Change Doesn't Come From Concord, It Comes To Concord

Dedicated to Roy

My journey in politics began in the Spring of 2003 volunteering for Howard Dean at Keene State College. That year and that campaign made me believe that anything was politically possible, and eventually led me to come back to my hometown to help assail what seemed to be the impossible task of getting Democrats elected here in Merrimack.

While the core of what being a Deaniac meant never left, as the weather grew colder that year, so did I. The fatigue and tedium changed my focus that year changed from helping elect Dean to helping elect a Democrat that would defeat Bush, no matter who it was. By December of 2004, I became jaded towards Presidential Politics.

During this presidential primary cycle, the ambivalence hadn't worn off, but the scale and scope had changed. I must've went everywhere and saw everything that all of the campaigns on both sides had to offer across this great state and beyond.

But even that couldn't bring me back to the summer of 2003. Whenever I heard the candidates speak, what I heard wasn't what they said or what their words meant, but the substance between the words: how those words were said and perceived by potential voters.

I've begun blogging about my travels along the campaign trail here at the bottom of the ticket because so much attention is given to the Presidential campaign that you would think it's the only race being contested this year.

However, the campaign for President is so large that even us small fries get caught up in it, and that happened the other night at a small convention watch party the Merrimack Democrats had at our town chair's house.

Obama's speech was pleasing because of how he said it, he was finally attacking the attacks of McCain, but other than the tone of what Obama said, I honestly couldn't tell you a single thing other than a single part that resonated with me...

"...You have shown what history teaches us - that at defining moments like this one, the change we need doesn't come from Washington. Change comes to Washington. Change happens because the American people demand it - because they rise up and insist on new ideas and new leadership, a new politics for a new time..."


I have lost track of how many times I had heard Barack Obama speak, either to an audience I was in, or even to my own face. (in Hampton he told me he didn't like stickers on his suit, in Nashua he told me I had asked him too many questions and that somebody else deserved a turn, etc.) Each time I heard him speak, it was in that hardened mold that was born in the Fall of 2003, not caring what he said, but how everybody perceived what he said.

But for that paragraph at Invesco Field, I was transported back to Jack Spratt's farm in Walpole listening to Howard Dean tell us we could change the world, because it captured why the hell I was here better than I could say it myself.

It may seem cliche, but we are at a critical moment in our history where a new way of thinking must replace the old ways, where new leaders challenge the beliefs of the established elite in order to make sure our entire way of life does not collapse from a tired complacency of failed tactics.

The voters of Merrimack are sick of those failed tactics in Concord, whether they be constitutional amendments on education, the 150,000 residents across the state without healthcare, taxes rising without seeming to return any immediate value, or here in Merrimack the endless failures from proposing doomed legislation to bring us a just toll system.

That change isn't going to come from Concord, it is going to come to Concord.

Several days now after he spoke those words, their essence is still rattling around my mind.

These words may sound unusual since I am a Democrat, and both houses of the legislature and the Governor's office are Democratic, and what may sound more unusual is that there are many talented people on both sides of the aisle currently serving in Concord.

They are like the words in the candidates' speeches, what is the issue is the substance between the words: the actions that trickle down to the average person who is not as politically involved as we are to help them believe that things can get better, that solutions can be obtained.

That is not going to change from the inside, it will take new people.

And that's why four years later, i'm still here in Merrimack, trying to come to Concord.

Registrar or Register of Deeds?

Here in Hillsborough County, we have eight candidates running for Register of Deeds. However, considering that just about nobody knows what a Register of Deeds does, the big campaign issue has been whether it's spelled "Register" or "Registrar". Some candidates spell it "Register", some candidates spell it "Registrar".

RSA 478 says they're registers, not registars. However, Webster's says that aRegister is an object or a verb, wheras a Registrar is a person.

With pressing issues like these determining our choice of Register or Registrar of Deeds, why the hell this position is elected and not appointed, I do not know.

The Phantom Oil Drilling Platform Off Hampton Beach

The other day I knocked on the door of an older Republican couple. The man answered the door, and his wife then came over.

They were friendly, fair, and forthright, and we had a good conversation, and I think we stuck up a rapport.

For the most part, it was a pretty average conversation, whether it be from the perspective of a Merrimack voter (they talked about toll booths), a Republican voter (they talked about taxes), or an average voter (they talked about politicians suck).

