Can't say I am sorry to see the Melrose Free Press shutter the presses and go to a digital only format. This rag stopped being about Melrose along time ago, and is mostly filled with regional garbage and pictures and articles sent in by parents of private school kids gloating about their accomplishments. The weak last gasp effort to turn the paper into a rag for Melrose Messages trolls failed miserably and the tabloid nature of the paper will be following AL to Malden.
What are you talking about? Catering to MM trolls? What the heck are you toking?
He's talking about how The "Not so Free Press", had become the current administration's mouth piece, printing only feel good stories about the schools as the district was collapsing around CT and Dolan's ankles and the Feds were knocking on Melrose's door. While they were writing stories about Johnny's homerun, Jimmy's touchdown or Suzy's hat trick, people were flocking to Melrose Messages to get timely news about the important news such as the several ongoing Civil Rights investigations, the city solicitor and superintendent's repeated public records law violations, the Water & Sewer rate debacle and the many other serious issues surrounding our corrupt administration and school district. I think the Free Press was stunned by the readership on Melrose Messages where on just one topic there were over 25,000 views (What kind of schools does Melrose want?). The Free Press tried to switch gears in the end and get back to real journalism but their coverage of "breaking stories" was always two weeks behind Melrose Messages breaking the story. The message learned here for journalists is to stick to true journalism and report on issues people really care about, and of course don't become the Mayor's PR machine. People can read right through that.
I didn't read it before, and I won't read it now. It's trash - about on the same level as Patch.
Absolutely agree with "A matter of time"!!!!!!!
The NotsoFreePress had finally begun to have some real content and actual investigative journalism under Aaron Leibowitz. This was squelched when CT and RD used taxpayer funds (with no vote from the school committee, who just nodded their tacit acquiescence, as usual) to hire GuileFoil to spin all things Melrose Public Schools. From the moment that firm was hired, the paper has been mostly back to junk journalism (aka not journalism at all), with a couple of exceptions. Weekly News hasn't been much better the last couple of years, pretty poor actually, but at least it is actually free. This message board is the only reliable source of actual news, as even the reporters for the Globe would admit. Too bad about Aaron leaving for Malden reporting, but good for Malden. Aaron is a talented journalist with actual integrity, someone who understands that an unfettered media is critical to anything claiming to be a democracy. Sounds like it's back to ground zero with the lousy "notfree" Press, and let's hope it isn't back into the severely negative McCarthyist days of CB Ball, who set our community back considerably with her in-the-bag (RD's bag, that is) zero-integrity non-journalism.
Unlike its competitor, the Weekly News, the Free Press echoed the Mayor's desire and the real estate interests in support of the override.
Noobs out here love to frame everything in the context of the hatred for the mayor. Did it occur to anyone that the issues with the Free Press may be symptomatic of what is happening to print media overall. The moronic discourse out here is nearing its own embarassing low point.
Did it ever occur to you that you and they may both be right? Print journalism is dying. The Free Press was (is) in the Mayor's pocket, and haven't engaged n real journalism in years. It's good for lining bird cages, and that's about it.
OK. Go to Vegas and lay down big cash on Dolan not getting re-elected next time around. See how that works for you.
He'll be thrown out the instant anyone with a functioning brain and a few articulate statements steps up to run against him. He certainly does have a Machine, albeit one minus scruples, but he has lost the trust and good will from a large portion of the community. He is tainted by his own bad acts and bad character, his miserable history on the SC (and micromanaging so much of the school business behind the scenes), and for the many things he has botched, like his wretched mismanagement of water & sewer practices/policies, his atrocious staffing, his chronic poor treatment of many of those still trying to do a decent job serving the public (those who haven't fled to get away from him and his tyrannical mistreatment), and on and on.
Here goes the latest clown "truth" talking about blank votes again and Dolan getting bounced out "when" someone runs against him. Put down the crack pipe bozo, everyone with a functioning brain knows if they ran against him they would get crushed. The challenge thrown out to the Bozo Brigade is simple...get the leading republican in Melrose, and largest receiver of votes in the last Alderman at Large race, to run against him. She would receive an incredible raise, has run for statewide office on several occasions, is the leading republican in Melrose and has a "functioning brain". If she won't who will? You fools could dress up in your full clown regalia and march right down main Street to City Hall sweeping her in in a landslide. Honking those noses the whole way. Put up or STFU. The same lame excuses over and over again.
