Larry:
Would you clarify please?  Is this something that Donahue told the Observer today? Is it on the web page?

If you subscribe to the online rag, you can comment on stories. This appears to be one of them.

here is the entire comment section for the report by Paul Shooter about the Selectmen and Slager defying the ban.

By: angel-joe on 7/31/09
Clue? Mr. Slager, in the office, with Paul Shooter (a fed) and a warrant?

By: angel-joe on 7/31/09
who is that VERY DISTINGUISHED LOOKING BLACK MAN that was present at BOTH the governor's town hall meeting and standing next to Mr. Donahue by the door as Bbrady's meeting? ?? Paul shooter? Don't recognize that name?

By: mike9f on 7/31/09
Having attended Bob Brady’s meeting July 30th, I walked away cheering the Selectman and Town Moderator for standing their ground. Although, I almost couldn’t help but feel sorry for Bob Brady when he had to return to his audience because the WPD refused to remove our BOS as Mr. Brady had hoped. That was short lived however when I listened to a poorly scripted litany of unsubstantiated complaints by a handful of town residents about how bad our elected and appointed town officials are including the Fin Com.

What I sat in absolute amazement about was the fact that Barbara Dighton Heapt appeared to read from a prepared statement during the additional concerns portion of the meeting. If our own Interim TA was turned away from the meeting, why was Ms.Heaupt a non-citizen of Wareham who sued us and took millions of dollars from us given the floor? I think the flashing media bulbs might be a little brighter than Bob Brady might have anticipated.

With respect to those citizens that rose to so eloquently promote unity and cooperation – I applaud you.

By the way, Cara Winslow proved to me tonight that I already voted to put the right people in office. Her feeble attempt to sway the audience to move the meeting to a different venue fell on deaf ears from her own. She will never, ever get my vote.

It also appeared to me that of about the 150-200 people in attendance, only about half were there in support of the meeting agenda, the other half were there to hear if there was indeed poof about the alleged illegal acts of the Selectmen. No such proof was presented.

As an aside, Mr. Brady should make certain that the next time he holds a meeting, he abides by the terms of his rental agreement and informs his guests about the rules of the landlord. Thank goodness the emergency exits were clearly marked last night because no one involved with organizing the meeting found it prudent to point them out!

Thank you to the BOS, John Donahue, and the Wareham Observer for having the couage of their convictions.

By: angel-joe on 7/31/09
So, does ANYONE know who that very distinguished looking black man in the dark suit was who was standing at the door? I was actually hoping he was going to take the stage and reveal the results of the audit !!

By: Telsa on 7/31/09
What was Brady thinking? Did he expect the WPD to show up with the paddy wagons and drag all the "uninvited guests" out?
The police did the right thing. My confidence builds for the WPD since the major changes in the dept.
I have more respect than ever now for our BOS and you Mr. Slager for standing up for what is right.
I for one wish Brady and his gang would go away and let the BOS do what needs to be done here.



By: Zorro on 7/31/09
I was not able to personally observe last night's events, but have read a number of 'recaps'.
I echo your comments mike9f.

By: madmom on 7/31/09 [Delete]
mike you need more proof then go to the selectmens office ask for a copy of the dvd for BOS meeting 11/6/2007 let me know how the transperancy of public records is for you.. Also ask to see BOTH books public record entered in on 11/27/2007. i will wait and see then how you feel about the BOS and ITA public record disclosure..

