Cambridge City Council Candidate Forum October 8, 2013, TV Schedule, Online Viewing

Posted October 9, 2013 12:24 AM ET; Last updated October 18, 2013 7:18 PM ET.

Here's a link to online file you can watch this forum any time.

http://cctvcambridge.org/citycouncillesley

Other videos related to this year's council elections and school committee elections can be seen at this link.

http://cctvcambridge.org/user/shirinmozaffari

Here is a link to see schedule of when CCTV will broadcast the candidate forums beginning Friday October 18, 2013. East Cambridge Planning Team and the one at Lesley University October 8, 2013. Other election videos are listed on this page also. 

http://cctvcambridge.org/node/196664


Venue of the third City Council candidate forum.

A third Cambridge City Council candidate forum was held at Lesley University on Tuesday, October 8, 2013. The amphitheater was filled to capacity with interested voters standing at the rear and sitting along the edges. Two candidates were unable to attend  due to personal matters. City Councilor Timothy Toomey, Jr. had a family emergency. Candidate Logan Leslie had a family issue. Former City Councilor, Mayor and State Representative Alice Wolf moderated and asked the questions. She kept the questions concise so that the candidates and the voters were able to focus on the matters raised. The government shut down in DC was not mentioned except obliquely, recognizing that the federal government is dysfunctional. 


Early arrivals.


Plenty of open seats at this time.

Here are comments reported by the Cambridge Chronicle.

http://www.wickedlocal.com/cambridge/news/x1803299611/Council-candidates-square-off-in-Porter-

Council candidates square off in Porter Square forum
By Erin Baldassari/ebaldassari@wickedlocal.com
Wicked Local Cambridge
Posted Oct 09, 2013 @ 12:43 PM


Candidate Nadeem A. Mazen.

"[Councilor E. Denise] Simmons identified a direct approach helping small businesses. She took the opportunity to highlight an initiative she started to get the city, as one of the largest purchasers of goods and services, to buy locally." What she did not say is with that policy in place, the City Council purchased a "present" for the previous City Manager from a national chain bookstore.


Candidates Jefferson R. Smith (left), and Kristen Lane Von Hoffman.

"Councilor David Maher [said] the system works 'pretty well' and others [said] it isn’t working at all." Candidates for US offices usually run against Washington DC. In Cambridge it is difficult to run against yourself.


Candidates Dennis J. Carlone (left), and Janneke Ann House.

"[Candidate Ronald] Peden led off the discussion with a call to close the growing income gap in Cambridge, a charge picked up by nearly every other candidate." No details were provided. Within the perspective of the current administrations in Washington DC and on Beacon Hill, the policies work against closing the income gap. The gap increased during the previous five years of governance by Obama and Deval Patrick. How would the Cambridge City Council with little power other than to ask the City Manager to do something, and to grant curb cuts have any influence on income, generating jobs and regulating salaries?


Alice Wolf negotiating with one of the many power brokers present, at last minute. Marylou Batt, Lesley University Vice President is to the left of Wolf.

In a related article published in the print edition, October 10, 2103, page A14, "Election Notes," "Vasquez invited as CRLS speaker," Candidate Luis Vasquez reportedly said to a high school civics class, "Don't view me as a politician, because to me the role of a Cambridge City Councilor is to be a leader." In 2010, the Governor of Massachusetts, Deval Patrick, Harvard College, Harvard Law School and former Chief of the Civil Rights Division of the US Department of Justice said, "I am not a politician." Is there a reason why some people (often politicians) deny what they are? Are being a leader and a City Councilor mutually exclusive? Is so why? 

School Committee Member Marc C. McGovern (left), with City Councilor E. Denise Simmons.

While I was taking notes, I noticed the man with a video camera sitting next to me focus his lens on me about 6 inches from my face. He said he was from Spain and was at the forum to record candidate Luis Vasquez. The last time I had a camera in my face so close was when I stopped by a church in Cambridge as I walked to a library. I asked the state police officer what was going on. He said "A wedding." then turned his video camera toward me and held it the way this guy from Spain did. Does that mean that Vasquez is the state police candidate? 

John Howard, President of the Porter Square Neighborhood Association (left), Lesley University Vice President Marylou Batt, to his right. 

Before the first panel began, candidate Nadeem Mazen took out his still camera and took my picture also.  I wondered why I was of interest to these politicians. How many of the candidates of the people are actually police employees?


Candidate Luis Vasquez.


