Flock, we hardly knew ye
Wakefield is less safe today than it was a week ago.
This week, the Wakefield Police Department reluctantly decided to pull the plug on their use of Flock Safety cameras as a tool to solve crimes and keep the community safe.
Not because the cameras aren’t effective. They are.
And not because the Flock cameras violate the privacy of people on public streets. They don’t.
They pulled the plug because they’ve seen this movie before. They knew that their opponents were going to pack the Nov. 16 Town Meeting and force the elimination of one of the best high-tech crime-solving tools available to the department.
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Tags: ALPR, automobile, Big Brother, cameras, carjacking, cars, civil liberties, crime, criminals, Facebook, Flock cameras, Flock Safety, law enforcement, license plate, Lynn MA, Mark Sardella, mass surveillance, Opinion, police, Politics, social media, technology, Town Meeting, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield MA, Wakefield Police Department, WPD
Don’t cancel Columbus
My favorite holiday, Columbus Day, falls on the second Monday of October every year. This year is extra special because the second Monday is Oct. 12, which happens to be traditional Columbus Day, established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1934.
FDR issued a proclamation designating October 12 as Columbus Day and called for the flag of the United States to be displayed on all government buildings. He urged all U.S. citizens to observe Columbus Day with ceremonies celebrating the anniversary of America’s discovery.
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Tags: America, American Indians, Aztecs, Christopher Columbus, Columbus Day, discovery, explorer, FDR, History, holiday, human sacrifice, Indians, Indigenous People, Indigenous Peoples Day, LBJ, Mark Sardella, Native Americans, New World, October 12, Old World, Opinion, Politics, revisionism, United States, Wakefield Daily Item
One-way street
As I predicted in this space on Aug. 27, the activists from Safe Streets Wakefield made their presence known at last week’s Town Council meeting to support Envision Wakefield, for one reason and one reason only: mandated bike lanes.
Envision Wakefield is the downtown revitalization project that will be funded by tens of millions of dollars from the state. But there’s a catch. To get the dough, you need to agree to put bike lanes everywhere.
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Tags: activists, bicycles, bike lanes, bikes, cyclists, Envision Wakefield, Humor, Mark Sardella, Opinion, politicians, Politics, Safe Streets Wakefield, Safe Streets Working Group, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield Town Council, Wakefield Warrior Logo, William Renault
9/11 plus 25
Every generation has one of those “always remember where you were” events. For the Greatest Generation, it was Pearl Harbor. For the Baby Boomers, it was the JFK Assassination.
September 11, 2001 is one of those dates.
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Tags: 2001, 9/11, aircraft, airplanes, al Qaeda, America, attacks, Baby Boomers, flags, Greatest Generation, History, Islam, John F. Kennedy, Major League Baseball, Mark Sardella, memory, New York City, Opinion, outrage, Pearl Harbor, plane, Politics, September 11, terrorism, terrorists, Twin Towers, United States, Wakefield Daily Item, World Trade Center
Equity on wheels
“Complete Streets,” “Safe Streets Wakefield,” “Envision Wakefield,” etc., etc. Even members of the Town Council can’t keep them straight. How do they expect the public to?
Maybe they don’t. Obfuscation can be a political strategy.
Allow me to clarify things for you.
The state, certain local officials and the activists pulling the strings behind the scenes all believe that they know what’s best for Wakefield and its citizens. And their prescription is always the same: bike lanes.
But the advocates know that bike lanes remain unpopular. So, their communications are filled with euphemistic terminology like “multimodal transportation,” “shared-use paths” and “complete streets” to camouflage the real goal.
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Tags: activists, bicycle, bicycles, bike, bike lanes, bikes, Complete Streets, cycle, cycling, Envision Wakefield, Humor, Mark Sardella, MassDOT, multimodal transportation, Opinion, Politics, Safe Streets Wakefield, shared-use path, social justice, transportation equity, urban planning, vehicles, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield Town Council
Envision bike lanes
What expertise does a bicycle club bring to urban planning? And why is the Wakefield Bicycle Club (aka Safe Streets Wakefield) taking a lead role in peddling the Envision Wakefield downtown revitalization project?
