Moriarty Comments On Restructure Hearing

Town Councilor Shaun Moriarty

I try not to fall into the trap of conspiracy theories and Machiavellian plots, but one can't help but wonder with the actions being taken.

After a very public and vocal call to action for delay in a rushed restructuring plan of Southbridge Middle/High School, the School Committee has scheduled a "Special Meeting" for Tuesday, May 26 at 7:00pm at the former Southbridge High School auditorium at 25 Cole Avenue. 

This comes with full knowledge of a previously scheduled Council of the Whole meeting to vote on the Town budget, which includes the School Department's budget. This coincidentally means that cable access will only be able to broadcast and show the Council of the Whole meeting, NOT this "Special Meeting" of the School Committee.

This coincidentally also means that Town Councilors, many of whom have been vocal about their concerns of the proposal, would be unable to attend the "Special Meeting" without first shirking their elected duties during an important meeting to vote on the Town budget.

This coincidentally means that even if a Council of the Whole was not to be held, the technology and means for a live local cable access broadcast doesn't exist -- whereas it could happen as such at the new Middle/High School.

This coincidentally comes after a Town Council subcommittee meeting last night, in which School officials denied the Town Council has any right to question the fiscal impact of the restructuring plan, including the cost of layoffs and lawsuits for wrongful terminations.

This coincidentally comes at the last possible moment such a meeting could legally be posted for Tuesday night, resulting in little time for word to be spread on a holiday weekend, particularly when the only means of advertising this meeting is that of those who learned of the meeting by chance or by legal obligation.

This coincidentally works as a strategic opportunity to later proclaim that the School Committee held a public hearing on the matter, all while providing said opportunity in a manner in which there would be no televised record and with little-to-no advertising or notice to the public.

Again, I don't propagate conspiracy theories or believe anyone is trying to subvert a transparent process, but when one looks at all the facts, it makes one wonder. As the famed literary detective Sherlock Holmes asserted, "Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth."