Man on the Job

It's always our fault, huh? The Sollman tragedy was just that, a tragedy. You want to complain about not getting answers? Talk to the Attorney General. Thanks to the old "chief" Mazzeo, they are turning their investigation into personal witch hunts. We have nothing to do with that. You all know what I, and every other cop in Easton, knows. As for the lost handgun, I think you'd be hard-pressed to find any one of us in the department who do NOT think that he should have been fired. However, we don't make that decision either.

I'm also tired of hearing about all of our "infighting". There is no more of that. That problem is now gone. There are a few more people that need to go; A few who are literally a cancer to the department.

You want to complain about the crime as well? Complain to the Mayor. We can fall out for a weekend middle shift with four of five guys. When you go from call to call, it's hard to be proactive. Thank your neighbor who calls because a parked car's inspections sticker is two days expired. Or your other neighbor who calls because two people are "talking loudly".

And to person who doesn't like that fact that we are given certain things in our contract, where do you work? If you weren't given a raise in three years you'd be the loudest yeller.So, I'll continue doing what I like to do. Going to work short and getting ridiculed in the newspapers. I guess I, all of us actually, HAVE to do it so people that like to complain and point a fingers can sleep at night. Don't worry you people........ We'll keep you safe. Hey, maybe along the way we'll make another mistake to give you something new to complain about.

Comment by eastoncop February 27, 2006 Read the whole thread at Eastonwatch.com


House of Crayons chimes in:
This is what condemning a whole organization for the sins of a few does, it wears hard on the entire department. We need to yell about how deficient their manpower and training is. We need to care about how many public servants we have and how well they are managed. We need to make the Mayor and Council treat the policing of the City's residents as a priority. We need to understand that a City's sole responsibilty is protecting and caring for its tax payers. The City is not a club or a business, the City is a home to 26,000 people that need clean streets, protection from crime, and protection from disaster.

New Audio Posts

Today is the audio post DAILY DOUBLE!!!! Not only do we bring you last week's City Council meeting (18.6Mb late due to technical issues), we also have a freshly canned Easton UnPlugged (podcast 12 Mb). So get 'em while they are hot (or lukewarm in the case of the Council Meeting).

The Council meeting is a very interesting 3 hour marathon. The begining of the meeting was the public hearing for the Landlord Licensing Ordnance. Needless to say the audience comments are very informative and entertaining. Because of the hearing there were 3 audience comment periods. The people discussed Chucky's on South Side, Logogate, 501(c)(3) conflicts of interest, swimming pools, and the purchase of a street sweeper. The Mayor tried to pimp the "On the Edge" logo for the Stevenson Group (he failed); I guess negativity won out.

The podcast is Bad Apple, House of Crayons, and Just Asking going over the Council meeting and recent news like the Marquis Theater proposal, curfew, police hiring, and the (unsubstantiated) rumor of the Mayor's resignation. It is the clearest of any recording we've every done, and we believe it is the best podcast to date.

A Positive Move Forward?

A Positive Move Forward?

Many would be surprised to hear me say that the recent happenings in our city government have caused a positive move forward for our city. Positive, you say, she must be demented! It is my contention that the idiocy that we have witnessed has brought forth our citizens to stand up and pay attention. Now it is February, a time for council to lay low and go home early. But not this year, the citizens demand their say. From the oldest man to the youngest child, we have come forth, one by one. Speaking on issues such as violence, drug dealing, Eddyside Pool, the street sweeper, landlord licensing, and more. Our citizens are coming in numbers and will continue to make each and every leader of our city accountable. Yes, I say, a positive move forward.

Why would our Mayor refuse to answer a citizen who is concerned about the drug dealers at a neighborhood convenience store? Maybe because he was preparing a speech on the new logo which came to fruition through an unethical process? I don’t know, I’m just asking!

Why would council vote to buy a new, very expensive, street sweeper without a written comprehensive plan for street cleaning? I don’t know, I’m just asking.

Why are the gangs taking over our City, dealing drugs, shooting and killing one another? Why don’t we know the answers behind the death of Easton Police Officer Jesse Sollmon? Why does the City of Easton have the highest municipality taxes in Northampton County? I don’t know, I’m just asking!

