Blaming The Victim

OUR VIEW: A party needs guests.
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By Anonymous
The Herald News
Posted Jul 18, 2010 @ 12:00 AM
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From the moment he took office, Mayor Will Flanagan has made a concerted effort to reach out to the community and establish events that attempt to breathe life into the city. But Government Center can only do so much. Residents have to take advantage of events if they are to continue.
Flanagan’s first day in office brought his first communitywide event. Instead of a party in a stuffy ballroom, the mayor held his inauguration celebration in Heritage Park, opening the event up to the public free of charge. Fun events for young and old attracted residents to the park for a day of family friendly fun, setting the tone for an administration intent on connecting with the community.
Since then, the mayor has been consistent in his efforts, staging several neighborhood meetings to answer any questions residents may have and taking walking tours through sections of the city to speak directly with residents and business owners and learn first-hand the issues they face on a daily basis.
One of the most common complaints residents have of government is the lack of understanding of residents’ everyday lives and the inaccessibility of their elected leaders. Flanagan is clearly trying to answer that frequent criticism, going out of his way to make a direct connection between the sixth floor and the community.
But residents have to meet him half way in order for the effort to pay dividends. They haven’t exactly been beating down the doors to take part in some of the events. One community meeting, in fact, drew exactly one audience member. The community needs to match the administration’s effort.


Residents have shown a willingness to do so for some events. Patrice Cloutier, Fall River’s director of cultural development, was able to draw 300 people downtown for the “Art of Dining” restaurant stroll last month. Both installments of the stroll have proven popular, providing a boost to local businesses and giving residents and visitors a reason to spend time in Fall River’s downtown. Residents need to put forth that type of effort for other community events to succeed.
“We have 1,000 people living downtown. We have 700 to 800 people in the courthouse every day,” Flanagan said. “We will do whatever we can to get people out to experience downtown.”
The most recent effort debuted Thursday afternoon. Local artists, farmers and vendors set up shop in the Lou Sevin Square behind the Academy Building on South Main Street. Nestled between Government Center and the Fall River Justice Center, the market featured locally grown fruits and vegetables, flowers and plants, hot dogs, hamburgers, Del’s lemonade and creations by local artists. Paul Fata and Kevin Donnelly of Nuevo Duo played music, adding to the festive atmosphere.
Visitors strolled in and out throughout the event, and it wasn’t a bad turnout for the market’s first opening. But still, people didn’t exactly show up in droves. With hundreds of people working in the new courthouse, Government Center and office buildings throughout the downtown, there is a captive audience for a weekday event that provides a welcome, temporary escape from the confines of the office.
The market will return next Thursday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and continue weekly throughout the summer. Its success, like all community events, depends on the community. Residents have voiced a desire for these type of activities. It’s now up to them to support them so they don’t fizzle out.


It's no wonder the author of this piece of effluent disguised as ediorial opinion was written by "Anonymous". Who in their right mind would want to take credit for this obvious piece of propaganda.

So now things aren't going the way Tumbleweed Flanagan wants, so they've taken to blaming the victims. It starts to go that way once the powers that be realize the jig is up and folks aren't buying the swill they want to pawn off on Fall Riverites as progress or even good news. Nope, must be all YOU FOOLS fault, not ours, never ever ours.

What's wrong HN, can't pull the wool over any more sheeps eyes? What, you don't think the mass of voters in this City are starting to realize what I said yesterday, that this punk Mayor Tumbleweed Flanagan is nothing but a glorified political grifter? What's next, a temper tantrum because more "widdle" people didn't go kiss his bummy by buying veggies in his name this week? Maybe you are upset because after seeing the Mayor's portrait, people started asking Tiago to paint portraits of their dogs too?!

This guy wants credit for everything, and is willing to take responsibility for NOTHING. Even Correia could admit blame for a couple of things. This cretin of a Mayor goes behind people's backs and cuts private deals for the City's residents in his name, deals that might turn into monumental losers, and demands homage, through your trite and misplaced little editorial , for doing so? You expect people to attend these farcical budget meetings or  mayoral meetings around the City when anyone with half a brain already saw first hand that this stuttering bag boy as Mayor was going to do whatever he wished anyways? Talk about pretentious and insulting!

The joke is on Mayor Tumbleweed Flanagan and on you, Lisa Stratton, editor of the Herald News, and you are just starting to realize it. There is no doubt in my mind who wrote every word of this editorial. Anonymous indeed! But just like the Emporer in the "Emporer's New Clothes", isn't it always the way that you don't realize your shame and embarrassment to have been walking around, in this case figuratively naked, until you hear the derisive laughter of most others who have seen you so clealy as you have been for a long time. For this City to have not had a real mayor and a real newspaper for his entire time in office is a real tragedy.

So go ahead and prove the points I made in yesterdays chowmeinsammich entry. Continue to blame the victims of Mayor Tumbleweed and your own lack or journalistic integrity. What else should we expect from you. After all, this was the publication that was suppossedly active in outing people's identities by providing the last mayor with personal information of those commenters to articles in your RAG. You are held in just as bad a light as the tragic little phony big time pol wannabe Tumbleweed Flanagan. Soon, you'll both be out of business. Once they screw up the casino deal, both your fates should be sealed.