Connecticut
Post posts about what is happening in the State of Connecticut.
The Tale of Two Conventions
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Mon, 05/14/2012 - 22:28Monday evening, I managed to get to two Democratic U.S. Congressional Conventions and they were very different events. In Connecticut's Third Congressional District, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro is running for re-election. While I don't know the official campaign slogan or talking points, the unofficial one which seemed to summarize the convention was, "Everyone loves Rosa". There were the kids saying the pledge of allegiance, the local high school chorus singing the Star Spangled Banner, and there was food.
Unlike other conventions where you wait until it is over, everyone arrived, started eating, and then the convention started, over half an hour late. As much as everyone loves Rosa, they really love Italian pastries, and the pastries are perhaps a great symbol for the campaign. I rushed out before things really got going and headed up to the Fifth Congressional District.
This was a very different affair. It is an open seat with several candidates vying for the nomination. The clear front runner was Chris Donovan, and the questions were, how large a percentage would he get and would the other candidates get enough votes to qualify for a primary without having to gather petitions to be on the ballot.
In the end, Donovan got 64% of the vote. Esty got 20% of the vote and Roberti got 16% of the vote. They all qualify to be on the primary ballot, although it was touch and go for Roberti for a moment. He only had four votes to spare, and during the vote swamping at the end, he briefly dropped below that threshold.
(For details see this spreadsheet).
With these conventions over, it looks like their will be a primary both for the U.S. Senate and for the Fifth Congressional District. The top line will be held by Chris Murphy and Chris Donovan. Murphy, being from the Fifth, is likely to draw out a lot of voters who may vote the line, boosting Donovan. Likewise, Donovan being from the Fifth may draw out more voters who are likely to favor Murphy.
The second line will have Bysiewicz for Senate and, because candidates are alphabetized who don't have the nomination, Esty will be on the same line with her. Again, these two candidates could compliment each other.
Roberti will be on the third line, by himself. That is, of course, if no one drops out or no one else petitions to be on the ballot. Also, it doesn't get to the issue of primaries at the State Legislative level, which we won't know for another week or so.
So, while the Third Congressional District was a well tempered celebration, the Fifth was a raucous contest. The food in the Fifth was going to be at some restaurant after the convention, but I didn't have the energy for it.
Both conventions were fun, and I reiterate my encouragement for others to get out, get involved, and perhaps even go to a political convention.
The Fowler Street Shootout
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sun, 05/13/2012 - 14:01It was a warm sunny Saturday evening in May. I was running a quick errand to the store to pick up some stuff for Mother's day. As I headed down Fowler street, I saw three black males, I would guess there ages were around thirteen. They were shouting, running around, having a good time. All of a sudden, one of them jumped into the middle of the road looking straight at me as I drove my black 1997 Nissan Altima down the street.
He put his hands together, palm to palm, fingers interlaced, except for the index fingers. Those, stuck out straight towards me, like the barrel of a revolver. All of a sudden, they jerked upwards, as if receiving the recoil of a gun. He resumed his aim, and pumped off a few more imaginary rounds at the on coming car.
I reached out the window and pointed my left hand at him, a smaller, but just as effective imaginary gun. I fired a few rounds, and he clutched his chest, as if he had been hit. His friend laughed and waved, so for good measure I pumped a few rounds off towards them as well, and they scattered.
The only thing missing was Peter Gabriel's "Jeux sans frontieres" blasting from the car radio.
I am a 52 year old white man, driving a beat up old car through a mixed neighborhood. It felt good to join in the games of some kids on the street on that fine spring evening, but I paused to wonder.
The boys weren't wearing hoodies. The way they interacted with an unknown white male on the streets indicated that their mothers probably hadn't had "the talk" with them; the talk how their actions might be misunderstood, how they could end up following in the steps of Trayvon Williams.
New Haven is not a stranger to youth being killed, and the kids were playing half a mile from where a new gun shop is slated to open in Woodbridge.