However, there was one thing that caught me, and that was how the wife asked me why the state of New Hampshire doesn't drill for oil off Hampton Beach.

I was a little perplexed, considering there is no oil off the shores of Hampton Beach, but she swore she saw an oil drilling platform out there. Considering I haven't been to Hampton Beach in around a year, and that was at night, I decided to be diplomatic and try and change the subject gingerly.

Since it's a Federal rather than a State issue, i'll let the big wigs discuss the issue considering there isn't any oil off the shores of New Hampshire. In the meantime though, if anyone knows what the oil drilling platform this woman is talking about actually is, that'd be interesting to hear.

The Senator That Could Move Mountains

Merrimack is part of State Senate District 9, which consists of Merrimack, Bedford, New Boston, Lyndeborough, Mont Vernon, Lyndeborough and Greenfield.

I can understand Bedford, but the only thing Merrimack has in common with any of the other towns is that we're in the same county and we share a State Senator. I don't think i've actually been to Greenfield before, but I came close the other day when going to Representative Mike Kaelin's house in Lyndeborough.

Mike lives way out in the middle of nowhere. If you don't believe me, ask him for an invitation to his house sometime, but before you go, make sure you have really good shock absorbers.

I had heard alot about him, that he was an accomplished polka accordionist, that he lived in a solar powered house, that he had a black belt in Aikido, but one fact that came up in conversation really floored me.

His site for his house was originally too mountainous to build anything, so he had to clear several tons of rock.

Ignoring all the great legislation he's sponsored as a state rep, whether it's trying to make the state legislature paperless, trying to get incentive payments to people who produce renewable energy, or fighting predatory lenders, just think about what he had to do to build his house for a second.

He literally moved a mountain.

Isn't that someone who we deserve in the State Senate?

You can do your part by contributing to him through Act Blue.

The NRA Questionaire and The Guy At The Polls

In 2006 when I was running for state rep, there was a guy who came out of nowhere at the polls and started yelling at me.

"Oh, you're Andy Sylvia? You got a D from the NRA! You don't deserve to be a state rep, you don't know anything about guns, you need to learn!"

And he was livid, out of the blue he just walked over, to be honest it shook me a little. What did I ever do to this guy?

Then a conservative friend of mine starting talking about guns, and strangely enough I began to understand it the same way I, and many people on the left see abortion rights, which in itself is enough for an entire article.

That conversation, along with seeing the degradation of our Constitution* gave me new respect for the Second Amendment of the US Bill of Rights as well as Article 2a of the New Hampshire State Constitution, which is almost identical in its scope.

I probably construe the the Second Amendment/Article 2a differently than that guy who yelled at me that day since I don't construe shooting people as part of bearing arms or defending yourself(in 2a) except in a militia (which now I assume means the National Guard).

Fortunately, word had gotten to him that apparently I don't bite, and we had a good discussion at Deliberative Session a few months ago. He's never shot anyone, but on top of that he's a proud union member and is just as angry at run of the mill Republicans for trying to harm labor rights that affect him as a blue collar worker as he is at run of the mill Democrats for trying to deny his Second Amendment rights.

Since we talked back at Deliberative Session, we've talked a few more times, and I figured this time i'd ask for him to teach me about gun issues while doing the NRA questionaire again considering he made such a big deal about it in 2006.

I honestly don't know if i'll submit the NRA questionaire this year irregardless of my new friend's help. There are many people I trust who have told me just to ignore it, and that i'll be downgraded just because I am a Democrat, as it seemed with some other voter guides.

In the end though, the grade from the NRA if I decide to submit the questionaire isn't as important as hearing his views as well as the views of people in Merrimack who favor gun control so I can hopefully be part of crafting solutions to issues that reflect the views of Merrimack in the legislature.

He said I got his vote and he's going to put my sign on his lawn.

*-Ambiguity of "Free Speech Zones" breaking the 1st Amendment, The FISA Vote breaking the 4th Amendment, many cases of ignoring the Geneva Convention among other treaties ratified by Congress and signed by past presidents breaking Article VI, abuse of Executive Signments breaking Article I, etc. etc. etc.

The Grandma Who Gave Three Dollars

It's always refreshing when you knock on a door and you don't get someone screaming at you or completely indifferent to state politics.

I've had a few instances like that, but one in particular has really stuck in my mind. There was a little old lady a week or so ago that saw that I was running for office and out of the blue gave me three dollars. She was just so grateful that someone asked for her vote it seems.

