It is Sunday morning, and I still cannot shake the groaning internal dialogue and the shivers that seized my spine less than 48 hours ago. Maybe it was the photos: those black and white testaments to days of old, when men were men and felt invincible despite all evidence to the contrary. Maybe it was the fruit punch … Continue reading A hazy shade of winter
Category: BLOG POSTS
Commentary that has not been published elsewhere.
All the young dudes
What was up with 1992 and the name Ryan? Of course, we all know the fictional Jack Ryan. You know, . . .the humble Tom Clancy character who routinely saved the world from a cadre of evil forces while also writing a thesis about the importance of granola in the post-Soviet socio-economic structure. Ryan Gavin But what about … Continue reading All the young dudes
Can You Hear Me Scream . . . now?
By RANDY SEAVER NOTE | This piece was originally published in February 2012, and its headline came from a rather long-winded 2007 letter to the editor that was written in the voice of the Lincoln Mill clock tower in Biddeford. The clock tower’s 2007 letter was actually written by Greg Bennett, but it was never … Continue reading Can You Hear Me Scream . . . now?
Suggestions for Mayor Casavant
Given the news of a recent resignation by a city councilor, there is one glaring item that members of the Biddeford Charter Review Commission should consider sending to the city's voters for approval. As it stands now, the mayor has the authority to nominate anyone to fill a vacated city council seat, regardless of when … Continue reading Suggestions for Mayor Casavant
Can we talk?
People: WTF! It seems like rumors and speculation surrounding the sudden resignation of City Councilor David Flood is spreading faster than the odds on whether Ron Paul is actually still alive or in a cryogenic state to be unfrozen after Election Day. Let's put to rest a few of the more popular rumors: 1.) This … Continue reading Can we talk?
David, we hardly knew ye
More breaking news... Biddeford's own media mogul, David Flood, intends to resign his Ward 7 seat on the Biddeford City Council. In 2007, Flood sold the Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier and several other weekly newspapers that he and his wife published as part of the Mainely Newspapers Group to the parent company of the Journal Tribune. Today it looks … Continue reading David, we hardly knew ye
Should I stay or should I go?
If Elmer Fudd had attended Tuesday's Biddeford City Council meeting, he may have made the following observation about our city councilors: "Those wascly wabbits seemed especially wambunctious last night." Fudd's assessment matches my own observations. Watching the councilors in action, I actually began to wonder whether a couple of our council critters had skipped their required … Continue reading Should I stay or should I go?
Color Me Bad . . . with crayons
Of course, Councilor Rhames held up the vote with a 98-minute monologue about why the Council should remain "color neutral" and lambasted the influence of color in the black and white world of city politics.
Burnin’ down the house
If you don't know anything else about Biddeford politics, you ought to know about the Dutremble family, one of the city's most prolific, political families. For more than 50 years, the Dutremble family has been --- in one way or another --- deeply entrenched in local political circles. State Sen. David Dutremble Lucien "Babe" Dutremble, one of 13 … Continue reading Burnin’ down the house
Like a virgin
A new mayor took the city's helm a little more than 60 days ago, but he's not the only one getting accustomed to the slow and tedious grind of public policy making in Biddeford, where even routine matters, such as liquor license applications or a purchase of road salt, can quickly morph into a an all-out, fist-to-cuffs … Continue reading Like a virgin
NOTES TO CARL | LESSONS IN MEDIOCRITY 