The Witch Wins

Now Scott Brown Must Defeat Her

 

Wicked Witch Coakley and Scott Brown

I'm sorry to report that political hack Martha Coakley has won the senatorial primaries to select two candidates to compete for the seat once held by Ted Kennedy. One might have thought that the opening of the seat, which was held (if you count the years brother John had it) by a Kennedy for over a half a century, might have resulted in an exciting campaign battle. On the contrary, the race was a snoozer, with no first-class contenders on the field.

Drug warrior Coakley handily defeated drug law reform advocate Rep. Mike Capuanao, while also sweeping aside a vanity campaign by Boston Celtics owner Stephen Pagliuca. Also defeated was Alan Khazei, who was considered a clueless liberal even by Massachusetts standards. Now it is up to Scott Brown, the feisty but little known Republican contender, or Libertarian Joe Kennedy to block the Coakley threat in the final election on January 19, 2010.

Who are these people who went flocking to Coakley? Unfortunately I suspect many were voting for her simply because she was the only woman in the field. Voting for people because of their physical characteristics is the shallowest and most foolish form of voting, as we learned the hard way nationally last year when many voted on the basis of skin color.

What matters is character, and by that measure Coakley flunks miserably simply on the basis of her villainous role in the Fells Acres child abuse scandal, as concisely summarized by this poster on Blue Mass Group:

Gerald Amirault reunited with his family - no thanks to Coakley.

Martha didn't prosecute that case but she was Middlesex DA when Cheryl Amirault Lefave's first trial was found to violate her Constitutional rights and so won a new trial on appeal. In fact Cheryl and her mother Violet were let out of prison by Martha to await a second trial. Violet died of cancer and among her last words were, "Don't vote for Scott Harshbarger." who was Martha's former boss and the DA who put Violet, Cheryl and the brother Gerald in jail.

Martha didn't give Cheryl another trial. Instead she released her on parole with some extraordinary parole agreement terms requiring Violet not to talk about her case for ten years. Can you imagine a parole agreement that was more unconstitutional, a direct violation of Cheryl 1st amendment rights? She had to agree to not exercise her free speech about government injustice (she, her mother and her brother have always maintained their innocence) in order to remain free on parole. I wonder if she wouldn't have preferred a trial.

When the parole board recommended (unanimously 5-0) that the Govenor commute Gerald's sentence after 12 years of incarceration, Martha beat it down with a stick. She held a press conference and had the then teenage victims, who were 3-5 years old at the time of the alleged incidents talk about their grief.

So why did Cheryl not get her second trial, be subjected to parole terms that are on the face unconstitutional, and yet allowed out of prison by Martha while Martha fought hard, tooth and nail, to keep Gerald in jail, and she did. They were found guilty of the same charges and yet Cheryl was released under Martha's watch and Gerald was kept for three more years in prison.

Even the Wall Street Journal knew the case was a complete miscarriage of justice but Martha stuck to her guns.

Those who persecute the innocent for their own political gain have no place in high office. Now it is time for those who love justice to unite as one to prevent Coakley from winning the Senate seat. 

Snowday!

Here's the view out my bedroom window this morning.

 



Lots of snow fell overnight! Nothing brings out the beauty of the pines like snow.

This is Cooley-Dickinson Hospital. I hope no one had to go there because of the storm. 

My server stats show me that a quarter of my readers come from outside New England. Therefore not all readers would know what this contraption is attached to this fire hydrant. 

The red disc on a pole is meant to enable fire fighters to locate the hydrant once the snow gets too high to see it.

In downtown Northampton the streets were a mess. 

 



Nothing to do but slip down this alleyway and in the backdoor of the Haymarket for some steaming hot coffee. 

Someone sent me this photo of downtown Springfield as it appeared this morning.