Wednesday, October 10, 2018
I'm Calling Out the Rest of You, Too.
Manny, you and I spoke for a while at the meet and greet. Your theme was that because you're an accountant, you have special skills to reconcile the Village's accounts and accounting. But we already have an accountant, and an auditor. We don't need a Commissioner to triple check the work of the people we already hire. We don't need you to track the money. We need you to decide how it should be spent. We need to know what you want for the Village, and how you would propose to get money we don't have. So tell us more. What's your vision for Biscayne Park?
Dan, I don't get it. You offer to "[work] for the Village," but you already do that. You've been doing it for years, in your role on the Recreation Advisory Board, and we appreciate it. What's different once you're on the Commission?
Will, we've been watching you for two years, and I think we've seen it all. Yes, you agree with whatever Tracy wants almost all the time. And when you position yourself as not agreeing, it's without explanation, and only on condition that you're part of a minority that does not outvote her. Your few initiatives are tentative, and without evident result. Do we get anything different for the next two to four years of Commissioner Tudor, or is that it?
Betsy? Betsy? An attorney, and a stand-up entertainer. Yup, it's not hard to see. You're a great talker. But "where's the beef?" You tell us your forte is "branding." Great. If we need a PR firm, we'll call ya. What do you charge? But what's our brand? You say you've lived here for some bunch of years. You must have formed some sense of what the Village is about, and what its strengths are. So? You live across from the recreation center and the park. Do you like living there? Is that our brand? Should we put more into the recreation capacity of the Park? I've seen your property. It seems clear to me you're not focused on anything like lushness, or the "Tree City USA" image we had been trying to cultivate (excuse the pun). So I assume you're OK with the Village's public spaces being as spare and uninspired as you keep your property. Our brand, in Commissioner Wise's opinion, is not about medians. So what's it about? We don't need you to write copy for us. We need you to help us identify our image. What is it for you?
Fred
ReplyDeleteIn response to what you have written on your blog, let me say the following:
I have walked this Village from one end to the other 3 times and will do it two more times before Election.
I have spoken to the residents at length about their concerns and what they would like done in the future for the village.
Betsy Will and I have a Meet and Greet on October 13 at the Rec. Center from 5 to 7 pm.
Please join us and get answers to your questions from each of the candidates.
Ah, I thought so. What flavor of Koolaid was it?
DeleteI ask you for substance, and you tell me about shoeleather.
No, that won't do it. I have three votes available. Jared gets one, and so far, no one else gets either of the others.
One of my friends reading this post asked me why you run as a package deal. She described it as "lame" and immature. Let me know what argument you want me to give her.
PS, Dan. So, you've "spoken to the residents (sic) at length about their concerns and what they would like done in the future for the Village." I told you, I'm calling you out. Here. Now. I want substance. Are you saying you agree with what you heard from "the residents?" Then what did you hear? What is now your agenda? I'm not looking for another meet and greet. I met you and greeted you. If I didn't make this clear already, it was pretty empty. Parts of it were scammy. David Raymond, Art Gonzalez, and I told you and the other stooges what we and the rest of "the residents" want. We told you what would work for us. We told you what Commission candidates have always done for their neighbors. You all chickened out. All, except Jared. So I gave you a distant second best. Put it here, in this blog. Let us all see it, and ask you more about it. You and your other two new BFFs can reply separately, or you can reply as "three-pack '18." Just stop hiding, unless what you have to hide is just too overpowering. And if you can't even do this, then stop asking for anyone to show confidence in you by voting for you. Under present conditions, I wouldn't think for an instant about voting for any of you. I'm sorry to be indelicate here, but you're losers. I really hope Jared wins his election, because he wants to. If he does, we're going to get two of you other four losers as well. But as Mac Kennedy and Janey Anderson point out, it doesn't make any difference which two we get. Maybe there's a very slight edge if we get Manny, because he's not part of the coven. But he's not showing us anything, either, and even if we get Jared and Manny, we still wind up with one more Tracy stooge, which means we're back to brain death and non-function.
