This seems like the logical conclusion to the Save Nonantum PAC’s entry into Newton’s politics: an online advertisement using a arguably racist trope to describe two candidates.* We have seen such last-minute nastiness in the past, but never before from an official organization that is embraced by candidates, coordinating with elected officials, and funded by scores of people, including a state representative.
Is it a racist ad? Regional activist (and, coincidentally, the moderator of the conversation about racism in zoning sponsored by the city last year), Jarred Johnson tweeted about the ad:
Did this sign just call me the n-word? https://t.co/84eam62coh
— Jarred is "rooting for everybody black" (@jarjoh) March 15, 2021
It is important to keep in mind the context. The two topics that Tarik Lucas and John Oliver have described as distinguishing them from their opponents are single-family-only zoning and police reform. These are two topics steeped in race. Single-family-only zoning is commonly recognized as systemic racial bias, if not out-and-out systemic racism. And, of course, police reform is an urgent issue because of the treatment of people of color at the hands of police. The term “extreme agitators” echoes “outside agitators,” a term with a history of racism.
At least some see the ad as racist, you may not. But in the context, it’s hard not to see it as extremely provocative.
It certainly complicates matters that Candidate Lucas, who has made his opposition to zoning reform, especially the elimination of single-family-only zoning, a key part of his campaign message, is a Black man. But, racist language used by white people in service of a Black candidate doesn’t make it any less racist.
Save Nonantum are not some secret, fringe group. They are a group operating fully in the open, with a web site and Facebook page. They raised over $20,000 from more than 100 people, fully out in the open on GoFundMe. Their contributors include State Representative John Lawn ($250), a high-profile Boston TV sportscaster ($500), and the general manager of one of Newton’s auto dealerships ($500).** Save Nonantum are organizing events that include Candidates Lucas and Oliver and publishing about it on their Facebook page.
Despite numerous calls to disavow or at least comment on Save Nonantum’s smear campaigns against Candidates Barash and Ranalli, both Candidates Lucas and Oliver have been publicly silent. In private, though, Candidate Lucas has expressed his support for Save Nonantum’s messaging. In an email, a Newton voter wrote Lucas:
I hope you will disavow the messaging used by the Nonantum PAC that is smearing your opponent by implying they would shut down expression of Italian American pride if they were elected. Our city doesn’t need this kind of divisiveness, and if you win, their support of you would tarnish you.
His response:
I welcome support from any Newton voters who are so moved to support me, and I do not seek to denigrate residents in any area of our City. ***
Basically, he’ll take support from anyone.
Candidate Lucas even sent his correspondent another Save Nonantum ad.
I am attaching an Ad from the Save Nonantum PAC that I saw this morning. I think it’s pretty good.
Safe to say that Candidate Lucas has embraced Save Nonantum.
For a variety of reasons that might strike you as good or bad, this election has a pretty clear dividing line, largely due to the fact that zoning reform is the hot issue in the city. One one side, Bryan Barash and Maddy Ranalli have the support of the more progressive city councilors and local activists. On the other side, Tarik Lucas and John Oliver have the more conservative city councilors**** and local activists on their side. Despite the divisive rhetoric from Save Nonantum, not a single person on the conservative side has criticized any of the Save Nonantum ads, the smear campaign that started with the GoFundMe appeal, or the continued insinuations posted on their web page. One of the Save Nonantum ads even includes a quote from Councilor Emily Norton (a comment she made on Village 14); she has not publicly disavowed the use of her comment.
The silence on Save Nonantum from Councilor Marc Laredo — along with Councilor Norton probably the most active of the councilors backing Candidates Lucas and Oliver — is deafening. So long as Save Nonantum are making common cause with Councilor Laredo and his allies, Laredo & Co. are not going to get in their way. Save Nonantum and their grievance-driven politics are now part of Newton’s political landscape.
This is Trumpian politics come to Newton and given oxygen by Candidates Lucas and Oliver and their supporters.
—
* Folks are free to say whatever they’d like about me in the comments, but, before you start saying that I called anyone racist, please diagram this sentence. I use “racist” as an adjective to modify “language.” I make no claim as to whether or not the person who “wrote” the ad copy actually harbors personal racial animus. It doesn’t matter what’s in the person’s soul, just what actions they take.
** For a full list of contributors, go here and search on Save Nonantum or 81050.
*** Here’s the full text of the email,
Hi [correspondent’s first name],
Thank you for reaching out.
