Is Maginn the right choice

I am posting this letter written by Kevin Macomber about the new republican party chairman in Massachusetts, Robert Maginn. It seems he donated to Deval Patrick's campaign and has donated to the likes of Chuck Schumer.

Ball fields, wood turtles and government control

Don't ever underestimate the power of a wood turtle, although with all apologies to those who like wood turtles, I am not sure it was the wood turtle who made the difference. Last night at the special town meeting in Sturbridge, Article 48 was defeated by ten votes.

Update on Article 52

I am going to share some link related to Article 52 sent to me by Linda Cocalis from the Sturbridge Board of health. Even though I am still not happy about the bag fees for the landfill, I guess I can forgive her now.

Criteria 3 includes schools and must be applied to regioanl schools as well
http://www.mass.gov/eea/docs/doer/green-communities/pubs-reports/navigating-the-green-communities-program-presentation-10-6-2010.pdf

http://www.mass.gov/Eeops/docs/dps/inf/stretch_code_overview_jun05_09.pdf

http://www.sudbury.ma.us/departments/Energy/doc5892/StretchEnergyCodeFAQ10-30-09%5B1%5D.pdf

Article 52: Vote No

I have been receiving more information on Article 52 on the special town meeting warrant for tomorrow night (December 5, 2011, 7:00 PM at Tantasqua High School). I wish I had know about this earlier so we could mobilize the forces, heck if the four Sturbridge residents who read this blog vote "No" we might win. All kidding aside...

Sturbridge Voters: Be very, very afraid

Yesterday I wrote a post about Article 48 on the warrant for Monday's special town meeting. Mr. or Mrs. Anonymous commented on it (thank you) and mentioned another, even more scary article that is also on the warrant, Article 52. What is Article 52 and why is it scary?

Sturbridge and article 48

The best part about reading the local paper (although if you only read it online is it still called reading the paper?) is reading the "Letters to the Editor" section. In my opinion, this is the still the best place to go to get what people really think about local issues. Why it was a letter to the editor which I worte which made me a legend in the tea party movement. Okay, for the record I am only a legend in my own mind but it sounded good.

Sturbridge voters: time to stand up

Many of you who read the articles and posts I write regarding the Tea party movement, know that I believe that where the tea party movement will make a difference is at the local level. While we all realize there have to be changes made at the national and state levels, it is at the town and city level where we can make the biggest difference in the shortest amount of time.

Tea party principles are bottom up

In my last post I talked about the leadership meeting we had with many of the regional tea parties attending. One of the things which was touched upon briefly, was getting local. I have talked about this in the past, although I am not sure I have on this blog, so I will reiterate mt views.

Tea party movement and the press

Earlier today I attended a meeting with representatives from most of the tea parties in Massachusetts. One of the things which wasn't discussed, but probably should have been (I know, I know, I could have said something) was how does the tea party movement counteract the negative publicity we continue to get?

Tea Party Vs Occupy Movement

A recent poll taken by Umass/Lowell shows the Tea party movement has a lower approval rating than the Occupy movement. For those of us involved in the Tea Party this is somewhat disturbing, but not so much of a surprise, at least not to this writer.

Karl Marx would be proud

Karl Marx sure would be proud of the "Occupy Wall Street" crowd. They have manged to come up with a modern day equivalent to his "Communist Manifesto". They have posted on their website a list of thirteen demands which I guess they are hoping to accomplish with their protests.

Religious Freedom under attack

Did you know today is ""Pulpit Freedom Sunday"? What is "Pulpit Freedom Sunday" you ask? Well it is a day which has been designated for pastors to preach their views on political candidates which is a violation of the "Johnson Amendment" which was added to the IRS code on 501(c)(3) corporations, i.e. non-profits. This brings up some interesting arguments regarding the First Amendment of the Constitution.

Election season has officially begun

Summer us officially over and it is time to start thinking seriously about 2012. In case you haven't heard there is a whole slew of elections coming our way that year. We have the chance to increase the unemployment ranks for some Democrats including the one who currently occupies the White House.

With all due respect, Mayor O'Brien is full of

I’m thinking of picking up and moving to Worcester. Why would I want to leave my little house on the lake and move to a city? It isn’t for the noise, or the people, or the lure of living in a three decker, nope, it’s for one reason and one reason only, so I can vote the Mayor out of office.

Tea party movement needs to stay the course

According to Barack Obama it is. And Harry Reid concurs. And Joe Biden thinks they are terrorists, which is interesting in and of itself since he won't call real terrorists, terrorists. I think come November 2012, they just might be in for a surprise. 

