and Cyberbullies (Hoboken 411)
Another website last week seemed to make a big deal about the Hoboken Mayor's salary last week. For those who are in the know, the coverage of Dawn Zimmer has been very negative on Hoboken 411 since the onset of her mayoral campaign.
The job of a blog like Hoboken 411 or mine for that matter is to voice their opinion and if you the reader disagree then you can voice your rebuttal in the comments below the article. That is the idea of an open forum and that is where Hoboken 411 is sorely lacking. The number of people who have been banned or had their post not show up for political opinions and not violations of comment policy are simply too voluminous to enumerate here. Surely cyberfuhrer Perry Klaussen has every right to block anyone he sees fit, it is his site. What is laughable and downright insulting to the reader's intelligence is his denial of such activity (banning , IP blocking) based on political motive only.
Get this straight: Hoboken 411 is neither a news source or an open forum, it is a blog and private forum, albeit a very well trafficked one considering its targeted audience.
The other issue that has become more apparent is the increasingly hostile attitude of Hoboken 411 towards Dawn Zimmer. Again, a blog has a right to even spew venom like Rush Limbaugh or TV show host on Faux News Glenn Beck. After all, the ACLU has defended Nazis for their right to free speech.
The hatred towards Dawn and her husband Stan seems to get more vile everyday on that site. You would think a blog that was trying to persuade would not resort to such infantile hatred but maybe that is the true reflection of the intellectual abilities of the author. It makes one wonder. I see similar behavior in the well coiffed Lane Bajardi whose anger filled tirade against restoring Zoning appointments to the council made him the laughingstock in the room when Cammarano was busted for gaming the very system he was trying to keep in tact. Not to mention his whole disertation on time keeping that was grade school vaudeville. Seriously, can a petulant purple pillow plopper be that petty? Lane meet Perry. Perry meet Lane. Oh, I see you have met already. :)
I swear to god the Perry Klaussen is auditioning for the website "Dickapedia":
As a opinion based blogger I have made it very clear who I have supported along the way and have clearly given my reasons. I supported Dawn from the onset not because she spent the most money on her campaign and decried inevitability through her bloggers (Beth Mason), not because she pandered to the police, fire, city employees, Housing Authority, and developers (Peter Cammarano), but because she was most likely in my opinion to keep her promise to restore fiscal sanity back to Hoboken. Sure it was a leap of faith as Dawn didn't have experience and didn't necessary account for her self well in the debates but she had the integrity not to sell out legally (Beth Mason on Church Square Towers and Russo Alliance) or illegally (allegedly Peter Cammarano and the actions in the FBI complaint). When you vote for a candidate it should be mostly about their positions and your belief that they can as close as possible effectively implement your positions.
Believe me, if Dawn screws up in a major way or gets in legal hot water like Peter Cammarano I for one will be the first to look elsewhere for new leadership.
Here are reasons I think Dawn has been off to a good start:
- Handled press conference well at swearing in.
- Called for open audition for Director positions giving Peter Cammarano's choice a fair shot at the positions.
- Reconsidering need for Public Safety Director.
- Reduced her salary 10% and ended longevity pay as City Council President. This is significant and that now she can negotiate with the unions on the moral high ground.
- Went around to reassure City Employees that she understands the concern during this difficult transition.
- Showed her commitment to the City of Hoboken by being there throughout this weekend's air disaster.
- Called for open audition for Director positions giving Peter Cammarano's choice a fair shot at the positions.
- Reconsidering need for Public Safety Director.
- Reduced her salary 10% and ended longevity pay as City Council President. This is significant and that now she can negotiate with the unions on the moral high ground.
- Went around to reassure City Employees that she understands the concern during this difficult transition.
- Showed her commitment to the City of Hoboken by being there throughout this weekend's air disaster.
- Showing a work effort by starting with early morning meetings at 8AM.
- Showing that being Mayor isn't about the perks. She told the City she would forgo her parking spot and bike in instead.
And now here is what is most laughable about the arguments on Mayoral Salary reduction on Hoboken 411:
- Hoboken 411 supported Peter Cammarano with free ads in the runoff and yet mentioned nothing when he had his salary raised to over $129,000. Boys and girls can you say the word hypocrisy?:)
- Dawn might have lowered her salary even more but "Powder Peter" and Judy Tripodi set all directors at $115K. How can the Mayor's salary be lower than theirs.
- Sure a ribbon cutter like Dave Roberts might command a salary of $30K per year but both Peter Cammarano and Dawn Zimmer in their short tenure so far showed a real work effort. It is a demanding full time job when you have the right leader in there.
- I think the salary of Hoboken Mayor should be that high so as to reduce the temptation of corruption. Not everyone can have a war-chest like Mr. Bloomberg or Mrs. Mason.
In conclusion: I wish Dawn the best and I feel she should get support from the community. I don't expect Hoboken 411 to release the hate anytime soon. Best bet is to visit that site to find out when the next business will fail but don't take any of his political stuff seriously. Anyone who follows things closely and isn't on the take knows the score. Hoboken 411 - Hoboken's Leading Political Laughingstock.