Tag Archives: incitytimesworcester.org website

Attn: Mt. Carmel boosters! … TONIGHT! – Thurs! – Historic Commission meeting at 5:30 p.m. – Worcester City Hall

January 19, 2017 admin

The steeple of Our Lady of Mount Carmel church, located on Mulberry Street in Worcester’s glorious Italian American East Side neighborhood! pic:R.T.

In the Levi-Lincoln Room (3rd floor)

See you there!

By Mauro DePasquale, president

Our Lady of Mount Carmel church Preservation Society

Please consider this:

1. The Diocese does not want a Historic District. It holds a permit to knock the church down.

2. The Mount Carmel Preservation Society (MPS) wants the Church to be re-opened with masses and to save the parish on Mulberry Street.

3. The Diocese is merging the two parishes but has not committed to seating the parish sacred gathering space on Mulberry street in our historic church. According to the Bishop, the merger is non-negotiable and was a part of the unilateral offering made by the Bishop on December 30. (BTW An offer with no guarantees but to explore possibilities.) While a permit for May demotion continues to be on cue.

4. MPS provided a comprise by offering six points for the Diocese to consider and respond to before we withdraw our petition.

5. The Diocese ignored our request as of this writing and many in our group have interpreted an implied negative message which is to be published in the Jan 22nd bulletin. This is after we held our part of the bargain of delaying our petition, held quiet with the press, upon request of the Bishop, until Jan 10. We had no real choice but to move forward with the petition as vetted by the Worcester City Council, due to time constraints for processing it.

6. Whereas the MPS mission is, in part, to preserve the church – and we have discussed the consequences a number of times with the Board and general membership – and whereas the Bishop has not indicated in anyway that he is willing to even discuss our 6 points, we can choose to either walk away or move forward with whatever hope the Historic District has to offer toward preservation of our sacred space and community anchors.

Our members spoke clearly at our latest meeting on how they wish to proceed. Therefore, we are moving forward with our petition, with hopes the Diocese will continue discussions to truly work toward preserving and re-opening our Church.

7. Our mission is to preserve our Church and, for the time being, the Historic District offers at least a chance to preserve it. With consensus from the membership and our Board, we have little choice but to move forward with open eyes and hearts – open to continue to appeal for the Bishop to have a change of heart in favor of saving and re-opening our historic church.

We believe the Diocese does not want the church to sit there on Mulberry Street as an eyesore. No one does. It deserves better – to be re-opened, with masses celebrated there weekly.

Hopefully, this process will encourage a move toward preservation and real, open, bilateral discussion …

Moving ahead…

Mauro

InCity Voices

Raise a toast to the paper with the MOST!

August 5, 2016 admin

One of Rosalie’s favorite issues of her beloved InCity Times! pics:R.T.

By Edith Morgan

Fifteen and Still Ahead!

Happy fifteenth birthday to InCity Times – and good wishes for many more!

Many changes have happened in these 15 years, and I hope many more will take place in the coming years – we are still a long way from perfection, so the fight continues.

Over the last several decades, as more and more MONEY considerations dominate all that we do and think, the press has become more timid, more conservative, more limited in what it covers, and in how it does it. So much “news” is copycat nowadays, so that when you turn on major TV channels, they all are covering the same story, as though nothing else was going on anywhere else. And events seem to be reported as though they have always had two equal sides and need to be fed to us through the eyes of the same experts.

As the mergers and the absentee owners proliferate, true free press is more and more a fiction, and we are fed a variety of pablums, squeezed between more and more outrageous advertising.

But none of that has ever been true of InCity Times! It seems to be the only true FREE press still alive in the city. Yes, it is often very outspoken, direct, even brash – but there has never been any censorship or holding back. And many of the positions taken by InCity Times writers and contributors proved to be ahead of the times, fighting for causes that at the time were labeled as “far out” but succeeded in becoming mainstream. (One of ICT Editor and owner Rosalie Tirella’s campaigns, for example, has resulted in the freeing of elephants from their servitude in the circus.)

The [Jack] Hoffman columns were always among my favorites, as he exposed regularly (in his inimitable style and unique sentence structure!) the political “dirt” taking place around the world. On a more scholarly and educational note, I always enjoyed John Monfredo’s columns, and I hope that many parents took them to heart.

Over the years, much free space has been given to so many groups serving various underserved and barely noticed parts of our population – I have often turned to InCity Times’ listings of our elected officials’ titles, addresses and phone numbers so that those who do not have the latest media at their fingertips can also access their elected officials.

