Sturbridge
Agenda 21 defeated in Sturbridge
Dec 6th
I attended my first Sturbridge town meeting last night. That may seem odd for someone as political as I, but I’m a national politics girl and I hate meetings. If you love the sound of your own voice (and since I have a radio show I suppose I could be accused of just that), there is no better place to be than a town meeting.
The first half hour was pretty much consumed with the rules. Anyone who has been to a Sturbridge Tea Party meeting knows that by the end of the first half hour we are on the winding-down side. Not so at a town meeting. They are barely getting started. After a reiteration of the rules comes the pledge and the prayer (which I was shocked and happy to see). Then came the introductions of the 873 13 people on stage. Then came the awards (don’t ask). By then I was ready for bed.
Finally to the first of several issues, which was explained by the moderator, then explained by a member of the panel and they another one.
Next came the discussion which alternated between pro’s and cons. Luckily I was sitting next to a guy who provided great color commentary about what was going on.
The issue was about some soccer field and it was clear that the packed room was mostly there for that matter. According to my interpreter it was essentially between lazy soccer moms who were willing to spend whatever it took to not be forced to drive an extra mile and the sane people.
By the time they got to the vote the sun was rising (somewhere). It was a majority rule vote and a show of hands revealed it was very close. Out came the hall monitors who two by two counted the voters. My seatmate and I thought that the soccer moms won, but after the votes were counted manually they lost by an incredible 265 – 272. Suddenly I was happy to be there, because I actually made a difference.
Several votes later, (when we approaching the reverse of daylite savings time) we got to Agenda 21, which was masked as ICLEI. I’m proud to report every single speaker opposed the bill which would force government regulation on building codes, cars, and before you know it, pets, and send costs for everything through the roof. Agenda 21 is a lot more sinister that that:
Agenda 21 is an action plan of the United Nations (UN) related to sustainable development and was an outcome of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. It is a comprehensive blueprint of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organizations of the UN, governments, and major groups in every area in which humans directly affect the environment.
Agenda 21 is a huge tea party issue in MA, and rightly so. This will not be the last gasp.
Goodnight Irene
Aug 29th
I’ve always enjoyed storms. As a kid, my mother would take us out on the porch to watch the lightening. Every time it thundered my mother would declare “God is bowling”. Every storm was simply a wonder to see and hear. (As a good liberal I wonder if my mother would have herself arrested for taking her kids outside in a storm today.)
Irene is the first storm I have ever feared. I was scared enough to scare myself. To ease the fear (like an old lady) I asked my niece to spend the weekend here. I took everything in from the deck and front porch. I battened down the hatches, and then barely slept Saturday night waiting for the attack. On Sunday I just hung on wondering which tree would fall on my house and kill me. It was pathetic.
This was the June 1 tornado coming home to roost for me. I didn’t get hit in the tornado, but because those close to me did, I guess I internalized more than I thought. Mother nature has morphed from a wonder to a nightmare.
Sturbridge escaped quite nicely. We didn’t lose power, and the damage is minimal. There is nothing to complain about.
And I think it is time I got over myself. A tornado is a once in a lifetime thing, and mother nature isn’t out to get me.
(Unless of course the Mayans were right….)
Feast and Fire
Aug 19th
If you are in the area, and have tired of watching the endless reel of my TV show, stop by Feast and Fire on the Sturbridge Common, 1-9 PM tomorrow (Saturday). The Sturbridge Tea Party has a booth where we will have a raffle to benefit Operation Tree Party, and we will also be selling Sturbridge Tea Party tea shirts.
Be there or be square!
TV here I come!
Aug 18th
FWDAJ, my weekly radio station is going cable starting this weekend. It will be shown 6 times on channel 12 cable access in Sturbridge. As I understand it they will broadcast the last three weeks episodes this weekend.
The times are Friday at 8:30 PM, Saturday at 10:39 AM and 2:30PM, and Sunday at 10:30 AM, 2:30 PM and 8:30 PM.
Oh dear