By: 4dognite on 7/31/09
Well said Mike9f, I attended the meeting as well. I was hoping for information and unfortunately heard the same rhetoric from self absorbed people. The meeting was disjointed and lacked substance. The BOS and Mr Slager maintained their composure and the shouting mob lost any shred of credibility they may have had.What kind of adults behave that way in a public forum? It was kind of sad when Mr Brady called the police and they refused to comply with his (unreasonable "in my opinion" request) I agree that there probably was about 150 people in attendance and probably less than 1/2 were Bob Brady supporters. I would like to applaud the brave souls who tried to encourage mutual respect and an element of cooperation for the good of our town.
Mr Brady seemed ill prepared, ill at ease and I found it particularly hypocritical for someone to read a statement he doesn't support or believe in(recall).Cara Winslow is not a nice person, I've seen her in action before, I didn't vote for her and I'm glad she lost the election. Actually, I voted for everyone of the current BOS and I couldn't be happier. They have the courage and conviction to investigate the corrupt old boy network in this town. And "the old boys" are screaming the loudest.Interestingly, Mr Brady insisted on "no media" and Mr Urbon and photographer were there. I am thrilled Mr Brady has publically stated that "he is not interested in running for selectman", I, for one, would never vote for him: he did enough by voting in the "sewer enterprise fund" as a bonus tax for sewer users when he was in office.Thanks Mr Brady: you've done enough.

By: CoachTP on 7/31/09
Welcome to Neverland, er, Wareham where you can choose to live in a dream and never grow up. Real informative meeting when Sponge Bob tried to have the Police remove the BOS and the media. A CBW member tried to physically restrain a BOS member from entering. Sponge bob and his fellow crustations then ranted and raved about the ineptitude of the BOS. Forgive me for using the old hamburger ad of where's the beef, but WHERE WAS THE PROOF???? Steve Holmes was quite a classless act leading the charge aginst the Editor of the Observer with Former selectman candidate DeFelice taunting and showing why he thankfully was not elected. I could go on but you get the picture. Wise man once told me that there is a seat for every A_s, You proved last night there is an A_s for evey seat.

By: robertslager on 7/31/09
Sorry for the delay in posting comments. I'm actually on a little vacation with my family. I wanted to thank you folks for all the kinds words of support following last night's meeting. It certainly wasn't a pleasant experience for me personally, but I felt I had to be there as a matter of principle, not just as a journalist but as a person.

By: Zorro on 7/31/09
Rob, hope you enjoy your vacation time. And Kudos for your efforts. I sure hope the Town gets it's act(s) together pretty soon. In my opinion, the audit results, when finally compiled and released, SHOULD show some of the reasons Wareham is where it is today. I sure hope so anyway.

By: mike9f on 7/31/09
4dognite, Thank you.

Madmom, I do not doubt that you believe that you have an issue with the BOS. Based on your previous posts, I believe I recognized you from your statements at the meeting. I did try to catch-up to you and speak with you but lost you in the crowd. I saw no proof of any of the allegations contained in the meeting call that Mr. Brady published. You implied in your previous posts that proof would be supplied at the meeting - I assumed you meant documented proof. Instead, what happenened was that I sat quietly during the meeting waiting for something of substance to be produced all the while being forced to listen to the onslought of aggressive, antagonistic, almost threatening comments made toward the BOS, the Town Moderator, and Robert Slager, all of whom sat passively without being provocateurs. As you probably know, there are limited circumstances under which public documents might be protected even under the Freedom of Information Act. If you truly believe that the town has violated the law/proceedures of the FOIA, by all means, pursue it via the Attorney General or the DA as they have jurisdiction over those matters and it should not result in costly litigation to the town.

By: mike9f on 7/31/09
Madmom,
Can you tell me why a member of the group felt it was his right to put his hands on a member of the BOS? Also why was the woman who sued us in the swifts beach matter allowed to speak as any other town citizen?

By: madmom on 7/31/09 [Delete]
i posted it earlier!! if you need more proof then go to the selectmens office ask for a copy of the dvd for BOS meeting 11/6/2007 let me know how the transperancy of public records is for you after being sent to the ITA office who denies it TRY THIS I DARE ALL!!!.. Also ask to see BOTH books public record entered in on 11/27/2007 REMEMBER i said there are 2 books. i will wait and see then how you feel about the BOS and ITA public record disclosure.. go to the town hall monday.... post back here!!!!!