Rhode Island tea party splits

I came across an article today about a new group which has formed in Rhode Island, the Ocean State Tea Party in Action. Evidently this is some kind of splinter group from the Rhode Island Tea Party, and they want to focus at the state level. I am not surprised.

News Flash: Obama compliments the tea party

Once again this week, we in the tea party movement have been called names and blamed for all the ills of the world. But this week, the President, Barack "It's not my fault" Obama, also praised the tea party, although unwittingly.

Are we ready for Rick Perry

Are we ready for a preacher president? Is this what we would get with Texas Governor Rick Perry? Yesterday he led a prayer event in Texas attended by about 30,000 people, which has been compared to a camp meeting. There were also the usual complaints on whether this event violated the first amendment and the "separation of church and state" which we all know isn't part of the first amendment or the Constitution. My question is "Would this be too much for a President, holding camp meetings etc.?"

Beyond our control or not

On the WCRN Morning News with Hank Stolz this morning, a caller, Patrick, talked about how we worry too much about things like the stock market crashing, etc. and he is right, sort of. His point was there are more important things, more personal things to worry about. The thing he should have added was why worry about things we can’t control?

Every cause needs a victim

Have you ever noticed the left always has to find a victim? Think about it, whenever anyone on the right opposes something they support, the first thing the left does is find a group who can be the victims. They can always find a group to be a victim, even if they have to invent one.

Sowing the seeds of liberty

Once again I have been thinking about the tea party movement and the direction it is headed, and what better place to write about it than right here on the Sturbridge Tea Party blog. At our most recent meeting this very subject came up, and as these things tend to do, it has been swimming around in my head. And considering the fact there are not a lot of hair follicles to stop things from swimming freely and allowing them to develop, you will now be privy to those thoughts.

Got some extra cash, we'll spend it

It's good to see that the state has collected more taxes than they anticipated, $723 million more in fact, so how long do you think it will take them to find something to spend it on? After all you don't think "Spend it all" Deval would want to hold on to it for, say a "rainy day", do you?

You'll Eat Your Damn Peas And Like It

First it was we would all have to make sacrifices, then it was those keeping our thermostats lower and who can forget making sure our tires were properly inflated. Now our fearless leader is telling us to eat our peas. Is this leadership or what?

Sturbridge's Tea Party Dilemma

So here is a tea party conundrum of sorts, if your town spends money to restore something after they remove it from a place where it was, but no one knows why it was removed in the first place, and now another group wants to put the restored item back to where it came from at the risk of damaging it and throwing away good money, and that group that wants to restore it are the town's veterans, which side should the tea party take?

Operation Tree Party

As I have written previously in this blog, on June 1, there was a tornado which went through the western and central part of Massachusetts, claiming three lives and causing extensive damage to several communities. Many groups and organizations have come together to provide assistance such as temporary housing, food and clothing and debris removal. These are all good and necessary things which need to be done.

The Sky is Falling Let's Go Tell The King

It’s been a month since the tornado hit our area causing three deaths and a tremendous amount of damage. I had a brief conversation regarding what has been done and what is not being done by various agencies, specifically in the town of Southbridge. We had two different opinions; you’ll be able to guess which one was mine.

Will They Ever Listen

This is sort of a follow-up on a previous post, which seems to have generated some discussion in various forums. Somewhere on this blog site is a disclaimer which states the opinions expressed in this blog are those of the author and not necessarily those of the tea party movement or other members. Now that we got that out of the way...

The Answer to Beacon Hill

Last night at our monthly meeting we had the newly elected representative from the sixth Worcester district, Peter Durant as an honored guest. You know, some questions are better off left unasked. In this case the questions was "Peter, are things as bad as they say on Beacon Hill?"

One Tea Partiers Opinion

I have written both here and elsewhere about what my opinion on exactly what the Tea Party is about and what I believe it stands for. I have also written how I feel the “Tea Party” name has been co-opted by others to forward their own agendas. Those of us who truly believe in what the tea party movement stands for, might be considered by some as eccentric or nut cases, we like to consider ourselves as passionate. We believe in the principles that this country was founded on and we believe the country has strayed from these principles.

Even though we are constantly called names and bombarded with negative press, mostly by people who have no idea what we are about, we continue to go on. 

Doing It Right The First Time

The last post I wrote talked about the latest election related issue in Southbridge, that of the wrong information being printed on the absentee ballots. A local Southbridge blogger posted an update on the situation.

