Here's Dwight Jenkin's letter to the Advertiser today about the potential shenanigans still in the minds of the local "players" who (in their fantacies) believe they own this town. (I apologize if I'm taking liberties with the interpretation, but the lengths to which the "players" are going in some instances is nothing but arrogance personified.)
"Last spring, summer and fall a majority of the residents of East Greenbush made it painfully clear that a casino was not welcome here. Last spring, summer and fall the various boards that control East Greenbush (Town, Planning and Zoning) made it just as painfully clear that a small number of town employees and connected insiders did not care about the majority's position. Your boards did everything in their power to accommodate the casino developers, to include the approval of a Planned Development District ( PDD) which would carve out a home for the unwanted casino in an area of town not zoned for casinos or any other commercial development. Fortunately the Gaming Commission's Site Location Board did not recommend a casino in East Greenbush, but that doesn't mean your town boards are closing the door in the developer's face. To the contrary, we have recently heard from two town officials that big plans are still in the works for what we all thought was a dead-on-arrival PDD, with the developer allegedly asking for an extension on the life of that PDD. Why do that? No one is saying, but this we can say: the PDD has not been withdrawn, and Save East Greenbush, the grass-roots group which sprang up to help stop the casino, is still watching and still has legal bills to pay. We must finish what we started and close the door on the still-kicking PDD Zoning vote. Save the date: let's meet at 7:00 PM on FEBRUARY 10 at the EG Public Library. We'll be discussing what's left to accomplish and how we plan to shut the door on this unwanted PDD once and for all. We'll have refreshments and some fantastic fund-raising plans that you'll definitely want to be part of. Hope to see you there!"
This is a concise summary of a serious problem. I want to join Dwight's call for people to attend the February 10th meeting at the Library. Phil Malone continues to taunt members of Save East Greenbush, telling us at a Board meeting to "watch out for what's coming to Thompson Hill" and now scheduling a trip to Mohegan Sun Casino for his first fundraiser of the year. You read that correctly - Phil is holding a fundraiser at a casino. Coincidence? Slap in the face of Save East Greenbush? Tone deafness to the voices of his constituents? Any way you slice it, this is clearly part of the problem Dwight highlights in this article. Even in the face of the massive outpouring of criticism of insider politics during the casino debacle, the people who think they run this town are hell bent on carrying on with business as usual.
ReplyDeleteTo do this, they must believe that the casino wars are over and we'll all melt back into the apathy that enabled them in the first place. Their problem is that it's an election year and we're not going away. This PDD application must be terminated. We're not getting a casino and this PDD application was for that purpose only. If landowners on Thompson Hill want to propose new developments, we welcome their entrepreneurial spirit as long as they follow the same rules as everyone else. And that means going back to the starting line with a new PDD application. It's time for our boards to make a statement that they exist to protect the public interest, not the privileges of selected insiders.
If Phil Malone's casino fundraiser bothers you, write a check to Save East Greenbush for the $50 minimum donation he's requesting and write on the note line - "Donated in honor of Phil Malone." Let's see how much money he can raise for us. I'll be bringing our check to the Library on the 10th. Anyone care to join me?
Jack, I actually see this differently than you. I am not remotely offended by Phil Malones comments. I do not see them as a taunt. Rather, I see them as being brutally frank and truthful. I realize he pisses off alot of people with this tone and what is perceived as arrogance. But I see it as this: if you ask him a question or his point of view, he gives it to you and you'd better be prepared for what comes out of his mouth ! You don't have to agree with him, but the man always gives you answer.
DeleteI fully understand your point of view, I wish you the very best of luck but i am not remotely offended by Phils answer nor where he choses to hold his fundraiser.
I am content to know that he at least gives an answer - regardless of whether or not its what you want to hear !
I like this statement, Jack..." It's time for our boards to make a statement that they exist to protect the public interest, not the privileges of selected insiders."
DeleteTake a look at the Condo "report" on 1 Cooper Ave. to the Planning Board. Nothing but a polly-anna whitewash of what went on there. Not a mention of the fact that there was no building permit or that the problem was self-caused or that there was a sewer connection during the moratorium. Just a Dem appointee carrying water for an insider.
Phil Malone was, and remains, an immature and snotty nosed punk. I know that's nasty but the guy's raw arrogance continues to shine through.
ReplyDeletePhil Malone's singular positive contribution to the town is the term that has come to mean reform in the most positive sense - being a "Gadfly"! For that we salute you, Phil.
