Mayoral Recall a Referendum on American Democracy
Below is a letter sent to the Troy Times editor in response to an article which appeared in the September 20 edition. This weekly newspaper is mailed free to all residents of Troy. I’ll offer more explanation to Troy Patch readers since there is more space. Letters to the editor in printed newspapers must be concise and are often blunt.
Patch readers are familiar with my opposition to moving the train station a quarter mile to add bus service and more parking spaces at a cost of over six million dollars, borrowed from the next generation, with no improvement in train service. This is one of the reasons Mayor Daniels is facing a special recall election in November. Opposition to this project from her and the other new SEGs on the city council earned Troy national criticism from liberal icon Keith Olbermann and the Atlantic magazine.
New Acronyms to Save Space
SEG people favor Smaller Efficient Government, while BIG people favor Bigger Government. Government is invariably less efficient than the private sector since it doesn’t have to make a profit, so it could be called Bigger Inefficient Government. Neither point of view is inherently better; both are valid opinions and governing philosophies.
Both viewpoints are pro-growth, but SEG people favor private sector growth which funds the government employees who serve us so well. BIG people favor public sector growth. It’s no surprise that public sector unions and other government workers are the strongest supporters of leaders with BIG government viewpoints.
Another reason for the new acronyms is that most people like to be called conservatives, especially during election season. Few are proud of being called a liberal except people like Robert Reich and Alan Colmes, whose recent book explaining the liberal point of view got praise across the entire political spectrum. SEGs disagree with most of his conclusions (conservatives want to move forward, too!), but they liked the book.
Tone and Content of the Article
The tone of the Troy Times article put a successful recall in a favorable light and featured only interviews with recall supporters and government employees. The only attempt to give Mayor Daniels a say was a negative reference: “Daniels could not be reached for comment by press time.” The only neutral part was at the end where both web sites were given.
Terry Oparka does a good job of writing many articles each week about Troy news, but she missed the mark on having a balanced article this time. The power of the pen should be wielded more carefully, especially on sensitive topics like this with an important election depending on neutral information from the press.
Troy Times bias continues
The same issue had a Second Front Page article at the top of page 3 with a bold headline “Highland Park resident sues Troy City Council over city manager deliberation.” Readers had to turn to page 9 to find out that this AFSCME labor negotiator was indicted on federal charges for misappropriating over $400,000 from the school district for his personal use and could face ten years in prison.
Although a small sub-headline read “Council unanimously approves contract for new city manager,” at first glance the article makes it look like our city is mismanaged when in fact the whole council had the closed door meeting.
On page 9, City Attorney Lori Bluhm said she believes the closed door meeting was allowed by a clause in the Open Meetings Act that allows councils to consider applications for public office in closed session if the applicants request confidentiality.
The lawsuit will probably be dismissed; probably neither that nor the outcome of Robert Davis’ felony case will make headlines. For sure they will both be after the November special election for Mayor Daniels.
Delay in printing letter
The editor “will consider all the letters on the mayoral recall closer to the election.” By waiting a few weeks the editor is preventing a timely response to a biased article and may not print my letter at all.
With the above as explanation, here is my letter to the editor:
Mayoral Recall a Referendum on American Democracy
The headline “Successful mayoral recall would not prompt special election” and content of the September 20 Troy Times article misled readers, making it sound like it would be a positive development and no big deal for the city council to handle.
The November ballot question IS the special election. Our mayor must defend her seat three years early against an unknown opponent. Instead of promoting their own candidate, Mayor Daniels’ opponents have criticized her relentlessly. A successful recall will dump the task of picking her replacement on a divided city council.
City business will grind to a halt for at least a month while partisan divisions in the council surface as they decide on a new process to appoint her replacement. If a member resigns to run for mayor, they must agree not only on that person but on a new tie-breaking council member.
Troy’s council has functioned well recently despite its 4-3 tilt in philosophy. Many decisions have been unanimous or with wide margins. Removing one who favors Smaller Efficient Government will leave a tie, since the others favor Bigger Government. Asking SEGs and BIGs to quickly agree on the city’s spokesperson and tie-breaking replacement council member would require a Christmas miracle.
Sincere people are angry with Mayor Daniels since her upset win over her BIG opponent, circulating a misleading petition for her removal. They can’t stand other points of view besides their own in city leadership.
Even more than a special election, this is a referendum on American democracy. Unlike parliamentary governments, regular elections with fixed terms are a hallmark of American democracy. People should vote no on the recall even if they oppose some or all of the mayor’s policies. This attacks our system of government as well as Mayor Daniels.
