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Adam
Guest
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| Will someone please give a brief report on the council meeting tomorrow. I'm particularly interested if Mr Paul Herring gets the Cable contract like he should to broadcast the council meetings. |
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Sun Jun 11, 2006 1:00 pm |
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Guest
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| Herring got the contract... the weasel Gonzales was a wuss and did not even think of voting for the other bidder since a threat of a recall was emminent. Freeman and others at the meeting overwhelmed him. |
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 9:47 am |
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Adam
Guest
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| Excellent! It should not have been such an ordeal for Mr Herring but at least everything worked out. Did anything else noteworthy happen at the meeting? I'm glad Josh Freeman spoke out. It's unfortunate the council didn't simply go along with Kincaid and Sims at the special budget hearing. To me it's always nice to be able do the right thing and make people happy. By putting this off it brought more work on the council and made some people mad. |
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 2:10 pm |
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Guestii
Guest
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I just saw the june 6th meeting last night. I was amazed today how many people I have talked to watched it last night. People that don't normally pay attention to the council meetings. They caught some of the citizens talking and couldn't stop watching it. Every comment I heard was how the COuncil is making themselves look like asses. I almost fell over laughing. GOing way out of their way to find a videographer. Searching high and low. They reacted the same way I did. couldn't stop watching it.
I am pretty sure there are going to be many many changings in the Make up of City council next time around. Talk about pathetic. Mr. Gonzalez, Jim Anniach, Sandy Hill, Buchanan will be gone. People are smart. They reconginsed the stupidity of the arguement and saw it as another DON Williamson behind the curtians decsion. Whether it was or not is not the point. The idiotic reasoning of why they didn't hire Paul didn't make any sense to anyone except those who continued to post pone his approval.
They didn't need Uncommonsense to make them look like idiots. They did it just fine all by themselves.
Whew, Can't wait until next election. Finally get some common sense. |
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 2:57 pm |
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Ehren Gonzales
Guest
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It is comical how all the people who post to this site guard their identity by not identifying who they are. They must not have the guts to identify themselves. When I take a position whether someone likes it or not I will never be detered by some negative comments someone makes during our meetings, on these postings or wherever. This is not a popularity contest. I really don't care if people at the City Council meetings like me or not. Some on the council do, apparantly. I listen to my constituents and make sound decisions based on details and on how they would like the City run. They want professionalism. It is a matter of bringing respect back to Flint and accenuating the positives Flint has to offer.
The last Council ruined the reputation of the City. That is why you saw some many incumbents lose their races. In fact some got beat so bad they can't let go. Get over it. Move forward in a positive direction to help bring respect back to the City.
The first guest posting here calls me a "wuss" and "weasel" and say that because I was threatened by a recall is why I voted for Paul Herring. How ridiculous. A the post also said "Freeman and others... overwhelmed him (Gonzales)". This must be Comedy Central. I had thought many of the people positing to this site were educated people but I see a lot of ignorance in some of the postings. Whether or not I agree with you or not at least I am respectful and articulate my position. If you think I have done something on the council that merits recall then go for it. My character speaks for itself.
Instead of talking so much it would be nice if these negative people channelled their negativity into helping the city instead of tearing it down.
I challenge anyone who posts to this site to get involved with as many organizations as I do and become a positive role model in our community. I have been involved both by volunteering and contributing with many organizations: Junior Achievement, Special Olympics, Humane Socitey, Whaley Children's Center, Chamber of Commerce Career Day, Focus Hope, to name only a few. What have you done? I walk my talk. Go talk to people in the 8th Ward before you guess at how they perceive my performance on the Council. That way you get the facts.
THe second guest is probably the same person as teh first, or at least they have the same negative attitude. Identify yourself so people can attribute the ignorance you spew with a name.
Bottomline: the City is moving in the right direction. If you want to jump on the bandwagon do it now. Otherwise the bandwagon is going to leave without you.