Political insiders have never, ever played by the rules. No one begrudges the Hart family their financial success. But why does it have to be based on dirty deals at the expense of decent, regular folks? Why can't the Hart family, and all other insiders, developers and money people in town simply do the right things in the right ways?
Dwight, Jack, Don - my check is in the mail. Bless you all.
Speaking of "gadfly", author of "Brushstrokes of a Gadfly" E.A. Bucchianeri stated that “it's not unpatriotic to denounce an injustice committed on our behalf, perhaps it's the most patriotic thing we can do." This is what has emerged from SEG and the casino fiasco, a community fed up! What is important is for citizens to remain engaged, not just on the blogs but in real life - in person at meetings and do our civil duty to take back OUR town!
DeleteAn evening with Donnie,Dwight and the rest of the misfits. PRICELESS
ReplyDeleteThe reality is, Anony, that the real "misfits" (those who don't fit in a community) are those who have been ripping their neighbors off for some time with their back-room and under the radar avoidance of the law. That's how we got the casino fiasco and 1 Cooper Ave and the illegal Plat approval last January for Thompson Way - among other things. It has to stop. Sorry you don't understand what it means to be a citizen.
Delete@anon 10:49, I agree with you in that I am not offended by what comes out of his mouth and agree that he will at least give you an answer. What you don't mention is that answer will be whatever he thinks will work best for him. That answer may vary from person to person who he's answering and why. He is smart - he's a brillian conniver. Those who have grown up with him and known him for years will all agree.
ReplyDeleteThanks Don for the civics lesson. Really coming from someone as phony as you. PRICELESS
ReplyDelete11:28 a.m. We know you're not DeF because the words are all spelled correctly. Good for you!
DeleteIt's upsetting to think that the fight for Thompson Hill is starting up all over again. Now that the property has been purchased by businessmen, how long will the zoning fight go on and at what cost to the residents? Can they win against these land merchants indefinitely? Phil Malone is clearly an agitator who seems to be taking the gloves off in the fight to commercialize TH. Even Langley isn't being as overtly obnoxious as Malone. Will Malone actually try to rally to life the fictional silent casino majority in an effort to win the caucus this year for Supervisor? If anyone has the chutzpah to do it, Phillip does. One thing is clear, Langley should just step aside or be crushed by the competition. The election this year will boil down to pro-Thompson Hill vs pro-business voters. What is happening to this town? You would think that TH is the only parcel of property left in EG. Bizarre!
ReplyDeleteJack, I'm in for $50. It will be in memory of ALL Board Members, who tried to turn EG into a gambling town. *More checks will follow. Bonnie Lester
ReplyDelete10:53 a.m. and 11:28 a.m. You may not be Eddie Gilbert, the EG poster child for cyber-bullying, but you sure sound like him. Mr. Ethics himself can't get enough of the wise cracks. You're not going to be rewarded for your loyalty to Keith Langley, EJ. Instead, come Nov 3rd, you and the rest of the Lang Gang will be forgotten as quickly as it takes to fill in the little circle on the election ballot.
ReplyDeletePhil Malone's choice of a casino trip shows that he is either 1) obtuse or 2) making a statement that mocks the citizens of EG. Either way, it's a telling action. He simply doesn't get it.
ReplyDeleteHe doesn't understand (or care) that the citizens fought a costly battle against his direct actions. We gave our valuable time. We gave our hard earned money. Most of all, we gave our energy and passion. It consumed our life. We started our day by checking emails, print media, FB Posts. We held citizen meetings, attended TB, PB, ZB meetings, canvassed neighborhoods and distributed lawn signs. We passed the hat again and again and again. We gave our lifeblood to fight our seemingly Sisyphean battle. It was highly stressful and disturbing.
Malone doesn't get it.
On November 3rd the citizens will begin the process to unravel the web of corruption spun by self-serving members of our town government. People are excited about the upcoming election. We can't wait to pull the lever. Voter turnout will be at an all-time high and, just like Malone's run for State Assembly, he won't have the support of the EG voters.
Oh happy day.