Cambridge fire and police officers responded to an unknown call as I left the building. In case they were after me I kept walking. I made it home safely without being questioned. I directed the emergency personnel to the second floor where the politicians could be found for questioning or for apprehension. These images were captured by Roy Bercaw on a SONY FD MAVICA (elder) digital camera.   


Left to right. Candidates Dennis J. Carlone, Janneke Ann House, Nadeem A. Mazen, School Committee Member Marc C. McGovern.

[Stop back for updates which will include the questions, website URLs and responses of the candidates. Cambridge Community Television (CCTV) filmed the forum. Here is a link to a online file you can watch any time.

http://cctvcambridge.org/citycouncillesley

I'm trying to learn when it will be broadcast on cable television, and will post the times so that you can see the exact words spoken at the event.]


Left to right. Candidates City Councilor E. Denise Simmons, Jefferson R. Smith, Luis Vasquez, Kristen Lane Von Hoffman. 


Electrical genius (left), working on microphone. Mayor Wolf to his right. That is the top of Dennis J. Carlone's head, to her right.


From extreme left, at end of first panel, John Howard, President of Porter Square Neighborhood Association, State Rep. Alice Wolf, Candidates Dennis J. Carlone, Janneke Ann House, Nadeem A. Mazen, School Committee Member Marc C. McGovern.  


Left to right. Candidates Jefferson R. Smith, Luis Vasquez, Kristen Lane Von Hoffman. 


Full house, after first panel.


Full center section of amphitheater.


Full left field section too. 


Second panel, left to right. Candidates Lesley Rebecca Phillips, City Councilor Kenneth A. Reeves,  James M. Williamson. 


Second panel, left to right. Candidates (half out of camera range at extreme left is) Gary W. Mello, Mushtaque A. Mizra, Gregg J. Moree, Ronald Peden. 


Left to right. At lectern, John Howard, Alice Wolf. Second panel Candidates City Councilor David P. Maher, Gary W. Mello.


End of second panel. Left to right. Candidates Lesley Rebecca Phillips, City Councilor Kenneth A. Reeves, James M. Williamson.


End of second panel. Left to right. City Councilor David P. Maher, Gary W. Mello, Mushtaque A. Mizra,  Gregg J. Moree, Ronald Peden.


Third panel, left to right. Candidates former City Councilor Sam Seidel, City Councilor Minka van Beuzecom, Elie Yarden. 


Third panel, left to right. Candidates Dennis A. Benzan, City Councilor Leland Cheung, City Councilor Craig A. Kelley, James Jong Soo Lee.


Third panel, left to right. Candidates Dennis A. Benzan, City Councilor Leland Cheung.


Third panel, left to right. Candidates former City Councilor Sam Seidel, City Councilor Minka van Beuzecom. 


Third panel, left to right. Candidates City Councilor Craig A. Kelley, James Jong Soo Lee. 


Third panel candidate Elie Yarden.


Left to right. State Representative Alice Wolf, candidate Dennis A. Benzan.


Post forum consultations. Left to right. Candidates James Williamson, Ronald Peden. 


End of third panel, left to right. Candidates James Jong Soo Lee, former City Councilor Sam Seidel, City Councilor Minka van Beuzecom. 


End of third panel, left to right. Alice Wolf at lectern. Candidates Dennis A. Benzan, City Councilor Leland Cheung, City Councilor Craig A. Kelley. 


End of third panel. Candidate Elie Yarden, with concerned voter.

Directed Noise Compliments of CPD

[I was unable to capture the audio. ]
Harvard University is renovating their prominent Fogg Museum, Busch Reisinger Museum and their Fine Arts library. It is two years into the three year project. Usually the construction corporation complies with the many laws that the police enforce. Cambridge police allow them to ignore others. Cambridge restricts construction to the hours between 7 AM and 9 PM. On Saturday construction may not begin before 9 AM. But that is only the law. Cambridge police are excused from the laws as well as the elected officials who allegedly run the city with the permission of the 30-year City Manager. It is clear to anyone who knows about this city that the City Manager is a dictator in the purest sense of what the word means. The city police enforce laws, and city agencies act according to policies determined by one man. The City Council passes what they call "orders" which are really requests to the City Manager each week. The manager decides what he will answer and what he will ignore. The spineless people who run for office to participate in this farce, ensure that there is never any challenge to the manager's actions whether or not they are legal.

I was blessed by Harvard administrators with an apartment directly across the street from the Fogg construction project. Each day I am treated to the brutal sounds of banging and especially the added musical charms of the back up warning signal of construction equipment. It is not as if the drivers of those vehicles could not drive them without the backup signal. The vehicles have cabs that can face in either direction. But they seem to always be going backwards with the blasting warning beeper.

