By: Robert O’Koniewski, Esq. – September, 2007 On the threshold of Labor Day weekend as the unofficial close of summer approached, many of us were enjoying the last throes of warm weather, or preparing our children for the new school year, or just plain wondering “Where did it all go?” In Lawrence, however, […]
PAYING ATTENTION! with Tom Duggan Former Congressman Jim Shannon Endorses Tsongas By: Tom Duggan, May 16, 2007 Niki Tsongas, the front runner in the race for the 5th congressional district visited the city of Lawrence last night at the opening of her Essex Street headquarters only feet away from city hall. Tsongas is […]
May 5, 2007 We are looking forward to the circus that will take place at this year’s May 14th North Andover Town Meeting. On the town warrant to be decided by North Andover voters is a Proposition 2 ½ Override. A memo of agreement signed on by the Board of Selectman, the School Committee […]
January 01, 2007 In a surprise action, on January 2nd the Constitutional Convention of the Massachusetts Legislature actually voted to move forward a citizen petition to amend the state constitution on the definition of marriage. The constitution itself, in Article 48, requires the ConCon legislators to vote up or down on a citizen initiative […]
PAYING ATTENTION! With TOM DUGGAN By: Tom Duggan – November, 2006 BACKGROUND….. Upon learning that Deval Patrick had fought to free admitted cop killer Carl Roy Songer, I, like many of you, was outraged that this man was a finalist for the top seat at the State House in Massachusetts. Songer pumped five bullets into Florida State Trooper Ronald Smith […]
VALLEY PATRIOT EDITORIAL October, 2006 When it comes to issues of illegal aliens in Massachusetts, the views of Democrat candidate for governor Deval Patrick and the Republican candidate Kerry Healey could not be more different. If you believe illegal aliens ought to have a driver’s license or be awarded in-state tuition, then your candidate […]
By: Tom Duggan – March 2006 While suburban cities and towns like North Andover are cutting their teaching staff and eliminating art and music programs due to lack of funding, Wilfredo Laboy and the Lawrence School Committee have chosen to use state education dollars for out of state travel conferences (to the tune of $4,000) […]
Kathleen Corey Rahme – January, 2006 For the past six years, the city of Methuen has enjoyed the leadership of Mayor Sharon M. Pollard. Known for her no-nonsense managerial style, she has proven herself to be an effective mayor. But for term limits, she might still be in power. While she has been […]
EDITORIAL When the average voter goes to the polls during local elections, he is usually not thinking of party politics. During local races, average voters look at individual candidates and cast a vote based upon which man or woman can serve their community better. A candidate’s party affiliation rarely comes to play during local races. […]
November, 2005 The running joke before last week’s election was: “who is going to LOSE by a wider margin, Marcos Devers in Lawrence or Ellen Bahan in Methuen?” Well, Ellen won that one, but not much else. She lost the mayoral race to Bill Manzi by a margin of 28% to 68%, a resounding victory […]
November 14, 2005 North Andover is having its Special Town Meeting on December 5, 2005, yet everyone I speak to want to know why. The meeting was initially scheduled so that voters could decide on whether or not to rezone the Lucent Technologies site now owned by Ozzy Properties. Ozzy Properties want to rezone […]
VALLEY PATRIOT EDITORIAL October, 2005 Last month, the City of Lawrence held a preliminary municipal election for mayor, school committee and city council. Less than 20% of the 32,000 registered voters bothered to participate. With more than 70,000 people living in the city of Lawrence that means less than 9% of the population bothered […]
By; Michael R. Sweeney – October, 2005 A moment of clarity. After all is said and done that is what election results, whether a primary or final, provides to those seeking public office and to the people who support them. Some candidates grow under that light and some crumble. This past primary night in […]
By: Tom Duggan – September 2005 LAWRENCE – Lawrence School Superintendent Wilfredo Laboy is increasingly coming under fire by candidates for both mayor and school committee, as the city elections in November draw near. Embroiled in public scandal over the alleged assault on School Committeeman Amy McGovern, Laboy has become the subject of controversy […]
Paul Murano – June, 2005 Let’s face it, next to Red Sox baseball, politics is the preferred sport of many in this area. But if you think about it, a baseball season and a campaign season have many parallels. They both start their spring training in February, one in Florida and the other in […]