A couple in West Newton told me they spoke with Mr. Barash and that he had expressed concern that the red, white and green is “not inclusive.” He now denies saying it. I don’t know, I wasn’t there, but I don’t see it as my place to weigh in. As for Indigenous People’s Day, I testified in favor of it when the City Council held a public hearing this past fall. The problem I see is that the Italian-American community might feel disenfranchised now. This is not OK. I will work with Newton residents of all backgrounds, if they feel that their voice is not being heard at City Hall. I welcome support from any Newton voters who are so moved to support me, and I do not seek to denigrate residents in any area of our City. Thank you so much for reaching out and I would welcome the opportunity to speak with you further.
I am attaching an Ad from the Save Nonantum PAC that I saw this morning. I think it’s pretty good.
This ordinarily would merit its own post, but note that Candidate Lucas used an unsubstantiated rumor to justify his silence on Save Nonantum’s smears and acknowledges that he’s done a 180 on Columbus/Indigenous People’s Day, going from actually testifying in favor of Indigenous People’s Day to currying favor with the Save Nonantum folks.
**** Within the context of Newton civic affairs, the anti-zoning reform side is demonstrably more conservative, in the sense of resisting change.
I received an election robo-call this afternoon from Martina Jackson. One thing she said was that Tarik Lucas and John Oliver will “unite us not divide us”.
That line jumped out at me.
The series of ads, unsubstantiated accusations and innuendo, and rhetoric by Save Nonantum in support of Tarik Lucas and John Oliver have been the most divisive thing I’ve seen in local politics since I moved here 12 years ago.
While these ads were run by a PAC, not the candidates’ campaigns, I’ve been disappointed that the candidates don’t seem to have a problem with them and certainly haven’t publicly distanced themselves from them.
This world is going crazy
Jerry, rather than rehash the PAC ads, let’s jump to the message of the robo-call. Who do you think is more divisive, Tarik or Bryan? My guess is most people would either say Bryan or they would say that they are equally divisive. I don’t think many people would say that Tarik is more divisive than Bryan.
Thank you Jerry. Thank you Sean.
Can someone explain the mental gymnastics used to conclude that ad was racist… i don’t get it
We’re talking about that blue background, white + green text ad at the top of Sean’s post right?
bugek, not sure if you can access this but:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/08/us/outside-agitators-history-civil-rights.html
Interested in your thoughts after reading.
@Bugek: It’s Newton’s own Godwin’s law: every discussion, on any topic under the sun, from bike lanes to favorite pizza place, will end with someone accusing someone else of racism.
I almost had myself convinced last week to vote for Oliver and Lucas. I now plan to abstain from the Oliver/Ranalli race, and to vote for David Micley in the other contest. This campaign has turned me off like no other local one has in my nearly 38 years of being a voter. Immaturity and flip-flopping on the more liberal end of the spectrum; on the more conservative side, alliances with a mean-spirited PAC that traffics in unsubstantiated rumors and flat-out just makes up stuff.
I hope the candidates are happy with themselves, because I sure as hell am not.
I hope in future elections this city that I’ve called home for more than 17 years can produce better candidates.
These elections are primarily about the pace of reforming discriminatory land use laws (housing in general as well as affordable units) and policing. On these two topics, I view Ayanna as the standard for “progressive” and she is pro defund and pro reforming land use laws. I can give other examples (e.g., the Dem platform, the HOME act of 2019, the Housing Choice legislation passed by our regional government). This informs my vote and support.
https://archive.curbed.com/2020/1/29/21112405/aoc-squad-peoples-housing-platform-congress-legislation-housing
https://time.com/5857571/ayanna-pressley-defund-police-time100-talks/
I know how they feel, I’ve been called an extreme agitator before lolololol
Read about today’s “outside agitators” here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia_and_Black_Lives_Matter
I happen to agree that eliminating single family zoning in Newton would be “extremely agitating,” and read nothing at all racist into this ad. Whatever the racist history of zoning rules (that nobody alive in Newton wrote or voted for), adding hundred/thousands of $1m+ condos, anywhere and everywhere, is highly unlikely to right past racial wrongs.
Couldn’t one construe that when Nonantum says “outsiders,” they are referring to people who live in leafy neighborhoods elsewhere in Newton who have no intention of allowing density in their own backyards?
Anybody have a few extra pearls I can hang on to for the next couple days?