Phil is a cocky little wannabe politician who relies on his mother to scare up those of their ilk to vote for him. In the short time we've known him, we've all come to realize that Phil's most pressing question is 'What's in it for me?' He's clearly intelligent but headstrong and impatient and he prefers to take shortcuts whenever possible by perfecting the art of the deal. He'll never succeed in politics because he also has an unsavory side. When he was running last year, his opponent said that if Phil keeps his head low, I'll spare him; if he pops his head up, I'll crush him. Needless to say, Phil kept his head low and lost as expected. Now he's back figuring that he can beat this SEG wrap and take the Supervisor's seat. Wrong, Phil. He still doesn't believe that the majority of residents in town don't want a casino and he aims to prove it this year. Nevermind that he lost badly in EG when he ran for the state Assembly last year. He's a scrappy, street fighter who just won't stay down. No worries. We'll just have to put him down on Nov 3rd and make sure he doesn't get back up. He's done in EG. The power is with the residents. So far, Mary Ann Matters is the only town board member who has even come close to realizing that.
ReplyDeleteDo you people ever listen to yourselves. You really are ignorant to the world around you. Don you would be wise to look in the mirror and say goodbye. Your closet doors are about to be opened. Not good not good at all
ReplyDeleteHey Anony.....I don't write all these comments. You need to learn that there's a significant new constituency out there in East Greenbush which is absolutely fed up with the monkey business and the shenanigans which have been pulled by the Rep and Dem machines over the years. The casino fiasco was the last straw. It's the local "players" who don't get it. East Greenbush is no longer a "bus to be driven."
DeleteRight you are, gadfly. now the hard work begins. WE must enlist the help of all independent thinking electors to back dedicated candidates who are not part of neither of the town political parties who hae failed the residents of this town.
DeleteYou're closet doors are about to opened? That's all you know...threats and thuggery! These were the practices of the mafia and brutal dictators. Do you think you help yourself with posts like that? It's like you literally WANT to fail.
Delete@ 10:24 AM (Chris?)- wondering when we would hear from you.
DeleteLangley has achieved something we might have considered impossible. Langley united the citizens of our town! All in and against his complete lack of leadership, communications, good judgment and reliance on cronyism. But unite us he did.
ReplyDeleteMalone is a failure as a leader as well. Malone in singularly responsible for the SWF election victory. Decent candidates, especially Vallle. But a super poorly run campaign. When combined with Malone's own mistakes in judgment, his unrestrained ignorant comments and his total lack of achievement in his current position Malone needs to go bye-bye as well.
Better days are here and more are coming. But the same old/ same old politicians need to be replaced. No doubt about it.
10:24 a.m. It's YOU who is IGNORANT to the condition of the town around you or is it just that you don't care. For too long we residents have slumbered unaware while the town deteriorated behind our backs to junk bond status and massive debt. We TRUSTED the powers that be and are now we are in our sixth year of junk bond status, six YEARS! Our general, highway, water and sewer funds, to name a few, have large and growing deficits due to the interfund borrowing that was never repaid. No matter what your party affiliation 10:24, you have to admit that things are no better under Langley then they were under McCabe, Angelini, Gause, and VanVoris. That's ALOT of years that things have been going steadily downhill. The casino project was nothing more than a low hanging branch that Langley used to pull the town out of the financial quicksand it's STILL in after his 3+ years in office. Unfortunately for him, the branch snapped and the town is now continuing to SINK into the quicksand of financial insolvency. In other words, the casino ambush FAILED. Now you want us to powder Langley's ass with a willingness to forgive and forget? To keep trusting? Not a chance! We need a Supervisor who knows two things: how to run a town PROFESSIONALLY according to well established govt guidelines and how to surround himself with the kind of talent who can help him get there and then actually listen to them. You will be happy to know that such a person exists and many people will be giving their all this year to getting him elected on Nov 3. So mouth OFF all you want 10:24; your days are numbered. The sleeping giant has awakened and is taking control.
ReplyDeleteAnd let me get this straight. When your handful of do gooders win. You all get jobs. Your all buying the coolade. But this is America we all can dream
ReplyDeleteWhen do gooders win, qualified people will get jobs. The coolade we are buying is no "insiders". The dream is of good government.
DeleteYou need to understand that we're not working for patronage, nepotism, cronyism and graft - the things that have crippled this Town. We're working for accountability, transparency, competence and honesty in government. We have no need or expectation of employment when the housecleaning takes place.
DeleteThe profound irony is that if Langley had begun to build an administration based on the policies outlined in the Advertiser by Matters and DiMartino in the weeks prior to the election, and if he had taken advantage of the offers of help from people who had knowledge and experience, Mr. Langley would be well on the way to re-election as a competent reformer. But he got kidnapped by a wannabe bus driver. Of course caving to the "players" on the casino disaster didn't help either.