What went through those kids minds as they interacted with me on the street. We're they playing out the scene from their favorite video game? We're they processing the fears and concerns of their families about shootings in New Haven. Will they go on to join the military, the police, or some gang? Are they celebrating a Happy Mother's Day with their families?
And what role did I play in the drama. I wish I could stop and talk with them. Most likely, they'd run away. If not, they'd probably roll their eyes the way my kids have so often done.
Now, I sit on the deck. I hope people have a happy Mother's Day, especially the mothers of black youth in our country.
Random #ctdems #ctsen thoughts
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sat, 05/12/2012 - 09:41Running about half an hour behind schedule. Lots of old political friends schmoozing. Martha Aasen from Westport leads the pledge of allegiance, and gets cheers from the Westport delegation.
Lots of pictures going up on Twitter, with the #ctsen and #ctdems hashtag.
Checked in on Foursquare.
Sure could use some more coffee.
Having a fun time. Bit of a rush, trying to chat with friends, blog, tweet, etc.
Mayor Tim O'Brien welcomes everyone to the convention. Does a plug for Capitol Lunch and jokes about how good the food in New Britain is, and how he has the girth to show it.
After that, many people seem to be tuning out his speech.
Rumors are that Rosa has about 20% of the delegates coming in, and the question for Team Murphy is whether he can peal off 5% to deprive Bysiewicz the 15% she needs to get on the ballot without petitioning.
The list of dignitaries brings various levels of applause. From my seat, it sounds like Murphy and Courtney got the most applause, followed by Malloy.
Chris Donovan comes next on the applause metter, followed by Kevin Lembo and Brendan Sharkey. Next on the applause meter are Larson and WIlliams.
Various municipal leaders get some level of applause.
About half a dozen events before the Nomination of Candidate for United States Senate.
CT Democratic State Convention - Pregame #ctdems #ctsen
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sat, 05/12/2012 - 06:35Today, the Connecticut State Democratic Party will hold its state convention to select a candidate for U.S. Senate as well as other business. I've been going to political conventions for about eight years now, and have a pretty good sense at what to expect.
Chris Murphy will get a majority of the delegates, and the big question will be if Susan Bysiewicz will get the 15% necessary to get on the primary ballot in August without needing to go out and select signatures. There will also be discussions about whether or not Lee Whitnum can find her way to the convention, or if she'll present any interesting theatrics.
Despite the conventions that I watched as a kid, it seems like most of the drama is out of political conventions, and they are often much more for show than anything else. At the State Legislative level, they are often about celebrating the person who has been a State Legislator for years, or is willing to challenge an incumbent. The only drama tends to be whether or not a challenger will step into the race.
Of course, this is all based on how conventions in the Land of Steady habits tends to play out. I've covered the State Democratic Convention in Massachusetts a few times. They have a tendency of being much more rowdy and raucous. I was one of the bloggers at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston. Even that was better controlled and carefully orchestrated. In many ways, it felt like the coronation of Kerry, combined with a trade show for the politically active.
Today starts off the series of Conventions in Connecticut. On Monday will be the Congressional conventions. The one in the Fifth Congressional District will be the most exciting, while the other four will be parties celebrating the work of the incumbents in the district. This will be followed by state legislative conventions.
This year, I'm planning on covering three or four conventions as a blogger, depending on how much time I have, and attending one convention as a delegate.
For the smaller conventions, it is really easy to get involved. In Connecticut, we're organized on a town by town basis. Find out who is on your town committee. Join the committee if there are open seats, for smaller municipalities, there are often are. Then, when they are looking for delegates, offer to go. For the bigger, uncontested conventions, establish a little bit on online fred, and then go as a blogger.
Attending conventions can be very interesting, and for those that can't make it, follow my tweets.
What is Woodbridge, CT?