Sheesh
This ad may not be terribly effective (an understatement!) , but no, I don’t think it’s racist. I also think that always calling something you don’t agree with discriminatory is not a very effective strategy to persuade voters, either. Tomorrow can’t come soon enough.
Fignewtonville,
So the 0.0000001% of times the word “agitators” was used in a racist context vs the trillions of times its been used since.. somehow makes it a trope
I guess you can really find racism in something if you really want to convince yourself.
Ie if you are intentionally looking for a position where 23 of your co workers are all white.. does that make you racist?
Village 14 might be the worst thing that has happened to Newton.
Village 14 isn’t unifying anyone and no one is bringing anything constructive to the table.
We should all be embarrassed.
@ Irene ‘Tomorrow can’t come soon enough” I was just going to say that. To bad we don’t have a “Like” button but I agree completely!!
Sean, This post is straight up bildge water.
Trumpian politics came to Newton when Bryan Barash and the Charter Commission thought they could hoodwink Newton voters by canceling their ward representation.
Of course people will try to slander the residents of Nonantum now as racist. “arguably racist trope” Sean, you should be ashamed of yourself, and whoever that Jarrod is, that tweet shows how much of a race baiter he is, and for this writer to publish this blog and call that ad racist shows race baiting is also your go to thing when you cannot defend any of the actions people in Nonantum are worried about.
Thanks @Sean.
Where are you seeing the so-called ‘180 on Indigenous peoples day’?
Nowhere does Tarik say he is no-longer in favor of the change approved by our City Council. He does say, ‘he will work with Newton residents of all backgrounds if they feel their voice is not being heard at City Hall’.
If you are looking for 180s, Bryan’s contradictory statements on the elimination of single family zoning is a stronger example –
https://village14.com/2021/03/03/bryan-barash-waffling-on-city-wide-single-family-zoning/
Bugek, you asked for context, I gave you context from the New York Times. You don’t have to agree with Sean, but you asked for an explanation and I sent the best source I could find.
It was a very strange ad in my view. There is the grammar mistake, the lack of context, the use of the language that a political consultant would have warned them against using. I don’t see how this drives more votes for their candidates.
FedUp, how is it Village14’s fault? Have you read the various Facebook and listservs lately? This is very tame by comparison. And the voices supporting Tarik and Oliver are in the majority here.
Irene and Claire, tomorrow will bring a pause, but the next election is just 8 months away. I think that one will be worse, and all of this is just going to start back up again in a few months.
@Sean, when you quote Tarik saying, “I am attaching an Ad from the Save Nonantum PAC that I saw this morning. I think it’s pretty good,” then you certainly should show the ad that he was referring to. It’s this ad quoting retired Newton Police Office Tyrone Powell. The ad seems very much in keeping with Tarik’s own story–being welcomed into a neighborhood in Newton with compassion and warmth. I too think it’s pretty good.
I don’t have a Facebook account. It’s toxic-just like this is. I thought a blog specifically for our own community would be slightly more civilized.
At least they fixed the spelling error.
The “new neighbors are a tax burden” candidates have promoted so much disinformation on the zoning reform topic, and they attributed statements to Bryan and Maddy that their campaigns never generated.
No candidate has proposed “eliminating single family zoning city-wide” in their campaign materials, debates, or recent public statements on this topic.
–> The idea of addressing the discriminatory effects of our zoning ordinance by allowing 2-family homes by right across the city grew out of Zoning and Planning Committee (ZAP) discussions and was proposed in writing last August. In December, ZAP Committee Chair Deb Crossley decided to table this proposal and move on to discussing zoning for areas within walking distance of village centers, commercial corridors, and transit hubs. These areas offer the greatest opportunity for creating new affordable and “missing middle” homes.
–> Here is exactly what the candidates I’m voting for say about zoning reform:
From Maddy’s website: “In order to increase both the stock and variety of our housing, I support zoning requirements that enable us to build diverse housing options and multi-family homes, especially around our transit and village centers. We should also work to make it easier for the permitting and construction of affordable developments and incentivizing those who specialize in affordable projects to build here. Our city’s ongoing redesign of our zoning ordinance is an opportunity not just for the creation of more housing options, but to engage our entire city in determining how we want to make that a reality.”
From Bryan’s website: “Bryan’s goals are to see a zoning code that allows for more housing—including affordable housing—in our village centers, disincentivizes teardowns and McMansions, incentivizes more middle income housing, ensures that new housing is environmentally sustainable, and makes accessory apartments more cost effective.”