Here's an idea Clownster. Dolan and the GIC taking Alderman can switch the Charter back to allow open and democratic elections, allowing local business owners and those in private practice to run for Mayor without divesting themselves of their businesses and clients while in office. And then let's see what happens. Like you said, you believe Dolan will trounce anyone who runs? Then let's give them an opportunity to run without all these undemocratic restrictions.
The truth: Clown Patrol knows very well Dolan will never move for free an open elections while he's Mayor of his kingdom because he knows it would open the field back up to qualified candidates who would in all probability beat him.
From the updated city ordinance: "The mayor shall devote full time to the office and shall not hold any other elective public office, nor shall the mayor be engaged in any other business, occupation or profession during the period of service as mayor.
Ahhh...Waka, Waka, Waka...
Name one business owner that has run for Mayor in Melrose's history.
Name one that you think could beat Dolan.
None of the successful ones would take the pay cut, 90% support Dolan, and the rest wouldn't beat him.
CP is right. This charter thing is a red herring. Their are two viable candidates in Melrose. One that could give Dolan a run for his money. The other because she wants to be a paid politician. Don Conn and Monica Mederos. Conn won't run. Not interested, won't take the pay cut, and wouldn't necessarily win. Mederos would get destroyed. Dolan's support in this community is very strong among seniors, empty nesters and families. The reality is a Mayor's race would be good for the community but its a tremendous amount of work and its expensive. A candidate needs to believe they can win to put that kind of effort in. Based on Dolan's tremendous popularity and effectiveness the capable and qualified individuals in this City either support him, know they can't beat him, or aren't interested in being Mayor.
"Gimme" (aka full-fledged Dolanite brown-noser) just delivered quite a load.
"Based on Dolan's tremendous popularity and effectiveness" = No one here by that description!
Any uncontested candidate for whom 30% of voters refused even to check the box next to his name is heading down the tubes in a big way (maybe even bigger than his spectularly failed override boondoggle). The guy's got big troubles and he knows it on some level (even if he chooses to deny it, just like he chose to ignore the perceptive individuals who warned him long before the override vote that his initiative was doomed by a large margin). Hence the BS patrol is out trolling and posting this kind of waste. The guy is an arrogant fool, but he is willing to admit just enough to have his eye constantly in the rear-view mirror. He has plenty of reason to be worried.
He's only "popular" with the ignorant, gullible young parents and those who have been bought or think they need him to prop up something that another more honest and ethical person would refuse to allow once elected. Many of the seniors now know full well what this guy is all about and how he couldn't really care less about their well being. They only have to look at their water bills to see that. Or they can look in the backpacks of their grandchildren and see the illiterate garbage the schools are sending home. These seniors don't take kindly to the arrogant and ignorant behavior from school administration, and oh by the way, many of them watch the school committee meetings and find the people and proceedings absolutely appalling, as they most certainly are.
The charter needs to be fixed, and soon before any one of the sort of state or federal investigations this administration is now vulnerable to suddenly requires resignations and the city finds itself in an even bigger mess than this administration has already caused.
Let's be real - the only way Dolan leaves his position is if he can get a cushy state or federal job that pays more. He came close a few times in the past. He is in it for the pension, clear and simple and that means he will stick around until retirement time makes it viable for him to leave! Dreadful thought!
Also, the job still doesn't pay enough to attract qualified candidates who have a chance of upending Dolan. And please people - don't be fooled to think that this is a full time job - that's a joke! You just need to surround yourself with qualified people - any good manager understands this.
The only reason why people think it is a full time job is because Dolan gets so involved in his job - because he likes to be front and center in all the action - and he is power-hungry - his closest advisers can confirm that truth. Dolan is a show-man, to that extent he is a lot like Trump. Bombastic, in your face, always right about matters, always there for the camera, telling us all how great he is and what he has built! Wow- he does sound like Trump!
Based on my observations/conversations, the statement about support from seniors in not correct.
Maybe this is Zwirko's declaration of challenging Dolan.