Today is Veterans Day.
All the years that I worked, I never had this day off.
It always seemed that non-vets got the time. They went to parades and relaxed.
It bothered me, but I knew that veterans don’t enlist and serve for themselves.
There is always on some level an unselfishness.
Each Veteran served for their own reasons. You don’t need to know why.
Please just THANK a Veteran, today, for their service to this Nation and to you.
To every Vet I know, Thank you.
There was a lot of political banter during the recent election season about the fact that the  tax rate did not go up.
My guess is that a lot of voters were stymied by this. They may have assumed that the tax rate WILL not go up. The truth is that we have to wait and see. What the politicos did not tell you is that the tax rate is not set until after the election. This gives them the oppurtunity to tell you that they should be re-elected because the rate has not changed. They are not lying to you they are simply obfuscating the truth.
How do I know this?
I went to the Massachusetts Department of Revenue website. There I used the pull down menu and found Methuen. I set the year, (remember to use Fiscal year here and not, neccessarily calendar year) to 2010.
When I hit the PREVIEW button, it clearly states “The Tax Rate for the selected Jurisdiction and Fiscal Year is not set”.
Another great feature of this State run site is the Municipal Calendar. This part of the site gives an overview of the calendar and, more importantly, an activities for each month feature. You can step through and see when activity should occur that affects your tax rate.
I went to October activities. There I see that by the end of the month, October 31, the following must or should occur;
[Note that this is 4 days before the Municipal Election]
Accountant: Submit Schedule A for Prior Fiscal Year
This report is a statement of the revenues received, expenditures made and all other transactions related to the town’s finances during the previous fiscal year.
The Schedule A classifies revenues and expenditures into detailed categories that will provide information essential for an analysis of revenues and expenditures generated by various departments. This data, like other financial information reported to DOR, is entered into DOR’s Municipal Data Bank; as such, the Department may provide time series, comparative and other types of analyses at the request of a city or town. This information is also sent to the US Census Bureau and eliminates a prior federal reporting requirement. Failure to file by October 31 may result in withholding major distributions of state aid until the Schedule A is accepted by BOAÂ (Bureau of Accounts).
Assessors: Begin Work on Tax Rate Recapitulation Sheet (to set tax rate for quarterly tax bill communities)
The town should begin gathering tax recap information in order to have enough time for the tax rate to be set and tax bills mailed by December 31. See August’s Complete Tax Rate Recapitulation Sheet.
There is other important information here.
If you go to the Massachusetts Division of Local Services Gateway there is a lot of very usefull information about your city or town.  Â
So, the tax rate doesn’t get set until or no later than December 31, in a calendar year, and the work to do that occurs or starts 3-4 days before the Municipal Election. Isn’t that a nice coincidence. Your tax rate did not increase so elect me. I heard that over and over again. Lot’s of people listened. Most incumbents were returned.
Now when the rate gets set and your tax bills go out and you have to pay more aren’t you, rightly, upset with the elected officials? This is one of a multitude of reasons why people, you, me ,our neighbors, do not trust government.
On top of this subtle subterfuge, comes the double speak. Your tax rate did not increase, we simply revaluated your property. Or some similar nonsense. Lies? No. Bureaucratic doublespeak.
If A x B=C, and A=tax rate and B= valuation and C is the amount I pay, don’t split hairs and tell me that A stayed the same but B went up. As a taxpayer, look at C in this equation. That’s how much I pay and the most important part of the whole discussion from the customer perspective, Remember the customer? We are the citizens and taxpayers of the City of Methuen.
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Dear Mayor Manzi,
I have been following the School Committee “race” in the papers.
The following two articles from the Lawrence Eagle Tribune are what I reference;
Methuen school committee winner to give up seat to losing incumbent
Attorney to determine whether School Committee member can give seat to ‘buddy’
**And the story continues: now read the latest, Henrick won’t resign Methuen School Committee
I believe in the end you will find that the School Committee, as a whole, gets to choose a replacement from the registered voters within Methuen.