DeleteSecond, everyone has a style of expression. It involves phrases and word choice and usage, grammatical style and rhythm, sentence structure, and even spelling. If you read enough of what someone else writes, you get familiar with their style. I don't know who wrote the response under your name, but it wasn't you.
And third, this isn't my blog. It's everyone's blog. I'm just the person who started it. You, and the other children running with you, and Manny Espinoza, and everyone else has full and unrestricted access to use of this blog. The fact that none of you, except Jared Susi, uses it is very telling.
Hi Dan, how nice of you to chime in. Where was my invite to host in this event with the other candidates? I have not heard anything about this until this evening. I tried calling you, but you have not called me back.
ReplyDeleteDan Samaria, why would any legitimate candidate even participate in an event that didn’t include all candidates, let alone organize it. You did ithat two years ago (and lost soundly), and you’re doing it again. What are you afraid of, other than losing again? Looking ill-informed and out of your league, perhaps? You aren’t asking us to appoint you chair of the glee club and to hand out hot dogs and popcorn. You’re asking for the responsibility of working with others who may have different ideas and perspectives and for moving this village forward. You are showing yourself to be unworthy of the public’s trust if you and the other two can’t even get all five of you in one room to hold a substantive conversation about real issues. Shame on you .. and Will and “Betsy.” Petty and weird and shameful, and so perfectly BP v2018.
ReplyDeleteDan - while I have never voted for you I, like many others, considered you a decent and honest person. No more. Your desperation to obtain a commission seat has driven you to be a willing participant in divisive politics and double talk.
ReplyDeleteYou most assuredly did not write the comments in this post. Those are neither your words, nor your cadence, nor your style. Someone did a whole lot more for you than some basic editing.
You claim to have walked the village to listen to residents 3 times. Your slogan is "working for the community". What exactly does that mean? What do the residents want? What is your platform, your goals, how will you achieve them? You say "Please join us and get answers to your questions from each of the candidates." It's not possible to get answers from each of the candidates. You have chosen to exclude 2 of them.
You've also told numerous residents that you do not support Tracy nor do you want her re-appointed as mayor. It would appear you are not telling those residents the truth since you have clearly aligned yourself with 2 candidates she solidly supports. Through their words and/or actions it is obvious they solidly support her. So Dan another deceitful comment on your part. Your actions throughout this campaign do not bode well for the kind of commissioner you would be. You will be a responsive commissioner only to those who agree with you and your buddies. Hey Dan - remember back when you used to complain about Rox, Al Childress and Bob frequently voting 3/2?? Funny I don't hear you complain about the 4/1 that's gone on so frequently in the past 2 years.
Let's be honest about these farcical "coffee clutches with candidates" at the rec center: They lack any real substance. Sure, they're fine for glad-handing face to face. But what we really need is a true debate among all candidates where they answer questions relating to real topics facing BP, and where they interact with each other like they will on the dais. We need to hear them answer tough questions, and we need to hear them debate with each other and enlighten each other from their respective perspectives on issues. That's real life as a commissioner, and all the candidates should support such an event. They should be demanding it ... unless they are afraid of looking stupid and/or unable to defend a commission term with no accomplishments. I understand wanting to "win," but candidates should want to win for the right reasons and to articulate them to residents. In other words, the candidates should "man up."
ReplyDeleteDan, by organizing this silly event that excludes two candidates ... and for not using your political capital to make a real debate take place ... you just lost my vote. I won't vote for a political hack or puppet. I always defended you to folks who set you aside as not being a serious candidate, telling them that you genuinely care about BP and that means a lot given your other shortcomings. I don't believe that any more, and I won't vote for you this year.
Manny, let me tell you how pathetic this has gotten. Four of you are worth nothing, on the surface. Nothing. And that's for two reasons. One is that none of the four of you articulate anything like an agenda, and the other is that you're terrified children, who refuse to present yourselves to your neighbors for an open discussion, as Commission candidates always do, and at least three of you have your mommy running interference for you.