By: Telsa on 8/1/09
Scuttlebutt is.... the most important changes have already been strategically placed.
Time will tell.

By: Telsa on 8/1/09
Was Brenda manhandled? Did he put his hands on her? Did he physically touch her? In Wareham that has always been a no no.


By: Telsa on 8/1/09
Zorro, If they know what to look for. Let me help. For free I will assist them.

By: angel-joe on 8/1/09
Just read Steve Holmes piece in substandard.. as far as race baiting, perhaps it would not be an issue were it not for the fake observer site posting racist hate mongering, i.e. the "white flour" cartoon... and ANYONE on that site I will consider guilty by association. As far as Cara Winslow, I thought it interesting that she left with Mr. Decas 5 minutes after showing up... Hmm... power elite?

By: angel-joe on 8/1/09
Mr. Slager? Was that distinguished looking black man in the 'dark suit" one of your "special" correspondents? Am I crazy? A I the only one to be noticing these things?
John Donahue? Did you speak with that man?

By: John_Donahue on 8/1/09
angel-joe, the gentleman standing next to me at the 'community' meeting was Walter Correia, WPD detective.

By: CoachTP on 8/1/09
Media was banned from the meeting. Sponge bob really meant the Observer was the media banned. Strange that the sub-standard times ace junior cub reporter steve urbon was not asked to leave or threatened. Maybe sponge bob and his crustations know that the sub-standard times sees the news through their eyes only or M A Y B E the sub-standard times is not considered real media.

By: CoachTP on 8/1/09
Sponge Bob and his crustations complaining about being passed over for boards and committees. Wonder why if it is true, m a y b e because they acted and sounded like little kids throwing a tantrum because they didn't get their way. Mob rule just like the old west, gets many honest citizens into trouble, easy to get people riled up and do foolish things in anger or spur of the moment. You get people to listen to you, tell them what you think is wrong, scare the hell out of them, whip them into a frenzy then sit back and watch human nature take its natural course. You sit back and laugh because you set about these events to benefit yourself not to better your town.
Wareham deserves better thsn idiots out for personal glory at the expense of others. If you truly believed in your town then try to formulate a plan to work together to make it better. Acting like a dictator in charge of a revolution or a savior brings many past historical groups and names to mind. Read Castro, Hitler, the KKK, skinheads or any other group. When you act like a fool you usually end up looking like a fool.


By: madmom on 8/1/09 [Delete]
mike, i have aware that there are "Special" consideration under the FOIA. My case does not fall under any of those. like i posted before I encourage and and all who read this to take 5 minutes and go to the BOS office and ask for the DVD 11/6/07 and let me know how you make out..
as far as brendas out burst i saw 99.9% of what happened he was standing there in front of jane d when brenda came in and quickly went past him i saw her left side bump into his back i never saw his hands on her but i am not them. as for the information coming out at the meeting no it didnt bob put up his email with bruce which is what i have and as far as the public records it is obvious most people like yourself dont belive it until it happens to you that why i urge you to go request it yourself.. if youd like to email me feel free we can talk maybe even go to the town hall together.. madmax01972@aim.com..

By: angel-joe on 8/1/09
Did Bbrady hire detective Correia for the door?

By: angel-joe on 8/1/09
I keep getting this jingle in my head, "The wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round, round and round. The wheels on the bus go round and round, ALL THROUGH THE TOWN."... yikes... It must be getting closer as you would never let some of these "hints" be exposed..... yikes...

By: mike9f on 8/1/09
Madmom, I am confused; You posted proof? Where? When? Your telling me to go to town hall and request records, records that may or may not be protected even from a request under the FOIA. I did check the town website for a record of minutes from those dates and found none. But, that does not necessariy mean that they are being improperly withheld. Due to work commitments , it is difficult for me to get to town hall anytime soon.

