Democrat New Hampshire House Rep Rosemarie Rung honored us the other day. In a Facebook live ‘townhall of sorts’ she referenced recent publications here with regard to her. While not naming us directly she did mention an Ultra-Right-Wing Crazy Website.
Articles tagged as
Merrimack
While We’re Mitigating PFAS in Our Water – Dental Floss Raised PFAS in Humans
The latest bugbear in the environmental contamination business is PFOA’s. These are part of a family of chemicals called PFAS. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The EPA notes that, PFOA and PFOS have been the most extensively produced and studied of these chemicals. Both chemicals are very persistent in the environment and in the human body … Read more
How Did Merrimack NH House Reps Vote this Past Week?
The Town of Merrimack has something it has never had in all the years I have lived here. More than one Democrat in the New Hampshire House. We may have two at one time. But with eights seats to fill, for the first time I can recall, Merrimack sent four Democrats to Concord. It might … Read more
John Washburn
John Washburn is running for the NH House in Hillsborough County District 21. John took a few minutes to talk to me about Judicial reform and other state and local issues.
About Merrimack’s Town Tax Rate
More than a few folks in Merrimack probably had heart attacks when they saw the front page article “Council OKs 23.5 million budget” in the Merrimack Telegraph Journal. In the second paragraph, right below the front page fold, it claimed this new budget would mean a $5.25 increase per $1000.00 of assessed value.
That would be an increase of approximately $1,312.00 per year for a home valued at $250,000.00 and a new town rate of $10.50/1000 –the sorts of numbers typically reserved as the low end of a school budget that still can’t manage to teach math adequately.
Those are torch and pitchfork numbers.
EPIC Early Turnout in Merrimack New Hampshire
Moving to one polling location cannot begin to account for the massive voter turnout in Merrimack this morning. Huge parking areas and no place to park–unless you want to walk a mile. A line outside the school several hundred feet long–that’s before the line inside and then the line to check in and then … Read more
Brenda and John Grady – Toeing the Liberal Lie in Merrimack
I wasn’t going to expend any effort on these two, Democrats, more moderate on their face than most I am told by some, but Democrats none the less. But today (Sunday), they dropped off a page of printed nonsense at my home which requires some attention.
There are four bullet points on their missive to which they claim to object. Downshifting costs to local government, the cost of college education (the reduction of State University funding), Gridlock (Washington and Concord), not listening to constituents instead of talking to them.
The Grady’s are making the case (without ever mentioning that they are Democrats) that they deserve your votes so they may right these so-called wrongs. But by refusing to admit to their own pedigree or its history they–intentionally or not–participate in a deception that does the people of Merrimack a great disservice.
And So It Begins…
We already lost power at my house. Not surprising. Anyone want to start guessing how long it will take to get it back? Update from Skip: 1/2 hour ago, PSNH reported about 10,100 customers out. Just now, 20,100. Guess what just arrived!
Is My School Board Ready To Run On The NHSBA Agenda?
Irritating the Bureaucracy makes me smile. Irritating the lobbying arm of the bureaucracy that disguises itself as something else is even better. And that is what my friend Gary Krupp has done on his maiden voyage into the Blogosphere. (Welcome to the deep end of the pool.)
Gary gives us an update on the local effort at damage control by the pro-lobbyist faction in town; the New Hampshire School Board Association (NHSBA) was invited to perform for the school board, which like some corpulent monarch was adequately amused to continue offering them indulgences…it is not, after all, their money.
The School Board lapped it up. They threw a few softballs Mr. Comstock’s way, and then discussed the process for submitting resolutions of their own for the upcoming NHSBA delegate assembly.
Thank you sire, thank you…
Membership Has Its Rewards – Just Ignore The Part That Violates State Law
In what appears to be a “Head them off at the Pass” move by Merrimack School superintendent Marge Chiafery, tonight’s school board meeting includes a visit from…Ted Comstock, the executive director of the NH School Board’s Association (NHSBA), and Barrett Christina, a NHSBA staff attorney to discuss “NHSBA Membership Benefits” This conjugal visit from the … Read more
Loony Democrat Say’s She’ll Vote for SEIU Endorsed Republican
SEIU endorsed House candidate Kathy Stroud, running in a contested Republican Primary in Hillsborough District 21 (Merrimack), is a bit miffed that AFP went after her with mailers the weekend before the primary. She has said as much on Merrimack patch. The comments that follow her declaration are assorted, with a few folks pointing out, … Read more
Early Turnout in Merrimack…
I hit the polls early this morning, arriving at 7:15, and the traffic in and out was steady, even brisk. No long lines, and the presentation of ID posed no problems.
I also ran into Lenette Peterson, Jeanine Notter, Chris Buda (Local GOP Chair), George Markwell (Merrimack School Board), saw a few other folks as well, and then while getting gas overheard two people talking about how they had already voted while I was paying way too much to put gas into my car. I think turnout will be exceptional for a primary.
I guess the the next question is…who do I think is going to win?