I offer the following perspective.
I realize that if an elected member steps down, it is tempting to go to the next person on the ballot, especially the day after the election.
The Voters have already spoken and in deference to them, I would recommend that no one who ran should get the position, i.e. no one garnered 20% of the vote.
And, yes, you are right in assuming where this is going, I volunteer to serve on the School Committee to fill the unexpired term of whomever steps down, Mr. Henrick, I believe.
What are my qualifications?
I am a concerned resident of the City of Methuen.
I served on the Superintendants Task Force.
I actually graduated from a High School in Massachusetts.
My children graduated from Methuen schools.
My grandchildren attend Methuen schools now.
I have a good attendance record at City Council meetings, better than yours I believe, which should carry over to the School Committee.
If I serve on the School Committee, when would I find time to prepare to speak at each Council meeting, (a huge plus for some council members and bloggers on Disqus).
I throw my hat in the ring for consideration. You have my number–I’m waiting by the phone.
I have a neighbor that “burns” cardboard to dispose of it.
Another resident around the corner was discussing trash pickup with me and stated that the city doesn’t pick up cardboard.
Seems these are two persons who misunderstand the City ban on cardboard. Maybe there are others, thus this column.
The City, by State mandate, CANNOT pick up cardboard in the REGULAR trash pick up.
They do pick up cardbaord as part of the recycling pickup.
The City has on their website and I believe they have sent the same notice to all residents, this statement;
How can I dispose of my cardboard boxes?
Cardboard boxes recycled curbside must be cut and flattened to a size no greater than 36“x 36â€x36†in order to fit into the recycling truck. While bundling is okay, multiple pieces of flattened cardboard boxes may also bplaced under your recycling bins or standing up byour recycling bins. Cardboard can also be mixed together with other paper items (e.g. newspapers, magazines, mail) for recycling. Flattened cardboard can also be dropped ofrecycling in containers located at the DPW Yard on Lindberg Street off of Mystic Ave. Pizza boxes are considered as soiled, cannot be recycled and can be thrown in the trash.
Where can I get more recycling bins?
Recycling bins are available at the DPW Yard on Lindberg Ave off of Mystic St. (978-983-8865). You can also make your own recycling bin by reusing a container that you already have. Clearly mark it in water-proof ink as a recycling container, or pick up colorful recycling decals at the DPW Yard or DPW office in City Hall.
I need to state that driving into the Town Yard is easy but finding which door to enter is an eany-meany kind of proposition. The markings on the doors should be re-written so it is clear to residents which door to enter for business. Once inside it is a straightforward process, provide ID and sign for your bins. (2 per customer, I believe).
Here are some further notes from the City page to help with recycling.
Reducing your trash by a few pounds a week is easy:
• Recycle ALL clean paper (e.g.mail, catalogues) and cardboard—if it RIPS, you can Recycle it! Recycling all paper and cardboard saves $.
• Turn spoils into soils — compost organic food scraps.
• Include ALL #1 – #7 plastic, metal and glass containers in your bin.
• Give unwanted stuff away: go to www.freecycle.org
Membership is free, and everything posted must be FREE, legal and appropriate for all ages. To view the items being given away or sought in Methuen, you must be a member of the local group. To view the local group posts, visit the local Yahoo Group where they are located by clicking on the link above.
• Reduce Trash! Buy products with less packaging
We all need to assist to make this program work. It saves the City and the residents money. Cardboard CAN be recycled. Recycle!
The list is my recommendations for Charter Commission members. I generated this list by speaking to all these individuals at various times over the past few months. They appear to be 9 persons without to much political baggage and who are sincere at looking at our charter. I avoided the NAME candidates. They don’t need my plug.
All but one person are active members of Citizens for a Better Government.
Isn’t this a new millenium?
Don’t elect the same people who brought us here.
Let’s take a fresh look at our charter.
Time for new faces and fresh eyes to review where we are.