Finally, let me throw this out. Whether you like me or not, I am always open to honest two way communication, even if I don't agree with you. You will also always know where I stand and if I tell you I will do something you can take it to the bank that is what is going to happen. I will meet with people one on one to discuss their concerns and I always respond to e-mails. My e-mail address is egonzales@cityofflint.com. Or, call me. My cell is (810) 397-0737. The ball is in your court. |
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 4:41 pm |
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Luna
Guest
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| Mr. Gonzales, keep up the good work and ignore those folks. If u know ur doing the right thing the dont sweat it. |
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 6:40 pm |
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Robert
Guest
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 6:47 pm |
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Guest
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| Josh Freeman... he used to be a Council Member. That is until the residents of the 4th Ward determined he was not doing a good enough job. In essence, they fired him and elected someone else. |
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 8:43 pm |
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Josh Freeman
F L I N T O I D
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FYI... I have never been bashful in attaching my name to anything that I write... What you see is what you get with me... no double talk.. I don't say one thing to one person and something different to someone else... I'm like Popeye.. I am what I am ...
FYI.... I have never spoken at a Council meeting concerning Paul Herring....
FYI... I was involved in my community and attending Council meetings long before I was ever elected to the City Council.. I served as Vice-Chair of the Zoning Board of Appeals.... I was on the Local Officers Compensation Commission and voted for a pay reduction for elected officials..I was a member of Citizens Unitied for Better Government... I am the President of my Crime Watch, I am the President for Greater Eastside, I am a member of Citizens Nuisance Task Force, I am a trustee at my church and on and on... so don't question my committment to my community .... I have a very consistant record when it comes to community involvement.... I am sure that I have attended more Council meetings than the entire newly elected Council combined... I would be more than happy to debate any issue with any Councilperson...I do my homework and have a strong understanding of how City Government works.... .
FYI... NEWSFLASH... I lost my election.... so does that mean that I stop fighting for a fair, open, honest and transparent government? Hardly.... As I said earlier, I didn't decide to take an interest in City Government when I decided I wanted to run for office, I was involved and active long before most of this Council decided to run for office, and you can bet that I will still be active and involved long after most of them leave.
The Council that I served with had its own set of problems, but they hardly "ruined the reputation of the City" as Mr. Gonzales writes... Give me a break...
specifically
... what did the Council do that "ruined the reputation of the City?" It sounds great to say that, but please offer specifics so they can be debated... And again, I'll remind you that the 50 or so votes that you won by is hardly a mandate Mr. Gonzales... That tells me that the voters in your Ward are pretty evenly split... and as far as my Ward... ya I lost by 300 votes... but 10,000 people didn't bother to come to the polls....
Mr. Gonzales, I've never called you names in a public forum... I've questioned votes you have taken, I've questioned your grasp on the facts, but as a public figure, you better get used to it..... That is part of the territory..... I am sorry that you construe asking questions about how my money, and the money of residents is being spent as being negative... But that process is supposed to be done in an open and transparent way.. If I disagree with the way my money is being spent... You can bet that I will question it... That too, Mr. Gonazales is part of the territory... I have never, never bashed Flint... I question it's elected leaders.. their motives, and thier abilities... that is part of the democratic process... but I have never participated in "tearing it down."
I have a vested interest in this community...I take my civic responsibilities very serious and have a shown that with a proven track record when it comes to my involvement in this community...
I'll jump on no bandwagon that is being steered by this Mayor with the Council riding along... we are not on the right road and I will continue to question actions taken by this Mayor and Council... it is my right and duty as a member of this community... If you or anyone else don't like it, in your own words Mr. Gonzales, "get over it."
As I said in a previous post, "If you go along to get along, you're a coward. Only through principled engagement can you be a force for change and hope."
Joshua Freeman, Citizen
freeman3727@sbcglobal.net |
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 9:48 pm |
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Ted Jankowski
F L I N T O I D
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Yep, he was fired for stealing money from the City. Well That what the Don Said! He took back pay he didn't deserve! HUH? Exactly. Take an honest person. Put them up against a political machine that understands that most people in Flint want someone to do something for them So he sends his election team around with Ms. Hill. And they Mow peoples grass, cut their trees. And all of a sudden Something is being done for them. FYI Mr. Freeman was working with the DON when he was first elected. After seeing the process and learning the ropes and rules. He soon became puke on the carpet. He was bad mouthed by Don at his every opportunity. Yet there was never any accountability on the part of the Mayor to be held accountable for the truth.