Endorsement: Dan Dwyer, State Senate
As State Senate President, Peter Bragdon lays claim to a number of accomplishments, he also owns a number of disappointments, one of the most egregious of which is our continued membership in the Regional Greenhouse Gas initiative (RGGI). I hold him solely responsible for our continued participation in this unconstitutional scheme which the Democrat majority that proceeded him, tied us to, which the House and Senate tried to repeal, and which only the Senate failed to override when vetoed by Governor Lynch.
RGGI should be deemed unconstitutional. The compromise legislation is laughable. Bragdon has been in Concord too long. It is time for a change. And Dan Dwyer offers us that opportunity.
A Loud, Proud, ”NAY” On Stroud (Candidate, Hillsborough 21, Merrimack)
In June of 2011, I contacted current House candidate Representative Kathleen Stroud and asked her about her reasoning for not supporting Right to Work (HB474). She replied with the usual vacuous boilerplate one expects from a politician, but what surprised me was her reasoning’s incoherence and lack of depth. What I found most off-putting was her pat-me-on-the-head-you-silly-constituent condescension encrusted in the email exchange. She must have thought that I was an idiot and would simply, unquestioningly bobble-head support her arguments without understanding them. Well, I’ll share some of her reasoning, and you can decide whether she intended to be condescending by putting forth such discombobulated arguments in order to intentionally confuse, or if she is actually confused.
One of her reasons for not supporting Right To Work is that, “It is being driven by an out-of-state lobby from Virginia; and I do not believe Virginia knows (or cares) what is best for New Hampshire.”
Endorsements – Hillsborough 21 (Merrimack)
The town of Merrimack (Hillsborough District 21) has been my home for 17 years. And this year Merrimack (still) has eight house seats but ten Republican candidates running to fill them. As a Conservative I feel compelled to select the eight who I feel will best represent the New Hampshire Republican Platform and the interest of my town and State as I view them.
So I’m no different than the rest of you, except that I may be paying a little bit more attention (maybe), I vote principle before party–though I will not bite off my own nose to spite my face, and my soap-box…well, it is just a little bit big bigger than that of the average voter.
So these are my personal endorsements for Hills-21, though I can assure you that my A-Team picks are all GranitGrok Worthy.
Small Victory In Merrimack – re: NHSBA
In a recent legal decision provided to the Merrimack School Superintendent and Board, it has been determined that what the New Hampshire School Board Association (NHSBA) does..
a) Is lobbying.
“Dean Michener is employed by NHSBA and is a registered lobbyist. Thus, it would seem to be a foregone conclusion that NHSBA is engaged in lobbying. …it is also safe to conclude that the membership dues paid to NHSBA would be considered a contribution of funds within the meaning of RSA 15:5 (I)
RSA 15:5 prohibits use of state funds for lobbying, so the town
b) cannot use commingled monies that include state education funding to pay dues to NHSBA and up to this point, that is how they have been paying them.
Senators Ayotte, McCain, and Graham in Merrimack NH This Tuesday
From NECN MERRIMACK, N.H. (AP) — Former Republican presidential nominee John McCain is returning to New Hampshire to discuss looming defense spending cuts. The Arizona senator, New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham will discuss defense spending cuts approved by Congress at a town hall meeting in Merrimack on Tuesday. The … Read more
Federal Mandate Drives Up School Lunch Prices in Merrimack NH
Who says there is no such thing as a free lunch? Well it wont be just Merrimack, New Hampshire. The Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act of 2010 Federal mandate essentially implemented price controls everywhere School lunch is served to fund free lunch, based on federal guidelines, decided on for everyone, by a few hundred Democrats, in Washington DC, in the historically significant later part of 2010.
The Democrat Congress put the USDA on point for this program, and empowered them to manage the new federal programs under the premise that it can eliminate hunger and improve nutrition. But at the end of the day this is little more than Federal meddling, income redistribution (again), and using the promise of federal grants and support to turn your public school lunch program into a taxpayer powered soup kitchen.
And not just any soup kitchen. A soup kitchen that has to jump through hoops if it wants to please the Federal Bureaucrats empowered to decide who is worthy of what handouts and if local taxpayers must pony up to meet the federal requirements.
One of those requirements is that schools start charging students (parents) more for each lunch purchased (during a recession), to satisfy the mandated price defined by the legislation, regardless of how much the lunch actually costs. Yes, the Feds are telling local school districts across the Fruited Plain what they must charge for a school lunch; whatever cost reimbursement amount the feds are willing to provide for a free lunch, regardless of what it costs us to sell a lunch to a paying student.
What If You Held an Election and No One Showed Up?
Merrimack held it’s local town elections yesterday. A town of roughly 25,000, with (I’m guessing) close to 18,000 people of voting age, that typically sees 4000-6000 ballots in the average Town election, produced only 2500 ballots yesterday. A bit of advice? When you let one third of the voters decide tax and spending policy for … Read more
Are Campaign Signs Like Gray Hairs?
The joke says that when one gray hair gets yanked out a bunch come to the funeral. A few days ago someone stole the Krupp for School Board sign from my yard. I only had one. Today, there are five of them. I have room for a dozen more if I should happen to … Read more