These are the questions that we want answered. We will not forget, the questions will not go away, and neither will we. Yes, when we continue to expect answers and expect ethical accountability, it is a positive move forward for our city.

Your neighbor,
Just Asking

Two Steps Back

Where is all of this bad luck coming from?

That question in itself is a bunch of crap. Over and over again the people in the EUniverse talk about the issues, direct blame, and demand accountability. And the themes are always the same. The incestuous business practices of the city’s stewards, the abhorrent propensity to skirt the intent and letter of rules and laws, and the lazy administration of the people’s day to day business.

Yeah, I know exactly what some of you are thinking… “Who the hell are you to sit behind your keyboard and point fingers.” While that may have been enough of a defense in the past; today it is neither a barrier to criticism nor true. This whole EU movement was born out of sitting around pointing fingers. We got tired of speculation without any validation. Now we are in the business of validation by way of investigation.

Now, do not for an instant be so quick to think that our agenda (Oh yes, we wholeheartedly subscribe to an agenda¹) is to be an electronic tabloid. This, the EUniverse (the blog, podcast, forums, etc), is the information served up in the most entertaining and thought provoking ways we can think of. We would hope that the embarrassment of exposure would make some people reevaluate what they do and how they do things with our (the people’s) resources, but life is seldom that simple. So the EUniverse has an action wing. And the action wing will set the example. So for right now just sit back and enjoy the show.

OK, back to this bad luck… Any of you remember reading these words before?

“As anxious as we are for good news, we also have the distinct tendency of being
victimized by bad luck, bad decisions, and a strange combination of bad luck
spawned from bad decisions.”

Just this past week the city’s oldest building, the Bachmann Publick House, financially folded. And it did so in what has become known as “the truest Eastonian fashion”—in a veil of mystery, sprinkled with generous portions of ethical controversy, slathered in mismanagement, and garnished with the same old names. Mmm Mmm, if that don’t make for some delicious tabloid entertainment, just give us a couple of days (something else is bound to happen).

That’s enough fluff; here’s the point. People are talking. And just like always the key players are not talking. This statement perplexes the mind in many ways:

''It does come as a major surprise even to me. But perhaps it's a blessing in
disguise. This may actually bring other Lehigh Valley support out of the
woodwork for some reasons that are unbeknownst to me.''

Anyone’s guess is as good as mine. It’s like he has a magic eight ball that was manufactured in a fortune cookie factory. He may as well have not said anything. Wait, did he say anything… Perplexing isn’t it? Oh and there is a companion statement:

“I'm afraid I'm not going to be of much help”

Have there ever been truer words? People that we all suspect and expect answers from once again insult us and dare us to seek the facts.

The Bachmann is crap, nothing; it is just another building. The things that led up to this past week's happenings though are not inconsequential and should be looked into. There are rumors of contract cronyism and board room bullying. One thing looks to be certain, someone did something wrong. Morally? Ethically? Legally? We are pretty sure no one will be held accountable in any substantial way, but I can’t help to think of the phrase, “You’ll never work in this town again.”

It makes us uncomfortable knowing that the administration and its confidants are patrons of this embarrassing failure. What are we in for next?

¹Our Mission: To provide a clean, crime-free, and safe environment with competitive services that allows residents to enjoy a high quality of life, while providing commerce an environment to thrive.

Easton UnPlugged Audio Blog (podcast) #7.5

Here's Easton Undressed Audio Blog Episode #7.5 (8Mb)-- Anything worth doing once.
All the way live from Bawstun, Mashatooshuts our soon-to-be new neighbor Boston Bean joins Bad Apple and the House via Skype. This part 2 of a 1 part podcast. It was so good we had to do it twice. The first take of this podcast was done six days earlier. It had unsurmoutable technical issues.
The podcast covers the Bridge to Hope march, a bid to make Captain Smith Chief of Police, The Bachman Tavern, as well as the pool turnout for the last two Council meetings.
Enjoy.

Take a peek at what you'll be missing from the first take:

And please send your comments.

