Are you surprised?

Let's do the quick recap:

City Clerk, Carol A. Valcourt, announces her retirement
Mayor Robert Correia appoints Assistant City Clerk Alison M. Brett to Valcourt's position
Council secretary Colleen Taylor applies for the assistant position as does Correia’s director of communications Ines Leite.
Leite's application prompts the majority of the City Council to petition Brett to consider promoting Taylor to the Assistants position.
Brett is installed as the City Clerk and appoints Leite as her Assistant.

Are you surprised?

Honestly, I don't know if I am or not.

I am certainly not surprised to see the Mayor's people all of a sudden dropping into new positions. I was warned months ago to expect this if Bob were not reelected, and we've seen this before. I kind of wonder what plush job awaits Mayor Correia?

I think what I am surprised about is how this was all brought out into the open, with the public and the council expressing outrage at what appears to be a pretty easy connect the dots process. The Mayor appoints Brett, and Brett appoints Leite. Gee, this couldn't be some sort of political payback could it? Nah, of course not. The Herald News asserted as much, seven City Councilors seem to have thought as much. Still Brett appointed Leite.

Surprisingly it doesn't seem Brett made any attempt to explain why Leite was better qualified than Taylor. With all the controversy you would think some sort of statement explaining why Leite was given the job would be called for. Unless of course you don't want to publicly state why she was given the job.

Really, I sort of feel sad for Brett she was immediately put into a tough situation. She could appoint Leite and be accused to bowing down to Bob Correia, or she could appoint Taylor and be accused of bowing to the Council.

Lefty's View: Brett was put in a very difficult position, promote the Council's choice? or appoint the Mayor's? Honestly nobody comes away from this looking good. If for no other reason than to display some integrity in the office this position should have posted to avoid the perception of political favors.

I would urge the incoming Mayor to immediately review the resumes of all Correia personal who suddenly find themselves in new positions. Mayor Flanagan should immediately take action to remove anyone who is not qualified for the position they are now in.

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Conflict of Interest?

A comment on a recent post brought up an interesting question...
 
Anonymous said...



I noticed Sterile Snooze Editor Lisa Strattan's Boyfriend Jimmy Mathes is on the mayor's transition team.
Doesn't that failing paper know what a conflict of interest is?


7:34 PM, November 25, 2009

Does this constitute a conflict of interest? It's an interesting question. The original comment sadly included a derogatory comment that has fueled comments all on its own. In order to focus attention on whether this is a conflict of interest and to bring people into the conversation that may not have followed the original comment thread, I am posting the relevant comments here.

I noticed Sterile Snooze Editor Lisa Strattan's Boyfriend Jimmy Mathes is on the mayor's transition team.




Doesn't that failing paper know what a conflict of interest is?

7:34 PM, November 25, 2009

Anonymous said...

The real issue isn't...what is the issue is the conflict of interest...this is why The Herald News has zero credibility, no trust, no value in the community

10:35 AM, November 26, 2009

Anonymous said...

You can't blame Lisa Strattan for this conflict of interest. Mayor Flanagan asked Jim Mathes to be on his transition team and Jim accepted. How is Lisa Strattan to blame for that? How could Lisa Strattan prevent that? Certainly she can't prevent people from accepting the Mayor-elect's invitation.

5:42 PM, November 26, 2009

Anonymous said...

You can't blame Lisa Strattan for this conflict of interest. Mayor Flanagan asked Jim Mathes to be on his transition team and Jim accepted. How is Lisa Strattan to blame for that? How could Lisa Strattan prevent that? Certainly she can't prevent people from accepting the Mayor-elect's invitation.

You can't prevent it if you're an insecure woman who does ANHTHING her boyfriend says. She sed to cover up for the Herren boys wen she was with Al, now this. You can bet The Sterile Snooze will believe anything Jim Mathes believes. In a REAL relationship, one partner could say, "Don't take the post, it's against my ethics."

I guess this is payback for he Sterile Snooze endorsement.

7:13 PM, November 26, 2009

Anonymous said...

The ISSUE is Strattan's conflict of interest

7:25 AM, November 27, 2009

Lefty said...

That said, let's try to refrain from name calling.

That said, I really don't see this as a conflict of interest on the part of Lisa or Herald News. If Lisa herself were part of the transition team that would be different.

9:02 AM, November 27, 2009

Anonymous said...

A newspaper editor should not have a live-in boyfriend serving on the transition team of a mayor endorsed by the newspaper of which she is editor. That is a conflict of interest

7:33 PM, November 27, 2009

Anonymous said...

The last commenter stated it well and that's the way it should've been stated originally when someone was making their case but when you use certain words it does take away from the point you are trying to make and does become an issue. Extremely insulting and degrading language is never needed in a debate. I agree that sexist, degrading remarks should be stricken from the record Lefty. Unless you want people to feel that this is a safe community to sign on and spread hate.

11:28 AM, November 28, 2009

Anonymous said...

The ISSUE is Strattan's unethical behavior but her supporters want to discuss sexism because the behavior is unethical.

9:30 PM, November 28, 2009

Anonymous said...

I found this on the Society of Professiojnal Journalists Web Site

Is this just sexism, too?

Journalists should be free of obligation to any interest other than the public's right to know.

Journalists should:

—Avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived.

— Remain free of associations and activities that may compromise integrity or damage credibility.

— Refuse gifts, favors, fees, free travel and special treatment, and shun secondary employment, political involvement, public office and service in community organizations if they compromise journalistic integrity.

— Disclose unavoidable conflicts.

— Be vigilant and courageous about holding those with power accountable.

— Deny favored treatment to advertisers and special interests and resist their pressure to influence news coverage.

