Friday, December 14, 2007

Or, Maybe You Have Landed in Flemington

“”Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss it, you will land among the stars.” Les Brown

I am very honored to be given this opportunity to show case Flemington. Let me take a few minutes to introduce you to Flemington and show you around my home turf.

Flemington is a little picturesque niche in Central Jersey, surrounded by the more spacious Raritan Township with whom we share a school district. I believe it is approximately one square mile with about 3500 residents. We have a scenic Main Street, lined with trees and huge planters, always filled to the brim with flowers or plants of the season, making it especially pleasant to stroll around Main Street for the many events there, often overseen by Councilwoman Erica Edwards. I believe we have Mrs. Edna Pedrick and her committee to thank for this planter décor.

Of course many of you may know Flemington for its preponderance of historical buildings, Greek architecture and numerous Victorian homes framed in gingerbread, and its outlets, very notably Liberty Village. There is good shopping here and more to come with the new Shoppes at Flemington that is scheduled in about a year from now.

Flemington is the Hunterdon County seat and home of the famed courthouse in which Bruno Hauptmann was tried for the Lindbergh kidnapping. The courthouse sits directly across from the Union Hotel that housed the media during that momentous event.

There is much that goes on here in this little borough and if you have time or can make the time, browse our website, www.historicflemington.com. People in Flemington work hard for their community and this comprehensive website is overseen and kept current by Councilwoman Brooke Liebowitz. I think you will be impressed.

It is my hope that council members, Fire Chief Bob Bogart, Police Chief George Becker, volunteer groups, charitable and religious organizations, the Food Pantry and Women’s Shelter etc and the schools will feel free to contact me with information and events they would like publicized, as well as using this blog as a forum to bringing certain issues and concerns to the attention of the Flemington residents. This is our forum for debate and information sharing. So your ideas and concerns are welcome here for airing. Please post your comments as a way of letting those who need to know, learn about what the Flemington residents are thinking.

I look forward to chatting it up with you and don’t be shy. It is my dream that this not be Greiner’s blog but Flemington’s forum, used to help build, strengthen and make better the home I love, Flemington.

Stay tuned.

7 comments:

Greg Gillette said...

Joan - I am enjoying reading your blog. Will you email me at greg90 (at) aol.com. I have a question for you.

MediumPetey said...

"It is my dream that this not be Greiner’s blog but Flemington’s forum, used to help build, strengthen and make better the home I love, Flemington."

Well you certainly missed that opportunity! How can this blog be anything but your own slanted opinion about what goes in the Flemington political scene? You certainly have already thrown down that gauntlet.

I’ve read with great interest the posts prior to this one. And your responses are nothing but the self-serving recriminations of a sore loser. It is most certainly not like ANY of the other community blogs herein, that are truly town oriented postings. Yours, however, is not.

Your criteria of how you base your vote seems predicated on the value of the “appearance of camaraderie” amongst the current Council members, regardless of party affiliation. However commendable that may seem to you, it is simply untenable to impose that same value on the current Council members, and expect them to not provide a contested campaign. That would be extremely unfair to Flemington voters, and truly undemocratic, aside. Also, that would have given the incumbent Council members [who all just happened to be Republican] too much of a free ride.

There are many other criteria that voters may wish to use in deciding who should be on Council: Accomplishments. Professional skills. Agenda and plans for the future. Personal values. And Party affiliation. Yes, party affiliation.

Although you, yourself, might not vote based on the criteria of “Party affiliation”, some voters do. Just because you do not, it is entirely inappropriate to deny that opportunity to Flemington voteers.

What you advocate here is what true dictatorships do. They are so full of themselves that they create a 'narrative' that is self defining as to justify their own power. They judge themselves fit to stay in power, and deny the opportunity for the electorate to judge them. Is that what YOU call democracy? I sure don't, and the voters of Flemington surely don't.

Would you really have preferred a backroom deal between the Democrats and Republicans that denied a true choice to the voters of Flemington? If you truly love Flemington the way you purport to, I hope you’d be more democratic than that.

Courier News Flemington blog said...

mediumpetey,

This blog is very new and just getting off the ground. So please stay tuned for more commentary that validates my thoughts on this commentary. Again people who disagree with you or me are not bad people. Discussion also is the very essence of our political system.I am sure you realize that too. I will be posting this week again on some of the points you raise.

Welcome and please...

Stay tuned.

jona

Courier News Flemington blog said...

Greg,

Thank you so much and will do...

Joan

MediumPetey said...

Yes, of course, the blog is very new. Every community blog on the webpage is fairly new. But none of them are as political or ‘sour-grapey' as yours is.

And you needn’t share any more commentary to ‘validate your thoughts’ ----you have certainly done that more than enough already. Anything further would be just more and more rationalization. If you cannot make your point understood at first blush [you have not thus far received one positive comment supportive of your position], further rationalization will serve no pedagogical purpose.

Once again your pseudo-intellectualization of the issue is showing: anytime one makes ‘positive’ sounding assertions that no one’s disputed, you’ve lost me. No one cares that you think that “people who disagree with you or me are not bad people” or that “Discussion also is the very essence of our political system.” You’re really going out on a ledge asserting that! What’s next? An assertion that “freedom is good” or “It’s nice to be nice to the nice”?

Please, post away if you must. At least until the good folks at the Courier News realize what your actual motivation is. Politics as usual in NJ.

Courier News Flemington blog said...

Well,then, mediumpetey, thank you for your thoughts.

Joan

Unknown said...

i live in flemington and i enjoy reading ur writing, i love the way you make flemington look so luvish and peaceful and i hope u dont post about the crisis happening in the flats.

Thank u,
ADam