InCity Times is in the best traditions of American Journalism: every little American town used to have at least one newspaper that told it “like it is,” that was run by a fearless boss who was not intimidated by the power elites.

When I came to Worcester in 1967, there was a morning and evening edition of basically the same paper – the Telegram in the morning and the Gazette in the evening: same owners, same view points. Those were the days when peace marchers were “egged” and considered disloyal, and worse. Green Hill Park was being used pretty much as a dump (the city mulching operation was there, and a the quarry was being filled in with God only knows what. Eventually the I 290 route cut several lively and viable parts of Worcester in half – and so it went.

But now these things no longer pass with impunity – and I know that at the very least, InCity Times will be there to expose and oppose these things – and our editor Rosalie will lead the charge.

Rosalie, last week

InCity Yum Yums

Healthcare Workers endorse Moses Dixon for State Representative

August 4, 2016 admin

Members of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, the largest and fastest-growing healthcare union in Massachusetts, announced their endorsement of Moses Dixon, Democratic candidate for State Representative in the 17th Worcester District.

“The stakes couldn’t be higher for working families in this election, and we need to elect champions who share our commitment to quality jobs, quality care and true economic and racial justice for all,” said Tyrék D. Lee, Sr., Executive Vice President of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East. “Moses Dixon is a dedicated leader who will stand with us on our issues and will fight with us to build a better future for our families. We are proud to endorse him for election to the Massachusetts House of Representatives.”

More than 52,000 members of 1199SEIU work in hospitals, health centers, nursing homes and homecare programs across Massachusetts.

As a result of their advocacy efforts, 1199SEIU members have won significant victories over the past year to:

create a pathway that protects access to quality care and good jobs at community hospitals;

advance important legislation that allows workers to take job-protected leave to care for themselves or family members;

secure earned sick time for all workers;

raise the minimum wage;

and negotiate major contracts to ensure quality jobs for healthcare workers.

In addition, 1199SEIU members have been leaders in the national Fight for $15 movement.

They became the first union in the nation to win a $15 starting wage for Massachusetts’ 35,000 Personal Care Attendants.

“1199SEIU is making a real impact in Massachusetts—standing up for good wages, pay equity for women, immigrant rights and basic fairness for all,” said Dixon. “I come from a family of working people — my mother was a housekeeper and my father a pastor. The first in my family to go to college, I worked hard to make my family proud. I truly appreciate 1199SEIU’s fight for workers’ rights and am deeply honored to have their support.”

1199SEIU members have a consistent and demonstrated record of success in local, state and federal elections across Massachusetts, the East Coast and the nation.

During recent election cycles in which they have endorsed candidates, 1199SEIU members have proven to be a highly effective voter mobilization force across the Commonwealth, particularly in wards and precincts in communities of color – areas that often are critical to the final outcome of the election.

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Representing more than 52,000 healthcare workers throughout Massachusetts and over 400,000 workers across the East Coast, 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East is the largest and fastest-growing healthcare union in America. Our mission is to achieve affordable, high quality healthcare for all. 1199SEIU is part of the 2.1 million member Service Employees International Union.

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CLICK HERE to learn more/visit MOSES DIXON’S website!

InCity Voices

Body Cameras for the Worcester Police

August 4, 2016 admin

Walking the beat

By Gordon Davis

Several years ago, Worcester Police Chief Gary Gemme, now retired, announced that the Worcester Police Department was investigating the policy of the use of body cameras for on-duty patrol officers. Like with most “policy” issues in the City of Worcester, the investigation was conducted in secret.

Advocates of the policy of using body cameras pointed out that body cameras protect both the public and the police officers. The information provided by the video is considered indisputable, unlike oral testimony.

With body cameras the actions of a member of the public is clearly shown, and this protects police officers from false or unsubstantial complaints. Also, the actions of the police are clearly recorded, protecting the public from poorly trained police officers or officers who are abusive.

Body cameras are used in at least 42 large police departments nation-wide and many more smaller police departments. Boston is initiating the use of body cameras on a trial basis this year. Leicester (MA) and Brookfield already use them.

The overall results have been that the number of complaints made by the public are down and the number of arrests is also down. Both statistics point to a reduction of frivolous activity by the public and police. Such interactions over what many of us would call “frivolous” often lead to escalations.

The Worcester City Council has essentially abrogated it duty and responsibility to set policy for the Worcester Police Department. The City Manager and City Council are just rubber stamps for whatever the Police Chief and his cronies tell them.

