By: Jamison Tomasek – March, 2012 The entire region was buzzing recently as Boston Magazine published an article titled “Lawrence: City of the Damned.” The online version of the magazine added a response from City Councilor Dan Rivera. The Eagle Tribune followed with an editorial which tried to put some positive spins on Lawrence, but […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – February, 2012 The Mayor of Lawrence, everyone must admit, is an interesting character. Some people love him, some hate him. Some really, really hate him. I for one am fascinated by how he seems at times to show two completely different sides to his character. He’s always being mentioned or […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – November, 2011 The results of the Massachusetts legislature’s redistricting commission, at least as far as the House and Senate are concerned, are official. In a fair world we would have legislative districts that represent a common interest and have geographic integrity, but no one has ever called the political environment […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – October, 2011 It is very hard to be positive about Lawrence. There has been a lot of press lately about a number of issues important to, and potentially positive for, the city, but there is no reason to think anything is getting better soon. Voter ID efforts are underway in […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – September, 2011 Last month’s article detailed irregularities in the list of Lawrence registered voters. On the official voter list hundreds of voters were registered two or three times, with the repeating names typically spelling errors or maiden names.In any circumstance this would be troubling, as one of the primary responsibilities […]
Last month’s article detailed irregularities in the list of Lawrence registered voters. On the official voter list hundreds of voters were registered two or three times, with the repeating names typically spelling errors or maiden names.In any circumstance this would be troubling, as one of the primary responsibilities of the City Clerk’s Office is to […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – August, 2011 When the discussion turns to voting in Lawrence, there are many stories of irregularities. Some are firsthand, many are secondhand and some are just speculation. This is a story of hard evidence. This article will show you that the Election Division of the City Clerk’s Office in Lawrence […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – June, 2011 I noticed from Facebook the number of people that grew up in Lawrence and settled in the Merrimack Valley is very high. While this might not just be a Lawrence thing, it seems particularly pronounced here. The Lawrence Diaspora (migration) doesn’t seem like a random scattering. Almost everyone who […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – May, 2011 A recall effort is underway in the City of Lawrence. The process of a recall is contained in the City Charter (hereafter Charter). Section 9.7 entitled “Recall of Elected Officials.” As this section is written in government lingo, it does require a careful reading as well as some […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – April, 2011 While everyone wants to feel good and say nice things, it is hard to feel good or say nice things about what is going on in the Lawrence Schools. Yes, there are successful students there. Yes, there are great teachers, and yes there are good programs and happy […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – April, 2011 While everyone wants to feel good and say nice things, it is hard to feel good or say nice things about what is going on in the Lawrence Schools. Yes, there are successful students there. Yes, there are great teachers, and yes there are good programs and happy […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – January, 2011 It would be helpful to read Part 1 of this from last month’s Valley Patriot, but to briefly recap the first article finished with the conclusion that Lawrence is a city that votes overwhelmingly Democratic and this influences any election where the people of the city play a […]
By: Jamison Tomasek – December, 2010 I was recently a candidate for the Massachusetts State Senate representing Andover, Dracut, Lawrence and Tewksbury. I have time on my hands to write this because I lost the election. While doing well in the towns, I lost Lawrence, and I lost it big. Voters, VP readers or […]