Unlike their competitors, Maddy & Bryan support the recently-passed Housing Choice legislation, which lowers the voting threshold for certain zoning changes and permitting approvals from a two-thirds to a simple majority.
–> Massachusetts was one of only 10 states — and the only one in New England — with a super-majority requirement for all land-use decisions. Like the many state legislators who supported these provisions, including our entire delegation, they understand that the super-majority rule was a major roadblock to housing production, not just in Newton but across the state. Housing access and shortages are a regional problem that can’t simply be left to one or two cities while the rest do little. Housing Choice will make it easier to build multifamily homes in transit-oriented and walkable locations. We need to elect City Councilors who support this kind of progress, which will enable us to welcome new neighbors to Newton.
https://www.chapa.org/housing-news/governor-signs-economic-development-bill-with-critical-zoning-reforms-affordable
There are two candidates in this special election who support using “all the tools” available to build more affordable housing in Newton: Madeline Ranalli & Bryan Barash.
–> These include but are not limited to: permitting detached accessory units by right, permitting multifamily homes by right in certain locations, more lenient height restrictions, updating unit-size requirements, abiding by the new Housing Choice rules, and creating an affordable housing trust.
FedUp, come back after the election and check it out. There are a lot of great discussions.
Lastly,@Figgy…. you are amazing whoever you are
@Bruce: I agree with you it’s good! Officer Powell is a Newton treasure. Disappointing but not surprising that Sean would not actually share the content of the ad, when mentioning what Tarik said about it.
Really Sean? Your post uses the term “racist” seven times, and then as your core point, you attack Tarik Lucas for sharing a message he “thought was pretty good”
… without providing the message he shared (uploaded elsewhere to allow sharing):
https://newton.jackprior.org/save-nonantum-ty-powell-ad/
Is it divisive? People can judge for themselves.
Jason, I doubt a lot of folks agree with you, but I appreciate the kind words.
@Fignewtonville is indeed a fine cookie
Jason, Waban Center is both walkable and right on the T line, and you have a brand new elementary school right up the block. Why don’t you, Bryan and Sean pledge that not one more unit of multifamily can be built north of the pike until meaningful affordable housing is constructed in Waban. And not just a few units at slightly below market rates, but actually affordable homes that would noticeably increase diversity in a part of Newton that does not, shall we say, look like America. And since the “tax burden” to educate 100 new neighbors is so trivial, you and your friends can just chip in and cover it. While you are at it you can tack on an accessory dwelling at your own place and run a lottery to find an affordable tenant.
This would certainly meet the standard of “all of the tools” and would go a long way towards fixing a problem you feel is worth significant personal sacrifice.
This is what Sean lives for. These posts must give him such joy. He just sits back and watches everything burn. Obviously fills a void he has in his life and we’re all dumb enough to play along. This blog in general has become an embarrassment. Makes me embarrassed to be a part of this community. This site used to be a great source of information and really kept us in the know. Horrible what it has become.
@Craig,
I can’t speak for Sean or Bryan but if you are asking whether neighbor Jason would be comfortable designating or building affordable units near transit in affluent neighborhoods, my answer is yes. I have said before I would be open to that in West Newton where I live and put some energy into making a case when a parcel was up for discussion last year. Thanks for the good questions. I would love to have an accessory unit that we can rent below market, but when rebuilt our garage, it would have required a special permit to add enough height to accommodate a small apt — so we didn’t go that route.
-Jason
Makes me wonder if we could have held off this election until November, when we would have had more distance from the toxic presidential race and insurrection. The 22 remaining councilllors hopefully would have been able to hold down the fort until then.
@Sean You’ve really done a disservice to V14. You decry the “last minute nastiness” then go on to make arguable (at best) accusations of racism. Then to top it off, you purposefully take Tarik’s comment about another ad out of context. I say “purposefully” because you provide footnotes and quotes and links all through your post… to everything but the ad to which Tarik referred. You’re just hoping to leave the impression that he was referring to a similar attack ad. As @Emily said, disappointing but not surprising. I urge people to at least click the link provided by @Jack and @Bruce above to see the ad. Not trying to get you to believe one way or the other, you can even agree with Sean afterwards. But at least be informed about that part of this thread. Hopefully @Dave Brigham takes a look and doesn’t base his voting decision solely on this thread.
