unexpectedly cut off aid to this same country, and then under pressure restored it.</div>
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As a result of this behavior, and a lot more, the president is on the verge of being impeached by the House of Representatives.</div>
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Reasonable people can disagree on whether or not this particular event with Ukraine rises to the level where impeachment is proper. But only the most partisan of political hacks can argue with a straight face that what Trump did was not wrong and did not compromise the integrity of both the presidency and the nation.</div>
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If you still support the president and his policies after this, that’s one thing. If you believe he is merely a victim and did nothing wrong – you are either in denial and woefully uninformed, or just dishonest.</div>
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And if you are employing the “but look at what they did over there” defense where you point at others because you can’t defend the president’s behavior — like Trump himself is doing — then you need to grow up. The president of the Unites States has to be responsible for his or her own actions.</div>
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Since releasing the transcript, Trump has flat-out lied about what it says. He has changed his story on why he said it several times. He has added China to the mix, claiming they should also investigate Biden.</div>
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I have been an opponent of impeaching of Trump. He will never be convicted in the senate, and it always seemed a useless exercise. I wanted to wait for the election.</div>
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But this has become a bridge too far. If you are willing to accept his disgusting actions and lies and self-serving ways for short-term economic gain — then you simply don’t care about the integrity of the nation any more than he does.</div>
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Donald Trump is a dishonest liar and unfit to be president of the United States. Whether he is removed or not, he deserves impeachment. Our nation needs to stand up to his treachery.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-56315268498299549552019-10-07T09:29:00.002-04:002019-10-07T09:29:26.108-04:00Better Buildings in Norton Require Better Planning<br />
<div class="MsoTitle" style="text-align: left;">
<b><i>This column appeared in the Sun Chronicle on Monday, October 7. 2019</i></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoTitle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">AN INSIDE LOOK<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoSubtitle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">By Bill Gouveia</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>If
you have ever stepped foot in what passes for the Senior Citizen Center or the
Town Hall in Norton, you probably understand both buildings are woefully
inadequate for just about any use.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The
senior center is an old one-room schoolhouse built in the 19<sup>th</sup>
century.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The town hall is an old
gymnasium converted into alleged office space 40 years ago obtained via a
donation and a grant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The senior center
has no parking, and officials in the town hall don’t even have private spaces
to meet with citizens to discuss their tax bills or other private matters.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The
need to replace both is undeniable, though not cheap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Town officials have recognized this for some
time, but only recently have attempts to actually take firm action towards
building new ones become serious.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>But
as serious and sincere as those efforts have been – they have been equally flawed
and ineffective.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The
last plan brought before Town Meeting was to construct both buildings on a
piece of badly contaminated land abandoned by its bankrupt owner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The planning leading up to Town Meeting was
bungled so badly that the building committee pulled support for its own article
just days before the voters overwhelmingly defeated it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Now
another plan is being advanced, seeking to purchase a small plot of land next
to the existing town hall for an estimated $1 million, constructing a new town
hall, and simultaneously building a new senior center on town-owned land behind
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ultimate cost has yet to be
determined, but funds for the land purchase and design will be sought soon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Norton
voters are not known for their willingness to spend large amounts of
money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have never approved a
general override, and only one debt exclusion since the inception of Prop
2-1/2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there is some support for
replacing these two totally inadequate buildings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Except
for one big obstacle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People want their
drinking water fixed first.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It
could be said that any plans to spend large sums of money in Norton are
“underwater” right now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Significant
segments of the community suffer from really ugly, brown water.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have had it for a long time, it has not
gotten better, ruined their clothes and appliances, made them fear for their
health, and generally ticked them off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>They
don’t want to hear that a long-delayed filtration plant currently nearing
completion “should” solve the problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They don’t care that the water department is funded through an
