Friday Night Open Forum
www.connecticutlocalpolitics.blogspot.com
Friday, October 27, 2006
The Lt. Gov. debate is now available online Worth a listen.
DeStefano is accusing Rell of conspiring to force Aetna to do something evil. I think. Really, I have no idea what he's alleging. Whatever it is, there seems to be very little evidence for it.
A former mayor of Middletown is going to jail for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars to cover gambling debts.
Chris Shays apparently forgot to record a trip to Qatar on a federal disclosure form.
Lastly, there may have been a violation of state election laws by Rep. Kathy Tallarita, according to Cool Justice. Hmm.
What else is happening?
38 comments:
Word has it that "little canoli" and his firefighter buddies skipped out on paying bill at Chicago Sam's. Isn't is sad that Republicans, who hold wine tasting fundraisers for a current State Senator can't even pay a bill at a local restaurant? Tsk...Tsk. ore should we say Kissel. Kissel.
So the GOP are all over the Dems for backroom deals and insider trading. Well then, I guess we should just ignore a the Deputy Fire Chief in Thompsonville being foreclosed upon twice; code enforcement shutting his apartments down for gross neglect; and attempting to be granted workers comp status for injuries sustained while at home. And by the way, he is a big GOP'er. If you are going to open a book on Enfield, pay attention to all the chapters.
Do the politicians still have bribe your local politicial night off of Rt 5 in Enfield Connecticut?
Lose at high stakes poker, a round or two, and you can have a sign for your business, a building permit, or retaliate against a pesky neighbor.
JOE COURTNEY you have to seperate yourself from your treasurer to have a shot to win Enfield. If he truely is your friend he will know this just has to be done. YOU can't be tied to this stuff.
Regardless of whatever Kathy Tallarita may have allegedly done, she's still worthy of my vote. Her opponent, Sue Lavelli-Hozempa is not only politically inexperienced (she's only been on the school board since last November), but she's completely off her rocker. (Not to metion the fact that she seems terrified - or maybe just incapable - of speaking in public, something politicians need to be able to do effectively.)
Hozempa's main claim is that she's going to save the town money by sending students to Asnuntuck for two years instead of having them go to their senior year of high school. On average, it costs about $8,000 to send each child to school. We get that number by computing the total budget the school board has to work with and dividing it by the total number of students in the school system. However, that number includes a lot of things: heating, lighting, electricity, transportation, teacher's salaries, books, etc. That $8,000 figure is an AVERAGE that doesn't represent the true cost of adding or subtracting a single student from the system. If one more student enters the school system, it's not as if the cost of education rises by exactly $8,000, similarly, if one moves out of town, it's not as though we somehow save an extra $8k.
She also thinks that she's going to get enough students to do this so that they can eliminate a teacher. However, teachers in Enfield see over 100 students each day and often teach classes to Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors. Even if we could eliminate one CLASS from the teacher's day, we still wouldn't be able to get rid of that teacher completely - he or she would still have other classes (and other grade levels) to teach.
Another thing to point out would be that Hozempa's plan could also be construed as fraud under some people's point of view. She says we send the kids to Asnuntuck and keep them on the roster as students of the Enfield Public Schools - that way, we get to keep the ECS grant money for that individual. How is that fair? If the student doesn't go to school at either of the high schools and is instead a pupil at Asnuntuck, we don't deserve the ECS grant money for them.
Lavelli-Hozempa is a hideous politician who couldn't argue her way out of a paper bag. Sending her to Hartford as a representative of our town would be a real shame. Even if Kathy Tallarita is guilty of fraud (and I have my doubts about that), I'd still choose her over Hozempa any day of the week.
So far it appears that Courtney is accusing Rob Simmons of being a war criminal for serving in Vietnam, but his own treasurer is playing fast and loose with local laws as if they exist only for everyone else.
Meanwhile, Joe sticks his head in the sand and makes believe he doesn't see any of this.
And he wants to represent us in Congress? I'm having issues with these issues. Can't see how I can vote for someone who comes across as this much of a hypocrite.
Check out the math on Sue Lavelli-Hozempa's website where she mentions the "Early Graduation" program: http://sue4the58th.com/Early.htm.
She claims that if "10% of the students chose to take this option in it's first year" we'd save the town a truckload of money. But, Sue, your math is all wrong! We only have about 6000 students in the Enfield Public School System, and something like 450 of them are seniors. Students only become eligible for this program in their senior year of high school. So how are 10% of our kids going to take part if the senior class only represents 7.5% of the students in town? It would be impossible to send 10% of students to Asnuntuck for Early Graduation programs unless our class sizes were substantially larger - and even then, every single student would have to participate or else risk being the only student in his or her graduating class still in high school.