There is no transparency in terms of complaints by the public.

There is no significant external oversight over use of funds.

Several Worcester City Councilors have passed resolutions in effect saying “support the cops – right or wrong.”

A group of residents are petitioning the Worcester City Council to have public hearings on changes to Worcester Police Department policies.

The petition will be given to the Worcester City Council at the August 16, 2016, Worcester City Council meeting.

Hopefully, if approved by City Council, the public hearings will be real and honest.

The public hearings should not be like City Manager Ed Augustus’ Department of Justice hearings in 2015 during which the police chief did not appear and the notes were lost!

The ACLU has come up with a set of rules, a policy for the use of body cameras by the police. The Boston Police Department has adopted 80 percent of the ACLU’s proposals.
These proposals include when the cameras should be turned on or off, who gets access to the videos, verification of the cameras’ operation, etc.

These proposals certainly could be used as a basis for the Worcester City Council establishing a body camera policy for the Worcester Police Department. The City Council should also conduct an audit about any money received via grants for a pilot program for body camera use.

I have been to a lot of City Council meetings and seen a lot of citizen petitions describing good policies for the City of Worcester. I have seen most of these petitions “filed” or thrown away. The petition regarding changes to Worcester Police Department policy is too important to be ignored.

Given the tensions between the public – especially people of color and the poor – and the police, there is a real need for the protection of our rights.

Fashion

Worcester, my city, my love!

August 3, 2016 admin

Beautiful smile! Beautiful outfit!

Beautiful downtown revitalization, thanks in large part to the Mercantile Center! And construction JOBS for our people! …

Did I say construction? Carpenter/contractor OIF has a way with birds!

Beautiful!

All the flowers downtown are beautiful, too (thank you, Mercantile Center!) …

New Worcester families setting down roots here … beautiful.

Lovely Lilac…

Lovely, feral Jett …

Lovely bargains at Unique Finds Antiques and Vintage gift shop (1329 Main St!)…

Beautiful inner-city biker kids always make me smile …

So did this inner-city biker guy!

Beautiful Worcester!
text/pics:Rosalie T.

InCity Yum Yums

Jack is back!

July 31, 2016 admin

In just about 100 days Americans are going to elect a new president. As a public service, we’ve enlisted our ol’ political writer-buddy Jack Hoffman to illuminate/excavate Trump’s brain – or whatever’s rotting beneath The Donald’s Day Glo orange hair-mat. So you’ll know better – and vote for Hillary!

Yep! Jack’s back at his laptop! Missed him? He was on sabbatical! His doc’s prescribed medical marijuana…he’s in a good place…Read him in InCity Times! At least until inauguration day.

– Rosalie Tirella

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Trumpity Trump Trump!

By Jack Hoffman

From 1982 to 1990 the New Jersey governor was Thomas Kean (pronounced Kane). During this time New Jersey was about to legalize casinos in Atlantic City. Enter Donald Trump – we all know the stories about the profits he made by screwing lots of hard working folks – helping them go bankrupt.

During that same period, Trump befriended the governor or vice versa, and the gov got Trump to buy a New Jersey professional football team that eventually went belly up.

Chalk up another one for The Donald!

Fast forward to 2016. The Democratic nominee for president, Hillary Clinton, picks her running mate – Senator Tim Kaine (also pronounced Kane). He’s the former governor of Virginia.

Not more than three days after the announcement Trump, at a Miami rally, says the following about “her running mate, Tim Kaine, who by the way, did a terrible job in New Jersey.” Trump goes on: “He was not very popular in New Jersey and he still isn’t.” And there were other Trump embraceable comments about the wrong Kaine or Kean – just pick a number. Wasn’t Trump a New York resident? Isn’t New Jersey next to New York? How could he screw up? How could he be saying “she” instead of “Hillary Clinton”? Women don’t exactly like that. They have names, Donald. And you want women to vote for you!

Here is another beauty from the Book of Trump: we all know about his respect for Vladimir Putin – one of the “great” leaders of all time, says Trump. He labels Putin’s invasion of the Crimean part of Ukraine a good move. I would suggest to Mr. Trump the Ukraine is an ally of the U.S. And an independent country, formerly part of the old USSR and soon to be a NATO member. Catch this one! Paul Manafort ,Trump’s campaign manager, lived in Kiev for a period of time. What a team! They’re like the Washington Generals playing the Globetrotters, or better still, Bud Abbott and Lou Costello arguing about “Who’s on First?”!