enterprise account, not property tax monies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They want clean water, and they want it now – before committing to other
major projects.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It’s
hard to blame them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>But
other needs do still have to be addressed, and it is the duty of the citizenry to
address them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it is the duty of town
officials to present logical, common sense, reasonable solutions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Norton
can fix its water, the senior center, the town hall, and other challenges.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But town officials have to come together with
a united, logical, practical plan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Political bickering needs to stop, and the factions dividing Norton have
to start concentrating on common goals.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The
next proposal to Town Meeting needs to be much better than the last.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="line-height: 200%; text-align: justify; text-indent: .5in;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and longtime
local official.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He can be emailed at <span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</span></a></span></span>
and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-23978052367035070512019-09-02T10:27:00.002-04:002019-09-02T10:27:27.740-04:00This Year At Gillette A Bit Different<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Going to the Patriots a bit different</b></span></div>
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<b>by Bill Gouveia </b></div>
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Sunday night will find me once again at Gillette Stadium as I begin my 48th season as a New England Patriot season ticket holder. There will be a banner unveiling, a celebration of another championship, and a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.</div>
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But despite the celebration and excitement, this season opener won’t be the same for this fan — and it has nothing to do with what’s happening on the field.</div>
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For the first time in probably three decades, my best friend Rick won’t be sitting next to me. He determined this off-season that the last 40 years had seen enough treks to Foxboro, and decided to go out on a high note following another championship. He traded his ticket for the comfort of watching the games from home.</div>
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I’ll be at the Steelers game with both my sons, which is totally awesome. But there will be a difference. And with that difference comes the realization that my own time for attending these games is not endless, despite me insisting it is.</div>
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Rick and I had a routine, without even realizing we had a routine. We’ve been friends since the first grade. My kids grew up calling him “Uncle Rick,” his son is my godson, and I love his daughters dearly. Suffice to say, we know how to bust each other pretty well.</div>
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I would always tease him and ask if he brought his plastic lanyard to hold his ticket, which he forgot once and we never let him live it down. Then we’d compare how we dressed for the game, and what our wives had told us we should wear for the weather.</div>
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He’d make me check the tickets five times before we left, because I once brought the wrong ones. We’d then make the same jokes about traffic to the game, getting to our parking spot, and the long walk to the stadium. My sons would just shake their heads.</div>
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During the games we had our own language, formed from years of watching the worst franchise in football become the best.</div>
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When the Patriots got a first down deep in the opponent’s territory, we would turn to each other and hold up three fingers, joking that it would only lead to a field goal.</div>
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And our inside jokes about the great people sitting around us over the years were communicated with simple gestures that we didn’t have to explain, and laughed at every time.</div>
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I’m going to be with at least one of my sons for each contest going forward, and probably a few of my grandchildren too — a truly special treat. I started going to games with my grandfather, before I went with Rick.</div>
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Rick’s not gone — he’s in better shape than I am (that’s not saying much), and we’ll still see each other.</div>
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But unless I convince him to attend a game or two along the way, our game-day traditions have come to an end.</div>
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I’m going to try and at least make the 50 year mark. Rick says he’ll congratulate me when I do — from the warmth and comfort of his couch.</div>
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I’m psyched for Sunday. But it will be a different experience.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and diehard Patriots fan. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-91800662340666929592019-08-12T14:35:00.002-04:002019-08-12T14:35:37.312-04:00Message To Foxboro Board: Let It Go<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Foxboro Needs To Move Ahead </span></div>
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by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle</div>
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If I could offer some unsolicited advice to the Foxboro Board of Selectmen, and the good people of that fine community, I would respectfully suggest they listen to the wise words Princess Elsa so eloquently spoke in the movie my grandkids saw at least 100 times — Frozen. “Let It Go.”</div>
