Letter: What’s next? With this lockstep council, anything goes

Posted 2/19/19

To the editor:

The TTA Town Council majority appointed to the town attorney post a person with a probable conflicts and without relevant local governance experience.

This same majority, …

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Letter: What’s next? With this lockstep council, anything goes

Posted

To the editor:

The TTA Town Council majority appointed to the town attorney post a person with a probable conflicts and without relevant local governance experience.

This same majority, ignoring overwhelming public comment in person and by email, just appointed to the Library Board of Trustees a person hostile to and ignorant of the library’s purpose and programs. Two for two.  

What might be next, a harbormaster afraid of the water?  A police chief with a list of priors?  A fire chief who opposes smoke/CO2 residential alarms?  Folks, these lockstep votes do not signal thoughtful consideration of what is best for Tiverton.  

In my opinion these votes illuminate an agenda, possibly funded by outside forces, that seeks to eviscerate public services, ignore crucial community needs, and make public meetings in Tiverton so odious that ordinary people will turn away.  

This humorless, joyless elected majority seems all too willing to carry on contrary to any arguments or opposition, even challenging public comments as conspiratorial.  This is rich, given their slavish adherence in public meetings to positions and talking points that, to me, indicate prior agreement.  

Yes, elections have consequences, especially when those elected are, in my opinion, negative, nasty, and naysaying.  Tiverton can do better.  The sooner the better.  

Will Newman

Tiverton

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A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.