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Tue, 04/03/2012 - 20:27No, this is not a question on Jeopardy, nor is it a rhetorical question. Instead, it seems to be a question at the center of many recent political disputes. When the Woodbridge Country Club went under, the people of Woodbridge voted to have the town take over the property to prevent the land being developed. Later, when the town tried to find ways of financing the debt incurred from the purchase, the people of Woodbridge voted against even a small part of the land being developed.
Woodbridge, CT is not a town that takes kindly to development. Perhaps it harkens back to being a quintessential Connecticut town of steady habits. It is a town with strong environmental and preservation leanings, as seen by the support of the Massaro farm and the recent moves to limit the use of pesticides in town.
This week, the focus shifted to commerce in Woodbridge, particularly in the 'Woodbridge Village District'. I grew up in Williamstown, Massachusetts. The main commercial section of town was Spring Street a road a quarter of a mile long where much of the shopping and social activity took place. It has a very distinct, small New England town feel to it, influenced by the nearby college.
I've only lived in Woodbridge for a few years, although my wife grew up in Bethany and spent much of her childhood visiting her grandparents in Woodbridge. I don't have the same times to any village district here that I had to Spring Street in the Village Beautiful.
Yet I thought about this as I listened to the discussions about the proposed gun shop in the village district. For many, it may be a simple black and white argument about guns. The NRA members very defensive of the right to bear arms, and the anti-gun activists opposed to the introduction of any new ways of guns coming into Woodbridge or the surrounding communities. There are discussions about the gun shop being near a teen center and what sort of impact that might have.
However, most of this seemed to miss the more important and more nuanced issues, what is Woodbridge? What is the village district? What sort of economic development do we want in town? What sort of shopping experience do we want people to have when they come to Woodbridge? Some of the people testifying at the Town Planning and Zoning meeting spoke about how the introduction of a gun shop to Woodbridge would make them less likely to shop in that area. Others spoke about the importance of any new retail shop, including a gun shop, going in.
Would a gun shop in Woodbridge negatively affect other businesses? Should we accept at face value the premise that any type of new retail shop is good for the shopping area? I think we need to question both of these, and return to the question, what is Woodbridge?
No respectable shop owner should want to alienate the people of the town where their shop will be, and townspeople should be careful not to drive away potential shop owners whose shops will truly fit in with the character of the town and promote enhanced commerce between all the shops.
As I listened to the testimony on both sides, I did not feel reassured that the gun shop, the way it is currently being presented, is likely to be successful and add to the commerce of town. I hope both sides can find ways to work together to address this.
Yet the gun shop was not the only topic on the town planning and zoning board meeting last night. Next on the agenda was Tasty Kale. They are looking for a zoning change to be able to dry more kale. Where the discussions about the gun shop were contentious, the discussion of Tasty Kale was light hearted. I had never heard of Tasty Kale, but their appearance at the TPZ may have been some invaluable advertising, at least to those who stayed tuned to the Government Access Television channel after the testimony about the gun shop.
It provided an interesting contrast. While I was at best ambivalent about whether or not the gun shop would add positively to the image of what Woodbridge is, Tasty Kale fit very well with my understanding; entrepreneurial, local, tied to the community, clearly providing benefit. Yes, I want to try Tasty Kale, and if it is as good as the website says, including the accolades from Faith Middleton, then I will gladly spread the word about Tasty Kale. The gun shop hasn't resonated that way.
The third request to the TPZ was from Shakti Bio Research. A long time resident of Woodbridge, who has a company in Hamden, is seeking to move the company to Woodbridge. Where does "Bio Research" fit into the question of what Woodbridge is? To me, in part because I'm married to a molecular biologist and have many friends involved in health sciences at Yale, it seems to fit in very nicely.
So, to the image of professorial environmentalists eating kale chips fits nicely. A gun shop selling 'protection' probably doesn't fit, at least the images in my mind that well, but a gun shop that is promoting safe and responsible outdoors sporting activities might have a chance.
So, what is Woodbridge, CT?