Support active progressive thoughtfull citizen neighbors.
Fresh faces, fresh ideas, a fresh breeze for the New Millenium in Methuen
Elect for Charter Commission:
Sheila Alartosky
Steve Devan
Paula Drelick
Joan Mannke
Eric McAdam
Gerald McCall
Sharon Ployer
Larry Retelle
Lyle Wilson
Vote on November 3rd.
Here are some articles worth reading or sites worth visiting.
If you read or visit, please come back and leave a comment.
Did you find them interesting or not.
I’ll post all comments that are pro or con for opinions.
The new issue of Business Week came out.Â
Here’s a riddle: If a scientist or engineer is laid off, does it affect gross domestic product?
By overlooking cuts in research and development, product design, and worker training, GDP is greatly overstating the economy’s strength.
Some new initiatives in California. Seems most progressive movements start out west. Not all are worth emulating.
Someone asked if their are equivalent movements in Massachusetts. If you know of any, send a link and I’ll post it.
CA Forward ; California Forward.
We’ve come together to reclaim our power as citizens and make our government work again.
Our goal is fundamental change: government that’s small enough to listen, big enough to tackle real problems, smart enough to spend our money wisely in good times and bad, and honest enough to be held accountable for results.
Call for a California Constitutional convention.
Repair California, Sponsored by the Bay Area Council
Wasn’t our last Constitutional convention in 2007?
If you have sites that are informative, let me know and I’ll add them in periodically to share with other readers.
There are things that a City does not do optimally. Some of these services should be “spun-off”. That was the reason for creation of Enterprise fund legislation. Services which are supported by funding from clients are the most common enterprise fund candidates.
Water and sewer funds are common. They may require large outlays to get started but are fully supportable by funding of clients/users.
I would recommend that in Methuen we create a Cemetery Commission.
The Cemetery Commission should be  responsible for overseeing matters that affect the City’s four public cemeteries.
The current list of cemeteries is as follows:
ELMWOOD CEMETERY 1700 to present 130 North Lowell Street.
MEETING HOUSE HILL BURYING GROUND 1728 to present Berkeley Street.
VILLAGE BURYING GROUND 1832 to present Opposite the Presentation of Mary Academy, behind the wall.
ST. PETER & PAUL RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CEMETERY 1950 – present North Lowell Street, past Elmwood.
[Note: I erroneously added this cemetery which is not City owned. Forgive my oversight.]POLISH NATIONAL CATHOLIC CEMETERY 1928 – present North Lowell Street, opposite Elmwood.
These have perpetual funds and through the sale of plots raise funds to maintain the site.
An enterprise fund should be set up along with a commission to oversee these sites.
Quoting from an ordinance to create a similar commission in Gardner Massachusetts;
(a) The Commission shall have sole control over and responsibility for the management of perpetual care funds pursuant to M. G. L. A. Chapter 114, Section 19 and M. G. L. A. Chapter 44, Section 54.
(b) Said Commission shall be charged with keeping full and complete records concerning such perpetual care funds and to render to the Mayor and the City Council as often as may be required by them, a full report concerning such perpetual care funds under the control during the period reported on.
(c) Said Commission shall shall be charged with the supervision, care and upkeep of all public cemeteries within the City and as to the proper expenditure of the perpetual care funds under the control of said Commission.
How many members, their qualifications, whom shall appoint and to whom they report I leave up to the City Council to hash out.
My recommendations would be that the Commission be 3 persons, one should be a Funeral Home Director, one a businessman and one a resident of Methuen. They should be appointed for 3 year terms.
I have listed some Statute References:
C.264 Acts 1890;
C.337 Acts 1891;
MGL C.285 Special Acts 1915;
MGL C.243 Special Acts 1916.
George Santayana (16 December 1863 in Madrid, Spain – 26 September 1952 in Rome, Italy), was a philosopher, essayist poet and novelist.
Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. When change is absolute there remains no being to improve and no direction is set for possible improvement: and when experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
This famous statement has produced many paraphrases and variants:
Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
Those who do not remember their past are condemned to repeat their mistakes.
Those who do not read history are doomed to repeat it.
Those who fail to learn from the mistakes of their predecessors are destined to repeat them.
 I was at the Nevins Library doing research and came across this Headline in the Lawrence Eagle Tribune.
Methuen chief
 may be fired
Â
 Deja-vu!!!!!.
The headline was from June 6, 1972. I didn’t copy the entire story but the front page stated;
“Police Chief Christopher H. Devine was served notice last night that the selectmen are considering firing him.
Devine is charged by selectmen with violating state statutes governing larceny:
making false written reports: influencing, impeding, obstructing, delaying or interfering with jurors or witnesses and violating town police rules — which are rules Devine was instrumental in establishing.
The selectmen’s action came via a 2 to I vote and with the stipulation that a hearing on the charges against the chief will be held June 13 at 2:30 p.m. in Town Hall.
Whether the hearing is public or private, according to Selectman Wilbur A. Hyatt, will be up to the chief.
The selectmen declined to elaborate on the charges against Devine but have ordered Town Council Americo J. Fusco to deliver a written notice to the chief indicating the specific charges against him and the reasons for his possible removal.
The charges against Devine stem from the selectmen’s investigation of the police completed last fall.
Voting to take action against the chief last night were Selectmen Chairman Daniel J. Dodson and Selectmen Hyatt. Opposing the move was Selectman William E. Moran.
Moran said that he did not find sufficient evidence in the investigation transcript to warrant the chiefs removal.
The motion to press charges against the chief came from Hyatt, with Dodson casting the deciding vote.
Their vote came just one month after investigation inquisitor Atty. Peter B. Gay advised selectmen and the town counsel in a written decision to review the transcript and take action against Devine…”
 Within the same page quarter was the following tidbit. I highlighted the last sentence.
Noucher trial set to begin
SALEM — The Superior Court trial of Thomas H. Noucher, 43-year-old operator of the 400 Club in Methuen who’s accused of conspiracy to violate state gambling laws, was tentatively set to start this afternoon.
That was the work this morning from an Essex County District Attorney’s office source who said that impaneling of the jury would start either today or tomorrow.
Due to be tried with Noucher on the same charge was Hamlet B. Rogers, 57, a Lynnfield amusement company owner.
The charges against Noucher and Rogers stem from the so-called Methuen police controversy which began to draw public attention in the summer of 1970.Â
Is Santayana correct? You have to decide for yourself but I think we need a strong leader who has no internal interest to lead the Methuen Police Department out of it’s current morass.
Time to do a nationwide search for a chief that has no history with this department and can lead it to “Be the Best that They can be”.
We should have done it after Solomon was fired and my opinion has not changed.
I never understood, in this circumstance, how the Mayor could claim the department was fractured and factious, then remove the head of one faction and promote a member of the other faction. How was a move like that going to correct the internal issues? That is strictly an outsiders view of the events. [Isn’t that how Solomon got his Chief promotion in the first place? Anyone remember Chief of Police Bruce MacDougall, Police Department 1975 — 2002]
Lot’s of dedicated officers in need of unbiased leadership.
As always, you decide.
Browsing through the Home Rule Charter as it exists today, I noted that there are two types of free petition.
They are Action Discretionary and Action Required.
Methuen has had 4 charters in it’s history. I reviewed them all. The first one in 1917 didn’t have this distinction.
This is the current from the City website. It is identical in 1971,1977 and current version.
HOME RULE CHARTER OF THE CITY OF METHUEN 2000
Section 8-1 Free Petition.
a) Individual Petitions, Action Discretionary – The City Council and the School Committee shall receive all petitions which are addressed to them and signed by a voter and may, in their discretion, take such action in regard to such petitions as they deem necessary and appropriate.
