Dear Readers,

The Eagle-Tribune published a story on the voting records of all the candidates at:
http://www.eagletribune.com/punews/local_story_075211314.html


My personal belief is that this is just one factor to consider while evaluating the merits of each candidate. It's important, but so is their attendence or cable viewing of regular meetings, the skills they bring to the table, their ability to negotiate consensus while deliberating on important issues, and their overall understanding of municipal finance and their vision for our future.

Sincerely,

Sandy Gleed

I would have voted for Michael Quinlan this year for School Committee. Although I don't agree with his positions on the issues, I think that his intellect and willingness to question things would be good for the committee.

If the committee has lost some of its intellectual diversity after this election, I hope that it can continue to examine its actions carefully.

I think transparency and good public relations are very important, because if the SC isn't telling the story, the Tribune is. And the Tribune always tells the same story.

QUOTE:
Selectman candidate Bill Gordon has not attended Town Meeting in about a decade. Candidate Joe Edward Smith has gone to two Town Meetings since 1996. School Committee member Karin Rhoton has voted in one local election and has not attended a Town Meeting since moving to North Andover in 2005.

-- "Some North Andover candidates have sparse voting records", Crystal Bozek, The Eagle-Tribune, March 17, 2009

Interesting spin, Sandy. Is apathy is now a virtue?

I hope that people realize that it really is a duty and a responsibility to participate in this process.

I understand that people say that life is crazy and it can be very difficult to squeeze something else in. But the town makes the election fairly convenient... if you can't make it during the day of the election on March 31st you can vote absentee at town hall ahead of time. It usually takes me about 15 minutes to vote and voting is anytime from 7:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. Hopefully people plan their day so that they can invest this time.

In a way this 15 minutes will probably be one of their best investments of the past year. The people chosen as our two new selectmen will greatly influence many important aspects of our lives in North Andover for the coming 3 years... budgets, municipal services, our schools... all impacting the values of our homes and community.

So I hope everyone gets out to vote this year! If you do not know all of the candidates please visit links from this site, Google them, watch the League of Women Voters video that we are hosting, attend the 'Meet The Candidates' night (we'll host a video as soon as we can), etc. Be informed and make whatever the best decision is for you. But most importantly... unless you vote your opinion does not count.

Dear Mike,

You are ignoring my point. I'll make it clearer. The frequency of voting - or the record of attendence at town meeting - does not reveal whether any one of the candidates has the skills or even sufficient knowledge of local government issues to serve this town well. Voters also need to look beyond the voting records and consider each candidate's position on real issues like containing local expenses, preserving valued town services by using what financial resources we have wisely, and providing for the future building and maintenance needs of our capital assets.

I always vote, I've been attending town meeting for about 20 years now, and I try very hard to understand our issues and our options. I expect the same of my elected leaders. Yes, voting records will impact my votes. But not to the exclusion of the other criteria I value.

Sincerely,
Sandy Gleed

QUOTE:
I hope that people realize that it really is a duty and a responsibility to participate in this process. -- Don Romano (above)

Sandy,

I directly addressed your earlier point; charactering it as 'spin'.

The voting history of the candidates is a verifiable fact (i.e. you can look it up). It speaks directly to character as does 'duty' and 'responsibility'. You may choose to disregard voting history because you think they'll vote your way. But, of course, that also speaks to character.

I have a personal opinion that is is very important to participate in the democratic process. It is also important to set an example to the younger people that it is important to be engaged. I can't remember missing any election... it's a matter of principle. My failing is that I find it very difficult to attend the second night of the town meeting many times.

I would not necessarily *not vote* for someone who has not actively participated in the process. A person's capabilities, experience, plans/ideals and positions are more important to me from a pragmatic perspective. But... it is a piece of information that I do use in my evaluation.

The open positions are going to require a lot of time and commitment of the people winning the elections.

Mike,

Don't twist my words to support your own election agenda. "That also speaks to character".

I clearly said that voting history is one of several important criteria to consider when choosing which candidates you choose to cast your votes for.

Rather than try to confuse readers about my postings, I'd much rather see you post a list of the criteria you'll be using to choose who you'll cast your votes for. I'll assume frequent voting is on your list.

Sincerely,
Sandy Gleed

Do you really wonder why you had trouble engaging voters?

How do you think the 'group-think' on the SC is going to work out?

Dear Mike,

From what I've seen, Laurie Burzlaff and Karin Rhoton are intelligent women capable of thinking independently.

I think what you're really getting at is the liberal vs. conservative tendencies of the board. That is a valid concern. I lean toward the conservative myself, and I'll miss Chuck's voice on the Committee. That being said, however, I'm not so fast to pigeon-hole any of the School Committee board members. With ten years of attending or watching meetings under my belt, time and time again I've seen members who are liberal on some issues become very conservative on others. In fact, over the past year, Chuck didn't even stand out because the School Committee members were focused on implementing sound policies that make both political stances comfortable.

This time, I believe the most conservative person sitting on the dais may turn out to be the new Superintendent. That is one of the reasons I applauded Mr. Hottel's selection and hiring.

Sincerely,
Sandy Gleed

Sandy,

There's no question Hottel will be the most conservative. Faint praise indeed. He'll be gone in three years.

The lack of budget will be the only limiting factor.

The new school committee may surprise us. Hopefully in a good way.

Mike

PS 3/23/09 - I think the nature of the questions considered will directly shift. Dr. Ormsby directly challenged the status quo. Even at 4-1 and not having a 'second' to pursue issues and force votes, Ormsby will be missed. This dynamic is now lost.

Well, it looks like Karen Rhoton has Ormsby's support. Or at least he was holding her signs on Tuesday.

Did Dr. Ormsby write endorsing anyone anywhere?

Dear Bill,

I’m not aware that Chuck wrote any endorsement letters – his newspaper did endorse Dan Lanen though.

Your question did prompt me to do a bit of after-the-fact reflecting about endorsements though…

Dan Braese was not an NAU candidate and we did not run his campaign. We did, however, recommend voting for him because he was the most qualified candidate. I personally wrote a letter to the newspapers supporting him and I held signs for him. I hope he considers running again next year.

Any successful candidate shoulders the serious fiduciary responsibility of thinking independently. They need to cast well-thought-out votes to support the best long-term interests of the community, regardless of who endorsed them.

This goes for Karin Rhoton. Dan, Bill and Laurie too. No matter who held signs for them, they now have the responsibility to examine the issues and use their own judgment about what’s best for the community. I believe Karin is well aware of that.

A funny thing happens when you’re elected to lead the community. When the endorsers and sign holders aren’t in the room, you have to stand on your own two feet. Those who can, become leaders. Those who can’t, become followers.

It becomes evident, fairly quickly, who the leaders and followers are…

By the way, I am personally disappointed that Dan did not win a seat on the Board of Selectmen because he’s got talents our town needs, but I’m not disappointed with the over-all election results. Dan Lanen having to recuse himself from important decisions will always be a problem for me, but I think the Town may get a great bargain in electing Bill Gordon. He’ll bring fresh enthusiasm to the table with an experienced family resource(his dad, Fincom member and former town manager Jim Gordon) to turn to for advice. Not to mention that the family connection between the Board of Selectmen and the Finance Committee ought to do wonders to improve communication between the boards!!

Sincerely,
Sandy Gleed