Yet, does anyone really want to know the truth? Not really. For most people it's too easy to believe the lie. which is quite true in itself - that in the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the broad masses of a nation are always more easily corrupted in the deeper strata of their emotional nature than consciously or voluntarily; and thus in the primitive simplicity of their minds they more readily fall victims to the big lie than the small lie, since they themselves often tell small lies in little matters but would be ashamed to resort to large-scale falsehoods. It would never come into their heads to fabricate colossal untruths, and they would not believe that others could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously. Even though the facts which prove this to be so may be brought clearly to their minds, they will still doubt and waver and will continue to think that there may be some other explanation. For the grossly impudent lie always leaves traces behind it, even after it has been nailed down, a fact which is known to all expert liars in this world and to all who conspire together in the art of lying.
Thus, When Ms. Hill claims she did come out and say that the things that Don was sending out in her ward were untrue about Mr. Freeman. She didn't do the honorable thing. Say, remove herself from an election filled with false propaganda. She benefited from it. I found it interesting that when I did talk to people in my ward. They were calling him a thief. YEah, I actually had a few people say that. Then when I asked what he stolen. They said it was the Back pay. Interesting. He received none. SINCE HE WASN'T EVEN A COUNCILMAN during that time. He came in on the tail end of it. But the seed of deceit was already planted. Truth doesn't matter when people don't want to hear it. As far as Mr. Gonzales is concerned. I'll drop you an email about your last post. Because, it is very true. I've also have found some interesting response to the airing of the City Council meeting the other night. I'll send that via email. When I get a chance to put it all together. |
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 9:58 pm |
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Ted Jankowski
F L I N T O I D
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oh and BTW, wouln't respond to "GUEST" they are usually idiots who just pop in and try to stir things up. just read mlive's forums. Those are people that just like to argue for arguing sake. I think most of us here. With our names out in the open. Are all concerned with fixing Flint. Helping it along. It just seems we have compeltely opposing views on how to go about it.
For me. Spending more to spend more. Without justifiable benifits. Isn't saving the city money.
Creating Grass Cutting emergencies to avoid the bid process, reaks of political pay off. TRUE OR NOT. That's what it looks like.
A 30 percent increase in crime in Flint over the last two years is not a "MAJOR REDUCTION"
We seem to have a difficult time in communicating. Becuase, words don't seem to mean the same thing to everyone.
More is not less. Spenidng more doesn't constitue caring more.
We for the most part can't even agree on the language and the meanings of words. If we could all just use the same dictionary. We might be able to accomplish something. |
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Tue Jun 13, 2006 11:21 pm |
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rapunzel
Guest
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Ehren,
I appreciate your professionalism and above all posting on this site so constituents can understand why you vote as you do in their interests.
Secondly, let me apologize for my screen name rather than my given name. Anominity(sp) has it uses but still is no cause for name calling or bad form. Please excuse those who do not know better.
Your Quote...
"The last Council ruined the reputation of the City. That is why you saw some many incumbents lose their races. In fact some got beat so bad they can't let go. Get over it. Move forward in a positive direction to help bring respect back to the City".
Shame on you for that one... you know that money was the deciding factor in that race. Media spin and mis-informed voters. Please stick to the truth.
There were a couple of incumbents that needed to be voted out but it would not have needed the political machine to do so. The mayor should not have used funds to influence the voters. Campaign ethics???
Josh was a fair councilman in the 4th ward though he could learn a bit on mediation. End results -compromise rather than winning the fight even when you are right. Still someone that knows the facts on the council rather than a couple that are on adjoining seats would be preferable.
I do appreciate and respect your reasoning for positive direction.
So Ehren what was your vote on the Affirmative Action resolution? It is a very important issue on trustee board which was taken off the agenda. Mott has moved to some closed committee meetings that may be in violation of the open meetings act. What are your thoughts pertaining to this other board you were elected/appointed to. Is it true you were appointed originally as trustee because a hispanic voice was needed on the board.
If it is OK to use Affirmative Action on appointees to a board position is it ok to use for student inclusion?
Would welcome your thoughts and corrections to possible rumours.
Thanks
RAP |
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Wed Jun 14, 2006 1:38 am |
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Ehren Gonzales
Guest
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RAP,
Money is not always the deciding factor in political races, although having $ does not hurt... races are usually determined by hard work and connecting to your base. Prime example, when my father was elected in 2004 primary the campaign was outspent by $25K. Our team outworked the other campaigns during the primary, used our $ efficiently, and fortunately we were successful delivering our message and connecting with the average everyday voter. During the last election cycle, while my campaign did have a slight advantage in $ raised, we had to since the person our team was running against was a very popular incumbant. Josh references that I only won by 50 votes (actually 5 but what he failed to mentioned that my opponent normally got well over 65% of the vote. Our team did what we had to do to get our message out. Yes, we had a slight $ advantage, but we also outworked our opponent, ran a positive campaign on the issues, and we ran an ethical campaign. The campaign statements show ALL my contributors which come from all areas of the community.