I would only add a provision that allows petitions from residents who are not voters. I would also add that said petition be published with the minutes of the meeting at which it was presented. It should become part of the public record.
The second part of this gets a bit more interesting. I have printed both versions. It appears that the version in the 1977 charter ballot question and todays are the same and reproduced below;
HOME RULE CHARTER OF THE CITY OF METHUEN 2000
Section 8-1 Free Petition.
b) Group Petitions; Action Required – The City Council (or the School Committee), as the case may be, shall hold a public hearing and act by taking a vote on the merits of every petition which is addressed to it and which is signed by at least one hundred fifty voters. The hearing shall be held by the City Council or the School Committee, or, in either case, by a committee or sub-committee thereof and the action by the City Council or School Committee shall be taken not later than three months after the petition is filed with the City Clerk. Hearings on two or more petitions filed under this section may be held at the same time and place. The City Clerk shall mail notice of the hearing to the ten petitioners whose names first appear on each petition at least seven days before the hearing. Notice by publication at least seven days prior to all such hearings shall also be made, and shall be at public expense. No hearing shall be heard upon any one subject matter more than once in any given twelve month period.
 The bold last sentence was added, apparently, to keep persons from continuously submitting the same petition over and over until it passes.
Below is the 1971 Charter version.
I recommend that we return to the 50 voter limit. I understand about not bogging the system down but we also need to allow citizens the ability to affect new laws. If one thinks about it, the ability to be a councillor is to be a resident of the city and gather 50 signatures. Why should it be any more difficult for a free petition than it is to be placed on the ballot as a candidate?
HOME RULE CHARTER OF THE CITY OF METHUEN
Section 8-1 Free Petition.
b) Group Petitions; Action Required – The City Council (or the School Committee), as the case may be, shall hold a public hearing and act by taking a vote on the merits of every petition which is addressed to it and which is signed by at least fifty voters. The hearing shall be held by the City Council or the School Committee, or, in either case, by a committee or sub-committee thereof and the action by the City Council or School Committee shall be taken not later than three months after the petition is filed with the City Clerk. Hearings on two or more petitions filed under this section may be held at the same time and place. The City Clerk shall mail notice of the hearing to the ten petitioners whose names first appear on each petition at least seven days before the hearing. Notice by publication at least seven days prior to all such hearings shall also be made, and shall be at public expense.
These are some of the issues that need to be discussed, debated and resolved by a Charter Review Commission.
Vote YES on Question 1.
From the League of Women Voters of the Cincinnati Area.
Elections present voters with important choices. Whether it is a local race that will affect your community or a national race that could change the direction of the country, elections are a time to consider the issues you care about and decide which candidate you support.
The quickening pace of American living and our dependence on mass media have greatly changed the way we get our political information. Style, far more than substance, weighs heavily in today’s campaigns with their 10 second sound bites, news shows “photo ops,” political flyers, mass mailings and carefully crafted websites.
Major political campaigns, with all of their excitement, activity and extensive news coverage can bombard you with images and impressions, yet leave you with very little real information about the candidates and their stands on issues.
How do voters go about comparing and then choosing a candidate?
DECIDE WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR IN A CANDIDATE
Candidates can be judged in two ways:
the positions they take on issues and the leadership qualities and experience they would bring to the office. Both are important. Your first step in picking a candidate is to decide which issues you care most about and what qualities you want in a leader.
When you consider issues, think about community or national problems that you want people in government to address. For example, you may be interested in the threat of terrorist activities, government funding for student loans, teenage unemployment, health care, etc.
When you consider leadership qualities, think about the characteristics you want in an effective leader. Look at the candidate’s background and their experience. Do they have the intelligence, honesty and ability to communicate you want in a public official?