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That’s what selectmen should do when they consider — for the umpteenth time — what to do with the old Foxboro fire station property in the center of town. At their meeting on Aug. 20, the board should issue a “municipal conversion permit” to King Builders that will end the long, sad saga of this property and allow the important and necessary modernization and revitalization of downtown Foxboro to proceed.</div>
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After all, it’s not like this is a sudden or impulsive move. This has been a painfully slow and tedious process, which in many respects it needed to be. Project after project has been proposed, rejected or ignored. This issue has been studied more often than most high school textbooks (they still DO use textbooks in high school, right?).</div>
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It is an important piece of property, and what happens with it will set the tone for how Foxboro will grow — not only in this area but throughout the community. It will tell both developers and the townspeople if Foxboro is really serious about making the downtown area better, or if they are just paying the topic lip service once again.</div>
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Without rehashing the long history of proposals, this is now down to one. King Builders was chosen in May because selectmen believed they had the best proposal. It’s time to get this project moving. It is time to let the old fire station and funeral home go.</div>
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Instead of an unusable eyesore, Foxboro will benefit from having a new restaurant and a new 15-unit apartment building with on-site parking. Four additional units above the restaurant/pub would bring the total residential unit count to 19.</div>
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This project will result in additional tax revenue to the town, additional foot traffic to local businesses in the area, and turn a decaying site into a revenue-producing enterprise that might encourage others to invest in the area.</div>
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That doesn’t mean the developer has to be given carte blanche to do as it pleases. Reasonable limits and accommodations can be made that protect the interests of abutters, the taxpayers, and people traveling through the center. But those limits and accommodations should be designed to make the project better, not cripple it or cause it to fail.</div>
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Nothing will ever get built at that site unless it is economically feasible and advantageous. The last 20 years have proven that.</div>
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Only three selectmen will be making the decision on the permit, as two have recused themselves due to apparent conflicts of interest. It would be wise of those three to allow the permit, and then let this project proceed through the normal building process including review by any applicable committees such as the planning board.</div>
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The property is zoned correctly. The buyer and developer are in place. The studying has been undertaken and completed. Just one thing now remains to be done here.</div>
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“Let it go.”</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and a longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-68960614522628729282019-08-05T12:06:00.004-04:002019-08-05T12:06:43.945-04:00Norton Doesn't Love That Dirty Water<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Norton Water A Dirty Problem</span></div>
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by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle</div>
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To say Norton has a water problem is a gross understatement. But since it doesn’t affect everyone, it doesn’t get the attention it should. Sure, there is a lot of talk about it — but not nearly enough.</div>
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In many Norton homes, the water looks like root beer. It can look like mud. It stains clothes, ruins appliances, and costs residents a lot of money for filters, bottled water, and blood pressure medication due to the time it is taking to address the issue.</div>
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This is not an exaggeration. Just go online and search “Dirty Norton Water” and take a look at the pictures. It is enough to make you gag.</div>
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Local officials are aware of the situation and trying to fix it. Old pipes certainly add to the contamination problem. Some water mains have been replaced — particularly along some main roads.</div>
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They claim the discoloration is the result of high manganese in the water. A multi-million dollar treatment plant is currently under construction, and they believe it will solve the problem. The project was initially delayed due to state concerns involving a possible Indian burial ground, but that was settled and allegedly the plant will open next year.</div>
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In the meantime, a filtered water machine has been placed at town hall where folks can fill water jugs. Some chemical additives have been made available to help. But those are small, short-term attempts to lessen the problem. They are not solutions.</div>
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Town meeting has authorized many millions of dollars to try and make the water system better. The water ratepayers have yet to feel the financial impact of that because the rates have not been altered to reflect those expenditures going forward.</div>
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As a lifelong Norton resident — who does not have brown water, thank goodness — my major concern and worry is this.</div>
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I’m not at all sure the new water plant is going to solve this issue. I am not sure it is going to be the relief the poor people with ugly, unusable water have been waiting for.</div>
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I’m positive it will help and is necessary. But if you just look at the history of the water/sewer department and the piecemeal way water issues have been addressed, it is worrisome.</div>
