Here are two things the official record of the Aug. 9 selectmen's meeting includes:
Chairman Jerry Stabile asked for a moment of silence followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
Selectman Brian Major congratulated the cast and crew of the Summer Theatre Ensemble for its performance of Oliver the previous weekend.
Here is one thing that is not included:
For the first time in at least 20 years, a resident was removed by police from the meeting.
As has been reported in the Townsman more than once at this point, on Aug. 9 Jerry Stabile, then selectmen chairman, refused to allow resident Mary Carbone to ask questions and had her removed after she approached a podium at the front of the room and asked to be acknowledged. A police officer was present at the meeting, the first following a meeting where Stabile and Carbone had a heated exchange. Almost immediately after Carbone was removed, Stabile announced his resignation, making a point of saying the two events were not related. He encouraged selectmen to continue with his strict stance with Carbone.
Dealing with people who disagree with you is part of the job of being an elected official, but selectmen are allowed to acknowledge who they choose during discussions. Carbone can be difficult, insinuating and sometimes insulting. While it's difficult to see what she did at the Aug. 9 meeting to deserve removal, the decision to remove her should be part of the record of the meeting.
Public access is at the heart of all democratic government. When selectmen make a decision affecting access it ought to be reflected in the record. Having police escort someone from a meeting for wanting to ask a question is a ground-breaking decision.
We've often criticized Andover boards for doing a lousy job with recording what transpires at their meetings. The selectmen usually do a better job than most. Here, the board failed.
Secondary editorial for Sept. 2, 2010: Stimulus only delays pain
Plunging home sales figures demonstrate that temporary tax incentives and one-time stimulus spending are not going to provide a long-term fix to people's economic woes.
Now, another huge, one-time injection of federal money is heading for local schools as a result of passage of the Education Jobs and Medicaid Assistance Act. Massachusetts schools will also see some money after the state was awarded federal "Race to the Top" funds. Andover schools will receive $444,095 in supplemental federal funding, according to Congresswoman Niki Tsongas.
Andover had cut a handful of school positions to cope with budget shortfalls. We expect leaders of our school systems will be cautious about what they'll do with the new money. One does not have to possess more than a grade-school education to predict what will happen a few years from now when the federal funds run out. Parents, school boards and administrators will be warning of imminent disaster if the programs are not continued. Except now funding will have to come from the state or the property tax.
This kind of stimulus provides only temporary relief rather than long-term economic growth. You don't bolster the private sector, which is the bedrock of the economy and major provider of tax revenue, by hiring more people to work in the public sector. The approach is akin to someone taking two aspirin, hoping that whatever ails him will simply go away.
