Norwalk political notes: RTC resignations; Duff; McCarthy

I don’t generally go back to review people’s comments after my own, but I did see that the comment in question was in moderation long after others made subsequently were approved. I assumed it was never approved.

At this moment, if there is a website for the BET that can be navigated to, that’s nice. If one tries to Google it, as 99.9% of normal people would, they are taken to a dead link, that I provided twice, and which is still the case.

It seems odd to me to come back several weeks later and report on a comment if it was so thoroughly disproven immediately thereafter, but, oh, I get it…

I want to draw attention to an additional feature of the new boards and commissions website. You can now see a list of all vacancies for Norwalk’s boards and commissions and apply online. https://apps.norwalkct.org/meetingboard/vacant

Tremendous thanks to our IT department, our communications staff, and particularly the Commission on the Status of Women for their efforts to make it easier for the City to draw on the tremendous knowledge and love for Norwalk among our diverse residents of all backgrounds. Please take a look and consider applying today.

It is important to note that we are required by law to have a balance of political party affiliations on many of the commissions, and the Mayor also makes appointments with an eye to balancing the members’ skill sets and expertise. So even if you are not the right fit at that time for the first position you apply for, openings occur all the time, and we encourage you to continue expressing interest until you find the right volunteer role.

Nancy… How’d you miss it? Residents know Bob Duff didn’t originally include Tracy Marra as a panelist at the delegation legislative forum. They saw the original flyer posted to the “City of Norwalk, CT” and “State Rep Lucy Dathan” FB pages with her photo/name missing, despite the flyer advertising an all-inclusive “Norwalk Delegation Legislative Forum”. Nonpartisan “League of Women Voters – Norwalk, CT” promoted the original flyer with Marra amiss on its FB page. Residents inquired/learned the Thursday before last that Tracy Marra was never even extended an invite by Bob Duff, Lucy Dathan or the other State Representatives, which isn’t a good look on Norwalk’s Democratic delegation, but unsurprising when perusing Bob Duff’s steady stream of hyperpartisan snubs and jabs directed at Republicans on his social media pages, where he broadly shames and sometimes partakes in name-calling them with his acolytes, devolving what could’ve been healthy bipartisan discourse into divisive drivel. I’m not a Republican and find his polarizing content offensive and indigestible. Bob’s baloney is something to behold.

Informed Norwalk residents got Tracy Marra the invite owed her, insisting on the city’s post with the original link that she be invited and the flyer revised/reposted. Good thing, as she got face time with those of us in attendance who learned of some great proposals for legislation she’s working on, where we wouldn’t have if left to our Dem delegates. A flurry of comments removed on the city page’s original post posed great questions, one which perhaps the Norwalk Charter Revision Commission could ponder when revamping public meeting guidelines. That question was, would it have been ethical, had it been permissible, for Bob Duff to have excluded an Independent Party endorsed, Republican Norwalk delegate from participating in a Norwalk delegation legislative forum on the premises of Norwalk City Hall, the building of the people, D,R,U,I and otherwise, as doing so would’ve yielded a partisan political event? Is “One-party rule is okay when it’s us” really okay here? Another interesting question was, as many of our local elected officials focus heavily on equity for all in their messaging and campaigning, did Tracy Marra’s fellow delegates not find snubbing her as glaringly inequitable as their outspoken constituents did, or is snubbing Republican delegates the exception to equity for all? The hypocrisy is stunning.

Perhaps NoN’s coverage should be edited to shine a light on the real deal above, as it currently reads like it’s covering for Bob Duff to many readers who know the backstory. Often, the Norwalk community gets the scoop on Bob’s baloney where NoN somehow doesn’t, like for example that time when our Senator took to Twitter to accuse a Darien Republican BoE member whom he took a screenshot of in live time of flashing a white supremacy symbol during his candidate debate, when in fact, the man was pinching the fabric of his jacket sleeve. Duff deleted his libelous nonsense after being called out on political pages, but the screenshot sent ‘round the internet lives in infamy. Bob Duff’s immature actions and dismissiveness toward that other major party, which puzzlingly seeks to divide rather than to unify, is what’s wrong with today’s politics, and is why he and other politicians who conduct themselves similarly should be held accountable. Bob Duff should be asked and answer what his reason was for initially excluding Tracy Marra and for excluding her predecessor Terrie Wood at past delegation legislative forums. Why not hold our Senator accountable for NoN’s unvarnished story?