Charter Change Chicanery

Ken O’Brien

Want to be taken for a ride?

Back in October, you may recall, I submitted an open meeting law complaint that resulted in the town council being required to take a formal vote on proposed amendments to the special legislation to amend the Southbridge Home Rule Charter.

At the time I expressed the view that the agenda item proposed on the October 15 town council meeting agenda was not properly formulated.

Yesterday I decided to follow up on this matter. 

My Open Meeting Law Complaint

Ken O’Brien

The O’Zone has documented at great length the black comedy of errors that has constituted efforts to amend the Southbridge Town Charter.

First we witnessed the ineptitude of the town council in dealing with the original charter amendment proposals by the Charter Review Committee after a year’s work.

Then we saw the newly elected council dispense with all that work in two subcommittee sessions and ram through the politically driven result. 

Breaking News: Southbridge Charter Amendment Struck Down As Unconstitutional

Ken O’Brien

According to highly reliable sources the Massachusetts House of Representatives Committee on Bills in Third Reading has eliminated the following proposed amendment to the Southbridge Home Rule Charter as being unconstitutional.

Section 2-2-2 No qualified voter of the town shall be eligible to run for the office of councilor if he or she is not in good financial standing with the town by being current in all bills from the town.

Martha Coakley Gives Oral Hex

Ken O’Brien

According to the official website of the Office of The Massachusetts Attorney General, “Attorney General Martha Coakley is the chief lawyer and law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.”

In that regard, Ms. Coakley is responsible for the actions of her numerous functionaries, especially when it comes to their actions in that official capacity as the chief law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth.

This fact has become especially relevant in regard to the amendments to the Home Rule Charter of the town of Southbridge that are now pending before the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government.

Occupy Wall Street Goes Mainstream

Ken O'Brien

On Tuesday night the Los Angeles City Council went on record as the first major city passing a resolution calling for a constitutional amendment declaring that corporations are not persons and that money is not speech.

The Examiner.com reported, "Thanks to ground work by the U.S. Green Party, the wave of Occupy Wall Street empowerment and Human Rights Alert, today, Los Angeles became the first major U.S. city to vote against corporate personhood and call for a Constitutional Amendment asserting corporations are not entitled to constitutional rights and that money is not free speech. The vote was unanimous."