By Rosalie Tirella
Well, finally, our new mayor shows some cajones! Mayor Joe O’Brien has snubbed Joff Smith (at the moment an At Large Worcester city councilor with an at-LARGE ego but a Missing-in-Action brain) for the gal from Elm Street – Margot Barnet. He will formally endorse Barnet for the District 13 State Rep seat that Mr. Hottie Pants, Bob Spellane, has decided to give up after a number of horrid/stupid mis-steps (political and personal).
Barnet, a lady who has been president of the fab Regional Environmental Council, one-time home to the equally fab REC Director of Development Josie Shagwert and equally bright and articulate (and fab) REC ex-executive director Peggy Middaugh, is the kind of person we want to represent District 13. Smart, intelligent, honest.
We were getting so bummed out over the field of candidates – especially Joff Smith, a guy who, just because he looks cute in a suit, thinks he is somehow destined for a political career, a chance to lead “the people.” He’s been waiting for a chance like this for, let’s see, forever.
Why is it that men’s egos grow in inverse proportion to their IQs?
Smith’s ego is FUCKIN’ huge – and his contribution to the City of Worcester is so small! He has contributed next to nothing as a Worcester City Councilor, and despite his efforts to grand stand and jump on the hot issues like A.L.Beetle-mania, he is ultimately pointless.
We loved a recent Joff Smith City Council rant: Echoing President Barack Obama and local Democratic big wigs one Tuesday evening, Joff got up to tell our City Council it was “about two things: jobs and jobs.”
That’s right, Joffy boy, you care so much about jobs! As owner of the Goldstein Scrap metal yard, off Lamartine Street, your family has made it a point to exploit working people/the poor. I have seen all those wonderful guys your family has exploited. Ooops! I mean given work to. All the poor souls who scrounge for scrap to get pennies from the Goldstein/Smith clan. Only to have Goldstein Scrap sell it for a tidy profit after the poor guys have cleaned and gotten it all ready for recylcing!
OR: How about all that plowing the Smiths/Goldsteins do for the City of Worcester? Joff’s brother, Jared, plows for the City of Worcester. The average snow plow guy makes about $10,000 a winter. Not bad for a few months of seasonal work – actually for only several snowstorms (maybe 6 – 12 hours per snowstorm!).
But get this: Joff’s family bought a bunch of new trucks, attached snow plows to them and this winter the Smith/Goldstein clan created jobs! That’s right they billed the City of Worcester and put their new plows out on our city streets. They got about $10,000 per truck – and paid their workers not a whole lot of dough.
Capitalism = explotation = Joff Smith.
Wouldn’t it have been nice if Joff Smith didn’t use his connections to make his family richer? Wouldn’t it have been nice if he had reached out to some good guys, with plows attached to their dump trucks or pick ups and said: “Hey, guys, wanna sign up and work for the City of Worcester? And make $10,000 this winter?”
Not a chance? Mr. Jobs-Joff-Smith/Goldstein Scrap was too busy exploiting the working stiff.
We hate when assholes like Joff Smith think they can get up in front of TV cameras and bull shit an entire city!
We like it when mayors like Mayor Joe O’Brien step up and do the right thing: endorse the better candidate. And the candidate’s a woman. And she’s progressive. Not bad, Joe!`
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Just a thought: Wouldn’t it be nice if the City of Worcester ADVERTISED these snow plowing jobs – so more folks can stay working?