January 21, 2009

Blaschke leaps into 2nd District City Council race

Independent candidate Mark Blaschke said today that he's going to run for City Council again this year.
"We have to have some common sense in government here," Blaschke said.
Though Blaschke acknowledges that the political establishment doesn't take him seriously, he said he is willing to tackle the hard issues that politicians prefer to ignore.
He said, for instance, that the school system is socking taxpayers for too much.
Blaschke called for school Superintendent Philip Streifer and the entire Board of Education to resign.
"We have to start from scratch," Blaschke said.
He said the Bristol Downtown Development Corp., the nonprofit created during the Stortz administration to oversee the revitalization of the 17-acre downtown mall site, should be axed.
"It's a waste of the taxpayers' money," Blaschke said.
Blaschke, who lost a 2nd District council bid in 2007, said that he would also impose a 10 percent pay cut on top managers at City Hall and the school district.
One of the 2nd District's two incumbent councilors, freshman Republican Ken Cockayne, said his week he would seek reelection. The other, veteran Democrat Kevin McCauley, isn't talking about his plans yet.
Blaschke said that Cockayne is "way off base on the issues" and is too anti-union and too opposed to social programs in general. McCauley, he said, is mostly invisible.
He said the council needs someone who will stand up to the out-of-control school budget and oppose two proposed new schools sought by educators.
"We can't afford them," Blaschke said. "People are paying enough in taxes."
Blaschke said that the problems at City Hall extend beyond the high visibility issues that political leaders are taking the wrong stands on.
Even snow plowing, he said, is "getting a little slipshod."
Blaschke said the city needs to tackle big issues that it typically doesn't do anything about.
He said the methadone clinic on Farmington Avenue is attracting convicted felons to town, pushing up crime rates and holding down property values. It needs to be run out of town, Blaschke said.
He said he is opposed to Cockayne's push to tape the city's overfunded pension plans to cover at least part of the tab of a new trust fund to cover retirees' health care benefits.
"Don't touch the workers' pension fund," Blaschke said. "They should leave the pension fund alone."
Blaschke said he wants to run an upbeat, issues-oriented campaign.
But, he said, if his opponents want to tangle, he's ready.
He said that if Cockayne, with whom he has had run-ins since the last election, "wants to play boogie-woogie, I can play boogie-woogie with him, too."
He said the city leaders need to be held accountable.
"They're getting away with too much stuff," Blaschke said.

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Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey, I think I like this guy!

Anonymous said...

GO BLASCHKE, GO BLASCHKE, GO BLASCHKE GO!!!!

Anonymous said...

mouth is in drive but brain is in neutral

Anonymous said...

This from a guy who doesn't work! Doesn't own anything and yet complains about paying too much tax! What tax are you paying? Your just sucking the system dry looking for your increased freebies!!

Anonymous said...

Easy to mouth off when you know you have no chance of getting elected, and then being held accountable.

Anonymous said...

uh oh, sounds like Mr. B has struck a nerve...

Anonymous said...

mark, turn republican and primary cockayne - you'll win and cockayne will be gone - end result will be that the city wins 2 and 0.

Anonymous said...

Blaschke what do you do for a living? What have you done for a living? Just because you pay taxes, if you do, does not make you a voice for the tax payers!

Anonymous said...

"Who is this guy? Is he sane??"

Not only is he sane, he's smart enough to have Cockayne's number! ;0)

GO BLASCHKE, GO BLASCHKE, GO BLASCHKE GO!

Geo said...

The methadone comment by Mr. Blaschke is of much interest to me.

Methadone Clinics are often targeted due to a long term STIGMA problem. In all to many communities, there are strong efforts to create specific zoning regulations and/or to try to keep them out alltogether.

Caution is needed. One reason is that patients are protected under the ADA Americans with Disabilities Act.

People are unaware of the history of this STIGMA some of which comes from certain annonymous recovery groups which are very popular in the public mind. Please read below for details. These XA meetings attract much of the same people as a clinic does and are in many locations in town where a clinic might not be allowed. People who hold down a job, have families and are productive members of society go to clinics too for the help they need. Newcomers and recovering people go to their meetings just the same as people who go to a methadone clinic. Trying to do away with a clinic is just like making an ordinance against "XA" (X anonymous)

http://www.methadonetoday.org/dole_nys.htm

If there is a perceived problem with a local clinic it might be cool for Mr. Blaschke to make an appointment to discuss this with the clinic director. Because of the STIGMA tha affest patients, it would be best to make an appointment when the treatment time is over. Just give them a call. You may just find that they are a very good neighbor in the community.

You might also be interested in what happened when Mayor Giuliani tried to close the clinics in NYC

Google:
NY Mayor Giuliani Methadone

Thank you for being.

George

Anonymous said...

Blaschke for Mayor!

Anonymous said...

Think Blashke and Geladino will run as a team?

We might get national coverage!

Odin said...

We already know what Mark would do if elected: cut spending. But are there any programs that he would like to get MORE funding? Does he have a vision of Bristol, or at least a short-term agenda? If so he never revealed it during the last campaign. The guy is well-meaning but shallow.

Odin said...

"McCauley, he said, is mostly invisible."

Mark seems to think that all a councilman does is attend monthly City Council meetings and issue press releases. The vast majority of a councilman's time is spent learning about the issues, working with department heads, and quietly helping his constituents one-on-one. I sincerely doubt Mark will be able to do any of that.

Anonymous said...

Add Merrick to the Blashke/Geladino team.

Anonymous said...

Odin

I don't care how good Blashke is, HE CANNOT cut spending: only the Board of Finace can.

He would need all the Council and at least one BOF member to go along with him.