ELECTION DAY : March 2008 Archives

www.Citizen.com 

March 26th, 2008

Editor, The Citizen: This is a reply to Mr. Tolman's 3/21/2008 letter that questioned my comment about voters feeling "comfortable to express their true feeling" in secret balloting. I have spoken with people that refrain or are reluctant to attend Town Meetings as they are hesitant to openly vote their true feeling because of possible retribution by fellow citizens that see their hand vote or hear their voice vote. That includes business people, parents, etc. I also know people that have attended Town Meetings and stopped voting after a few votes saying, what is the use? Sometimes people feel that way when voice votes seem to be disproportionately louder than the actual number of voters. A vulnerability with the present system is that non registered voters could join in on the voice vote and for that matter the hand vote, but with SB2 that is not an option.

Mr. Tolman made a number of statements and charges in his letter such as "We, as citizens, are not guaranteed or entitled to feeling 'comfortable' in the exercise of our democracy." He apparently finds this to be acceptable in the face of a loud and boisterous opposition and a moderator manning a bully pulpit. It seems to me that Mr. Tolman has no tolerance for true democracy where all votes count and the persons race, creed, loudness of voice or intimidating personality do not matter. Where I do not "have to look one's fellow citizen in the eyes while (voting). "

The answer to his question that " Every major legislative body in our country is held accountable for their individual votes in the public record; would we ask any less of ourselves at the most basic level of self-government?" is a resounding yes! I would ask Mr. Tolman, why do we vote in private for general elections? Why, when we turn in our ballots no one has the right to look it over? I'm not an elected or public official and my right to vote my conscience in private should not be infringed upon by anyone. That is true democracy.

On a more factual note, and for the benefit of the readers, with the SB2 form of government there is a Deliberative Session which is just like the Town Meeting; articles can be debated and amended. The major difference with SB2 is that there is a 30 day waiting period, before voting, that gives voters ample opportunity to read editorials, letters to the editor, talk with others to comprehend any changes made to any articles an yes, even look your fellow citizens in the eye. One then can come to a personal decision on how to vote with a secret ballot.

I believe that debate is a very good thing, but for voting I prefer the ballot box where my vote is between me and my conscience and not between me and my neighbor.

By the way Mr. Tolman, you made one statement that I totally agree with: "SB2, as enacted in our state right now, does not change the fact that we, as voters, have a responsibility to get out and attend an annual meeting where we can discuss and debate the articles before our town."

Vote for SB2

Jim Leiterman

Moultonborough

I am writing to thank the Citizen Alliance for all the information and posts regarding the recent elections in Moultonborough. I would also like to congratulate the Alliance for requesting for a recount of the SB2 questions in the form of a manual count. The hand count process is the most reliable way to tabulate ballot votes.

Electronic counting is subject to error.

The vote counting machines in New Hampshire have already been the focus of citizen efforts to point out the shortcomings of these machines. Please click on the YouTube video link below. It is quite shocking to see how a vote tabulating machine can dramatically alter election results. After watching the entire five minute video, I am sure you will agree with me that the hand count is the most reliable and trustworthy way to count ballots.

I want to be clear that I believe our local elections are run with the highest degree of professionalism and integrity but even so vote tabulation machines have and can make gross mistakes. I would also like to thank the Town election officials for their efforts in advance.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=PiiaBqwqkXs&feature=related

James R Castleberry

To The Moultonborough Citizen Alliance:

Just wanted to send a quick note out to the Alliance to say that I have received word back from the Attorney General’s office stating that they did not see any violation of the RSA statutes regarding the posting of the rules in advance of the Town meeting. The Moderator is only required to state the rules that he deems appropriate and inform the meeting attendees that the rules can be changed with a majority vote.

The bottom line is that the current Moderator is correct in his assessment of the RSA rules for town meeting situation and I was wrong.