I must confess: I wanted Trump to win the nomination way back when. I knew, and so did lots of folks, that a Trump candidacy would bury the Repugs for 10 years, maybe more.

Get to your bookie! Trump will lose by 10% . If he is lucky, he might win three states – Alabama for one. You can pick (maybe) two more.

BYE BYE, DONNY!

InCity Yum Yums

Something more than pretty trees and sidewalks …

July 28, 2016 admin

By Rosalie Tirella

… needs to happen in Worcester’s inner-city neighborhoods…

Here, in Union Hill, we have the newly planted trees, newly poured sidewalks …

photos:R.T.

A few days ago I saw all the pretty new trees all in a row, straight as an arrow, planted down Providence Street …

Paid for by the federal government. Also: a new municipal parking lot. And new programs for neighborhood families stressing healthy choices. And … a stronger community police presence.

I am not too hopeful.

A few folks may get it. Most won’t.

The INTRACTABLE problem?

The poverty is still here!!! The kids undernourished, their parents outside of society. Hence our trash dumping problem, our heroin problem, gun violence, hopelessness … even in creating more attractive Worcester inner-city neighborhoods.

Some folks, like poopy diapers Paul Collyer and Worcester City Councilor Michael Gaffney (Collyer’s political mentee) clamor for the Trump solution: KEEP ‘EM OUT! We can’t build a physical wall like Trump is promising, they say, but we can build others – invisible ones! – just as impervious! No more section 8! No more low income housing!

They turn away from the people who come to cities to start life in America!

But Worcester, like New York, Boston, Lawrence or Lowell, will always be a Gateway City!

LOCKING PEOPLE OUT IS NOT THE ANSWER!

GOOD PAYING JOBS for the undereducated is the answer – just like our factories provided our people decades ago.

They’re mostly gone now …

… and with them the leg up the poor and uneducated needed to achieve the American Dream: homeownership, security, safe neighborhoods. BELONGING. HAPPINESS.

All you needed was to work hard, like my Polish grandpa did in Dudley’s textile mills. The day he joined his Union was an IMPORTANT and CELEBRATORY day for his family!

His daughters thought they were the bees knees! They had hope!

My mother (on the left, hugging my fave auntie) was whip smart; she was offered the opportunity to attend a junior college on scholarship! A terrific, impressive achievement for the daughter of a poor Polish immigrant mill worker in the 1940s! Most women did not attend college back then – especially poor ones like Ma. But she had to work to help support her family.

She worked so hard, she deferred her dreams!!! … later to dream them through her daughters, through me: The fact that I am a pretty ok writer was never ever lost on my late Mom, who before her illness at 80, read every one of my stories and had something wise to say about each and every one of them. From the time I was 10!!! A life time of nurturing her daughter! Her American dream!

My mom had two doctor nephews (the sons of the above auntie!), one engineer neice (a trail blazer!) besides a daughter with a community paper! I’ll never forget: My old Ma in that wretched nursing home, in her wheelchair, with copies of InCity Times on her bony legs. Ma rolling around the east wing of the nursing home with ICT bouncing in her lap, giving out copies of InCity Times to the distracted nurses – actually pressing them on the LPNs and nurses aides! So pushy for my little rag, just days before her death! So proud of her favorite daughter!

It used to take a few generations to make it the way you wanted to make it in America, be it financially, artistically, whatever you chose to be. Now we Americans feel stagnant, stuck and anxious about our futures. Hence, Donald Trump on the right and Bernie Sanders on the left.

Candidate Hillary Clinton needs to make US BELIEVE!

Clinton needs to make good on her promises:

PAID FAMILY LEAVE

UNIVERSAL PRE-K

FREE TUITION AT OUR COMMUNITY COLLEGES

A HIGHER MINIMUM WAGE

A REVISED NAFTA and other global trade pacts

PAY EQUITY …

Hubby Bill says HILLARY CARES FOR US! Loves us strivers! The daughters and sons, grandsons and granddaughters of immigrants! The strugglers in poor inner city neighborhoods, working poor Americans! OF WHICH THERE ARE A LOT!!

WE HOPE THIS IS TRUE!!! BILL CLINTON SO INSPIRED US at the DNC! He gave a speech all right! MADE US WANT TO BELIEVE IN HIS WIFE!

We will need to believe – and have all of the above opportunities – like all of Western Europe has had for decades! – to make up for our lost factories, an America that worked for so many people.

America cannot be tweaked!

America needs an economic and social overhaul!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Trees and flowers in inner-city neighborhoods are beautiful – and always welcome. But the real work needs to happen … NOW!