Its OK Deputy Fire Chief Frankie, or should I say "little canoli", you weren't on Joe Courtney's side to begin with. And if you can read campaign literature, Joe Courtney has publicly praised Simmons for his service to his country, but believes he is mis-guided on this war and The President, as do 68% of registered voters from all political parties.
Regardless of whether Sue Hozempas math is a little fuzzy still-- Can you name a SINGLE IDEA to come out of the Tallarita camp in the last six years? I give her credit for trying to inject some vision into the campaign, and for showing guts by policies she's like to see turn into law.
The logic holds water-- when a student meets the requirements for graduation- get em out of the school. The taxpayers have met their obligation to support the student in secondary school environment. The world's competition for our jobs doesn't care about homecoming or the prom. The one with the employable skills first wins.
I'm willing to give Sue a try. What do we have to lose in the 58th!
I have to agree with the above. Hozempa just isn't qualified to represent our town.
Tallarita has done an OK job as our representative though I'll admit, nobody's perfect. But when it comes to election time, really anything is better than Hozempa. Have you ever heard her open her mouth at the Board meetings? Yikes! Someone please take the mic away from her in the future.
What take away her mike because she is fighting for the students? Hozempa is a far better candidate than Tallarita. She makes sense and is not afraid to say it. As for her being scared, Tallarita is the only one who looked scared at the debates. She couldn't even speak without losing her place. 8 years of her doing nothing is too long. Hozempa has what it takes to fight for Enfield. And her math is right on, I have seen her calculator first hand, it takes into account the heating, electricity and so forth. Nice hit job on her, but then again you think nothing is wrong in town. Everything is good when your people are in power holding the rest of us down. I will vote for Sue and I urge everyone else who wants ethical government to do so as well.
I cannot believe the level of incompetence of some people. Anon 8:06 does not understand anything. Hozempa is the best I have ever seen run for office. She fights for the kids of Enfield every chance she get's everyday. The only hideous candidate is Kathy "I forgot my place" Tallarita. Tallarita cannot speak in public and is nervous on stage to the point of the pure terror look on her face when she actually has to speak. Hozempa does not tow the Teacher's Union line and it show's. Finally someone who will fight for my kid's. I like the early grad program, some of you are just trying to find anything to fault it, because you are scared Kathy will lose. I sure hope she does. Enfield needs someone who will fight for us, and actually let us know what is going on. I am with Hozempa, Tallarita is all fluff and no substance. Checking out Tallarita's own website at the state, 3 press releases in 8 years. I have never seen her at most events in town, nor have I heard her ever give any info on what is happening at the state before. Why is that, because she isn't doing anything! She voted against defining marriage as between a man and a woman. Most of the town disagree's with that vote. Tallarita will not discuss it. It's time the Tallarita regime ended.
Thanks for the link to Lavelli-Hozempa's website above. It's full of typos, which just goes to show she's either careless or unintelligent.
Tallarita has brought back lots of money to our town. That's something I'm proud of her for. You're against her because she was in favor of gay marriage? Get over yourself, everyone deserves equal rights! (Or do you still believe that women and African Americans shouldn't be allowed to vote?)
Lavelli-Hozempa even spoke out about providing healthcare benefits at the debate at Fermi High School. She said it was a "benefit not an entitlement." That's great, Sue. We've got children and adults dying and the price of healthcare is skyrocketing, and she validates it by telling us we're not entitled? Maybe she thinks only wealthy people who can afford high insurance premiums deserve appropriate healthcare? How terrible! This woman lacks common sense to the nth degree.
Susan Lavelli-Hozempa doesn't fight for the students, she fights for her own Republican initiatives. I've never met a woman more concerned with partisan politics in my life. How is she to get anything done for our town if she is unwilling to work with Dems even for something that would ultimiately benefit everyone? Just look at her voting record on the school board, she voted against the Democrats on nearly every single vote, even when the situation didn't warrant it.
The JI columns are always in here, but why don't they write about such an important subject. Obviously, many folks in this town are concerned. Shouldn't the daily paper at least cover it?
HELLOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Why bring Frank Alaimo ("little canoli") into this? He's a good person and he works hard for our town. He's not up for any elections next week, why be so mean to him?