Sincerely,
Dale Murrish
Troy, Michigan
Brian Matico
7:52 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Who are you?
Sue Martin
8:17 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Mr. Murrish is simply a resident of Troy who supports the Mayor.
ANYONE with an opinion is afforded the opportunity to write a blog on Patch. Mr. Murrish's blog is his position, is not edited for accuracy by anyone from Patch (but is fact-checked by those who comment constantly to show and tell him about the frequent errors he includes) and is not censored.
Take his opinion as such.
Glenn
8:17 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Same lies. Different packaging. The only true statement in this is that acronyms can be used to save space. Otherwise, this is just another sad, desperate attempt to mislead the citizens of Troy right out of the playbook of JDTT (Janice Daniel's Troy Taliban) by DDM (Delusional Dale Murrish)
Toby Gosselin
8:17 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Dale, again I remind you that you lost credibility a long time ago. The community will be the judge and jury on November 6th when they vote: "YES,RECALL MAYOR JANICE DANIELS". Be mindful that hatred and bigotry will NOT be tolerated in this community. Anyone associated with one who engages in Hate Mongering is also guilty and part of the problem, not the solution.Rather than criticize The Patch and our local media for their non-partisan expertise, I question why the group identified as 'old, caucasian, males' circle the Mayor like animals-in-the-wild seeking their next meal. BTW, I appreciate Troy's efficient city government & Best Practice policy: POLICE, FIRE,DPS,SCHOOLS,LIBRARY. If you are so unhappy, I encourage you to move out of the city and find a place more suitable to your needs.
Dave Henderson
8:53 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Mrs. Gosselin, you lost me when you suggest Mr. Murrish move out of the city. I get so disgusted and tired of people telling others to just get out. That is intollerant speak to the nth degree. It's o.k. to disagree, it's not o.k. to instruct someone to move to the nearest local city. I have to get ahold of your playbook... that page needs revision.
Cathy Fucinari
10:25 am on Thursday, October 4, 2012
Dave: If people aren't happy here, they should find someplace where they are happy. Simple solution. Does not require everyone else to give up the amenities they came here to enjoy, or spent decades paying taxes to build.
Dale: You are coming unraveled.
Jeff S.
8:42 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
*sigh*
A recall is not an "attack on our system of government." Section 8 of the Michigan Constitution provides for recalls. Instead of being an "attack", recalls are actually an integral part of our system of government. Perhaps Dale should work on amending the state constitution if he hates them so much.
If you want three more years of embarrassment from Janice Daniels, by all means, vote "no". If you've seen enough, as I have, please vote "YES"!
Daffy Noodnicks
9:00 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
This is almost hilarious. Dale is becoming a caricature of himself.
It contains many if Dale's greatest hits. Let's look at a few:
-false irrelevant labels: if you don't agree with me you must be for scary, scary "Big Government". He even made up new adorable little labels. Isn't that cute. At least these weren't nonsense about religion.
-liberals bad. Conservatives good. Of course you only get to be a "conservative" if you agree with him. Otherwise you might be a rino or a hippo or something.
-conspiracy theory about the (liberal, must be, right?) Troy Times. Scary, scary. Perhaps they haven't printed Dales letter because it loaded with falsehood. Just a thought.
-repeat falsehoods that have been debunked: the recall isn't a recall, it's a "special election" because...Dale says so. A council that has been working together quite nicely will suddenly stop doing so because...Dale says so. There is no reason to believe any next mayoral candidate will be of any particular political bent...could be SEG, could be Notorious BIG, could be EIEIO, could even be LMNOP! The petition which isn't misleading is misleading. More battles with reality ensue.
I used to greet this nonsense with a forehead slap. Now I just yawn.
Daffy Noodnicks
10:08 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Oh, I left out: -weird fixation on Matt B. 8800 voters signed the petition and tons of people are involved in the recall, but for some reason Dale is fixated on this one guy. What's up with that?
