The Observation Deck

Bill Call wrote:

Mark Kindt wrote:
If third-party lawyers are attempting to obstruct the City of Lakewood's compliance with Ohio statutes, the citizens need to understand the scope of such interference.

Now that is an interesting thought. Someone is helping the City resist a valid open records request.

Who?
Why?

I doubt that it is just a desire to waste Mr Essi's time.

I understand from an eye-witness to the proceedings that a white-collar criminal defense attorney from Jones, Day who represents CCF has attempted to intervene in Mr. Essi's public records request case to make arguments that would assist the City of Lakewood in its effort to continue to deny Mr. Essi access to the requested public records. From this specific effort, I have to conclude that the City of Lakewood continues to act in bad faith with respect to these public records.

m buckley wrote:

Michael Deneen wrote:

Jim O'Bryan wrote:David, you are a good man,

JOB repeatedly claims that David Anderson is "a good man".
Based on what, exactly?

Mike

Being a neighbor and a friend.

I know and deal with his wife and kids, he is a good family man.

I get where David is coming from on the Library situation, but he has also remained amazingly silent about the treatment of residents by City Hall employees.(for years)

He brought up Lakewood Public Library, and a supposed SLH person(?) I raise you BL founding member in repeated police investigations over what most see as insane behavior. No comment, but he knows all about it.

Where is the outrage over that? One can only believe, this good family man, and other good people like Cindy Marx, have gone to a very dark side.

Hiding public records, lying to residents, sitting by while problems they know full well of, attack residents, lie on job applications...

This is what has me confused, what I belived to be good family people, honest people, turning their back on what City Hall is doing.

As it comes out in the coming weeks, you will also wonder how and why they stayed silent, as City Hall moved farther and farther from legal, honest, fair represntation.

For any Democrat to stand for Government cover-ups, and voter intimidation, is also very troubling.

With that said, when I look out my window, and see the Anderson family, I see good people, with a man caught in a shit storm of bad stuff.

David, stand for transparency, bring peace to the city.

Cindy, you will not get re-elected with a plaform of secracy, silence, and intimidation of voters, and yes my dear, you are an enabler, and both know it.

.

Dan Alaimo wrote:I was also at the November meeting and spoke up against their trying to exclude David Anderson, which was against the library's meetings policy. […] After the meeting, I told David Anderson that I didn't agree with many of the things they said to him.

While I was not present, I subsequently apologized for this also as a founding member of the group. (You can confirm that I did so, because it's a public record. E-mail, November 18, 2016.)

As others have been illustrating with examples, most people involved in Lakewood politics for any length of time have, by now, a lengthy list of grievances either on their own behalf or that of allies. I could easily add more examples, for which I am not aware of any apology being offered by anyone, to date.

What would result, though?

I don't believe there's any way to reconcile the incompatible grievance lists circulating. Maybe, however, we can inch closer to a resolution on how paid public officials should uphold general principles of good government in practice, and whether or not they're doing so.

I think that individuals can contribute to that, best, by responding to specific, well-sourced and reasoned arguments on this matter, at least as often as they respond to frustrated venting that often resulted from someone else's frustrated venting etc., etc.

Jim O'Bryan wrote:Cindy, you will not get re-elected with a plaform of secracy, silence, and intimidation of voters, and yes my dear, you are an enabler, and both know it.

.

Don't bet on it.

Pam Wetula wrote:OF COURSE the public has the right to receive a complete duplication of every city record!!!

NOW WE KNOW how Mr. Anderson "Here to Serve" really feels about Transparency in government.

I have nothing of substance to add to the intellectual discourse already presented here on this topic. I thank each of you for your time and expertise in this arena.

I am still waiting for the rest of City Council and City Officials to weigh in with their thoughts on this matter. (we already know their actions thus far)

Please, City Council, Jenn Pae, Mayor Summers et all... tell us if you agree with David Anderson.

Yours in Service,


My correction: David Anderson is "Yours in Service," ....not "Here to Serve". (was in a rush..drat.) Still appalled at his attitude towards transparency and the implications of our local government's disregard for the publics best interest.


Pam Wetula

A lack of transparency results in distrust and a deep sense of insecurity. Dalai Lama

Bill Call wrote:

Jim O'Bryan wrote:Cindy, you will not get re-elected with a plaform of secracy, silence, and intimidation of voters, and yes my dear, you are an enabler, and both know it.

.

Don't bet on it.

Bill

I bet on almost nothing except backgammon and poker.

You and I, actually many of us have good friends on all sides of this, nightmare. We were both Summers supporters, we liked some of the agendas and people around town. Now, the city looks at each other in a different way. It is like "Bad Day At Black Rock." An otherwise nice city walking around caught up in a scandal everyone knows happened, but are afraid of what comes next.It only gets worse and worse and worse until someone spills the beans, and everyone comes forward. You can cut the tension in this town with a knife.

Bullock, Anderson, Marx, O'Leary all called a year ago wondering how can "we" bring the city together? It is simple, show the community the documents, then we can all move on.

The entire City fears worse and worse everyday, as City Hall runs from accountability. At least 3 courts have said, "Turn the documents over!" 3 different courts.
They lied about most of the real aspects of this deal, and now the cover-up breaks up their party, and destroys the city in ever way possible.
All any of us asked for was the truth, the facts, and let us double check them. Nothing more.

