Category Archives: Op-Eds

Op-Ed: We Are Suffocating From Racism, But There is Hope for Resuscitation

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Rev. David W. Good, Minister Emeritus of the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme

Editor’s Note: The author, Rev. David W. Good, is the Minister Emeritus of the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme.

When I was a senior in high school in 1967, our social studies teacher and debate coach, determined to teach us the importance of being engaged in the great struggle for human rights, taught us about Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and a student, Ruby Bridges. Daily our teacher would ask us the same question raised by the ancient Greek philosopher, Thucydides, “When will there be justice in Athens?” The answer: “When those who are not injured are as indignant as those that are.”

The message was clear. There is such a thing as “White Privilege,” and those of us who are white have a moral responsibility to work for a “more perfect union” — to listen to people of color, to acknowledge our own complicity in racial injustice, and together with those who are injured work to transform our society.

Sadly, here in 2020, we are still dealing with the same racial injustices, police brutality, economic inequity, environmental travesties, failure of political leadership and the passivity of far too many that has characterized our nation for much too long. If we want there to be justice in our cities and towns, now is the time for those “not injured to be as indignant as those who are.”

For those of us who are Christian, we must show righteous indignation for a U.S. president who would defile our sacred spaces and use the Bible not only as a prop but as a weapon. For centuries, the Bible has been used in such a way. Bigots have held up the Bible to establish racist systems of slavery, Jim Crow and Apartheid. Biblical illiteracy has been used to articulate theologies of entitlement that have red lined Jews, people of color, women, Muslims, Native Americans and those of different sexual identities.

If President Trump would only open the Bible, he might read the prophetic indignation of Amos, “Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever flowing stream” or the lyrical vision of Isaiah, “they shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain” or the teachings of Jesus and the primacy of love. Not love in general but love in great specificity, love “for those who are hungry and homeless.”

Sadly, we are led by a president who doesn’t listen to the wisdom of the prophets and has proven himself to be neither Republican nor Democrat, neither conservative nor liberal. Our collective voices, those of all political persuasions, need to rise in indignation against the creeping fascism of our president and those who would enable it.

The body of George Floyd should serve as a tragic metaphor for the broken body of our nation. We are suffocating from racism.

But, thankfully, there is hope for resuscitation.

In one of her books, Arundhati Roy writes,

“We must tell stories that are different from the ones we’re being brainwashed to believe… Not only is another world possible; she is on her way. On a quiet day I can hear her breathing.”

I can hear her breathing when I see police officers put down their batons and shields and, with tears in their eyes, hug people of color in the streets of our cities.

I can hear her breathing when I see the number of young people — white and black and brown — standing up against gun violence.

I can hear her breathing in soldiers “who more than life their country love” and so break their silence for the human rights violations they have witnessed.

I can hear her breathing in health care workers who love “mercy more than life.”

I could hear her breathing when I took part in a peaceful march for justice in Old Saybrook, led by Maryam Elahi, a longtime human rights activist and teacher in our communities.

I can hear her breathing in the people of war-torn Syria who, despite their own tragedies, have created memorials to George Floyd.

I can hear her breathing in the strident, indignant testimony of Greta Thunberg who has quickened the conscience of those who struggle for environmental justice.

I can hear her breathing in our precious teachers who keep alive the ancient wisdom of those such as Thucidides.

To honor the tragic death of George Floyd and so many others who have died, we all need to do what we can to breathe life into the body of our nation.

 

Op-Ed: TV News? Turn it Off

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Jim Cameron

I can’t watch TV news anymore.

I used to be a news junkie, a control freak who thought that by knowing everything that was going on everywhere in the world I could somehow control it.  Hah!  Was that ever a naïve view.

Having worked in local and network newsrooms, what was coming over the AP and UPI newswires was like heroin for my news habit. 