Fashion

Always in style – Cool Worcester happenings! FREE!!!

July 26, 2016 admin

Check ’em out!

Free LIVE MUSIC, FOOD TRUCKS, FARMERS MARKET, CRAFTS FOR SALE! EVERY THURSDAY 11 – 2, on the WORCESTER COMMON, behind City Hall!

InCity Voices

Hallelujah!!!

July 23, 2016 admin

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And some “Rose” religion for you!:

ICT editor Rosalie has this beauty in her kitchen, blessing all who enter her home. Her Polish immigrant grandmother bought this Jesus, Mary icon with holy water bowl from a traveling icon salesman in Green Island decades ago!

In the early part of the 20th century salesmen went door to door in Worcester’s Roman Catholic immigrant neighborhoods selling all kinds of religious items to the Poles, etc. The immigrants were deeply religious, some praying, like my Bapy, hourly! She went to her little Polish church on Ward Street daily for Mass, and she made all the Novenas (the Catholic church has a ton of them)! Bapy lived on Bigelow Street with her family; she bought this statue on a kind of layaway plan, giving a nickle a week to the traveling salesman, who would come right to her tenement door for payment, until the statue was her own. I think it cost her $3 or $4 or so. A pretty penny for Bapy!

Here she is, with part of her family, wearing her ubiquitous apron – the lard-stained, body-covering apron that never came off her body! She was always cooking and baking for everybody – her family, my grandpa’s friends from Dudley – all meals from scratch! She made rabbit stew in a big white porcelain pot – it contained the rabbits that my grandpa raised on their back porch (he used to take their furry feet before skinning them to eat and make lucky charm rabbits feet key chains for my mom!). Bapy made cabbage soup with cabbage, onions and all the peasant foods – filled with healthy goodness – she bought at the open air market on Water Street. She chopped up the mushrooms that my grandpa had dug up for her, along with the blueberries he picked!, in the wilds of Worcester!

Meals were religion to my Bapy, too!

Always begun with a prayer of thanksgiving!

Once my grandpa, who worked in the mills in Dudley, brought home a friend from work for lunch – a Black guy he used to go fishing with. They had gone fishing that day, had caught some fish that my grandfather wanted my Bapy to cook up for them. In Poland, their homeland, there were zero Blacks! My Bapy had seen few in America – and was afraid of them!

Grandpa would have none of her nonsense! This guy was his pal and she would welcome him at their kitchen table and make them a tasty meal! My grandpa, a sweet guy who never had sharp words for anyone, shouted in Polish to Bapy: WOMAN! SEE OUR FISH? COOK THEM UP! WE WANT TO EAT!! … GET US SOME BOTTLES OF BEER!!

My grandmother, who was adored by my grandfather who let her boss him around in the house and was content to sit at the kitchen table nursing his beer while watching his feisty little wife (Bapy was 4′ 11″ inches tall!) cook and fuss about, was SHOCKED at his command! She was never ordered about! She was indulged by grandpa!

Slack jawed, looking back at her frowning man, Bapy went to the icebox, got grandgather and his pal their two bottles of beer and put them on the kitchen table. Then she went to their pantry shelves and got two glasses and put them on the table. She took the fish they had caught, still covered with that film that live fish have as they swim in the water, and went to the pantry to prepare them.

She made the guys a most excellent lunch! She really did love to cook!

My grandpa’s Black fishin’ buddy visited often.

“He was a nice guy,” my mother once told me.

AMERICA!!!!!!

In the above pic the family is on the roof of their Bigelow Street building. It was called The Block cuz it was a huge BLOCK of tenements – specially built for poor immigrants. Large families were crammed into small drab rooms – made lively (and sometimes foreboding!) with their religious icons and the saints calendar pictures they cut out and framed like this one my grandpa made and gave to my mom who gave it to me …

The family portrait, above, was taken during World War II when Bapy’s son, my Uncle Joe, was home on leave from the U.S. Navy. My auntie is wearing his hat; my mom is next to her, to the left. Grandpa is in back, in neck-tie and cardigan, so proud of his American son – fighting for his country!

Text/pics: Rosalie Tirella

Animal Issues, Rosalie's Blog

The two-faced city councilor – Michael Gaffney

July 21, 2016 admin

Worcester City Councilor Michael Gaffney is suing InCity Times for a million bucks! He says he’ll drop his court case if ICT editor/publisher Rosalie (pictured above) NEVER writes about him again (during his stint as city councilor/and running his political campaigns!!) AND if she suspends ICT writer Gordon Davis for one year!!! Hey, Hypocritical Gaffney! What about OUR FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS?!