Has anyone EVER heard Kathy speak in Hartford? I'm not saying it is necessarily is a bad thing. She just may do things behind the scene? She just may be a silent legislator.
YOU people don't know why she voted for gay rights? It is a close issue for her family and she did what she needed to do so at least give her a break on that.
To the person who complained that Kathy Tallarita's legislative website only had three press releases on it, take a look a Sue Hozempa's website and her "In the News" section - not a single article has been posted. Supposedly updating is in process, but Sue, I think you've got another typo - you told us to check back in 48 hours, it's been more like 48 days!
And come on, don't bash Kathy's speaking abilities, every time Sue Hozempa opens her mouth, she spews more hot air than a volcano eruption.
It should also be mentioned that one of her campaign platforms is "common sense." Ha! My God, I still get a laugh out of that one. Common sense, please! I lost count how many typos and errors she's got on her website.
Don't fret, dears, Sue has no support in her campaign. Besides that of her darling chairperson, Ms. Turner, she's running solo.
Notice any signs supporting her around town? I think I counted three, maybe four, total and two of them were on her own lawn.
The fact of the matter is the only reason Sue is running is because Ms. Turner doesn't want any office to go unopposed. She sets her Republican friends up for a loss every time knowing they don't have a snowball's chance in hell at a win. What's laughable is the fact that Sue actually thinks she might have a shot at getting elected! Come on Mary Ann, quit lying to her and let her know the truth, you know as well as I that she couldn't get elected in a million years.
Kathy is the most incompetent legislator I have ever heard speak. The comments, she brings back more money to Enfield is ridiculous it's your money, whether it is coming out of your left pocket (town) or your right pocket (state) it's still the same pair of pants.
Why are you all so afraid of Sue? Sue has ideas, Kathy has complaints. And if everything is so great in our state, why are people leaving left and right? It's because the current majority, Kathy included who are more concerned with the special interests rather than helping people. Everything is about keeping the majority, not actually doing something.
I cannot beleive the level of personal attacks Kathy's supporters have taken. I am so sick of all the bashing that Hozempa is getting on this website. Apparently some people beleive that we should get rid of the 1st Amendment and silence those who we do not like. I now have made up my mind who I will vote for, and it will not be Tallarita. Thank you all for showing your true undemocratic colors.
This was a post about Tallarita possibly having an illegal mailing. SHe was hired in July, the newsletter goes out in October. The wine tasting event, that the bank will not specify who was there and why. All you Kathy supporters are only attempting to shift the focus from what might be a violation of ethics and campaign laws, to blame Hozempa for everything. That's right, if caught red handed scream as loud as you can that the other guy doesn't stand a chance. I know from talking to people, that Sue will win. Everyone I know is voting for her, and they all know another 4-5 each who are voting for her. A nice big cross section of town. Hozempa has been to my door, and actually wanted to talk to me. I haven't seen Kathy in years, and she never knocked on my door.
I am a Republican, I support Kathy Tallarita. If Sue Hozempa heard that, she'd have me tried for heresy. She outright refuses to work with other parties for the common good, she will only work with Republicans. Someone else already said it, she's so concerned with partisan politics that she doesn't realize being so closed-minded isn't allowing her to get anything done at all.
I have news for all you Sue-supporters... Republicans are greatly outnumbered in this state and in our town. We live in a blue state. That makes it essential for Republicans to be willing to work side by side with Democrats because they hold the majority.
Mary Ann Turner still hasn't learned this lesson, either. Partisan politics only works in your favor if you are a member of the majority. If you're a member of the minority and you're unwilling to work with the other side, you are going to lose more often than not.
Sue needs to learn this lesson soon, and I'm sorry to say I don't forsee it happening in the near future. Don't send her to Hartford where she'll have to learn this lesson the hard way because our town will suffer as a result.
No one here is claiming that Kathy Tallarita is perfect. You'd be hard pressed to find any politican that is. But what we should be concerned about is which person is going to be better for our town: a woman with lots of experience and a good head on her shoulders, or a woman with no experience and very little knowledge of how the real world and politics actually work?
That being said, it should be mentioned that both sides - those for Sue and those for Kathy - have resorted to quite a few ad hominem attacks. Remember, every time you point a finger, there are three more pointing back at you.
Hey speaking of ad hominem attacks... Remember that time Mary Ann Turner called Kathy Tallarita a "cow" in an email about the debate at Asnuntuck and practically her whole Republican Town Committee let her know how rude it was? Geez Mary Ann, you're losing support fast from even your own party.