By: mike9f on 8/1/09
Telsa, Although I did not personaly witness the incident with Brenda, I did hear others that talking that supposedly did.

By: mike9f on 8/1/09
Madmom, Thanks for the honesty about what you saw with Brenda. I will go to town hall, at my first opportunity and will let you know what I learn.

By: mike9f on 8/1/09
Just read Steve Holmes Letter to the ST. I am disgusted. Below is what the Title of the Letter to the Editor should have been.

Race baiting? Or was Robert Slager really just looking out for all of Wareham’s residents including the Cape Verdean Community?

As we all know, there are a number of ways a person or people can be discriminated against. Discrimination can be direct or indirect. Indirect discrimination appears to be equal treatment but is unfair on certain people because of a particular personal characteristic.

I can certainly see why Mr. Slager would hypothesize what could have been construed as indirect discrimination. Here’s why:

1) It is generally believed that the Wareham Observer is widely followed by the Cape Verdean Community. There was extensive coverage of the Oak Grove School and Community center matters in that newspaper. In fact, if it were not for the Wareham Observer, many of us would not have any knowledge about the Oak Grove School or the Cape Verdean Community’s desires.

Bob Brady failed to place an ad for his July 30th meeting in the Wareham Observer, a newspaper widely believed to be read by the Cape Verdean Community. This was the only local paper that Mr. Brady did not place an ad.

2) It is also generally believed that an overwhelming majority of the Cape Verdean community are strong supporters of the Board of Selectmen because they believe that the Board of Selectmen effectively represent the interests of the Cape Verdean community.

If it is true that an overwhelming number of the Cape Verdean population are supporters of the Board of Selectmen and the vast majority read the Wareham Observer instead of the other newspapers, then Bob Brady’s meeting invitation was inherently unfair in that it limited a disproportionate number of the Cape Verdean community from attending by not providing them with the same notice.

I am by no means trying to imply that Bob Brady was trying to discriminate against the Cape Verdean Community. I genuinely believe that he did not have any intention of doing that. He just wanted to keep everyone who might speak in opposition to his agenda out!

Steve Holmes seems to be an intelligent man, I think he was smart enough to see a genuine observation by Slager and was able to sufficiently blur the line to manipulate it into a headline. I also believe that the vast majority of people will see the validity in the above arguments.

Let this be a lesson to all of us that it is inclusion rather than exclusion that will avoid situations such as this. The BOS, John Donahue, and Robert Slager have nothing to be ashamed of.


By: John_Donahue on 8/1/09
I did not witness it either, but Brenda told my wife that Mr. Wheeler put his arm out in front of Brenda and brushed her back in an attempt to prevent her from entering the auditorium. Brenda then exclaimed, "take your hands off me, take your hands off me, you have not right to touch me" and Mr. Wheeler then removed his arm and stated to Brenda "you walked into my arm".

By: John_Donahue on 8/1/09
I also thought that it was rather obvious and noteworthy that Mr. Decas and Ms. Winslow got up and left the meeting together not too long after Mr. Brady started going through his list of horribles. I assumed that Mr. Decas and Ms. Winslow were going out into the hallway in order to plot their next move, but they never returned to the auditorium. I guess they had their own meetng elsewhere, or else simply decided that it just wasn't worth staying to watch the rest of the show.

By: angel-joe on 8/1/09
Mr. Slager? Are you in Washington DC also doing business?? If so, I hope your girls get to see all the sites and historic buildings, especially the DOJ building... yikes..