Your Neighbors

Council Meeting Audio 02/08/06

Here's the audio of the February 08, 2006 regular session City Council meeting. The meeting was well attended thanks to the efforts of Merri & Diane. We witnessed what could be construed as pulpit bullying. And some of our concerned citizens may have been less than fully enfranchised. The public comment (before and after) along with the impromptu evacuation are the only substance in the meeting. The rest was resolutions and ordnance readings with no discussion.

It was disappointing that the Mayor was not in attendance.

Audio (12Mb)

Easton, On the edge of Ethics

Since the second Visioning Meeting, I have been involved with the Main Street Program. Working on the Marketing and Promotions Committee, I volunteered two hours a week for several months. The majority of our effort was focused on identifying what Easton is – essentially, in marketing speak, our Brand. This process was led by Peter Stevenson, the committee chair.

While many people were anxious to start developing logo and tagline ideas, we were told by our chair that we had to be patient, there was a specific process that had to be followed. Once the research phase was completed, nothing else was mentioned about the branding project except that it was to be a line item in the Main Street budget. We were not aware that our chair, in conjunction with the city, was going to seek a grant for his company alone to do this work, and profit.

Last fall, an email was sent out stating that the Stevenson Group had been awarded this contract. I was confused and concerned. When I began asking questions about what was happening with the project, I was repeatedly told that the logo must be for the city [gov’t], but had nothing to do with Main Street. Meanwhile, the Stevenson Group remained involved with the committee.

From day one, the Marketing and Promotions Committee believed that we would be involved in the process. That minimally we would be involved in hiring anyone who would be hired and in reviewing their work. After months of silence, some, but not all of the committee members were invited to the presentation. At this presentation two weeks ago, as was done here tonight, Peter Stevenson admitted to having used the research done by the committee. In essence, we had been volunteering for him. To not include the committee at all is an insult, and brings into question the role committees are playing in the Main St. Program. The committee I was on had no knowledge of the development of this logo.

In good faith, I volunteered my time. In order for initiatives like the Main St. Program to succeed, volunteers need to feel empowered, not disenfranchised.
I don’t understand how or why this process happened the way it did. I respectfully ask you, council, to seek the answers to these questions:
1. Why was the Main Street Marketing Committee excluded completely from this process?
2. Why didn’t this grant go through the Main St. Program, but instead through the city?
It is my understanding that the Main St. Program is to be led by volunteers, not the city, not the employees of the program, and not a select few. It only seems right, that at this point, the process be opened up. The future identity of our city should not be decided by a select few, especially when it’s important to so many.

In closing, I just wanted to share a creative idea of my own. Since a grant awarded to the city paid for something that’s probably still in the Main St. budget, why not take the same amount of money from the Main St. Program and donate it to something that would benefit the people of Easton – like the pools.

Laini Abraham

How to use the Forums

Forums are online discussion groups. A forum is generally set up like a series of long chain emails. The forums are divided into several topic areas. And within those topics areas people post area specific material. If you are reading a particular post and wish to add to its subject you simply "Reply". By "replying" to the post you add your post to the bottom of the discussion or "thread" A forum can contain several threads of conversation. When you enter a forum, find the thread that best matches the message you want to post to the forum. If register as a member, you can start new threads or add to existing threads.

Registering is easy, and a very minimal amount of information is required. You can choose to hide your email from the public, or if you are terminally paranoid set up a new google gmail or yahoo mail account and use that to register.

The forums are a great tool for team problem solving. They've been around the web before web browsers (you may also hear them called Bulletin Boards or BB for short) they are very effective customer support tools. People post problems and symptoms on a board that is appropriate to their issue, and they wait for people to reply (this creates a thread). There are forums for almost every topic or hobby imaginable.

Our forums have several topic areas. There is a general area, a suggestion area, a technical support area, staff only areas, and several specific discussion areas like: Letters to the Mayor, Think Tank, and Letters to Council. Topic areas cane be created, modified, and deleted by the forum moderators and administrators.

There's a lot more to using forums but this is a quick and dirty just to get you working post. So PLEASE use the forums at http://eastonundressed.org/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl

Thanks
Your Friends