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Dave
| | Posted on Thursday, May 9, 2002 - 9:09 am: |     |
Mr. Profeta is taking heat for changing his stripes and becoming a New Democrat. Does this fact wipe away all the many, many years of service he has given to Maplewood's civic life?
Ms. Sharif-Drinkard is taking heat for being new to town. Is tenure more important than intelligence and dedication? |
Artchristensen
| | Posted on Saturday, May 11, 2002 - 3:18 pm: | |
Now that I'm running for public office, the first thing I wanted to say was, "READ MY LIPS."
1. NO WAY!
2. NO WAY!
Now that felt good...... |
Fredprofeta
| | Posted on Tuesday, May 28, 2002 - 2:01 pm: | |
Mr. Profeta is taking heat for changing his stripes and becoming a New Democrat. Does this fact wipe away all the many, many years of service he has given to Maplewoodâs civic life?
I am disappointed in my opponents' charge that becoming a registered Democrat is evidence of lack of integrity. The charge is especially disappointing in light of the fact that, in the last 7 years, four present and prior Democratic Township Committee members have asked me to run on their line. In fact, one of these persons told me that, in light of my voting record and leadership of groups such as the Community Coalition on Race, it was "hypocritical" not to have registered as a Democrat sooner.
I do not question Ms. Leventhal's integrity for having managed the campaigns of Republican candidates. Nor do I question Ms. Sharif-Drinkard's integrity for not registering as a Democrat. I am sure that "character" had nothing to do with Jerry Ryan's support of Republican Jim Treffinger for Essex County Executive. Democratic Congressman Donald Payne has "enthusiastically endorsed" Ian and me, and I think that his integrity is beyond reproach.
My opponents' use of my MOL statement of last October in their mailer is unfortunate. The quotation was taken out of context. As they must know, that statement was in response to a charge by Republican Marie Stratechuk that I had "cut a deal" with the "New Democratic" wing of the local party. I said I had made no deals with and had "no ties" to any political group. That was true. To have said otherwise would have been "hypocritical."
Fifty-six percent of Maplewood's voters are unaffiliated. We have a strong tradition of independent and flexible thinking here. Ms. Leventhal has long been a part of that tradition. Ms. Sharif-Drinkard will certainly become familiar with it. Let's preserve what is special about us.
None of the positions which I took last year as a candidate have been altered. Ian and I espouse the same independent-minded thinking which we both championed in 2001. We are problem-solvers. We are pragmatic. We will only support what is best for Maplewood ö and we think that this is the standard most Maplewoodians have long favored.
Ms. Sharif-Drinkard is taking heat for being new to town. Is tenure more important than intelligence and dedication?
"Tenure" alone has nothing to do with qualification for public office in the community. The "true test" of qualification is a record of leadership and service in Maplewood. Such a record is the only measure by which the voters may determine how effective a candidate is likely to be. In fairness, Ms. Sharif-Drinkard could hardly have demonstrated such a record during the 1 year and 9 months she has lived in Maplewood.
Intelligence and dedication are not alternatives to tenure, as the question suggests. A candidate must possess the requisite intelligence and dedication to win the confidence of the voters. But a record of success is the only sure way to demonstrate the effectiveness of one"s intelligence, because, without leadership ability in the community, intelligence alone is a hollow virtue.
A resident does not appropriately begin a career of service to Maplewood at the top. It is first necessary to prove familiarity with all of our town, with all of its rich mix of people, and with all of its many issues. There are many persons in this town, of all backgrounds, who possess this familiarity. I hope that, through our records, Ian and I have proven that we are among them. |
Artchristensen
| | Posted on Tuesday, May 28, 2002 - 6:19 pm: | |
Fred and Ian,
Thank God! I was beginning to think this campaign would never start. I mean things like debating the issues, and who has the best plans for the future of Maplewood. I feel so good about seeing you guys post; I might even vote for you myself! Well.... maybe not this year!!!
I am not sure where we go from here, but given only the candidates can reply, I would believe all six of us are in safe territory. Mark and I will not engage in any personal attacks on any candidates. (I might make an exception for an incumbent though, well... probably not there either.)
If none of you mind, I would like to get the ball rolling on a very important Maplewood issue. I am presently engaged in an effort to overturn what I consider to be a bad ordinance. This is the one regarding the No Stopping, No Standing parking ban on Elmwood Avenue. The fact that this happens to effect me has nothing to do with the circumstances of how this matter was handled by the TC and a group of local neighbors. This issue can raise its ugly head anywhere in town, and from what I am learning, it already has.....
Rather than burn up this thread detailing all the details and other questions, I would like to first refer you to my thread named Spite, Stupidity, or Power Play. Then I invite all four candidates to respond more specifically to the following questions:
Q. Should the TC take any action against the parking privileges of a resident in town with out FIRST personally contacting the resident first?
Q. Is it professional or proper for the TC to engage in conversations and hold meetings over an eight month period with only some of the neighbors involved with a parking problem?
Q. Should the TC not FIRST make every effort to fully enforce existing ordinances before writing new ones when dealing with a parking issue? (ie: noise and loitering ordinances.)
Q. Should the TC transfer a parking problem from where the neighbors are complaining, to a few blocks away where the neighbors are Not complaining?
Q. This issue is about residential parking. Do any of you know of any other problems in town that have been handled in a similar fashion as this issue?
Thank you. |
Iangrodman
| | Posted on Wednesday, May 29, 2002 - 9:11 am: | |
Mr. Profeta is taking heat for changing his stripes and becoming a New Democrat. Does this fact wipe away all the many, many years of service he has given to Maplewood's civic life?
The short answer is no. Fred has lived in Maplewood for almost his entire lifetime. He is a founder of the Community Coalition on Race, the Springfield Avenue Partnership, the Maplewood Village Alliance, and the Columbia High School Alumni Association, all of which have contributed greatly to Maplewood. Anyone who has shown this much commitment and dedication is clearly highly qualified to serve Maplewood as a member of the township committee, no matter what their political affiliation. It is particularly intriguing to me that many of those who are now most vocal about Fred's registering as a Democrat are the same people who have invited Fred, on numerous occasions, to run for the Township Committee as a democrat in the past.
I am a lifelong democrat, and have worked locally on the campaigns of Celia King and Burt Liebman, in addition to several campaigns for Assemblyman Wilfredo Caraballo. I have volunteered for the campaigns of every democratic presidential candidate since 1976, and worked at the 1976 Democratic National Convention in New York (before I was old enough to register to vote). I am proud to be running with Fred, whose values are clearly those of the Democratic Party, for the democratic nomination for township committee.
Ms. Sharif-Drinkard is taking heat for being new to town. Is tenure more important than intelligence and dedication?
Tenure is not more important than intelligence and dedication, but certainly is a factor to be considered in making the choice to elect a government official. Khadijah Sharif-Drinkard is a very intelligent and enthusiastic young woman, and the experience set forth in her promotional materials suggests that she has been a dedicated and hard working member of communities where she has lived in the past. I would like to see some of that dedication and service substantiated in Maplewood, as well (rather than in "the Maplewood area"), before considering her as a candidate for the township committee. |
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