ReplyDeleteYou, Manny, can steal a slight bit of credibility for yourself simply by agreeing to participate in a forum. You won't even have to do it, because Tracy has arranged to undermine it. All you have to do is say you'll do it. That's sad, isn't it?
And if David Raymond and Art Gonzalez, or I, decide to run an event anyway, just with you and Jared, then you'll have to participate. If you can't do that, then who needs you, wouldn't you agree?
Ok this is officially the best thread on here in some time. Some folks just need to know when to be quiet and walk away and some dont. My wife and I also have 3 votes and as mentioned previously my intentions were to vote for Jared, Manny and Dan. Problem with this is if we dont vote thats simply giving someone we like less a vote. Problem with that is how do you choose from the 3 left. Dan has lost my confidence by aligning himself with the 2 and not being inclusive of the others, not to mention he is all over the place politically speaking and I cant keep up. All I have seen from Tudor is what I have seen on the Commission and to say that I have not been impressed is an understatement. I had 3 scheduled visits with him here at my house and all 3 times he blew me off, I mean I was literally waiting for him and he never called, I had to reach our to him and inquire as to why he didn't show up. I was looking forward to hearing him out and giving him an opportunity, I hear he does much better persoanlly than on the Commission where typically he is just there physically. Actually not even sure why he wants to be on the Commission, he has done nothing but snooze and shake his head yes any time Tracy speaks. That leaves us with Betsy, oh Betsy! She came and visited with me at my invitation. I want to say on the onset that l liked Betsy on a persoanl level a lot but thats not we we are talking about here so let delve into politics. I have some very serious concerns and I did tell her what they were, Ill share a few. She is being endorsed by current Mayor and you all know how I feel about that. She's lived here for years and has never shown any interest in the village until now ( Wil Tudor ). She feels that some of us are biased LOL aren't we all? It seems to me that she's been getting her information from the wrong side and has become biased herself. She has a lot to learn and catch up in order to be an effective leader on that Commission. Im also not sure why she wants to run in a village where she's shown little to no interest. I could say a lot more but of the 3 remaining I will toss my cares to the wind and take a chance on her so we will also be voting for Betsy. If anything it will certainly be entertaining to see if poor Betsy who likes to talk will be allowed to.
ReplyDeleteIn addition to my previously stated reason for voting only for Jared (I consider all of the remaining 4 unqualified to be on the commission. They're just bad in different ways). I am not going to cast my remaining 2 votes for someone I do not truly support or believe in and take the risk of those votes helping to bump someone over Jared. I am hoping he not only gets elected but that he gets 4 years.
ReplyDeleteI was undecided about how to proceed with my votes before I found out about the Meet the Candidates, or Meet some of the Candidates, event this Saturday. However, now that it appears certain that they are a slate or have some agreement among themselves contrary to what some of the Candidates have told me and that they have excluded Manny and Jared from the event, I started to pen the comment below earlier today.
ReplyDeleteIt's misleading and underhanded to call the event "Meet the Candidates" when in fact it's Meet Some of the Candidates. Whatever consideration I might have given the three of them has now evaporated.
Further, it doesn’t hurt to undervote if there aren’t three or even two to vote for. Let’s send a message to those that run for office without any meaningful involvement in the Village, without bringing anything to the table and for bad behavior: you’re not getting my vote. If there is only one candidate worth voting for, and in my opinion that is the case baring some revelation, then I’m casting my vote for Jared and that’s it. If you don't think a candidate deserves your vote, then don't vote for them to fill an empty slot, just say no.
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ReplyDeleteI think the really disappointing thing is that rather than making an effort to prove those of us who have expressed our displeasure with 1 or more of the candidates wrong we're just being labeled as negative and ignored. That's not how problems get solved, that's not how consensus is formed but it is how problems fester and grow and divisions form. It's hard for me to get behind someone as a commissioner if I see evidence that they are only interested in residents who agree with them. We'll never get anywhere that way.