— Be wary of sources offering information for favors or money; avoid bidding for news.

10:18 PM, November 28, 2009

Big John at Battleship Cove

Recently Fall River-tastic featured a post about having a tournament for the board game Battleship at Battleship Cove aboard the USS Massachusetts. One of the commentors made a keen suggestion:


Anonymous said...

What about a Battleship board game where the pieces represent the actual ships that are at Battleship Cove? You could have the Joseph P. Kennedy destroyer, the submarine, etc.

The problem is in game of Battleship you have an aircraft carrier, but there is no aircraft carrier at Battleship Cove. At least not yet!

The U.S. Navy is looking to donate the U.S.S. John F. Kennedy, to a good home, for use as museum or memorial. Hey we've got one of those!

Adding the USS John F. Kennedy to the fleet at Battleship Cove is an idea that deserves very seriously consideration. The "Big John" would add to the prestige of Battleship Cove and certainly secure its reputation as the world's largest historic naval ship exhibit. Considering that President Kennedy was from Massachusetts and that the destroyer named for his brother is already part of Battleship Cove, could there be a more fitting site?

When the Kennedy visited Boston in 2007 she attracted 40,000 visitors! The amazement and curiosity that surrounds these vessels has helped create 5 aircraft carrier museums, with a 6th on the way. However the Kennedy at Battleship Cove would be unique because of all the other ships that you could visit. The Kennedy would bring renewed interest to Battleship Cove and give those who have visited incentive to come back. With the USS John F. Kennedy and USS Joseph P. Kennedy at Battleship Cove we would have the opportunity to work with the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library to create exhibits that would not only interest those with a fascination in naval history but also those interested in the history of our country.

Not to mention we would also have all the pieces we need to play Battleship.

Cranberry Imposter

What the hell?! Here it is DAYS away from Thanksgiving, the all-American holiday and what do I see in Saturday's Herald News? An article making the case for a cranberry stand-in, the lingonberry!

Now, the article was an Associated Press article and not written by a local reporter, so maybe in some parts of the country this article makes sense but here in Massachusetts it's just blasphemy! Cranberries are TRADITION! And that tradition started right here in good ol' Massachusetts where the first Thanksgiving took place. When that first feast took place it is widely believed that cranberries, not lingonberries, were at the dinner table.

Why in the world would the Herald run such a stupid article when the cranberry is the official fruit of Massachusetts?! Why would they run this article AGAINST the cranberry when Massachusetts is the second largest producer of cranberries in the United States!! Is the Herald trying to put cranberry farmers out of business? Workers out of jobs??

OK, seriously I am not THAT outraged, but I did think it was a weird article to have here in Massachusetts.

Fall River Thoughts

Will Power

Originally I was going to do a post just on Mayor-elect Flanagan naming his current boss, Steven Torres, as his Corporation Council. It's an interesting choice. I would imagine that after working for him for 3 years our next Mayor feels that Torres is both qualified and someone he can work with. Yet, the role reversal is something that may prove awkward and could make for a difficult working relationship. I have to assume this is something both men have discussed and feel it will be a non-issue. Torres has been Taunton's City Solicitor for the past 10 years as has received praise as he announces he's leaving. I'm not sure why he would want to leave Taunton, where he has some security for Fall River where he might be out of a job in 2 years.

Flanagan has wasted no time getting the ball rolling. He won't be Mayor for over a month yet he has already named his Corporation Council and now with the help of outgoing Councilor Ray Hague is introducing an ordinance to restrict strip clubs in the Spindle City. I think Flanagan is right to assume that the city can't wait another month or so to put something in place. There is no doubt that his ordinance, if passed, will result in a legal challenge to the city. Still, I think it's a challenge worth facing. After all it's a legal CHALLENGE and the city could prevail.

Peter Pan

I find it amusing that a threatened strike by Peter Pan Bus Lines is in the papers just days before the Kuss Middle School is staging a production of Peter Pan! While the pending strike may pose a hardship for holiday travelers my advice would be stay home and see the play.

Thanksgiving is just around the corner…

This morning I heard 'Happy Hec' on WSAR mention that the Salvation Army is 1,000 turkeys short of what they need for this Thanksgiving. They could also need non-perishable items and could use monetary donations. Times are tough and the thought of 1,000 area families going without a holiday meal is sobering. If you have the ability to help contact our local Salvation Army, I'm sure they would appreciate it.

Keeping a roof over the unemployed

The papers have been full of stories discussing Representative Barney Frank's proposal to give loans to unemployed homeowners struggling to stay in their homes. The money for this proposal would come from the interest the Fed collects from the financial industry bailout.

I can't really argue against this. In theory we're not talking about a handout, but really a hand up. One of the things we need to do to stabilize our economy is to stabilize our housing market and that's a tough goal with foreclosures ticking upwards.

The problem I do have is that all these government plans seem designed to help people who are already in trouble. Having trouble paying your mortgage and you're out of work? The GOVERNMENT will step right in to assist you. Having trouble paying your mortgage and you've fallen several payments behind? The GOVERNMENT will step right in to help you refinance at rates you can afford. Having trouble keeping your head above water, but your working and your paying your mortgage on time? The GOV-E-RN.., .... um... I don't think there's a plan for that.

There are thousands of Americans, hell there are probably MILLIONS of Americans who are facing tough times and struggling to get by paycheck to paycheck. Where's the help for us?

Gee, I wouldn't mind refinancing at a more affordable rate so I had some extra cash to pay down my bills, invest in home improvements, maybe buy some essentials. I'm not talking about the Government throwing me some cash so I can get a new Lincoln or something. I'm saying that there are a lot of people who haven't sunk but they're taking on water and wouldn't it make sense to help them out BEFORE they go under?