I used to read two or three newspapers a day, listen to CBS Radio Network news almost hourly and never miss the networks evening newscasts … at least two or three of them a night, including the BBC. 

But now, I know that none of that matters.  My world has shrunk to the size of my house and I don’t need to know anything happening in the world that doesn’t directly affect me and my family.   

It was Simon & Garfunkel, who said, “I get the news I need on the weather report.’  My information consumption pattern is only slight larger now.  But it’s only “news I can use”… news I need to know.

Are my town’s parks still open?  What hours is the grocery store open?  Are my immediate neighbors OK?  Is my family alright?  That’s hyperlocal news.

I am so tired of watching CBS anchor Norah O’Donnell start every newscast with an emphatic “Breaking News!”, only to regurgitate hours-old stories that could be “news” only to someone living under a rock.  And I won’t even go near CNN or Fox News.  Their coverage is purposely designed to scare me and keep me tuned in for more.

I don’t trust TV news anymore.  Not the networks, not the local Connecticut stations and certainly not our local cable company’s offering.  So I’m not watching any of it. 

And forget about the rumor-mongering on social media.  “Unfriend” and “unfollow” are my defensive mechanisms there.

But I still read the papers, on paper and online.  I try to catch New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s daily briefings and anything that Dr. Fauci has to say.  C-Span and CT-N are my few remaining “reality TV” options as they are unfiltered and non-opinionated.  Just give me the facts.  Don’t tell me how to think.

(At this point, dear reader, you can stop reading this screed if you think I’m telling you how to think … but you’ll miss the good part.)

Over 30 years ago I changed my life in a program led by a simple prayer.

“God grant me the serenity to accept those things I cannot change.  The courage to change those I can … and the wisdom to know the difference.”

It’s known as The Serenity Prayer and it has brought me a lot of inner peace in the past few weeks. 

I know I’m not in control in this crisis, beyond protecting my family and myself as best I can.  I can’t change this virus, its lethality or effect on my community.

But I can keep my social distance, maintain my immune system, get plenty of rest and just take this world one day at a time.  Beyond that, I’m resigned to my fate and I hope that’s a sign of wisdom.

There’s no planning for the future … next week or next month.  It’s just making the most out of every single day.

And by avoiding the hysteria of TV news, my shrinking world seems a little less crazy and a lot more calm.  And that’s kinda nice.

Posted with permission of Hearst CT Media.

About the author: Jim Cameron is founder of The Commuter Action Group, and a member of the Darien RTM.  The opinions expressed in this column are only his own. You can reach him at CommuterActionGroup@gmail.com  For a full collection of  “Talking Transportation” columns, visit www.talkingtransportation.blogspot.com

Op-Ed: Old Lyme is in Good Hands; Keep It That Way by Ignoring Mis-truths, Giving Reemsnyder, Nosal Another Term

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Editor’s Note: This op-ed was submitted by Eileen and John Mueller of Old Lyme.

There is a broad consensus in Old Lyme that our town is doing very well. Our mill rate is low, our quality of life is high, and our schools are among the best in the state.  Under the leadership of Bonnie Reemsnyder and Mary Jo Nosal, infrastructure has been maintained, economic development has been encouraged, and the high-speed rail threat was stopped in its tracks.  Why, then, should there be a change at Town Hall? Tim Griswold and the Republican Town Committee have offered no strategy for the future; indeed, it seems they would like to roll back progress, and in the absence of a substantive plan they are trying to seek your vote by questioning Bonnie’s character.

Anyone who knows Bonnie, or who has worked with her over the 16 years she has led the town (8 of those as First Selectman), can vouch for her absolute integrity.  It is truly unfortunate that the Washington practice of manipulating the truth has seeped into Old Lyme with the innuendos and mis-truths spread by the RTC. If you want to review the relevant facts, they can be found here on the Democratic Town Committee’s website.  Suffice it to say, Bonnie engaged in no illegal or unethical conduct and has always represented herself and the Town of Old Lyme with the highest of ethical standards.