TAKE A GOOD LOOK AT CAMPAIGN INFORMATION
Television and radio commercials
Candidates are aware of the potential power of television and try to use it to their advantage. When you see or hear a paid political ad, ask yourself some questions. What did you learn about the candidate from the ad? Did you find out anything about issues or qualifications? Or was the ad designed only to affect feeling or attitudes about the candidate? Was the ad designed to appeal to a specific group: women, minorities, older voters, single issue voters? You can learn about issues, even from a 15-second TV or radio commercial, if the candidate wants you to, or if you can separate the substance from the glitter. As you watch political ads be aware of how the media is trying to influence your reactions.
Direct Mail/E-mails
More and more candidates are using direct mailings or e-mails to solicit funds or votes. Computerization and the internet make it easy to send “personalized” appeals to selected groups of voters. Candidates can send members of women’s groups one message, for example, and members of veteran’s organizations another message. However, if you are aware that you must read between the lines to get the full story, the direct mail letter or e-mail can often help you understand the candidate’s stands on the issues. Recognize that they are a campaign tactic and try to see what you can learn from them.
Pamphlets and Flyers
The leaflet slid under your door or handed to you at the store may contain valid substantive information or it may be full of lies, distortions or evasions. Read it critically. Does it tell you more about the candidate’s devotion to family and country than about qualifications for office or stands on issues? Be on the lookout for accusations or other statements about opponents, especially if they are made so close to election day that such statements cannot be answered or denied.
BE AWARE OF DISTORTION TECHNIQUES
These are attacks on an opponent based on characteristics that will not affect performance in office. References to race, ethnicity or martial status can be subtly used to instill prejudice.
Watch for unsubstantiated statements or innuendo. These include statements such as, “I’ve heard that Jones is soft on crime.” “I can’t speak for Mr. Riley and Ms. Baker, but I never would have awarded such a low-cost loan to an out-of state builder.” “Everyone says my opponent is a crook, but I have no personal knowledge of any wrongdoing,” which implies (but does not state) that the opponent is guilty. Legal, perhaps, but dirty campaigning. Such “dark hints” can sway an election if voters are unwary.
Look carefully at criticism of a candidate based on candidate’s supporters – “We all know Representative Smith is backed by big money interests” or “The union has Senator Jones in its pocket.” Every candidate needs support from a wide range of people and groups, some who may not represent the candidate’s views on all the issues. Judge the candidate’s own words and deeds.
Beware of empty phrases such as “law and order” or “un-American” that are designed to trigger a knee-jerk emotional reaction rather than to inform.
These are instances in which a candidate denies responsibility for an action or blames an opponent for things over which he or she had no control. When one candidate accuses another candidate, or party, of being the cause of a major problem such as unemployment or inflation, check it out. The incumbent or the party in power is often accused of causing all the woes of the world. Was the candidate really in a position to solve the problem? What other factors were at work? Has there been time to tackle the problem?
There are promises that no one in an elective office can fulfill and problems that are beyond the reach of political solutions. Public officials can accomplish realistic goals, but voters shouldn’t expect miracles and candidates shouldn’t promise them. When you hear nothing but “promises, promises” consider how realistic these promises really are.
Some candidates work very hard to avoid giving direct answers to direct questions. It’s not enough, for instance, for a candidate to say, “I’ve always been concerned about the high cost of health care,” and leave it at that. And the candidate who claims to have a secret, easy plan to solve a tough problem is often just coping out. Watch out for candidates who talk about the benefits of a particular program but never mention how the program would work or what it would cost.
RATE THE CANDIDATE ON HOW THEY CAMPAIGN
The way a candidate runs a campaign can provide important clues to how that candidate will perform as a public official once elected. A contender who runs an open, straightforward, issue-oriented campaign can be expected to become an accessible, forthright and thoughtful public official. So evaluate the contenders on their campaign performance.
 Is the candidate willing to debate with opponents? Does the candidate meet regularly with the press? Does the candidate accept speaking engagements before different groups, even those who might not be sympathetic? Does the candidate appear in person or avoid public scrutiny by sending “stand-ins”?