ReplyDeleteWe'll have to watch to see who shows up. Langley's got a fundraiser the night before the Feb. Board Meeting at the VFW. Checking the temp of the bathwater I guess.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting Langley is having a fundraiser when the State Board of Elections website characterizes the Keith Langley as terminated as of December 12, 2011. Is it possible our secret Supr is being sponsored by another secret group?
ReplyDeleteMaybe he's "feathering" his nest some other way. Is Jimmy still in the picture or has he flown the coop? I wonder how much Jimmy "admires" KL now?
Delete9:30 p.m. "terminated" how, from what?
ReplyDeleteIt will be interesting to see who supports him enough to write a check. Folks, if you're attending the Langley fundraiser, please send your check to Save East Greenbush instead. It will be better spent.
ReplyDeleteI think 9:30 was noting that his political committee was terminated. He will need to start a new one in order to fundraise. Very sad to hear he is running. I wonder who they will get to run with him, especially for Judge. What lawyer would put their name on the ticket with Keith.
ReplyDeleteFrom the looks of his fundraiser invite, no one will associate their names with him. The email goes to an anonymous g-mail account and the checks go to an anonymous PO Box. No treasurer name and no committee to re-elect members. Sad, very sad.
Delete11:46 a.m. Everything they do is done anonymously. What does that tell us? It tells us that no one associated with KL or his business dealings, whether a casino or a simple fundraiser, wants to be identified. Why? Is there a secret KL society as well as a secretly run town? This is highly suspicious and disconcerting. I agree with 8:45 a.m., instead of donating money to Friends of KL, donate it to Friends of Save East Greenbush instead. It will be the best $50 you ever spent and you will get something for your money...no casino!
DeleteNo Casino&No Langley 2015
Send Keith a check. Send him a check for -$25,000... his portion of the damage inflicted on the town.
ReplyDeleteHI. This is 901 again. I misspoke, he needs a new committee to LEGALLY fundraise. If he is running things like the EG Republican committee, he can have a fundraising event, take in money and spend it and never report it.
ReplyDeleteThe venue for the Langley fundraiser is low end. Setting up your buffet on top of the beer hall's pool table isn't exactly classy, especially for a town Supervisor who's been in office for 3+ years. When you're writing your check, remember that Keith Langley is the man who opposes a fully functional ethics board because he thinks, by his own admission, that it will hurt his chances for re-election. This is the man who ambushed his own town with an 11th hour board resolution to welcome a gambling casino into our community. This is the man who lost his majority status on the town board within a year of acquiring it. Can anyone else add to the list?
ReplyDeleteYes, this is the man who has led us into our 6th year of junk bond status!
DeleteAnd acts surprised at the inability of the audit firm to produce an audit. He signed the checks and presided over the financial mess for 3 years.
DeleteHe closed the planning and engineer departments down just in time for the casino fiasco.
He fired two DPW workers to accommodate more management.
Keith Langley has told the public many times and in many ways that he had no reason to consider their advice or respond to their questions. Those who follow local government in our town have been told to express their concerns at election time and otherwise to blindly follow Mr. Langley, without question. At times this message was delivered by the heavy handed and unsavory kitchen cabinet comprised by Mr. DeFruscio, Mr. Gilbert and Mr. Mulvey, all of whom have insulted belittled and harassed residents with the blessing of Mr. Langley.
ReplyDeleteHere we are after three years of this ill-advised administration with Mr. Langley voting yes on good government resolutions in a "hail mary" attempt to earn the confidence of the very residents he refused to respect when he was exercising his "power". During his "power" period he told us to feel free to address his behavior at election time.
Well, it's election time. No Langley in 2015.
9:01 p.m. Agreed, he has been arrogant to a fault since he won the "majority" in Nov 2013. He did not expect his female counterparts to be anything but stepford-work-wives set to follow his lead. Barf. He got a rude awakening from Matters who set out on her own when he pushed to hard and too far. Good for her! Deb? Sink or swim? Langley is as disingenuous and manipulative as he is arrogant. If he wins re-election, he'll be Mussolini on steroids! The "power to the people" is in the voting booth. He started it. On Nov 3rd, we end it.