John Madden
9:23 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Dale,
Not only is this a completely biased and error filled comment, you start off with a new, absolutely wrong statement. In your first paragraph you say that Keith Olbermann criticized Daniels for her position on the transit center. Wrong as usual. He criticized her because of her Facebook statement that she was going to throw away her I love New York carrying bag because queers can get married there. Once again you make a simply incorrect statement. The rest of your comment needs to be considered as bias, error filled drivel,
Here's the actual Olbermann broadcast: http://current.com/shows/countdown/videos/worst-persons-eric-bolling-rick-perry-and-janice-daniels
Toby Gosselin
9:39 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Mr. Henderson,
I'm sure you do not want to engage me in conversation. Go back and read my comment. I do not "instruct" any resident. If you have time to play with words you must not have much real business to do.....Mr. Henderson, I have no playbook....no revision needed. sorry :( I embrace the community I selected to live in. Unfortunately, lately too many want to change the level of services and convert all religion and bla bla bla.....disgusted. Your quote,"it's not o.k. to instruct someone to move to the nearest local city. I have to get ahold of your playbook... that page needs revision". I RECALL CANDIDATE JANICE DANIELS-REALTOR on public record directing clients away from Troy and guided them to Rochester Hills. Today, I say; "YES";RECALL MAYOR JANICE DANIELS , November 6, 2012.
Dave Henderson
2:26 pm on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
"I encourage you to move out of the city ", your words not mine. I certainly don't shy away from conversation with anyone. I've heard this from others and it's disturbing and unproductive. What next... If you disagree with the feds, I'm sure theres another country more suitable for you to live in? If you want to be taken seriously, I simply recommend you drop that line, it's silly.
Glenn
4:17 pm on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
I'm not sure why anybody should take advice on what constitutes acceptable discourse from Dave Henderson. Before he ran for council he was one of the more active mudslingers on Facebook with accusations of corruption, malfeasance and incompetence against Troy's elected leaders and civil servants. Now that he's a member of council he's seen the light and thinks it's just terrible and unhelpful when citizens say "horrible" things about the mayor and we would all be better served if we just tried to understand her point of view and support her right to her beliefs. Please Dave, tell us more.
Dave Henderson
12:05 am on Thursday, October 4, 2012
Glenn, check the records. I never once told a fellow citizen to relocate because his/her opinion wasn't welcome. Some of us have been told and called worse in all the discourse. All I'm saying is if you have an opinion voice it. You loose the battle when you tell someone to move, call them a liar for their view on a topic, or tell them how dumb they are. We are after all adults aren't we?
Glenn
8:02 am on Thursday, October 4, 2012
Don't worry Dave, I've checked your record. While you haven't actually told somebody to move out of the city, you don't exactly have a sterling history of civil, "just the facts please" conversations. Check your own public postings on the TCU website that you seem to love so much. There's plenty of instances of you posting insults, calling people names, insulting their intelligence and accusing people of incompetence and intentional dishonesty (liar). You're the last person that can claim clean hands in this area, so you'll have to excuse me if I find that your self- righteous posts ring a little hollow. :O)
Lynn Hodorek
4:05 pm on Thursday, October 4, 2012
Hey Dave, do you remember telling me that I shouldn't be able to vote because I'm "too young"? I was 18 or 19 at the time you told me that. (I'm 21 now, have I passed the magical Dave Henderson threshold of being able to exercise my civic right to vote?) That to me is way worse than telling someone to move out of the city if they don't like it (which I acknowledge I don't remember you doing). Then you ran for council and my brain exploded.
John Madden
9:59 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Dale,
I looked up the Troy Times news article that I think you base your comments on. Is it this: http://www.candgnews.com/news/successful-mayoral-recall-would-not-prompt-special-election I don't have the print edition anymore, but the on-line edition is dated Sep. 18, not Sep 20. Is this really not balanced? It's a news article, not an opinion piece. It reported facts regarding what would happen if the recall is successful. I has one quote from Matt Binkowski, not "interviews with recall supporters and government employees". One recall supporter and one city employee who responded to a question from the city council. The city employee provided factual information, not opinion.
Can you post the article that you say was not balanced if it is not the same as the one that I found for the same time frame in September 2012?
Ron Dwyer
10:12 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
First of all I agree with Dave Henderson. Harsh tones telling people to move out only throws gasoline on the fire. I am voting No on the Recall. Has Janice been perfect? No, but she has done what many of us that voted her in have wanted her to do. She hasn't been off base with some of her findings as her opponents have stated. Out going city Manager said this city was heading towards an Emergency Financial manager. Well this doesn't happen overnight and Janice is working to cut the wastes to see that doesn't happen. Some in this city were double dipping, collecting a pension for one retired position while working in a new. Janice is workig to end this. She also wasn't off base with her findings on our former city manager as he is already in trouble in his new position down in Florida. ( www.fox4now.com/news/local/163475436.html) Overall Janice gets a B grade in my book for her job so far. Again I am voting no on the recall and avoiding Troy from becoming a further Joke on a national scale. I want businesses to continue to come in and my property values to go back up. None of this will happen with a recall. Also we are a Republic not a Democracy.