I feel it is time that I posted after seeing all the negative attacks on this site. Sue is running for office and some feel that she should have never put her name in the ring. I am sorry I couldn't disagree more. No seat should ever go unchallenged, as the voters should always have a choice in the election of their representatives. If only one party ever ran and controlled everything it is called a dictatorship, communist, theocracy, etc. Where is the choice in that? Our government was founded on having choices in elections, you do not like the way things are going, vote for the challenger.
Many stated that Sue is partisan, yes she is. Just as both parties are partisan, the democrats do not hold a majority at the federal level, and yet they have been far more vitriolic than Sue has ever been. Yet they are in the minority. Are they wrong for voting against the majority? Shouldn't they by some people's logic, just vote along with the majority to get along? No! You vote what your constituents want you to vote, and what you feel is right. That is representative government. Sue does understand working together with democrats, and she has. Voting with the majority just because everyone else is doing it, is not representing the constituents. Sue receives many calls from concerned parents and returns every single one. She listens to the parents and votes what her constituents are asking her to vote. The Courant article went through her votes. She explained them to the people.
I have a unique insight as her husband, that I see the passion she puts into her elected office. Spending hours researching, talking to parents and other elected officials in town. I see her up at 3 am in the morning on the computer responding to emails from concerned parents. She works very hard to try to get the children of Enfield what they need to succeed, looking over budgets to try to get the computers that our classrooms desperately need, textbooks that parents complain that are needed. To actually claim that Enfield would be worse off if she got elected is wrong. If that is the case no one should ever vote for a challenger, because the incumbent can do more. I couldn't disagree more. If that was the case then all of you would be voting for all the incumbents. From reading the comments I can see that many of you are not voting any current office holders that are republicans. Sue will fight for what is right, and Enfield will continue to get their share and more if she is elected. Agree or disagree Sue stands up and speaks for her constituents, she does not back down in the face of adversity.
We have spent months walking Enfield, listening to what the people of all walks of life and party are complaining about. Sue actually spends time listening to them talking to them and understands the struggles facing the average Enfield family. She lives and works in the real world. She has always had a job in the private sector just like most of the people in Enfield. She knows about downsizing and how it affects people. She understands how families are affected when their job and friends have left the state, and what that does to people. To actually say she doesn't live in reality, shows that you do not know Sue at all.
Like it or not, she is the candidate for the seat. Vote for who you want to. We are just happy to get out there and have the conversation with all of our neighbors of Enfield and talk about what concerns them. That is what elections are about, the people.
Feel free to post an attack, or a positive note, however at least have the courage to sign your own name rather than hiding behind Anonymous. I didn't hide.
Interesting point of view Scott. A few things, however:
- No one ever said that no seat should ever be challenged. However, to throw money away and waste the townspeople's time by running for a seat you know you cannot win doesn't do any good for anyone. It's just a big waste.
- Secondly, no one ever said that you should always vote with the majority. It was pointed out that Sue always votes against the DEMOCRATS (and yes, they do hold the majority in town at present, but that wasn't the point). She's strictly a partisan politican and she has been heard criticizing Democrats many times by many people. Don't lie and say that she's willing to work with them because we all know that to be untrue.
- You say she's voting for her constituents. Who exactly are they? The people supporting fairtax.org? (Because I'll have you know, the fair tax plan that Sue supports has been heavily criticized by many, many important people and studies have shown it would be a lot less "fair" than our current system.) Or perhaps you were referring to the people of Enfield as being her constituents? In that case, voting against the Democrats (which, again, hold the majority in town) would be a clear example of voting against the wishes of your constituents.
- Finally, being up until 3am doesn't make Sue qualified for the position. Her only political experience is on the Board of Education, and that isn't exactly the toughest office to get elected to, 11 candidates ran last year, 9 got elected. Those are pretty good odds even for a so-so candidate who may not deserve the office. And take a look at the election results, Sue just barely beat David Wawer to become the 9th candidate chosen. She received the lowest amount of votes of anyone serving on the Board presently.
I'm not trying to attack Sue, I'm just voicing my opinion because I don't feel she would do best for our town.
I was not the bottom vote in the last election, Andre was. My opinion is that you are wrong. On issues, On policies, on all of it. Your so small minded that you resort to this form of venting and then you can't even be honest enough to sign your name to it.
It's pathetic really.
Sue Lavelli-Hozempa
Sue, this is politics. You had better get used to people disagreeing with you.
Calling your constituents "small minded" is no way to win votes, in my opinion. Sue, up till now you had a chance to change our minds, now that's gone with the wind.
