VALLEY PATRIOT EDITORIAL December, 2007 There is a rush to judgment by the media and our government, both Democrats and Republicans, reacting to Pakistan’s Pervez Musharraf’s declaration of emergency and suspension of their constitution. Everyone now waving the flag of democracy says this is the anti-democratic conduct of a dictator, and should be stopped […]
By: Kathleen Corey Rahme – November, 2007 METHUEN – The Massachusetts Women Veterans’ Network named Methuen resident, Sara Payne Hayden the Woman’s Veteran of the Year at a special ceremony in the State House in Boston this month. It was a privilege to nominate her for this honor and according to Heidi Kruckenberg the coordinator for […]
VALLEY PATRIOT EDITORIAL November, 2007 Governor Deval Patrick recently stirred up controversy when he stated on a Boston radio program that he is interested in getting rid of police details on state and local construction sites and replacing them with civilian flagmen. If Governor Patrick were to issue an executive order, then only state […]
October 10,2007 Election season is in full swing here in the Valley with a special congressional election in the 5th district this month and the general municipal elections in November. Few people, however, seem to care. During the Lawrence primaries last month, only 12% of registered voters bothered to brave the 80 degree weather and […]
PAYING ATTENTION! With TOM DUGGAN By; Tom Duggan – September, April, 2007 Did anyone else notice in the Alabama Eagle~Tribune’s story on Ethics among elected officials on Sunday quoted Lawrence Council President Patrick Blanchette without mentioning that he had his city council office renovated out of the DPW budget, all the while he was […]
“I will Support a Border Fence and Deporting Illegals” September 21, 2007 Fifth District Congressional candidate Jim Ogonowski visited Lawrence again Friday morning holding a press conference at the Lawrence Fire Station on Lowell Street. Ogonowski spoke for ten minutes before a small crowd of Lawrence residents declaring his support for deporting illegal […]
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, […]
By: Tom Duggan, September, 2007 Most Lawrence residents know Francisco Urena as the city’s Veterans’ Services Director, but long before Urena came to work for the city of Lawrence he was serving the United States Marines in the 1st Tank Battalion in Iraq. Urena was born in the Dominican Republic and grew up in […]
VALLEY PATRIOT EDITORIAL September, 2007 Thanks to Lawrence Mayor Michael Sullivan, police officers in Lawrence will not be laid off this year, a firehouse will not close and DPW workers will be able to continue maintaining Lawrence’s ball fields, streets and sewer system without political interference by the Lawrence City Council. Over the last three […]
THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX By: Dr. Charles Ormsby – September 05, 2007 In our July edition, I wrote an article entitled “Snookered” that analyzed a highly questionable pro-override campaign postcard distributed by North Andover United (NAU) just days before our recent override vote (See figure below). The group’s postcard cited home sales statistics for […]
By: Tom Duggan – August, 2008 James Desrosiers does not like to talk about his troubled childhood growing up in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, but mentions that he had lacked any goals and had no real direction in school. At 17 years old, Desrosiers joined the military and was ordered to run two miles. “Two miles?” […]
By: Tom Duggan – August,. 2007 When Methuen resident Mike Beshara tried to join the Navy in January of 1942, he was initially told that he could not join the service because of his age. “I was only 17 years old at the time,” Beshara recalled. “After December 7, 1941 I really wanted to enlist […]
August, 2007 We wish to thank author J.K. Rowling for inspiring so many people, especially young children, to read and to enjoy reading in the age of internet, television and video games. In the 24 hour period from midnight July 21st, to midnight July 22nd, over 15 million copies of “Harry Potter and the Deathly […]
July, 2007 Careful readers of this paper have probably noticed the above byline under The Valley Patriot banner since our very first printing. We chose this byline, the first five words of the First Amendment to the U. S. Constitution, because we believe that this amendment is the first line of defense against government trampling our rights […]
June 5, 2007 We love immigrants. Those who come to America to become Americans have been the blood, sweat and backbone of our nation for many years. Those who go through the application process and have come here legally have shown by their behavior that they are ready to live by the laws of […]