The Good and The Bad of Local Politics

I apologize for not making the following thoughts available sooner, but, I suppose, better late than not at all:

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Marasco for stepping up and accepting the job of Selectman, replacing Marc Lombardo as he prepares for the his new job as State Representative. Marc worked hard, studied hard and accomplished much on the Board of Selectmen. His hard work paid off and enabled him to gain election to a higher level of public service to the town and to the Commonwealth as a State Representative on Beacon Hill. I have no doubt that he will represent Billerica well and with distinction over the years. In fact, I would not be surprised at all that with a bit more experience and personal growth, if he were to be successful in a bid for national office.

Speaking of success, some people, such as Dave Gagliardi, seem to have forgotten that Paul Marasco ran a very tight and competitive race against long term and deeply embedded Selectman Mike Rosa and Bob Correnti. Paul finished third by just a handful of votes in his first attempt at a chair on the BOS even though he was running against powerful established incumbents.

Because of his efforts, Paul Marasco is reaping the benefits, albeit as a substitute for Marc until the upcoming elections. The fact that Paul is willing to assume this responsibility on short notice and without hesitation speaks volumes of his commitment to the town of Billerica. If his performance on the BOS even comes close to his obvious level of caring about Billerica, voters, I am certain, will reward him with a full 3 year term.

On the other hand, we have people, such as Dave Gagliardi, who would rather have a vacant seat than a fully staffed, active and participatory Board of Selectmen. Mr. Gagliardi comments about Marc choosing to step down in order to work with Representative Bill Greene on issues important to Billerica demonstrates, to me, a lack of appreciation of the situation Billerica faces. As reported by Chris Camire:

His poverty in appreciating the fairness in abiding by the Town Charter and accepting the stated reasons for Marc stepping down demonstrates poverty of good will in his overall character. His paranoid finger pointing and rationale for behaving badly is not becoming. It does not reflect an appreciation of the challenges Billerica faces when it comes to finances, infrastructure improvements, or the immediate need to transform Billerica into a preferred destination for business while improving the quality of life and the character of the town going forward.

Mr. Gagliardi could have run in the last BOS race. He could have worked to finish ahead of Mr. Marasco to put himself in the position Mr. Marasco now finds himself. But, the fact is, that he did none of these things. Instead, he chose to remain on the Finance Committee and continue with the status quo. His words and his actions demonstrate, to me, that Mr. Gagliardi is more interested in his personal chances for success and individual power than he is in improving the chances of success necessary to bring Billerica into a more complex and rapidly changing future where nimbleness and clarity of vision and purpose become more important than ever.

The fact is that it is very difficult; nay, impossible, for anyone to look toward solving real problems when that one can’t take his eyes off of the overly affectionate and false beauty that one finds in a mirror of self-love and love’s deceptive conceit.

Mr. Gagliardi, through his own words, is projecting the same sense of entitlement that I observed coming from Mr. Conway in his race against Marc. If Mr. Gagliardi is qualified and can gather support in his effort to either oust Mr. Accomando or to defeat Mr. Marasco in head to head competition; then, he should be more concerned with putting together his campaign staff, strategy and get out the vote effort. Instead, he is already projecting weakness and a lack of confidence in his own abilities that should speak volumes to the voters of Billerica. While I respect Mr. Gagliardi’s service on FINCOM, it does not entitle him to position himself on the start line in a position of his choosing…those positions are earned.

With that said, thank you Mr. Marasco for your time, service and dedication to the town of Billerica and to your fellow citizens. I wish you great things while in service on the Board of Selectmen because the more you accomplish to improve the town and how it funds and governs itself, the better the town will become. I look forward to watching you and Marc perform in your new capacities as Billerica moves forward.