ReplyDeletethis is 9:01, @ 11:23 - We must end it on Nov. 3 but we must be careful to choose good candidates and not repeat the mistakes of the past. When we were anxious to vote Mc Cabe out, we ended up with Langley who turned out to be just as bad. Then we were impressed with the Advertiser campaign of two unknown candidates who spent their first year in office under the thumb of Keith Langley leaving us with empty promises about audits that didn't exist, inappropriate appointments (nepotism, cronyism, unqualified individuals, top heavy management, etc) and a scary and still open PDD on Thompson Hill. Granted, since her enlightenment Matters has done some excellent work but a lot of suffering could have been avoided if a more experienced candidate had been elected in the first place.
ReplyDeleteWe voted against McCabe and got Langley (then unknown). We voted for a new majority outlined in the Advertiser and got two inexperienced people who were bamboozled by Langley for far too long.
This year's candidates must be experienced, well educated and involved in the fight for a better East Greenbush. There are several people who could hit the ground running and positively contribute to good government in our town. My point is that we must support candidates who are well known to us and able to do a good job when elected.
11:06 a.m. It sounds like the newly activated resident contingency (thanks to the casino project) is getting involved now in seeking out and supporting good candidates whereas before they left it to chance. You said "a lot of suffering could have been avoided if a more experienced candidate had been elected in the first place," but who would that person have been? Bottillo? Vallee? If either of them had been elected in place of Matters, we might be preparing ourselves for a casino grand opening in two years. As a board member, Matters helped a lot to intensify the drama associated with bringing a casino to EG and with drawing media attention to it. She is qualified to serve on the board but her trial by fire beginning caused her to have a rocky start. Matters has an advantage because of her well qualified and experienced husband, so electing her, even in the midst of our intransigent supervisor, was not a mistake, and the residents knew it, which is why they elected her. She will work well with the new supervisor next year if all goes well and according to plan. Hope, hope.
ReplyDeleteI do believe that MAM will work well and hard for our town in the future but I also believe that she was very slow on the uptake for good government contrary to her Advertiser campaign. I am suggesting that we select new, independent, candidates who can hit the ground running. As far as what the voters knew, remember that DiMartino beat Matters by approximately 200 votes. We must educate the voters to never make that kind of a mistake again. DiMartino, unlike Matters, as been a disappointment.
DeleteMy point is that we shouldn't suffer through another waiting period.
Again Matters will do well but not because of her husband. Once the dust settles DiMartino will probably follow along with whomever wins.
If DiMartino is just wise enough to support good government, she can do well, too. She is inexperienced but demonstrably intelligent enough to recognize a good thing when she sees it. Going forward, she definitely needs to hitch her star to another wagon.
ReplyDeleteInteresting read in today's TU:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.timesunion.com/tuplus-local/article/Penalty-follows-ethics-review-6063151.php
Hey Mr. Gruenberg, how much are you getting paid to misinterpret the law?! Look at this, someone filed a complaint and someone got fired...but please Mr. Gruenberg and our almighty embarrassment of an ethics chairman, keep telling us the Board of Ethics doesn't have the authority to investigate complaints.
DeleteI've spoken to CP DiMartino and feel that she is definitely for good govt. She is too new to the ways of politics to have any kind of an underhanded agenda. This is what makes her good for the town, but vulnerable to the lowlifes lurking around her who have their own self-serving political agendas. Langley and DeF clearly lost CP Matters and, thankfully, she has returned to being the determined person we met at our door in 2013 but what about DiMartino? She spoke to us at our door too but now we are left to wonder where candidate DiMartino went since she was elected? CP DiMartino is a lot quieter. Quite frankly, if the three women on the town board would come together, we might see some real improvements in the direction of the town. The two men are obviously just competing with each other for power and all about themselves.
ReplyDeleteDi Martino could ask 4th and 5th grade students to identify the right and wrong of many of these issues. It is just not that complex. Being "new" (read uninformed, unprepared) does not make her good for government. She needs to get up to speed real quick or she, like her pal Langley, will be done. The government that comes in will require her to stand on her own two feet.
DeleteNeither Langley nor Malone are good for the town. We need to stop toggling back and forth between electing Dems and Reps. We need a viable third party alternative. We need to show the corrupt insiders and their water carriers that they're all washed up. If you plan to attend the Langley fundraiser on the 17th, please reconsider. Think about what's best for the town. Keith Langley is not what's best for the town. We can do better. We NEED to do better or suffer the consequences. Before you back a candidate this year...think. Give only the very best candidates your precious vote.
ReplyDelete