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I would be much more confident if the town had a consolidated department of public works instead of an elected water/sewer commission. There should be a director of public works with experience in this area combined with a board appointed according to qualifications and experience, rather than relying on the goodwill of those who run for election — often unopposed.</div>
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The board of selectmen has limited influence in this area because the water/sewer board is elected. The town manager, who oversees the overall operation of the town, is also limited by this.</div>
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When the charter commission studying town government makes its recommendations, at the top of the list should be creating a department of public works and eliminating the elected water/sewer board.</div>
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That alone will not give Norton residents clean water. But it will certainly give them a much better chance of it than they have now.</div>
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Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and a longtime local official. He can be emailed at <a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a> and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6241456614018828772.post-14717463862667174592019-07-22T07:11:00.002-04:002019-07-22T07:11:12.054-04:00Is The President A Reflection Of The Nation?<div class="asset-content subscriber-premium" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Is this The Nation We Have Become?</span></div>
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by Bill Gouveia for the Sun Chronicle<br /><br />The president of the United States is a racist.</div>
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But sadly, that is not the real news in this dangerous chapter of our nation’s history. After all, we knew about Donald Trump before electing him. He did not misrepresent himself in order to gain the presidency. In fact, it can be reasonably argued that during his campaign he showed us exactly what kind of president he would be.</div>
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America knew who it was selecting and made the choice knowingly and willingly. We are today getting exactly what we voted for. And possibly — what we deserve.</div>
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No folks, the big realization is not that the president holds racists views and uses them for political advantage. Instead, the frightening reality is that a significant percentage of American citizens either share or will tolerate those views, and favor a leader who will enforce racist policies and actions.</div>
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Racism and bigotry in America were not created by President Donald Trump. They were here long before he was.</div>
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But President Donald Trump was clearly created largely by the rising racism and bigotry existing in America. While that is stark, controversial, and insulting to many — it is simply and undeniably true. This president was elected on a platform of racist positions, has utilized those horrible positions while governing, and may well ride them to reelection next year.</div>
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Americans value a strong economy, as well they should. Trump has presided over a booming period of economic prosperity, and deserves significant credit for that. And it seems achieving that worthwhile goal provides cover for a wide array of other less savory aspects of this presidency such as his blatant racism. Or does it?</div>
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It’s truly disconcerting to think Donald Trump is merely a reflection of the views of many Americans. That his values are America’s values. Yet, how else can this be explained?</div>
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Many will read that and say “You’re calling all Trump supporters racists.” No, I’m not. I know many good people who voted for the president while not sharing his views on foreigners and people from other races, ethnicities and backgrounds. But they agree with him on other issues.</div>
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Still, you can’t support an obvious racist and not bear some responsibility for the results. When those supporters say “I don’t like the way he treats some people” or “I don’t agree with what he says on Twitter” — sorry, but you are clearly compromising the values of the country. You are implicitly condoning his racist views and actions.</div>
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You are enabling and normalizing racism in America.</div>
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I want to believe America is not a racist nation. I grew up believing the Statue of Liberty reflected the very core of American values. My father came to this country with nothing, and became a college educated professional success story.</div>
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How sad he would have been to listen to the crowd at Trump’s political rally last week chant “send her back” about a foreign-born African-American Congresswoman and citizen of this country.</div>
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My fear and concern is not that Trump is leading the nation astray, but rather that he is the clear result of what kind of nation and people we have become.</div>
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<span style="font-size: inherit;">Bill Gouveia is a local columnist and a longtime local official. He can be emailed at</span><span style="font-size: inherit;"> </span><a href="mailto:billsinsidelook@gmail.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: black; font-size: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;">billsinsidelook@gmail.com</a><span style="font-size: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-size: inherit;">and followed on Twitter at @Billinsidelook.</span></div>
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An Inside Look/Bill Gouveiahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05020005899673156223noreply@blogger.com0