Normally, @Figgy I’d agree with suggesting people come back after the election for the other great discussions. And I hope you’re right. But there has been a marked decline in the blog recently. And you’re likely right about where things are headed with the next election cycle.
I feel pretty confident in saying that most of the candidate “supporters” have successfully pushed more people away from than attracted people to their candidate of choice. That goes for supporters of all four of the main candidates (sorry David Micley). There are definitely some exceptions (Figgy, Jason, Mike Ciolino) who have good posts, from both sides. But the anger and accusations and purposeful half-truths and smug attitudes from most are an absolute put-off.
Sean fixates on a topic and posts about it over and over again. It’s his MO. It’s obnoxious and pointless. Now I agree that the Save Nonantum thing is nonsense, but how many times does this need to be rehashed?
@Dan Foley, Yes!
Shame on you S. Roache. Let me tell you in a language you’ll never understand and only remark upon when you look down your nose at persons who don’t agree with you. There’s overchae and there’s bull. Your post is bull.
Dan Foley:
Because of my own personal situation, I follow some of the local elections in another state, out of force of habit. Online discussions are very similar. And while things here certainly get heated and there are strong disagreements, for the most part this is as good as it gets. Facebook is far worse, unless you have a heavily moderated forum. It is either one side or the other. The echo chamber aspect is FAR worse. Folks quickly break down into teams, and 95% of the folks agree with each other.
You can certainly criticize the election and the vitriol of the supporters, but at some point I believe public forums are important, especially the ones were folks can exchange differing viewpoints. This is certainly not an echo chamber, despite the accusations of such lately. Go check the posts. Gail was smart to post generic election posts for each candidate with a statement, and we’ve all been posting on those. And Tarik’s supporters outnumber the supporters of Bryan (and they are far more vocal).
Here is my conclusion: someone mentioned that what we really miss is a strong local newspaper, and I agree with that 100%. The referees are gone. The Tabs endorsement used to carry a lot of weight with folks (the political signs used to be changed to add a paper “endorsed by the Tab!”). Positions would be a bit less extreme. And with everyone now communicating online, most folks post without a filter.
This forum will be much better in a few days. It bounces back to normal. And sometimes we gain some good commentators along the way.
And Ann, yes, I would have preferred to have waited, especially with the benefit of hindsight. This has not been worth it.
I’ve asked before and I’ll ask again: Sean, are you ok? Their supporters and those who oppose them agree that Bryan and Tarik are not that far apart on the issues. There’s just not that much daylight between them. So now we’re left with two questions: 1. When is it going to be the right time to elect a Black man to the Newton City Council? It hasn’t been the right time in 34 years. Will it be in 35 years? 2. And how many times is Bryan Barash going to show us who he is before we believe him?
https://village14.com/2021/03/03/bryan-barash-waffling-on-city-wide-single-family-zoning/
I live my life online, and I have only seen this ad (and the previous ad that Sean scolded SN PAC for) IN the posts that Sean made. I get that google has algorithms and we see what we’re meant to see (and I suspect that Sean knows a thing or two about digital media campaigns)…but it seems a funny thing to give ads that you find abhorrent new lives where many more people will see them.
Hi Donald:
The former ad kept popping up for me constantly. Not so much this recent one, I think I’ve seen it once or twice.
On the former ad, I believe it was also left as mailers all throughout Nonantum. So, lots of folks saw that one.
Thanks @Jason for your detailed reply. Nobody is questioning Bryan’s current position on the elimination of single family zoning across Newton.
Multiple voters have asked why he retreated from his prior position voiced on V14 six months ago. Bryan remains reticent on this change.
Speaking as your West Newton neighbor, I agree accessory units are a great way to boost our stock of affordable housing.
A minority of City Councilors proposed prioritizing this and other zoning changes with broad community support (detached garages, preventing teardowns, etc.) when zoning reform was taken up in early 2020.
A majority on the Council Zoning & Planning Committee – who are supporting Bryan – voted to proceed with a full rewrite of the code. This resulted in zoning reform being discussed in at least 20 hearings last year. For most, it was the main or only item on the ZAP agenda. And, there were likely hundreds of staff hours spent preparing for those hearings during a pandemic.
I voted early for Tarik because Im he will listen to and be a strong voice for voters who believe there may be better ways to reach the goals we all cherish.