And what good would signing my name do? Are you going to come to my home and drink tea with me while we discuss the issues? Are you going to send me your campaign literature and ask me to put a sign on my lawn? What?
What's pathetic is the fact that you can't answer to any of my specific questions or complaints. Instead, you and your husband post vague "she's a good candidate" kind of responses that don't get down to the meat of the matter. Answer the hard questions Sue, then we'll talk.
Why would we want to post our names? We're voters in the town of Enfield and you don't have our vote; according to you, we're also pathetic. So you want my name for what reason?
You know what I think? I think you're scared. What else can you do but tell us we're pathetic, you're in a position of absolutely no control. Maybe you've got a few names rolling around in your head, a few people you think might be against you, but you still can't do anything. If you implicate the wrong person you risk embarassing yourself and, possibly, losing another vote.
I'm not going to give you my name because I have no reason to. I haven't seen the people bashing Kathy giving us their names, either. Though we can all be sure of at least one of them, assuming there was any truth to that "cow" comment posted earlier.
I agree though, this fight is getting pretty dirty. But don't kid yourself, dear, if you get elected, it isn't going to be any less dirty in Hartford. Are you prepared for that?
I have been relatively quiet in all of this. I, too, am a Republican and I've been playing this political game for quite some time now. I'd like to shed a little insight, if I may.
Picture me, from a third party perspective, reading the comments on this blog. Lavelli-Hozempa's opponents have four main claims against her: 1. She has a lack of political experience, 2. She is supportive of policy they don't like, 3. She is ineffective at public speaking and written communication and 4. She is a partisan politician.
Now let's evaluate these claims.
1. A lack of political experience, is obvious in this situation. Lavelli-Hozempa has served less than a full year as an elected official in our town. No big mystery there.
2. A few have pointed out that they are unsure of or unhappy with the policy platforms Lavelli-Hozempa upon which is running her campaign. One person pointed out that her math may not even add up right, thus a further concern that, if implemented, these policies may not even work. A supporter mentioned that her math is fine. Has Lavelli-Hozempa taken the time to explain how this math works? No. Has she explained her position on the fair tax plan? No. Don't get me wrong, she took the time to write a response to her opponents, but rather than answering to their concerns, she chose to call them "small minded" and "pathetic."
3. The claim that she is ineffective at communicating also seems to hold some water. I have seen and heard her speak on several occassions, both at Board meetings and in the debates, and she was nothing spectacular. Her website, as was rightfully pointed out, is full of typos. And even the one post she made here had a grammatical error as well (wherein she used the word "your" when "you're" should have been used).
4. Finally, the claim that she is a partisan politican is quite obviously demonstrated by her voting record on the Board of Education. More than 9 times out of 10, it seems she votes against the Democrats. Even relative disagreements on policy wouldn't produce such dramatic results. It has become clear to everyone watching that she votes in that particular way nearly every single time.
Now these claims are all important and relevant. But of second-most importance is whether or not her opponent is better or worse than her. If you think about it, that's really all that matters. We don't go into the voting booth hoping to select only perfect candidates, but rather the best candidate for the job.
Unlike Lavelli-Hozempa, Tallarita is not a partisan politican, as demonstrated by her voting record in Hartford. As the incumbent in this race, it's obvious that Tallarita has the experience necessary to do well for our town, and prior to holding this position, she was an elected member of the town's leadership for a number of years.
Tallarita's communication skills are better than Lavelli-Hozempa's. And finally, Tallarita has not only supported policies that people seem to like, but she's also taken the time to explain her position whenever it is questioned.
Lavelli-Hozempa, I hope you don't view this as an "ad hominem" or personal attack. I've got concerns and I'm just voicing them. If you don't like that, well, then perhaps politics isn't right for you.
Sue
As far as I have read all the attacks on you are just to remove public interest from of all the alleged corruption issues going on and shed some interest to a political bash at you. Don't take it personally I'm sure it was a discussed tactic. They are worried or they wouldn't be doing anything at all.
If that were true, why would Republicans from her own side be writing in?
Maybe she really just isn't cut out for the job?
Either way, what's that people say again? If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen.
You doubters think this whole thing was orchestrated by the Dems? How naive.
That comment about Mary Ann Turner calling Kathy Tallarita a "cow" is 100% true and accurate. What's more, she put it in an email directed only to members of her ERTC. Clearly someone from their side has rolled on them.
Go on thinking it's only the Dems against you if that helps you sleep at night. We'll see how this all pans out on election day.
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