The Safe Streets group had a table at the recent Living Well Health Fair. Ahead of the event they promoted their role via email and on social media.
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Tags: bicycles, bike lanes, bumpouts, businesses, cars, central planners, change, downtown, drivers, Envision Wakefield, historic buildings, Main Street, Mark Sardella, median strips, Opinion, Politics, revitalization, Safe Streets Wakefield, safety, small town, urban planning, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield Farmers Market, Wakefield Square, working class community
Keep the change
I have thus far resisted the temptation to opine on the issue of moving to permanent daylight saving time and thereby ending the practice of changing the clocks twice a year. But now that the United States House of Representatives has voted to make daylight saving time permanent, I feel that the time has come to take a bold stand.
The choices seem to be either moving to permanent daylight saving time or keeping standard time year-round.
I am firmly in the “do nothing” camp.
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Tags: Alaska, Anchorage, clocks, commute, dark, daylight, Daylight Saving Time, daylight savings time, dusk, headlights, House of Representatives, Humor, Mark Sardella, night, Opinion, Politics, President, President Donald J. Trump, Richard M. Nixon, school, Standard Time, summer, sunrise, time, United States, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield MA, winter
Happy birthday, America!
You only turn 250 once, America, so enjoy your day! Seriously, you look great for your age. You don’t look a day over 200. Despite the slings and arrows of your enemies, foreign and domestic, you’re aging gracefully.
Remember, age is just a number, and you’re only as old as you feel. Life begins at 250.
We hope you enjoy the party we’re throwing for you. Joining you at the head table will be guests of honor Uncle Sam, Lady Liberty and Captain America. Your beloved pet bald eagle will be perched nearby.
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Tags: 250, age, America, bald eagle, Bill of Rights, birthday, Captain America, charity, Civil War, communication, Constitution, Europe, foreign aid, Hollywood, Humor, Independence Day, Indiginous Peoples, information, Internet, jazz, July 4th, July Fourth, Lady Liberty, MA, Mark Sardella, Massachusetts, moon, No Kings, Opinion, philanthropy, Politics, slavery, Uncle Sam, United States, US, USA, Wakefield, Wakefield Daily Item, World War
Stars, stripes and a shrug
What a difference five decades make. 
Those who were around in 1976 remember that the nation’s Bicentennial was a big, big deal. Everywhere you looked, there was something to remind you of our nation’s 200th birthday. Bicentennial logos appeared on everything from cereal boxes to beverage bottles and cans. Everything had a red, white and blue color scheme. There were patriotic TV specials. American flags were ubiquitous.
The hype started long before July 4, 1976 and it wasn’t just at the national level. Grass roots Bicentennial fever gripped cities and towns across America, including right here in Wakefield.
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Tags: 1976, America, America 250, American flags, anti-Americanism, Bicentennial, culture, History, Humor, Independence Day, Mark Sardella, Massachusetts, No Kings, Opinion, patriotism, Politics, self-loathing, Town Meeting, United States, Vietnam War, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield MA, Weekend Insurrectionists
The recurring revolution
There’s an old song by Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks called, How Can I Miss You When You Won’t Go Away? I believe we have reached that point with the “No Kings/Indivisible” movement.
Shoppers, businesses and drivers have been subjected to the weekly harangues of these “protesters” for over a year now. We get it. You hate the President of the United States. You think he’s Hitler.
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Tags: Boomers, capitalism, Dan Hicks, Donald J. Trump, free speech, Humor, Indivisible, Mark Sardella, No Kings, Opinion, Pledge of Allegiance, Politics, President of the United States, protesters, protests, Wakefield Daily Item, Wakefield MA