By Rosalie Tirella

I just edited and posted Edith’s Donald Trump piece; her sage words made me think of Worcester’s own Donald Trump – dangerous dissembler Worcester City Councilor Michael Gaffney. The latest Gaffer: How Gaffney used a very prosaic moment in Worcester government – the City Council’s annual review of the City Manager – and turned it into a three ring circus during which he professed to be a guardian of everything that he, in the depths of his mangled little soul, absolutely is NOT! Just like Donald Trump!

The depths of Gaffney’s fucked-up-edness cannot be plumbed in a mere blog post. To do that we would need to enlist the professional expertise of Freud, Jung, Erikson, a host of other developmental psychologists, Shirley MacLaine and quite possibly Jesus Christ.

We haven’t got the time – we must forge ahead! So to sum up: Gaffney came up with an evaluation of Worcester City Manager Ed Augustus that used the C word and other “dirty” words, included a blown up pic of Brenda Jenkins from the Mosaic Complex, was more than 150 pages long … . In short, it was a public document on the verge of a nervous breakdown!

This is OK with us because a. Gaffney’s got the First Amendment on his side and we LOVE the First Amendment, and b. The document, by Gaffney, shows voters just how deeply fucked up City Councilor Michael Gaffney really is! People will read his oompa loompa opus on the city website and say to themselves: How – WHY – did we elect this nut job? NEVER AGAIN!!!!

But at Tuesday’s city council meeting Gaffney took the First Amendment and made himself her brave and true defender! MY GOD! Is this America?? he bellowed to his cowed colleagues! My God! Read the First Amendment! I have it right here – printed out on this HUGE POSTER! Where are the photographers to capture this made for the camera moment? I want pictures of me defending America all over the papers tomorrow! Lights, cameras, demagoguery!!

And, of course, just like the publicity savvy Donald Trump, Gaffney’s photo WAS all over the papers’ websites yesterday and today. Commenters thought him so brave and strong – swimming against the sniveling Worcester City Council current, the people AGAINST America, the Woo elected officials who would flush the First Amendment down the toilet!

Gaffney wins! Worcester City Council loses! Again!

This is such nonsense!

Is this any way to run a city without a downtown?!!

Why does Gaffney NEVER EVER SHED LIGHT ON THE ISSUES??? ONLY USES THEM TO TRY TO ADVANCE HIS POLITICAL CAREER?

He, like Trump, is a piece of shit.

He, like Trump, has taken racial issues that the city is grappling with – Black Lives Matter, safety in our public schools – and used them to reinforce racial/ethnic prejudices of lots of Worcester folks. For their votes! Just like Donald Trump is doing nationally, with millions of Americans. Pathetic!!!

The Turtle Boy brigade is a microcosm of the racial hatred out there, and racist Aidan Kearney-Turtle Boy blogger ostensibly writing about the issues is really spreading hatred. Gaffney is a Turtle Boy supporter and vice versa. They use each other to get votes and clicks, respectively. But they’re both so smart, like Trump, that their fans don’t see their pretzel bending of the truth! Their truth is contorted! They, like Trump, are community-destroyers!

What brings it all home: Gaffney is suing InCity Times for a million bucks! He says we’ve said he’s a racist. He’s mad we’re being mean to him – causing him thousands upon thousands of dollars of psychic pain. What bull shit. This from a guy who two days ago, on the City Council floor boomed that: PUBLIC OFFICIALS HAVE TO TAKE IT ALL! PUBLIC OFFICIALS HAVE TO BE THICK SKINNED AND TAKE THE INSULTS AND CRITICISM HURLED AT THEM BY THE VOTERS! It’s America! It’s the First Amendment!

How creepy is the serpentine Gaffney that behind the scenes, away from the cameras, he tells me that he’ll drop his court case if I, editor/publisher of InCity Times and this website, NEVER write about him again (during his stint as city councilor/and running his political campaigns!!) AND if I suspend ICT contributing writer Gordon Davis for one year!!!

So Gaffney wants to muzzle InCity Times – shut me and Gordy up – and he thinks he can because he’s an aggressive asshole and where would ICT get a lawyer from? (He would never dream of going after Clive M. or other publications with a legal TEAM!)

Well, ICT has got herself a kick ass lawyer!

We’ve got to protect OUR FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS … from Worcester City Councilor Michael Gaffney.

Worcester's Alternative Newspaper