Southbridge Election Officials Need to Pay Attention

It seems tour friend the Town Clerk in Southbridge may have had another "oops" moment when she sent out the absentee ballots to our military personnel and others and wrote "Do Not Vote For More Than Two" for School Committee, when she really meant three. This brings up some interesting questions, especially if the school committee race is close.

Send Us Your Poor, Your Criminals

Isn’t it great to live in a state where criminals are treated better than tax payers? Of course I am talking about the latest move by our brilliant Governor “We want ‘em all” Deval Patrick to decide he isn’t going to follow his buddy Barack’s lead and he isn’t going to sign onto the “Secure Communities Act”. After all, Deval wouldn’t want to hurt anyone feelings by sending a poor, downtrodden, rapist or murderer back to his own country to face trial. No, instead we should welcome them here, give them free stuff and let them kill and rape our legal citizens.

Thoughts on the Sturbridge Town Meeting Warrant

Monday, June 6 is the annual town meeting in Sturbridge. In the small towns of New England this is a tradition which goes back to the founding of our communities. Unlike towns like Southbridge as an example, who no longer hold "Town Meetings" in the same sense as Sturbridge does, this is the main way for voters to have a say on exactly how their money is spent,

Finding That One Lost Sheep

There are some days when I am listening to talk radio or reading articles or other blogs, where I get pretty disheartened. We try to get out our message, but every day there is another assault of some kind on us and our tea party movement. We see examples of the progressive left screwing things up every day and it can be overwhelming.

All This Time I had It Wrong

I admit I don’t watch a whole lot of MSNBC, not for any other reason that being a poor Conservative who receives no assistance from anyone, I can’t afford the extra fee for the extra package to which MSNBC belongs. However, last night I had the pleasure of spending some time at my son’s house and was blessed with the ability to peruse it for a short time.

One Byte At A Time

Since I have become somewhat politically active, especially with the tea party movement, I have noticed one thing; there is no shortage of issues needing attention. I am constantly bombarded with e-mails from people and organizations needing help with this and that, all of which are going to ruin the country if they aren’t fixed immediately. And of course most of them can only be fixed with a donation. So how does one decide which of the “Your Immediate Attention is Required” causes get the attention?

For our Sturbridge Members

I received this from one of our members and it might be of interest to our Sturbridge Members. 


From: Selectman Thomas R. Creamer <trcreamer@gmail.com>
To: Selectman Thomas R. Creamer <trcreamer@gmail.com>
Sent: Fri, May 6, 2011 4:38 pm
Subject: Public Service Announcement: Pre-Town Meeting Town Meeting

The Town Moderator, Town Administrator, and Chairman of the Finance Committee invite any interested resident to attend a "Pre-Town Meeting Town Meeting" on May 24, 2011 at 7:00 PM at Veteran's Memorial Hall, Sturbridge Town Hall.

 

This is an opportunity to better understand the issues on the Town Meeting warrants and for residents to ask questions in an informal and casual setting in advance of the June Annual Town Meeting. The Town Moderator will also explain how Town Meeting works, which is a great opportunitity for new residents who have not previously attended a Town Meeting.

 

In addition, this presentation will be broadcast live on local cable access with phone calls accepted throughout the presentation.

 

It's A New World Out There

Well, it's finally over and Peter Durant has officially won. I know, he hasn't been sworn in yet, and this is Massachusetts but it looks good. First I want to congratulate Peter on his win, he worked hard and through it all he kept smiling and stayed positive. Now let's hope he goes to Beacon Hill and makes a difference.

Our First Guest Post - Quake

Following is a guest post from one of our members, feel free to comment:

 In the summer of 1811, the great Shawnee Warrior-chief Tecumseh, in an effort to unite the
various Indian tribes into a confederation to resist the advance of the United
States, predicted that a great sign would come. He predicted a shaking of the
Earth that would be felt by all and acknowledge his righteous cause with
tangible proof that the Great Spirit was on his side.

New Tea Party Blog Roll

blA few of us have started a new Tea party Blog Roll, called "Tea and Rolls" (yes I admit I came up with the cheesy name) where any Tea Party associated bloggers can list their blogs, and we can keep them all in one place. (Makes it easier to keep an  eye on all these tea party nuts).

So check it out http://teaandrolls.blogspot.com/ , feel free to pass this along, and comment on what others are saying. If you write a blog and would like to have it listed, send me an email at imjustmusing@aol.com with a header something like "Add Blog" and I will be happy to add it.