If you would could you please post this letter on your website, I would be most grateful.

www.citizens.com        printed 3-6-2008

Chance to lower taxes

Editor, The Citizen: The Moultonborough Selectmen have stated that our town budget for this coming year is only 1% higher than last year. Nice work but the town of Sandwich is 6% lower than last year. There is no reason why Moultonborough's taxes couldn't be lowered by sensible spending. If this town stops spending on certain capital expenditures this year, our town tax portion would be lowered by about 18%.

There are four big ticket items. Article 9 is for $375,000 for the Recreation Complex. Article 10 is $100,000 to be put in reserve for this Recreation Complex. Article 12 is 392,000 for this town's portion to rebuild Ossipee Park Road. Article 15 ,which includes $400,000 for an unidentified Municiple Building. Article 15 should be amended at Town Meeting to reduce it by $400,000.

This $1,267,000 deduction in these Capital Expenditures in our Town Budget will reduce our taxes by 18%, not too shabby.

Let the townspeople show up Saturday, March 15, 2008, at 9:00 A.M. to vote on sensible spending. At the same time lower the Town portion of our taxes by 18%. Show up and make your concerns over our out of control spending be heard. Let your voice be heard by your vote .

Al Hume

Moultonborough

March 8, 2008

SB2 and the transformation back to majority rule.

The New England Town meeting was born from the Calvinistic notion of ecclesiology. The Wikipedia definition of ecclesiology is that it comes from the Greek ἐκκλησία (ekklesia), which entered Latin as ecclesia, which originally simply meant a gathering or a meeting. The Mayflower Compact established the ecclesia of New England under a Majoritarianism form of government, which defined that a majority  of the population is entitled to a certain degree of primacy in society, and has the right to make decisions that affect the society as a whole. This concept is known as majority rule.

The early Congregational Church also gave us the notion of Town. The New England town is the essential unit of local government here in New Hampshire and in all the New England States. The institution of Town does not have a direct counterpart in most other places in the USA. Most towns in Massachusetts, NH and Maine were chartered by the Colonial Assemblies based on having a Congregational Meeting House and an appointment of a minister by the Congregational Church. Most of these Town Charters instituted the same sort of Majoritarianism government style of the Mayflower Compact.

It is especially significant to point out that there was no idea of separation of Church and State and quite to the contrary the meeting and Town government were adjuncts of the Calvin styled Congregational Church.

The current Town Government and Town Meeting are a direct historical hand down of our Congregational ancestry here in New England that pre-dates the American Revolution and the notions of constitutional democracy. The rules are now more inclusionary in that we now accept women and men that are not members of the Congregational Church, but for the most part the meetings are conducted in largely the same manner as they have been for 300 years.

Along with the inherited desired effects of “majority rule” also came the “dark-side” of the ecclesia and the power of the majority. Alexander Tocqueville, an early French commenter on the American experience put it best in his commentaries on the American Democracy:

“In America the majority raises formidable barriers around the liberty of opinion; within these barriers an author may write what he pleases, but woe to him if he goes beyond them. Not that he is in danger of an auto-da-f‚, but he is exposed to continued obloquy and persecution. His political career is closed forever, since he has offended the only authority that is able to open it. Every sort of compensation, even that of celebrity, is refused to him. Before making public his opinions he thought he had sympathizers; now it seems to him that he has none any more since he has revealed himself to everyone; then those who blame him criticize loudly and those who think as he does keep quiet and move away without courage. He yields at length, overcome by the daily effort which he has to make, and subsides into silence, as if he felt remorse for having spoken the truth.”

Simply put expressing your opinion can subject you to persecution, humiliation, and exile.

My name is Herbert L. Farnham and I am running for the three year term on the Moultonborough Zoning Board of Adjustment.  The Town officials have decided to cancel Meet the Candidates Night because only two (2) races are contested, ZBA being one of them.  I am dissappointed that I do not have that opportunity to meet Voters and discuss my credentials at that Forum versus others running.

At Town Meeting on Saturday, March 15th the registered voters in Moultonborough will set the course for future events.  Sure, the Community Center proposal is a big item and that has been actively debated at meetings and in the press.  A topic that has had limited exposure is the repair of Ossipee Park Road that has resurfaced, no pun intended.