ReplyDeleteBelow is an email I sent to Dan Samaria this morning. I won't reprint the series of inane, rambling and incomprehensible responses, which included calling another candidate a "con." I find the disinterest from our slate of candidates to participate in an actual debate to be appalling. What a sad time for BP. Our potential slips between our fingers at an alarming rate, and these fine folks are merely trying to win for winning's sake rather than for BP's sake.
ReplyDeleteDan.
My Dan and I have been out of the country on vacation for a few weeks, only to return to find that the BP commission race has gotten even weirder than we could have imagined. The most disappointing part is that you, personally, are at the center of bizarre intrigue and gamesmanship.
To the many village residents who discount you as not being qualified to sit on the commission, I have always defended you, partly because of your service to our country in the military. I thought that made you an honorable man, even when you acted rather bizarrely when I ran against you for a short time two years ago. With your actions this campaign season, you have lost my confidence completely, and I now understand why so many people think you are vastly under-qualified to serve us.
I am sorely disappointed in you, Dan. You should be ashamed at putting "winning" ahead of what's best for this community and right vs. wrong in running a campaign. You are working actively to shut down open debate that is part of elections in a free democracy. Your actions are truly un-American, and you now wear that badge of dishonor along with your other service medals. I don't care if you've allied yourself with anyone or who those other candidates may be. This is about your actions solely, and I would say so whether I supported another candidate or not. This is about something bigger than you or the other candidates or even the BP commission race itself. I'm guessing that notion is too lofty for you to grasp, but it tugs at the very soul of what should make America different and better, although we're seeing less of that these days. You are part of what's wrong, and we need leaders to take us to the right place, even if that means they lose personally.
I never truly supported your campaign, Dan, but I did plan to vote for you because your heart was in the right place. You have now lost that vote. In the interest of promoting the commission race and helping to turn out the vote, Dan and I allowed you to place your sign in our front yard. I can no longer support your candidacy in that or any way. Please remove your sign today so you can place it elsewhere. If you don't remove it today, I will throw it in the trash.
In an attempt to try to have some sort of dialogue I have emailed Wil.....twice. No reply. I have emailed Dan.....no reply. These are 2 of the 5 who want my vote....or I would have thought wanted my vote. Apparently they don't want it badly enough to actually engage me in any dialogue. To actually tell me what in fact they stand for and advocate. To flat out tell me why I should vote for them. I have never seen this level of arrogance toward any resident by any candidate as we are seeing now. I guess I am spoiled. In all of Bob's many campaigns over the course of 20 years he NEVER shied away from reaching out to those who disagreed with him. This is a whole new way of doing business. Yet we're the bad guys. Oh and another first - more than one member of this current commission out trash talking not only about one of the candidates as if that wasn't bad enough but about others of us. Really classy. Just what one expects out of their elected officials. Makes you wonder just what they are afraid of.
ReplyDeleteNo, they don't want your vote. Tracy has told them they don't need it.
DeleteWhen I ran, there were houses I didn't bother to visit, because I assumed I would not be welcome there, but I would never have shied away from an invitation, from anyone. Nor did I have the slightest reluctance to be part of the Candidates' Forum. Not only was it de rigueur, and an opportunity to make my point, but I would have considered it grossly disrespectful to my neighbors not to be there. Arrogance? Yeah, they're loaded with that, too.
You wouldn't have thought they would sink that low? And have that little of their own material? Is your focus better now?
Fred I will say - you never did back away from a challenge. Is my focus better now? Oh yes. Talk about learning the hard way.
ReplyDeleteAll you had to do was listen. I told you very clearly what would happen if you chose "'ANYONE' but Fred."
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ReplyDeleteUPDATE: This morning Wil acknowledged receipt of my email. Says he will "follow up" with me to discuss my concerns..............
ReplyDelete