Daffy Noodnicks
10:25 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Republics can be democracies.
What exactly has she done to cut waste? Her attack on he city manager was completely debunked by him point by point in detail with footnotes. Whatever he did in his next job has nothing to do with Troy and in no way validates her poor behavior.
Having a mayor who does things like spread ignorance about gay people is what is making a joke of Troy and is bad for business and property values.
Glenn
10:37 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Ron's just another Janice lackey sent to do her dirty work. He claims Janice is working to cut government waste, yet she sat silent during the recent budget meetings and then was the only no vote when the budget was voted on. His claims of double dipping have been refuted many times, since Szerlag was costing the city less than the new city manager will and his contract was approved by conservative council members Howrylak and Fleming. He states that he's voting no on the recall to prevent Troy from becoming a further joke on a national scale, but in truth the only way this will occur is if she isn't recalled. Finally, he states that Daniels hasn't been perfect, but anybody who's been paying attention knows this to be untrue. Janice Daniels has been perfect. Perfectly awful! Vote YES to Recall Janice Daniels.
Cathy Fucinari
10:30 am on Thursday, October 4, 2012
Daffy, as I recall, the attacked on the city manager was not only debunked by John Szerlag, it was also debunked by L. Brooks Patterson. Is he a liberal too???
Daffy Noodnicks
10:18 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Frankly, I'm glad Dale keeps regurgitating this stuff. It provides an opportunity to show that he is wrong, and the mayors defenses don't make sense. Every post like this is good for the recall. I'm thinking of making an additional donation of some small amount to the recall for every falsehood.
Wiley Coyote
11:34 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
As a community, we have to decide if making bigoted statements and surrounding yourself with bigots is acceptable behavior in our public officials.
I say no, it's not. It is not acceptable to me that Janice Daniels said what she said about gay people, no matter when she said it. It is not acceptable that she continues to associate and support others who make hateful, harmful statements aimed at Asians (Gordon Shepke), African Americans (David Wisz) or carry signs at political rallies depicting the bloody deaths of elected officials, covered with the most disgusting language possible (Sterling Heights councilman Paul Smith).
She has proved herself to have terrible judgment just on this issue alone, much less the other issues on the recall petitions, all of which are legitimate, regardless of what Dale Murrish says.
There is no disputing what she or her friends and associates have said. It is indefensible hate speech that is ugly, fear-based and cruel. She is the bottom of the political barrel here in Troy, swimming in a stew of hatred, self-righteousness and ignorance along with her pals Bob Gosselin, Glenn Clark, Martin Howrylak, and sadly, Doug Tietz and Dave Henderson. As a community, we voters must say to her, "sorry Ms. Daniels, you have to go."
Vote Yes to Recall Janice Daniels this November and send a message that Troy is not going to tolerate her one more day.
Dale Murrish
5:44 pm on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
I guess we all agree that the council will spend November and possibly December debating the method for choosing Mayor Daniels’ replacement and the tie-breaking council member. So I don’t have to write another article explaining why there will be a 3-3 tie on our non-partisan city council if the mayor is recalled?
I expected a firestorm of comments on this one since we have differing opinions about what happened, but I’m surprised at the silence about one of my main points, that the gridlocked council will have difficulty choosing the city spokesman and new council member. Do we all agree on that point?
Sue Martin
6:17 pm on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Since most non-unanimous decisions have been made thus far by this council with 6-1 votes (with Daniels being the most frequent sole dissenting vote), I think most of us are ignoring your fear-mongering prediction.
Daffy Noodnicks
6:19 pm on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
I do not agree. You don't know if the Council will be deadlocked. Your past attempts at prognostication have been pretty bad. You should stop pretending you can see the future. I believe the Coucil has demonstrated an ability to work together. There may be difficulty. They might be reasonable people who work together to a reasonable solution.
The fact is YOU DON'T KNOW. You should stop stating this outcome as if it is a forgone conclusion because it most certainly is not.
What votes have been 4-3? How many?
John Madden
5:46 pm on Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Nope. But I would like to know if the Troy Times article that I found is the one you are writing about.
Lynn Hodorek
4:12 pm on Thursday, October 4, 2012
DALE. FOR PETE'S SAKE. "Daniels could not be reached for comment by press time" is NOT A NEGATIVE STATEMENT ABOUT THE MAYOR. It means they COULD NOT REACH HER TO OBTAIN A COMMENT. You can hardly blame that on the paper!