Sometimes they begin at 5:30 AM but I gave up complaining. The police dispatchers would tell me to go out and to complain directly so that the workers would punch me out as they did to one neighbor a couple of years ago. The Cambridge dispatchers are charming too. They work with the police to control citizens instead of protecting their freedom. Governments in this country have become communistic. Some of the construction workers told me they would prefer to begin at 5 AM every day.

On Tuesday July 31, 2012, construction began at 7 AM sharp. At about 7:25 PM I heard loud beeper signals from a vehicle which sounded as if it was right outside of my window. It continued for about 3 minutes. I looked to see. It was right outside of my window. It was being loaded onto a flat bed truck to transfer elsewhere. I wondered why it was on my side of the street. Why did it need to be loaded alongside of a building where people lived, at 7:30 AM? There are two nearby streets adjacent to the project where no one lives, at Quincy Street on both sides of Broadway. Even if they loaded it on the other side of street it would not be so loud. I wondered if the police directed them to do it that way. Would police harass civilians? In the USA? Read Hitman by Howie Carr and see how police, and the FBI in Boston murdered civilians wholesale and got away with it for 30 years. Only two FBI agents, two crime family members and two informants were punished. The same criminal organization that ran the Boston and Massachusetts governments, still run them today. A few personnel changes are the only differences.

After that flatbed truck with the construction vehicle left, another truck pulled up and dropped a large dumpster right outside of my windows. Crash, bang. One of the cranes proceeded to drop a large metal box into the dumpster making a bomb-like sound. Then the dumpster was loaded back onto the truck and taken away. All of this before 8:00 AM. This is not a unique occurrence. There is what appears to be intentional harassment by police, who are on site every day directing traffic, beginning at 6 AM. They direct the vehicles next to the residential building and on the side of the street next to the building.

Here are images captured between 7:27 AM and 7:56 AM on Tuesday July 31, 2012.































[These images captured on August 3, 2012 at about 7:10 AM]

Minka vanBeuzekom, Cambridge City Council Candidate

Cambridge City Council Candidate Minka vanBeuzekom has national admirers. Will Elizabeth Warren show this picture in her campaign as well?

Minka with US Senate Candidate Elizabeth Warren!

City Council Tests Model for Official Local Transportation

Cambridge City Council, is testing newer model vehicles for local transportation. The Assistant City Manager for Elected Officials' Special Services explained, "This will allow the city to protect the Councilors from any disgruntled citizens who still believe their votes count. Let them eat Bartley Burgers," he added. This is an image of the favored vehicle for local transportation from the Councilors' modest homes to the City Council meetings. One candidate from North Cambridge said, "I want to get me one of them stretch limos, so that I can party with potential voters as I travel to meetings."
The Chairman of the Cambridge and Somerville Democratic Party Ethical Practices Committee announced at her weekly press conference at the Charles Hotel, "All Democrats need to have majestic transportation in order to impress the voters. Obama understands this. But City officials who live in the past, are in denial. Cambridge voters can distinguish between winners and losers who drive older model vehicles. Elitist voters in Cambridge and Somerville demand their elected officials ride above the crowds. We elect them because they are not ordinary."

Bulger Safe House? No Link to City Councilor

Nondescript home on Dana Street, Cambridge MA is now padlocked since James Bulger is in custody. Sixteen years as a "fugitive," vacationing in the Southern California beautiful people enclave of Santa Monica Bulger mingled with the Hollywood crowd. Some allege that FBI agents protected him better than ordinary civilians in the WITSEC (Witness Security) program. He had guns, money and freedom to travel.

This Dana Street home, some believe, was used as a safe house for the Bulger Crime family which was always welcome in Cambridge.










Authorities familiar with Bulger atrocities speaking on condition of anonymity, said "There is no evidence that this was a safe house for Bulger's crews. Those plastic containers in the driveway are the kind used to transport body parts. But there is no evidence that these were used in that manner. Nor can anyone prove that any dismemberment took place at this location. It may have been used for parties with under aged teens, but no evidence remains."





The property line of this lot touches the property line of a million dollar home on Harvard Street owned by long term career politician Ken Reeves. Arriving in Cambridge as a poor student from Detroit, Councilor Reeves now owns this upscale home. He saw his opportunities and he took them. Investigators insist there is no link between any Cambridge City Councilor and the Bulger crime family. A reliable source said, "Just because properties touch does not create a link between the owners or tenants of properties."