Further, I feel Engine 6 leaders like yourself can be a powerful voice in encouraging a majority on the City Council to address priorities like this first and not let the perfect become the enemy of the good as we all work to increase truly affordable housing in Newton.
This interview with Matt Taibbi sums up V14 and the news today
https://youtu.be/3YOD_fdrnJE
Was going to remain quite until after the election. Unfortunately this post has caused a strong reaction.
1. Requested a couple of Guest Posts over the post couple of weeks and most recently last weekend, where I was told the post would potentially, “attract more heat than light”. I rescinded my request, but clearly “heat” is not an issue.
2. “Save Nonantum’s Final Flourish” may be the Title, but this is an attack post on Tarik Lucas and John Oliver. PERIOD.
3. Despite these attacks, I have yet to hear Tarik and John play the victim card in an attempt to garner votes.
4. I’ve purchased the domain village14a.com
I’ll be at the polls later today…. voting for Tarik and John.
@Matt Lai – I would have told Sean the same thing about this post “it would attract more heat than light” and that is indeed true. So I may have saved you some grief … you’re welcome 😉
I think you should have gone for Village15 … but I look forward to the launch.
@Rich,
Great points and thank you for your thoughtful, constructive comments (it merits thanks here).
I have spoken with many folks who think Bryan & Maddy are intent on eliminating single family zoning city wide because of ads sponsored by their opponents (as well as 1:1 conversations and debate statements from their opponents), so there is some deliberate disinformation to scare voters. This is why I wanted to share the info from Bryan & Maddy’s websites, to help get facts out. Some voters actually think that if they sell their single family home, the new owner will be legally forced to make it a multifamily structure if Bryan & Maddy are elected?!? I actually heard this. This is what CNN might call “low information voters” subsequently being fed bad information.
I don’t speak for Engine 6 (a voluntary association of neighbors with a distributed leadership team) but I do support many of their public statements.
-Jason
Matt, GoDaddy says
village14.com is taken
We still might be able to get it for you.
We’ll contact the owner and negotiate on your behalf.
Broker Service Fee
$119.99
plus commission
How about a GoFundMe to buy it? With Save Nonantum’s ability to raise money i soldi non saranno un problema.
Ann said:
“Makes me wonder if we could have held off this election until November, when we would have had more distance from the toxic presidential race and insurrection. The 22 remaining councilllors hopefully would have been able to hold down the fort until then.”
I’m afraid it would make no difference. The quality of our social discourse has been in general decline, while the volume has ramped up. I believe things took a deep dive over the last four years. But I sadly see no sign that quality and tone of our social interactions is going to get better without active intervention.
Some may say tone doesn’t matter, that it’s an inevitable byproduct of our differences. But look how much of this election’s public discussion is about tone of non-candidates versus issues. It’s swamping actual discussion about the candidate and, more importantly, real issues.
For example…we’re (hopefully) coming out of the most consequential year in our history perhaps since World War II as the result of COVID. Our city’s future depends on timely, prescient, rational, informed decision-making right now. Debt. Borrowing. Stimulus dollars. Re-engineering our city to take advantage of changes in the regional economy. Addressing the social and mental wounds and inequities of COVID and a year of lockdown. Not to mention fixing stuff that was broken before COVID (“Build Back Better”, as they used to say.)
What are we talking about? Way too much shadowy non-specifics and real or perceived slights all centered around our differences. What someone maybe said or thought some time. Mostly the same language could have been used any time over the last century, but now anyone can broadcast it with a big ol’ social media megaphone.*
(*Opening schools in the major exception to our COVID-lite discussion during this campaign, but as far as I know, City Council’s involvement has to date has been restricted to mostly letter writing. Choice of candidate is probably the least significant on this particular issue. )
We can all try to better understand people’s motivations and concerns (perceived loss of culture or political standing, concerns about inequity and social justice) without condoning methods. What you say, why you say it, and how you say it are all different issues.
Neither Save Nonantum PAC’s incendiary language or Sean’s bomb-throwing contributes the the kind of basic civil discourse that enables us to solve real civic problems.
@Mike Halle: Bravo.
Mike Halle: I agree with this.
Mike Halle never fails to offer a thoughtful and eloquent contribution.
I’ve said this before but I’ve wondered if Mike Halle would consider a run for mayor.
The funniest thing about your post here, is that you think this was the Save Nonantum PACs “final flourish”. That just shows complete stupidity and ignorance if you think the SNPAC is going to go away now.