By: CoachTP on 8/1/09
Just read steve holmes in the sub-standard times opinions. Talk about stupid. Steve you are a moron if you cannot understand the Observer story. The same hate bloggers are so far up your butt that you need to open your mouth so they can gulp air. Hypothetical: based on a hypothesis, you know, maybe you don't, something considered to be true for the purpose of investigation or argument. Don't call a pig in a poke when sponge bob said only those who think like me could come to a community meeting. The only race-baiting going on here is from you mental midgets. If anyone owes Wareham an apolpgy is is sponge bob and his minions who act like folls an talk like you Steve>

By: madmom on 8/1/09 [Delete]
mike i didnt post proof.. bob and i had the same issues with the chairmen of the BOS and his rude and disrespect in emails.. bob touched on this.. i have the emails if you like email me and i will send them to you.. its not the minutes of the meeting its the DVD.. and another public record.. let me know how far you get.. like i said they are not being withheld because of the FOIA..

By: CoachTP on 8/1/09
After all the stories on the "other" web site it was curious to me that the BOS and MR. Slager never said a word or tried to disrupt the "community" meeting. Sponge bob called the police to demand that the WPD remove citizens and the media from his meeting. Public building, open to all, means you cannot exclude anyone because of opposing views. This is America not a controlled dictatorship uder you twisted leadership. GET OVER IT

By: robertslager on 8/1/09
FYI: There will be a live chat tomorrow night starting at 8 p.m. Even though I'm on vacation, there is just too much to talk about right now. I hope to see you all there.

By: John_Donahue on 8/1/09
What did Dick Cheney say about the Taliban in Iraq? That they were on their last throes of their insurgency? By way of analogy, I think the Brady Bunch had its swan song last Thursday night.

By: CoachTP on 8/2/09
Read with interest how on the other site bloggers stated their position to take back Wareham. Sponge bob and his minions were all going to show us how to reinvent Wareham in to Utopia. Sorry but all we learned from this meeting is how mob mentality works. Let's see: Sponge bob tried to keep residents out. Residents 1---SB 0
Non-residents not allowed to speak. Non-residents 1--SB--0 BOS and Slager to disrupt meeting. BOS\Slager 1--SB-0 Meeting to be informative Residents 1--SB-0( Residents got an eyefull and earfull of BS from SB} No PROOF brought forward. Those who spoke ranted and raved and sounded like fools.
When someone spoke up about giving the BOS a chance to speak he was roundly booed and forced to sit down and told to shut up. Democracy 0-SB--1 Maybe we ought to think about the message here from SB. If you don't think like me you don"t think at all. Hmmm!!
What was it the scarecrow was looking for in the movie "The Wizzar Of Oz". Maybe SB needs to go to OZ

Actually, I have taken a copy of the email, Mr. Slager's article stirring racial tensions, the original invitation, and a few comments from the meeting and forwarded them to a couple of the State politicians. In my opinion, this needs to be addressed at the state level and Mr. Donahue needs to make a public apology. This is exactly what our leaders should be trying to eliminate and they still haven't come out against what happened.

As much as I enjoy watching them self destruct, it doesn't excuse what they did. So, if everyone complains to the congressmen and governor, maybe it will put the focus on the crap they pulled. This isn't just about replacing them, it's about doing it right and stopping irresponsible acts that can be dangerous!

WELL ALL I CAN TELL IS THAT SLAGER'S FOLLOWERS ARE NOTHING BUT NUTJOBS. HEY SLAGER I ALWAYS WONDER IF NUTJOBS ACTUALLY KNOW THAT THEY ARE NUTJOBS? CARE TO COMMENT? I WILL ALWAYS WONDER WHY PAUL SHOOTER SEEMS TO EXIST ONLY IN SLAGER'S HEAD. I WILL ALWAYS WONDER WHY SLAGER GOES ON A VACTION DURING A TOWN WIDE COMPUTER AUDIT. I WILL ALWAYS WONDER WHY JOHN DONAHUE WHO FAILED TO GET ANYONE TO ATTEND HIS PROTEST CRITICIZES THE MEETING ATTENDED BY OVER 200 PEOPLE? TOO MUCH TIME ON YOUR HANDS JOHN, YOU DID LOSE THAT COURT JOB POSITION. I WILL ALWAYS WONDER WHY PAUL SHOOTER WRITES EXACTLY LIKE SLAGER. I WILL ALWAYS WONDER WHY A REPORTER HAS TO BE INTERVIEWED ON A CONSTANT BASIS.

