New Haven Independent

Posted by: Fedupwithliberals | November 22, 2007 11:37 AM

Sorry Paul,

With only 8,000 people voting in elections against a despot like Johnny "Sacks" DeStefano, he shows that there is absolutely no accountability in this city. Brian McGrath be damned, the mayor has a blank check to do whatever he pleases. Nothing coming out of that office will surprise me now, and New Haven will make San Francisco look like Lancaster, PA by next election.

Posted by: Chris Gray | November 25, 2007 3:41 AM

O.K., can we make up our mind here?

One week DeStefano is a "good guy and a good Mayor", who deserves a modest raise. The next, he's leading a "tin pot dictatorship".

Oh, well, it makes for diverse video.

As for lifting clichés from my recent posts, I suppose you're making fun of my claim that DiLieto stole my slogan "Building A Future For All Of Us" and turning it into "Building A Better New Haven For All Of Us", which I rendered funny by calling him on it. (I actually set him up by slipping every bit of my campaign literature under the door of his campaign headquarters before I ever even passed it out to voters.)

What was really hilarious, though, was when Rowland morphed it into "Building A Better Connecticut For All Of Us", which really should have read, "Building A Bigger Summer Cottage For All Of Us Rowlands".

I'm sure you know that I don't mind.

After watching the vlog, I ended up dreaming about walking around on Upper Grand Ave. with you (which is funny just on account of my disability) and you pulling off a stunt on an escalator rail that I wouldn't have attempted even when I was still able to dance, spinning, through a crowded bar.

Posted by: Steven Kalb | November 25, 2007 9:22 AM

I am going to disagree with you on parking passes. For those of us lugging TV cameras, tripods or radio gear they were a godsend. Especially for those people working on a drop dead deadline they sometimes made a difference. Sure they were abused by some, but Mr. McGrath has done all of us both the media and the public a disservice. He either fails to/or refuses to understand the difference between the corporate guys and the folks who race to stories.

When I was in Philly I remember going down to the parking authority for my MONTHLY MEETING to discuss which tickets they would void. I was right behind the UPS and FedEx guys. They had dozens...so did we. It was a silly exercise and one designed to make the traffic and parking folks feel important. We'd get parking tickets when we left a "marked" car or van in front of a meter and it expired while we were covering a story.

Question Mr. McGrath, when the meter is running out which of the two individuals covering the Mayor's press conference (the reporter or the photog) should race out (and conceivably down the street) to put in the quarter? The photog or the reporter? Question Mr. McGrath, do I need send along a copy of my script to prove I was actually "working?" the whole thing is just plain silly...well actually incomprehensible...but we'll go with "silly." A "press pass" is simply a means by which reporters and other journalists can indicate to the police that we are not some scofflaw...but working, serving the "public interest, convenience and necessity."

Contrary to Mr. McGrath's assertions, you could not use your parking pass to park in a crosswalk or handicapped zone. It was right there in the rules if I remember correctly.

In Philly They would always make us pay one or two tickets because "we should." I even heard one parking official tell me they could always make the media pay for coverage they didn't like.....by not voiding tickets. I don't think they ever did that....but they could. Speaking of quarters...the clue machine is down the hall.

Posted by: darnell | November 27, 2007 7:16 AM

Paul,

Great Bright Idea for City Clerk ofice!!!

Posted by: cedarhillresident | November 27, 2007 9:21 AM

I am with Darnell "great bight idea!"

Second I agree 100% that the gag order is just plain wrong, a bit of a joke. There has to be some kind of law not allowing that!

And Congrate's on your pace car sticker....up date us on how it effects your driving.

Posted by: Chris Gray | November 28, 2007 3:32 AM

Sorry, I got off-track and forgot endorsing your bright idea.

Meanwhile, could you perhaps post the script for your vlogs?

I'm working on slow speed here and it takes a half to three quarters of an hour to get your five minutes and, with one MSN shut-down right after I loaded it, to remind myself of what your bright idea was, I had to do it again.

Of course, I used the time to compose my comment on the ethics ordinance, another too long-winded, history laden rant.

Posted by: Tim Kane | November 28, 2007 9:33 AM

Paul:

I second the 'good idea' on the City Clerk position. You make a good point that it's not about who the City Clerk is, it's just the nature of what the job has 'always' been. If the job could be made more meaningful, perhaps by the person who has it now. I don't see why he would. Do the math - a minimum amount of work, attend some meanings, certify election results (so, what does that mean, exactly?), make $48,000. Or I can compile the data collected by the City of New Haven, crunch numbers, create reports for each ward, and distribute the reports - in short, really add value to the data - but I'd have to work really hard, cooperate with the folks in my office and other departments, make $48,000. How many of us would pick option 2? I don't want to sound like I'm attacking Mr. Smith - because I'm not. Mr. Smith is a successful man in his own right. The system has created this problem - not Mr. Smith. Unless I've missed my guess, he's the one with the power to make a change.

Posted by: Chris Gray | November 29, 2007 2:28 AM

Tim,
How about public pressure? Or orders from his boss (ha, ha)? Or under the direction of the BOA?

Since there has been movement on ethic reform, it seems like someone is listening.

You know, "If we don't want to end up having to give them bread, we'd better at least give them some of the cake scraped off the inside of the oven."