Contrast this with the behavior of Tim Griswold and the RTC.   Although their campaign slogan is “absolute integrity,” they apparently have no interest in following Connecticut law regarding campaign financing.  They have utilized contribution and election forms, and advertisements that omit the legally-required disclosures. More concerning, Tim is both the treasurer of the RTC and a candidate for two offices it is funding.  This is a blatant violation of Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 9-606(d), which provides in part that “A candidate shall not serve as the candidate’s own treasurer.” If these violations were not intentional, they nevertheless raise serious questions about Tim’s understanding and compliance with the law and the likelihood that he would exercise the care, diligence and attention to detail required to discharge properly the duties of first selectman or treasurer. 

With many rumors and misinformation flying around town, we sought out clarification and here are the facts that should correct the following false claims:

  1. What is the status of the plan for Halls Road? Currently, there is no master plan for Halls Road.  Although the ideas shared with the public by the Halls Road Improvements Committee have enjoyed widespread support, the committee is still in the process of gathering public input and has not begun to put a plan together.  Whatever plan is developed will not position the town as a developer nor impose any obligations on private landowners. Instead, the purpose of the plan will be to provide additional opportunities for the business owners to improve their properties, if they choose.
  2. What about sewers? Bonnie has not discussed and is not advocating sewers to any portion of Old Lyme other than the beach area.  David Kelsey’s CT Examiner asserted that Dan Steward, First Selectman of Waterford, had made a contrary claim in his interview.  The reporter made an error and Dan Steward sent the reporter a correction. Subtext of the correction read, “My discussion with the reporter was very generic when it came to sewers, and I did not intend to imply that Bonnie has talked to me about any plans to sewer areas of Old Lyme other than the current beach community project.”  Rest easy homeowners, there are no discussions to expand sewers in Old Lyme.
  3. What about affordable housing? Bonnie supports affordable housing generally but expressed no view regarding HOPE Partnership’s proposed project and she took no action with respect to town approvals.  Bonnie has never concealed the fact that she, like other local first selectmen and Devin Carney, our state representative, sat on HOPE’s honorary advisory board.  

We’re grateful for the hard work and dedication demonstrated by Bonnie and Mary Jo, and felt it is important that our community members have the true facts, not the false or misleading information that is perpetuated by some in the community.  If this behavior is what the RTC means by “Absolute Integrity,” we suggest you take another look. Change for change’s sake makes no sense.  

The continued health of Old Lyme can be assured only with a vote for Bonnie and Mary Jo on November 5.

Op-Ed: A Conversation That Needs To Occur

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This op-ed was submitted by R. A. Nixon of Old Lyme.

I attended the debate Wednesday evening between Bonnie Reemsnyder and Tim Griswold.  In listening carefully, one issue stood out like a sore thumb: Our First Selectwoman repeatedly claimed that recent actions taken by the Town were only conversations based on input from her constituents – the people of Old Lyme.  She addressed the questions on Affordable Housing, the Halls Road Improvement Plan, and amalgamating the Old Lyme Police with the East Lyme Police Department in this manner. She kept saying: These were conversations that needed to occur.  If you attended the debate or see it televised later and are not well informed, you could infer that she has only undertaken such initiatives based on a groundswell of public interest. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Ms. Reemsnyder was fully in support of and behind the Affordable Housing project next to Exit 70.  That project which was in every way inimical to the interests of this town, had overwhelming opposition from the citizens of Old Lyme. Most people are in favor of affordable housing, but not in an unsafe location.

The Halls Road Improvement Plan currently being developed with the Yale Urban School of Design at Town expense is a pet project of Ms. Reemsnyder and a few carefully chosen allies.  This Master Plan, as she called it, was developed without the support of the majority of the private land owners along Halls Road (a State road). There is ample resistance to this foolhardy exercise by town residents as well.