Information: Do campaign ads provide clear information on issue positions? Can you easily obtain position papers or answers to your questions? Are a candidate’s qualifications clearly stated, and are they the ones that will count in public office? Is the candidate’s voting record easy to get?
Seeing a candidate “pressing the flesh” in a parking lot or at a huge political rally won’t tell you much about the candidate’s stance. Most of us must rely on the candidate’s use of media to find out more.
Here are some things to watch for:
In a broadcast interview, who is the interviewer? Is the interviewer a regular station or network staff person with no special ax to grind or is it an ally of the candidate, asking only friendly carefully phrased questions, or an antagonist out to make the candidate look bad? Does the interviewer follow up, if answers are evasive or off the point?
In a question-and-answer session, what about the audience? Where did they come from? Who selected them, the candidate’s party or staff? The broadcaster? A disinterested party? If you are not sure, call the station or campaign headquarters and ask.
Where does the candidate appear? Does the campaign emphasize media events, where the candidate can be seen but not heard, a parade, a beauty contest, a county fair? Talking only on narrow surefire subjects to safe audiences is a cop out. Voters deserve a broader perspective.
LEARN HOW OTHER PEOPLE VIEW THE CANDIDATE
Other people’s opinions can help to clarify your own views, but do not discount your own informed judgments. You may be the most careful observer of all!
Seek the opinions of others in your community who keep track of political campaigns. Ask them which candidate they support and why. Learn what has shaped their political opinions. Was it an event? An idea or program proposed by a candidate? A particular issue about which they feel strongly? A long-standing party loyalty?
CHECK OTHER SOURCES
Throughout campaigns, opinion polls are taken by a variety of groups to evaluate public support for the different candidates. Don’t support a candidate just because the polls say that a majority in your age group, region, ethnic group or party does. Before you believe everything you read in a poll, ask these questions:
Who sponsored the poll? Were all the figures released? When parties and candidates pay for polls they may not publish unfavorable data.
Was the poll affected by a key event? Public opinion can change drastically due to a highly publicized event such as a military crisis or a political scandal.
What questions were asked? Were the questions clear and reflect real choices or were they slanted? You can easily spot blatantly biased questions that can’t help but produce a resounding Yes or No, but also look for ones that subtly steer a respondent to a certain answer or leave no room for a Yes, if……. or a No, but……. answer.
Who was interviewed? How were respondents selected? Randomly or in such a way to include all segments of the population proportionately? If not the results may tell you how a small group feels, but nothing about the total population being sampled.
How many were interviewed? No matter how well a poll is done, there is always a margin of error. The smaller the sample, the wider the margin.
How long ago? Even the best polls are just a snapshot in time. People may change their minds in a day, a week or a month especially in the charged atmosphere of political campaigns. Remember, once the “undecided” make up their minds, the results could change drastically. Look for polls that compare current figures and past ones, and try to spot trends.
Group Ratings
Some organizations representing special interest groups (business, environment, labor, the elderly, etc.) sift through senators’ and representatives’ myriad votes on crucial bills and rate them on how closely they match the group’s point of view. Similar ratings are often done for state and even local candidates. These ratings can help you but they can also be misleading. So use them wisely, as a way to gauge an incumbent’s positions, but never take them as the final word.
Check the organization’s reputation. Does it have a record of accurately analysis an reporting? Is it supported by those it claims to represent?
What is the group’s bias? Which issues are important to its constituents? Are they the same ones you care about? What one group might label as a vote for wasteful spending, another might see as a vote in support of a vital social remedy. Conflicting goals and perceptions lead to conflicting ratings.
FINALLY
Pinpoint the issues that are important to you. Decide what changes you feel your community, state and country need most. What do you want to keep the same? Will your interests be served by programs the candidate is proposing? As you ponder, weigh alternatives and listen to people on both sides of an issue. Look at cause and effect. Consider what you have to trade off to get what you want.
Then Choose Your Candidate and DO SOMETHING!
AND THEN VOTE ! !
July 2007—[Used with Permission. Webmaster]