Thanks.

A Cold Day in Hall, Town Hall That is

Hear Ye, Hear Ye, all you Sturbridge residents out there. I know you have all heard Jane and I expound on our extreme displeasure with our town spending money on those nice new brick sidewalks down on the Town Common. And perhaps you have even heard about the front door at our remodeled Town hall which the public can no longer access, and I believe I mentioned perhaps we could have used the money spent on the sidewalks for the door. (Okay, I know it was probably not transferable, I get it) So what do I hear on Sunday from a usually reliable source who hates to spend any more money than he absolutely has to?

Raising Taxes Could Lead You to Heaven

There was a meeting on Thursday night in Marlboro, where State Representative, James Eldridge told those gathered, or tried anyway, why it would be a good idea to pay more taxes. I could not attend but I have heard from those who have and evidently members of the local tea party groups were there and represented themselves and the Tea Party movement well.

The Devil Made me Do It

We've been called all sorts of things. Racist. Bigots. Morons. Terrorists. Trailer Trash.And now......Satan Worshipers. Could I make this stuff up? It says so right here in the newspaper from jolly old England. You know the same place where are forefathers kicked some ass a couple hundred years ago.

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Amazon

April 20th Meeting

We held our monthly meeting last night at our new venue, Art's Variety on South Street in Southbridge. Both Jane and I want to thank the Gaudreaus for volunteering the use of their business, it was a great venue for us. So if you are anywhere near there stop in and buy something damn it!

As far as the meeting went, we had a good meeting. Peter Durant came in and briefed us on how his campaign is going, and no, we do not support candidates. Also Mike Jaynes the leader of the Republican Town Committee in Southbridge was there (okay, I think he is the chairmen) and he is looking for people to help at the polls in Southbridge on May 10. These positions are poll workers as opposed to poll watchers. You will help out with the checking and counting and all that good stuff. And you will get paid besides.

You do not have to live in the district or Southbridge, but you do have to be a registered Republican. Please email mike at mikejaynes@charter.net if you can do it, you will need to be there all day. Did I mention you will be paid? I wonder...is this an SEIU position?

We also discussed the infamous billboard, and another Mike, (whose last name escapes me since I am terrible at names) had a rather nice list of all the Hispanic residents which are NOT near the billboard. Keep your eyes on the Southbridge News as your truly has another letter about the billboard on the way.

Was This The Spark

It seems that I may have started a little problem this week. You see I wrote a letter to the local paper about the whole "Showing ID to Vote" issue over in Southbridge and how it seems to have ruffled some feathers. this is all part of the whole Alicea - Durant special election where there are some who think there have been some funny things going on. Well, the group I belong to, the Sturbridge Tea Party, you know us white, racist, bigot, trailer trash people usually meets at one of the local banks in their community room, which they have been letting local civic groups use for some time now, has been told we can no longer meet there due to pressure form the local Southbridge Hispanic community. I don't blame the bank at all, let me get that straight, they have to do what they have to do, but it sure is interesting how the local lefties seem to have a problem with the First Amendment now doesn't it?

Pig Roast

Yesterday was the Worcester Patriot's Day rally and Pig Roast and it was a great event. It was nice to see everyone there. It was also nice to see some not there (Government union members). The Worcester Police did a great job keeping the small group of kids away from us and all the attendees also did a great job in not letting them get under their skin. (The louder sound system we had also helped)

Thanks to all the people who volunteered to help and especially to Ken Mandile for putting it all together.

Don't forget, our group will be meeting Wednesday, April, 20, at 7:00 PM, Southbridge Savings Bank, Rte 20, Sturbridge.

And one more think: Click on this link for an article I wrote, You don't even have to read it, I just need a few more clicks to get to 250, a personal record for me. Thanks.See you Wednesday.

Voter Identification Issue

As any of you who live in the Sturbridge, Sixth Worcester area know, the recent special primary and the evil Billboard erected by EmpowerMA and ShowIDtoVote has really caused quite a stir. The Telegram and the Southbridge Town Clerk and Town Manager are all claiming voters are being intimidated by this billboard. And of course the race card has been played.

The Evil Billboard

Only the Guilty Get Nervous

Only the guilty get nervous. This was something I learned back when I was a Regional Security Manager for a large company. In the course of talking to less than desirable characters I learned that when someone got nervous when they saw me coming there was usually a good reason. So reading the Sunday Worcester Telegram yesterday, I have to wonder what the Southbridge Town Clerk and the Southbridge Town Manager are so afraid of. You see it seems that two groups with ties to those evil, racist Tea Party groups want to be at the polls in Southbridge and ask voters to voluntarily show their ID's to poll workers.

