Change is inevitable

"Change is inevitable, except from vending machines"
- Author unknown

This statement couldn't be more true, especially these days when those running for City Councilor, Councilor-at-Large and the Mayoral seat are grabbing for headlines. Sure, the fact that they want the "big seat" or the responsibility is something to be commended, it still doesn't sit well with residents that many of these men and women are doing nothing more than stroking their ego. Oh, the word ego evokes feelings from every person, even the homeless person on Main Street.

The fact that today is August 17th, and Mayor Lukes, Councilors Irish, Palmieri and now Perotto, who has taken the approach to gaining name recognition by taking the high road calling on his competitors to, "to dispense with the political sniping and concentrate on the issues." as printed in Richard Nangle's article in the Worcester Telegram & Gazette Newspaper.

Earlier this week, at the City Council meeting, Councilor Philip Palmieri directed some strong comments about "doing better and working harder" towards Robert Moylan, DPW Commissioner, regarding the litter and graffiti in the city. Commissioner Moylan responded by stating that DPW, for the past 10 years has loss positions, and is "doing more with less". During this exchange, Moylan commented that DPW has picked up and removed over 2 tons of litter in the city and needs more man power and money to correct these issues. Doesn't it always come down to money? Well, it does take money to pick up all the trash that many residents casually throw in the streets, or in the case of the Granite Street neighborhood, folks drive southbound, towards Route 20 and dump their tires, mattresses, bed frames and whatever else they don't want to pay to have removed along side the Street.

As I wrote in my post earlier this week, a large issue facing the City of Worcester is the lack of PRIDE. People who have called Worcester home for many years, have seen Worcester go from an industrial blue-collar city to one where many businesses left or couldn't afford to do business in the US due to outsourcing and cheaper labor costs elsewhere. Coupled with the fact that Worcester doesn't have any significant destination sites that would attract people from throughout New England or from around the world to visit the city.

Worcester hasn't done a good job of marketing itself as a "College City" because the colleges and universities themselves don't communicate often or see the benefit to cross-marketing to get the best students to select a college/ university in Worcester. The so called "brain drain" is in full effect, and it doesn't seem that people care that many graduates choose to leave Worcester and Massachusetts for that matter. When key factors such as the cost of living and the salaries that graduates are being offered are out of whack, it should come as no surprise that graduates are leaving the city in high numbers and moving to states such as Virginia, North and South Carolina and Georgia in record numbers.

Again, as the city moves into a serious time when "Change is inevitable", there should be no surprises when September 11th comes and we find some politicians shocked and upset to how residents voted.

Worcester Rocks

In an effort to attract college-aged students to the City of Worcester, the Colleges of Worcester Consortium has unveiled the video that's suppose peak the interest of students and entice them to attend a college/ university in the City of Worcester.

I have to tip my hat to the Consortium, as it's an effort that is long overdue and for a city that grows by well over 30,000 students each fall, the city is in dire need of an attractive marketing piece that reaches students.

As some people may be aware of, this generation of young women and men going to college, referred to as "Millennial Students" (born between 1982 & 2003), have grown up with computer technology, specifically the personal computer and the world wide web, CD and DVD players, cellular telephones and travel by plane. To say that this is the hardest generation to market to and attract to a city such as Worcester, would be an understatement.

Worcester is working hard to change its image from being perceived as a "dirty and down-trodden" where "there is not alot to do" for the 18 to 30 age demographic.

The work that the Consortium, the Worcester Chamber of Commerce and others are doing to make Worcester a destination for students, businesses and families is good, but as we know, the programs need the proper funding and, more importantly, a person that people can identify with and be a cheerleader for the City.

One of the largest issues facing the City these days, besides the $5.6 million budget deficit, is the issue of PRIDE, or lack there of. The feeling by many people in the City is that the politicians, "keep doing the same old same old" as reported to me by a local patron in the waiting area of a barber shop who requested to remain anonymous. "The people who really run Worcester don't care about me or my kids.....all they care about is their own property and how much money they can make", he continued.

While some who have called Worcester home for many years may argue that the City has changed dramatically, there is still the acknowledgment that, "there is still alot that can be done a whole lot better", said Cody Smith, a Worcester resident of 21 years, regarding improving the City and its image.

So, what is the City of Worcester to do? Should the City hold town hall meetings to discuss the issues facing the City? These meetings are typically unproductive and don't serve a well-suited purpose other than giving people a platform to air complaints. Residents need to communicate with their District Councilor and the Mayor to make them aware of the issues and begin to address them. Residents must take more ownership and responsibility for the City that they call home. It's one thing to complain, but complaining without a resolution is pointless. Think, ask questions and then do something. The City needs YOU to get involved!

The Jena Six

Last fall in Jena, Louisiana, the day after two Black high school students sat beneath the “white tree” on their campus, nooses were hung from the tree. When the superintendent dismissed the nooses as a “prank,” more Black students sat under the tree in protest. The District Attorney then came to the school accompanied by the town’s police and demanded that the students end their protest, telling them, “I can be your best friend or your worst enemy… I can take away your lives with a stroke of my pen.”

A series of white-on-black incidents of violence followed, and the DA did nothing. But when a white student was beaten up in a schoolyard fight, the DA responded by charging six black students with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

It's amazing that in 2007, this type of "justice" is being carried out when Jim Crow Laws were abolished, supposedly, in 1965. We have an opportunity to encourage the Governor of Louisiana to intervene and provide justice for the Jena 6.

Sign the petition HERE!!