Are Salem Selectman Trying To Silence Opposition? - Granite Grok

Are Salem Selectman Trying To Silence Opposition?

salemNHsignsmSalem Selectman Stephen Campbell was the sole opponent to a massive $23 million dollar safety complex boondoggle on the select-board and he let people know his concerns. For months he shared information about the complex, asked questions, questioned assumptions, advanced cheaper alternatives, shared answers, directed people to the content of public meetings and testimony, and shared his own thoughts, not just in meetings but on Facebook.

The four other board members were for the complex as was the town manager. Several of them privately funded an informational flier for the public. And I’m sure the police, fire, and town employee unions were all on board for the big new safety complex as well. But in the end, the complex went down in flames. Whether a result of Board member Campbell’s persistence or not, the public didn’t want to spend that much money.

So what is one of the first priorities for the Salem board of Selectman after town elections?

Develop a social media and email policy for Selectman which will address information sharing on Facebook.

The majority on the board claim it is needed to “protect confidential information” because without providing any actual evidence (that I have seen) someone on the board may have shared confidential information.

I wonder who they think that was?

The Salem town attorney, Bart Mayor, was on hand to announce that elected officials could be removed from office if confidential information is released publicly.

Given the 4-1 balance on this board any new policy they want to propose will slide through like you-know-what from a goose but why?  Why a new policy and why now?  If private meeting content is already protected, I’m paraphrasing the town lawyer, what do they need another policy for?  It wouldn’t make any difference where or how said information was improperly shared, it would still be illegal, yes?  And if Campbell had broken that confidence, regardless of the medium, he’d be on the hook already.

So the Salem board of Selectman doesn’t need a new policy to protect confidential content, it needs a new policy to scare as many people as possible from engaging in speech on Facebook, to which these Selectman might object.

Why?

Because the unregulated speech–regardless of whether it even began to come close to being confidential information or not– was effective.  It stirred the pot.  Oligarchs like their pots still, well counted, and in their corner.

So they will write a broad policy that is vaguely worded so as to limit what town employees, and certain dissenting selectman, are able to share on Social media.   Blurry lines are more easily crossed so anyone hoping to avoid scrutiny will simply choose silence, which is what every tyrant wants when they can’t simply make their opponents go away.

It will be interesting to see if the majority on the board does try to unseat Mr. Campbell.

I wonder if they have a clue how much more trouble he might cause them from outside looking in, freed from their petty shackles?

Another suggestion from the board (this news comes to me courtesy of Mr. Campbell’s Facebook page by the way) is to form a Charter committee. The proposed charter committee would examine (see also rubber-stamp) the effort to shift Salem away from the SB2 form of town government. SB 2 allows everyone in town to go to the polls and vote on a secret ballot instead of at a public meeting where everyone can watch them vote.

SB2 generates much higher turnout and a significantly wider range of interest so if you want to suppress turnout in favor of people who like $23 Million dollar boondoggles (just as an example) dumping SB2 is a huge step forward for the speech-squashing oligarchic pro-boondoggle majority.

SB2 and free speech killed the questionable $23 Million dollar boondoggle and the cry-babies just can’t get past it nor will they.

So yes, Virginia, there will be a social media policy.  I expect that there will also be a Charter committee.  And yes, the people of Salem had best do four things and do them soon if they have not already.  Start showing up at meetings.  Bring  cameras – because town cameras can be ordered off. Find challengers because Mr. Campbell needs back up.   And make sure to bring some popcorn. You are going to need a lot of popcorn; the Salem Select-board may be the entertainment opportunity of 2015, right after the Timberlane School District under the tyrannical eye of the Earl of Metzler.

Lawrence Eagle Tribune

 

The GrokWatch News Desk is looking for one or more correspondents to provide local news from in and around Salem, New Hampshire.  If you would like to be a new media journalist and report from Salem for GraniteGrok.com (no deadlines or obligations), email us at GrokWatch@granitegrok.com.  Please be sure to put ‘GrokWatch’ in the subject line of your email.  Thanks!

>