Sixth Worcester Non-endorsement

I know I haven't been to active lately with either the Sturbridge or the Knox Trail groups, and I do want to apologize for that. I have a whole tea pot full of personal things going on here which need to be dealt with, but I am still as passionate about the movement as ever. So with that being said...

Union Economics

It seems that in their infinite wisdom, the labor unions down there in New York City have initiated some legislation to raise the minimum wage in subsidized areas of the city in order to help with the unemployment problem. Now i don't normally agree with mayor Bloomberg, or should I say he usually doesn't agree with me, but he even thinks it's a bad idea. When will the left and the unions realize that raising the minimum wage never increases employment but in fact lowers it?

Clarify, clarify, clarify

Tonight we will finally hear what President Obama has to say about the action in Libya. You know the place we have been shooting missiles into and dropping bombs onto but we aren’t at war with.  The same place where our leader told us the American people that we were volunteered by NATO to perform these actions. He has stated he will “clarify” our position.

And now a break from our writing

I have had to take a few days off from writing, but don't worry, I am off all weekend so you know what that means? Lots of typing.

Can't win change the rules

In the Sturbridge Villager issue of March 11, 2011, there was a letter to the editor written by Daphne Stevens entitled "We can make a difference". Unfortunately I can not link to the article so you will just have to trust me on this. Basically Ms. Stevens talks of the change in the term "Global Warming" to "Climate Change". Being a slow day and the fact I have no vehicle to go anywhere, I of course wrote a rebuttal.

First Amendment threatened again

According to a report in The Daily Caller the federal government is requiring school principals to instruct their teachers to spy on their students by monitoring the students Facebook pages, both while they are in school and when they are out of school. The governments reasoning? School bullying. All parents should be outraged at this invasion of privacy. But then this kind of action should not surprise anyone who is familiar with the tactics of the progressive left. This is just another way of them trying to gain control of society, turning it into a virtual police state. Dare I say just as the Nazi’s did when they indoctrinated children at a very early age into the National Socialist Party’s beliefs?

A couple of notes

Wednesday we are having our monthly meeting. It will be at the Southbridge Savings Bank on route 20 in Sturbridge. Park in the back and go in the glass doors, up the stairs or the elevator to the third floor conference room.

Don't forget the Patriot's Day Rally in Worcester beginning at 4:00 PM at Lincoln Square. There will be several speakers and you can get tickets for the "Government Pig Roast" Go the the Worcester Tea Party website for more info.

Hint, hint: They also could use some volunteers.

What's in a name

Lately, Jane and I, your almost fearless leaders, have been caught in a flurry of emails from the other leaders of groups here in Massachusetts. One of them asked a question about a candidate who is running a race here in central Massachusetts and whether he is truly a Republican or not. I'm not going to get into that debate, but it brings up an interesting debate, on labels and their definitions.

One man's opinion on the local tea party movement

Every once in awhile I feel the need to explain my opinion on what I feel the Tea Party movement is all about. I am also asked by many people that same question. Most people who are not involved in the tea party movement only know about it from what they read and hear about it in the mainstream media which is not always accurate. Obviously the latest is the clip being shown of Schiller from NPR calling us gun-toting racists.

First Amendment Dilemma for Tea Party

The recent Supreme Court decision regarding the Westboro Baptist Church and their freedom to protest at funerals of slain soldiers presents somewhat of a problem for tea party members like me. The decision protects the church’s first amendment rights, free speech and freedom to assemble, and as one who believes in as strict interpretation of the Constitution, it is hard to argue with that. But then there is the other side of the argument which is that of respect.

One small freedom at a time

Now let me start out by saying I am not a “gun nut”. I do not own guns, I do not use guns, but I do believe in the second amendment of our Constitution, you know the one that says:

“A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

And I suppose this story really isn’t about second amendment rights, but in many ways it is scary.

Welcome to the Sturbridge Tea Party Blog

Welcome to the new blog of the Sturbridge Tea Party. This will be a place where we will share Tea Party News and Views. This will include national, state and local. The Sturbridge Tea Party is a non-partisan group which welcomes all, no matter what your party affiliation. We cover the towns of Sturbridge, Southbridge, Charlton, Brimfield, Wales, Holland and Monson.

Feel free to comment on any post or email us at Sturbridgeteaparty@gmail.com