Lakewood, had a fun, cool, progressive brand, but it has squandered by a small handful of people for their own rewards.

.

Jim O'Bryan wrote:

Bill Call wrote:

Jim O'Bryan wrote:Cindy, you will not get re-elected with a plaform of secracy, silence, and intimidation of voters, and yes my dear, you are an enabler, and both know it.

.

Don't bet on it.

Bill

One hope I have in all of this is that the timing of discoveries from the numerous court cases will result in the incumbents for council-at-large being made unelectable. To me everyone who participated in the shameful December 7, 2015 press conference does not deserve to hold any public office. You cannot shut out your constituents and claim to serve them at the same time. Though I feel the remarks made to Councilperson Anderson in front of his children were out of line, I am very disappointed that his first public remarks on a nearly year-old court case are so self-serving. No questions as to why Butler is withholding the records, just whining about whether the public has the right to request this much information. Answer, yes. In the United States government is by We the People...not us and them.

I watched last night's White House Correspondence Dinner and the speeches by the legendary team of Woodward and Bernstein reminded me of how we must be patient. In Bob Woodward's remarks he quoted his boss Ben Bradlee who twenty years ago said, “the most aggressive our search for truth, the more some people are offended by the press. So be it.” Ben continued: “I take great strength knowing that in my experience, the truth does emerge. It takes forever sometimes, but it does emerge, and that any relaxation by the press will be extremely costly to democracy.”

Is there a public right to receive a complete duplication of every city record?

David Anderson

I think the answer is YES.

Re: Dan Alaimo, upset about SLH telling Anderson to leave the November SLH meeting. (And Anderson not having the good sense to leave.)

There was absolutely no reason for Anderson to come to that meeting. NONE. NADA. ZERO.

For Anderson to have the gall to come to the first SLH meeting immediately following the election,

is like the ASSASSIN who killed the guy,
showing up at the FUNERAL,
to see how the man's WIDOW feels.

To say it was in EXTREMELY bad taste for Anderson to show up that day - is rather an understatement.

He has dis-earned my respect.

JOB: He's a neighbor of mine, too, but that doesn't make him a "good man."

Marguerite Harkness wrote:Re: Dan Alaimo, upset about SLH telling Anderson to leave the November SLH meeting. (And Anderson not having the good sense to leave.)

There was absolutely no reason for Anderson to come to that meeting. NONE. NADA. ZERO.

For Anderson to have the gall to come to the first SLH meeting immediately following the election,

is like the ASSASSIN who killed the guy,
showing up at the FUNERAL,
to see how the man's WIDOW feels.

To say it was in EXTREMELY bad taste for Anderson to show up that day - is rather an understatement.

He has dis-earned my respect.

JOB: He's a neighbor of mine, too, but that doesn't make him a "good man."

FIRST: City Hall release the records!

Marguerite

There is no excuse for confronting someone in line at the library. NONE

All meetings in the Library by their very nature of being there, are open meetings. So David or anyone should be allowed and welcomed. It is the library. You can think whatever you want, but he had a legal right to be there, and you had a legal obligation to allow him to attend. Libraries, their peace and sanctity must be honored.

Call me naive, or foolish, but I can separate a person from some of their political stances, or other things I do not agree with.

Life is not about a single issue. However the morals and accountability of our civic leaders affect us all.

I disagree with David on his stance on Lakewood Hospital, and the "corruption" at City Hall.

To paraphrase David's stance as told to me a long time ago. "The deal is a nightmare, it was all screwed up, but even worse is if we get nothing."

But I am glad he is my neighbor, I like all my neighbors.

I doubt that Nate Kelley can get my vote for Mayor of Lakewood in his up-coming election bid, but I get a kick out of him as a neighbor.

The beauty of Lakewood.

,

Jim O'Bryan wrote:
Call me naive, or foolish, but I can separate a person from some of their political stances, or other things I do not agree with.

Life is not about a single issue. However the morals and accountability of our civic leaders affect us all.

,

I agree.

I also agree that Coucilman Anderson had every right to attend public meetings at the Library. He deserved the respect of his office. He also deserved respect as a human being.

I left that meeting when it became clear that some people in attendance had no desire to listen, only to shout.

I wasn't present at that November SLH meeting, but I would tell those involved to not beat yourself up. As others have pointed out, Mr. Anderson's timing was at best curious.

But I was present at a COW meeting a couple of years earlier to discuss The Drug Mart mess. Towards the end of that meeting Tom Bullock began to browbeat a neighbor who had the temerity to give voice to his frustrations. Bullock ended his bullying by pointing his finger and telling my neighbor to " sit down". It was aggressive and uncalled for. To his credit, Brian Powers had the decency to turn to Bullock and say something like "it's O.K., let him speak."

You know who didn't say anything at that moment? The selectively sensitive Mr. Anderson. He didn't say squat.

You want to focus on something, focus on Mr. Anderson's absurd excuse for why Butler refuses to turn over public records. There's reams of crap there.

m buckley wrote:The selectively sensitive Mr. Anderson.

...nomination for today's winner. Such the victim...

What do we do as citizens to help Essi's cause, which in fact, our cause?

Beat the bushes for turkeys?

Back to the banjo...