I agree there was a lot of negativity during the election, even from my opponent who distorted my attendance record at MCC saying I attended only 40% of my meetings, which was untrue. I could have countered and went negative but that is not in my character. I stuck with my strategy of accenuating the positive aspects of Flint, talking about the issues facing Flint, and running on my experience, education, and character.
As for the media I will have to respectfully disagree with your assesment as I believe the incumbants had the same opportunity to use the media to their advantage as their opponents did. The disadvantage, since some of the campaigns got real negative, the incumbants were hurt more becasue they were already associated with the riff between the Mayor and Council and the public was blaming the Council for many of these problems. At least that is how I saw it.
The problem with the former council is they continued to run negative campaigns which was contrary to what the public wanted to see. In my opinion, the public wanted people elected who were able to respect others opinions, cooperate not divide, collaborate not criticize, and build trust. These are things that make it more conducive for moving the city in a positive direction, changing the perception of our city to outsiders.
I am in favor of Affirmative Action.
As for the MCC committee meetings, I have the utmost confidence in our Board attorney that we are following the rules.
As for the MCC position I hold, I think organizations/boards should refelect the community as a whole. However, I would hope that when I was originally appointed as Trustee it was because I was the best candidate amongst the nine who applied. I believe I was, otherwise I would not have applied. Finally, I was elected by the people in 2001 so the majority of people felt I added value to the position.
Just for clarification, I don't need anything handed anything to me, affirmative action or not. I work hard for what I have. I paid my own way through college, working 30 - 40 hours a week when I was at MSU in East Lansing for my bachelors degree. I also worked full time at Ford and was a member of the MCC Board when I attained my MBA in Finance from UM--Ann Arbor in 2003, completing the normally 5 year program in 3 1/2 years .
I would like to discuss in further detail but need to get to a meeting. I am looking forward to subsequent postings. Call if you would like to discuss further (810) 397-0737.
Ehren |
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Wed Jun 14, 2006 9:16 am |
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Flint Concerned Citizen
Guest
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Gonzales is a better councilperson than most on the Council, probably the best. I hope people realize that he does not do this for the money as he has a solid job at GM or Ford. I believe deep down he does it for the betterment of the City. He has been at MCC over 5 years and the position does not pay anything. He was taking time away from his family to give back to our community.
Additionally, Gonzales does his homework. Just because you don't agree with his position(s) on issues doesn't necessarily mean he is wrong. Have you ever thought that in some cases you are wrong. If people on this website believe everything they say or do are correct all the time then they have some soul searching to do. Also, when was the last time something positive was highlighted by the naysayers. I venture a guess there are some good things happening as well from your viewpoint.
At least Gonzales will admit when he is right and/or when he is wrong. He stands by his actions which is more than we can say for many others on teh Council, past and present, as well as people on this website. Give this Council time... they have only been there a short while. Gonzales is a leader who will over time develop into a key resource in the Flint/Genesee County area.
Freeman was a good council member, too, however, he did not understand politics as well as who and who not to associate with. Coleman and Taylor were definately not the best role models on the Council yet he took their side on too many occasions.
Keep up the good work, Gonzales. |
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Wed Jun 14, 2006 11:40 am |
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Adam
Guest
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I think it's too early to condemn Gonzalez. I expect the new council to get better. No council person will ever be perfect. I think the moral of the story in this example is sometimes it pays to go along with the majority of the council that did win re-election. I thought Carolyn Sims was absolutely stellar at the Paul Herring Budget hearing. I definately will try and bring her on the internet. If she had been more ambitious and gotten online with her constituents I wonder if she could have made a run at mayor next year? Kinkaid only lost by 900 votes. I assume he would have helped her out.
In defense of Ehren it is nice to be able to email a council person even if it is not your own. I should have called or emailed Ehren about Mr. Herring but I wasn't expecting that to come up at a budget hearing. When the issue came up I was not going to pass that up. I will definately try and make it to Mr. herrings juneteenth celebration. |
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Wed Jun 14, 2006 12:59 pm |
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