Election Post Mortum

We recorded Local Bias yesterday, June 11 and had the good fortune to have Tim Farrell as guest. Those of you who follow Greenfield politics are no doubt aware of Tim. He's not even Forty years old, and seemingly has held office since Lake Hitchcock receded.

The interview will be shown on GCTV Wednesday June 17th at 5:30pm, and repeated Thursday and Saturday 9pm, as well as the following week.

Tim and I discussed the recent Town election. You'll need to tune in if you want to hear what Tim had to say, except he did announce that he is seeking the Town Council President position.

I was not surprised that Bill Martin won the mayoral election. He brought a lot of energy to the race, and did a great job of reaching out beyond his base.

I was surprised that Isaac Mass lost to Marcia Day for the one year school committee seat. He has much greater name recognition than Marcia. Chris Collins in his regular column in the Recorder suggested that her performance in the televised debate helped her cause. I also feel that Isaac didn't focus all his attention on the race. He's been very busy getting his law degree, and balancing that with meeting the needs of his young family. We will be hearing from Isaac in the future.

Keith McCormic defeating Donovan Eastman and Mike Phillips was perhaps even more surprising. Keith strongly supported Question 1 last year, which would have decimated funding for schools. I was so taken with his appearance in the "Grand Finale" debate Barbara Tillmans produced at GCTV, that immediately following it, I asked him to come on Local Bias. I didn't think he was going to win the election, but I thought he would make a great guest, and he has agreed to appear at a future date to be determined.

With seven televised debates, the voters certainly had the opportunity to hear the candidates. Kudos to all the groups and producers which sponsored the debates, as well as the staff at GCTV which provided valuable technical support.

First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria.

I had the great pleasure to interview local author Eve Brown-Waite. Random House recently published her wonderful memoir "First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria...." and she has been working hard to promote it. Eve is a fascinating woman and I highly recommend her book. It is about how she met her husband John Waite when he was a recruiter for the Peace Corps, and she joined up. Hijinks ensue and I would hate to be a spoiler to anyone who hasn't read it yet, so I hesitate to say more than to strongly encourage you to pick up a copy for yourself. It is also the kind of book that makes a great present. I hope Oprah Winfrey invites Eve on her own show. Oprah has a few more viewers than I do, and I want to share Eve with as wide an audience as possible.

In other news, election day is June 9th and I have Town Counselor Tim Farrell lined up to appear on June 11. I suspect that our conversation will discuss the results. Tim is a very thoughtul Counselor, and I have been looking forward to interviewing him for quite awhile.

Lately the proposed Bio-Mass plant has been generating interest and I have to say that I'm conflicted. I hope to discuss the topic with future guests and I hope the people of Greenfield can have a civil discussion and arrive at a solution or approach that rises above the polemics of the big box issue. That being said, I hope to have Al Norman back on the show to update and educate us regarding the proposed big box debacle.

The Mayoral Race is heating up.

Greenfield holds an election for Mayor on Tuesday June 9th, and Local Bias has been fortunate to have candidates Al Siano and Bill Martin each appear and give our viewers some insight into who they are. I personally came away from each interview feeling that Greenfield will be well served by having either man in office.
Greenfield has been a town divided on some core issues. I have no doubt that we all want what is best for our fair town, and for future residents. We have been handed a legacy by those who came before us, and I hope that those in positions of influence and power act responsibly towards future generations. Taking the time to engage political adversaries in open dialogue can be a win-win for all of us. I encourage all members of the public to communicate with your own precinct counselors and let them hear your concerns, and demonstrate to them that you are engaged and informed. Too often, public officials become surrounded by acolytes and sycophants, and lose touch with segments of their constituency that have a lot to offer.
We have an obligation as citizens to hold ourselves to account as well as those who serve us. Please vote on June 9th 2009, and please remain involved after you vote.

Video on Demand

Local Bias has recently become available at www.gctv.org. The timing of video on demand should serve the voters of Greenfield well, as coverage of the mayoral race is available to anyone with an internet connection.
Local Bias also had the honor of having Governor Deval Patrick as guest. I personally found the Governor to be gracious and accessible. We discussed the challenges he is confronting as well as the opportunities he has in moving Massachusetts forward.
While it was certainly a pleasure to interview Governor Patrick; Local Bias is a program which tends to focus on the personalities we find in our own backyard. With the mayoral race heating up, I interviewed candidate Al Siano on April 30th, and will interview candidate Bill Martin on May 14th. Each of these shows will be available to the public on www.gctv.org, as well as being shown on GCTV channel 15. My understanding after speaking with Station Manager Scott MacPherson is that only one program at a time of Local Bias will be available on Video on Demand and the possibility exists to have a few archival shows available once the service has been up and running for a while.
Anyone who is interested in obtaining their own DVD copy of any particular episode is encouraged to write me at localbias@gmail.com.

Thanks,

Drew