The latest Yale School renderings of the plan are completely incongruous with the charm and rural character of Old Lyme.  Check this out before you vote. 

The concept of scrapping the Old Lyme Resident Trooper Police System and having Old Lyme’s Police become subordinate to the East Lyme Police Department was not the brainchild of town residents.  Rather, it was Ms. Reemsnyder who promoted this further concept of regionalization (loss of local control). True leadership is listening to the needs and desires of the citizens, the taxpayers, not leading the Town down rabbit holes.  This is the conversation that needs to occur.

Tim Griswold is an experienced Town Leader in Old Lyme with a proven track record of fiscal discipline and sound management practice.  He will listen to the needs and desires of the people in this town before setting new courses for the Town. 

Put simply, I want straight talk from our First Selectman, not hollow platitudes and schemes inconsonant with the special character of Old Lyme.  I expect other voters will feel the same way if they know the facts.

Vote for Tim Griswold for first Selectman on November 5th.

Opinion: Vote Tuesday in Old Lyme’s Referendum on Sewers, Then Respect the Result

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OLD LYME — Tomorrow Old Lyme voters will go the polls to decide whether the Town of Old Lyme should bond $9.44 million to fund the installation of sewers on three streets in Sound View. The facts of the proposal have been widely reported, for example, Mary Biekert of The Day authored a comprehensive article on the subject published Saturday on TheDay.com at this link.

As a community newspaper that cares passionately about the community we serve, we never endorse politicians and rarely choose sides in town referenda. Therefore, we will not be making any recommendation on how you should vote tomorrow, but we will, however, take the opportunity to make a few comments.

This sewer issue has polarized the town with the residents of Sound View understandably not wishing to pay the whole installation cost of sewers saying that is unfair and the cost should be divided between all town residents.  Meanwhile, most townspeople, excluding the Sound View residents, do not see why they should pay for someone else’s sewers when no one would pay to fix their septic system if it failed.

It is important to remember that the Town is under a state mandate to install the sewers and so doing nothing is not an option. The volunteers on the Old Lyme Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA)  have dedicated an incredible number of hours to this project and our impression is that they have no political agenda. Rather, they are simply hard-working individuals trying to solve an extremely challenging problem and we salute their efforts. If the referendum fails tomorrow, there seems to be a fairly general consensus that the costs will rise in any subsequent plan.

Some have argued that the Town, that is, all Old Lyme residents, should be paying for the work in the streets since they are town-owned and the Sound View residents should only be paying for the hook-ups to their houses. This sounds logical but does not seem to follow the precedent set elsewhere in the state, nor significantly in the four other beach associations in Old Lyme that have already signed on for sewers to be installed at their own expense.

We have enormous sympathies for the residents of Sound View, who — if the referendum passes — will have to pay a median cost of over $31,000 to pay off the loan that the Town is taking out on their behalf. This can be paid in full right away or financed over 20 years at 2 percent interest. The key question is what is a home worth after sewers have been installed?  The assumption is that the sewers will increase the value of any house by more than the homeowner has paid. No one other than the owner benefits from that increase in value, but we also recognize many of the houses in Sound View are never sold but passed down from one generation to the next.

Finally, we are intensely distressed by the deep rift opening up once again in our community over the sewer issue. We recall the green ribbons of yesteryear when residents publicly displayed their support of the first school building project brought to referendum by Region 18 to the anger of those who were not in favor of the proposal. Those were difficult days with palpable mistrust and resentfulness on both sides. 

But back then, there was no social media to fuel the argument and too much has been said on the sewer issue on this virtual town square, some of it inaccurate and/or laced with political venom. This mounting tension spilled over into last Monday’s Special Town Meeting at which  procedural confusion sparked some most unfortunate behavior.

There is no place for this in our beloved town so, regardless of how you are going to vote tomorrow, let us quietly and respectfully take our differing opinions to the ballot box … and then treat the result in the same manner.