If brains were gas, that group of posters wouldn't have enough to push a piss ants mini bike around the inside of a cheerio. How in the world do they come to some of the conclusions they come up with? whew.....enough said about that group. Maybe they can hold a rally for support of John Donahue. I am pretty sure the same people that showed up Thursday night would show up for that rally.

Here is my two cents:

Perception is a powerful thing. They thought that half the people there supported the bos. They thought the evidence provided was bogus or chose to ignore it. They thought hearing about concerns from a member of fin com should be ignored. They thought it was ok for sweet brucie to call a taxpayer dimwitted and a clown. They thought that telling a citizen to sue the town and then denying it at the next meeting, the bos were doing a good job. They thought ragboy was wonderful and courageous. By not condemning John D's race baiting, they condoned it. By not condemning ragboys "hypothetical that lead to stating factually that the CV community would not be allowed to attend the meeting,"  they condoned it. People see what they want to see. Some of us see more clearly.

Since I refuse to read the rag, I have to go by the quotes from the rag on this blog. His "hypothetical" was incendiary. And for John Donahue to sit there with his head held high after sending an email to over 100 people claiming that the CVs would not be permitted into the middle school is astounding. Here again is what his email said: Take Wareham Back from the Haters.Cape Verdeans for Free Speech in Wareham object to our public schools being used to discriminate against our community! Because many of us have a different view on the town's future we will be prevented from attending a community meeting at the middle school! This is wrong! Let every voice be heard! We must never be silenced again! Please join us!

I'm glad this email and Slager's articles have been sent to the state. Did someone send them to the governor? I'm sure as a black man he'd be thrilled to hear that  the leaders of the Dem. party in Wareham are race baiting.

I'm not for recall, but go to that site warehamrecall09.com and see the reasons for recall. Ragbloggers want evidence? Plenty of it. My mother used to say you can't see the forest for the trees. See? It's all in perception and how you see it.

And Mr. Donahue--we are not in the last throes of our movement and you did not witness a swan song. Keep dreaming. We have just begun to fight.

I WILL ALWAYS WONDER WHY BOBO CAN NEVER EVER GET THE INDENTITY OF A "HATEBLOGGER" CORRECT? IVE BEEN AT LEAST 8 PEOPLE IN THE PAST MONTHS. KEEP TRYING..... IM GLAD YOU WERE ABLE TO GO ON A VACATION AND STILL HAVE NOT PAID YOUR STATE FILING FEES IN THE AMOUNT OF 1,000 DOLLARS. KIND OF LIKE SWEET BRUCEY GOING TO MEXICO EVERY YEAR ON VACATION OWING 181,000 DOLLARS IN BACK TAXES.

I object to Bobo referring to himself as a "person."

Everyone who knows Wareham knows the Donahue machine's powers of political mobilization are such that they can usually snap their fingers and instantly organize a protest of a weeny roast...so that they could not get at least 2 or 3 people to show up with picket signs (because they couldn't find anyone that want to be a political pawn in this ridiculous, obvious, and shameful racebaiting scheme to silence their opponents) is an outright embarrasment for them.

Last edited by Hamatron5000 (2009-08-02 16:32:06)

Larry excellent job with the comments. Helps to know we are right on target with this issue.

In none of the comments do they deny the facts, they simply chose to try and shoot the messenger that exposed them.

Well I hope they have plenty of bullets because as I said Thursday I am a patient man and I am not going away.

I did detect some hate blogging in the comments, seems again Mr Slager's policies are only for other websites.

At least I was decent enough to say it to his face in public.


Steve

Molly,
If you don't mind, could you send me the John donahue email. At this point, I have the posted copy from here, but it wouldn't hurt to have the original email for inclusion in the package.