She's asked me not to reveal her name, so if you think you know who i'm talking about, it's somebody else. Still, I wanted to thank her publically even though I know she might feel embarrased that I am thanking her.

She shouldn't. It'd be nice if we could all try to be nicer to each other, and if at all possible, perform a kind deed like she did.

Toll Booths

88 days and 10 hours to go....

Due to an emergency yesterday, I used the toll booths in Hooksett on I-93.

For many of you, that might not seem like a big deal, but I see using a New Hampshire toll booth the same way a Jehovah's Witness might see testifying in court or voting. I only wish I were as pious as they seem to be, i've lost track of how many times i've gone through the tolls this year, I suppose i'm fortunate that i've kept it in the single digits despite going from Merrimack to Concord and back just about every day.

Tolls are the second biggest issue from people i've talked to at doors, but unfortunately in their eyes it's tinged with the biggest issue: nobody can do anything about it.

For those of you who are reading this article from outside Merrimack, let me explain simply.

Our town has 1/20th of New Hampshire's population. We have 1/3rd of the state's toll booths. Last time I checked, we do not have 1/3rd of the state's wealth.

If that is not economic injustice, I don't know what is.

The story of the tollbooths comes from the late 1980s, we wanted our exits onto the F.E Everett Turnpike expanded. So, the state came to us and said "if you want your exits expanded, you'll need to approve 'temporary' tollbooths". Twenty years later and those temporary tollbooths have become permanent due to a multi-million dollar profit the state rakes in and a lack of organized resistance from the town itself.

That must change.

It will take two years, and it will take more than myself, but I have a three point plan to fight back effectively against the injustices of the Turnpike System.

First off, we as Merrimackers must stop using the tolls. I've tried to live the example I want to preach, only using the tolls in absolute emergencies, but it'll take hundreds of Merrimackers to stop using the tolls and start saving their toll money in a grassroots effort, led by the Town Council and our delegation in Concord. Executive Councillor Deb Pignatelli has already made a great foundation with her Tolltalkers group.

Second, we need to find more Deb Pignatellis: people from outside of Merrimack who are affected by tolls. This is not an issue about Merrimack, this is an issue of social justice, if we are to succeed in Concord, all of the effort cannot come from just Merrimack. Dover faces a similiar plight to us, and many other towns and cities feel the disproportionate focus on certain areas that the Turnpike System has.

And finally, we need to use that money saved from avoiding the tolls to build a warchest to fight the tolls. Legal fees, political action groups, mass media communication, all of it costs money and all of it will probably be necessary in order to make progress on the toll issue.

I cannot guarantee a timeframe on success, but I can guarantee that we will fail if we decide to give up or continue on without any effective strategy like the one I just said above.

How Voc Rehab Shoe Inserts Changed A Man's Life

90 days to go...

One day I was talking to a voter and all of the sudden his cell phone rang and he asked me to excuse him for a second. I was happy to, but I have to admit I heard his side of the conversation which consisted mostly of one word answers ("Yes", "No", "Sure", etc.)

He apologized, I replied that it was ok, but asked him out of curiosity who it was.

It turns out the caller came from New Hampshire Vocational Rehabilitation. The voter lives a subistence life, he couldn't afford a car, he could barely afford his rent and utilities, and he had just gotten a job as a cook at a local diner, but wouldn't be able to accept it unless he got special shoes with certain inserts that would not slip on the kitchen floors and could support him since he had some kind of osteoporosis.

However, since he could barely afford the bare necessities of life, he couldn't afford these special shoes, so he went to voc rehab.

The voter wanted to work and be a productive member of society, but he wouldn't have been able to without that little boost, and was grateful for the assistance he had gotten.

After I left, I thought hypothethically as to what the financial costs and benefits were to what must have been a $60 or $70 pair of shoes in this man's case.

The government probably got back their investment in one or two lunch rushes from meals tax. The owner of the diner might have gotten someone else to fill the job, but maybe they wouldn't be able to and would have either had to raise their wages to attract a new employee or turn to undocumented immigrant labor. And perhaps without that job, that voter may not have found another job and lost his apartment, and the landlord wouldn't have been able to pay the property taxes on the property and it would fall into disrepair, lowering the property values throughout the neighborhood degrading the tax base to the point where it would no longer be able to sustain the services expected by its residents.

Then again, everything might have turned out just fine. The thing is though, why leave that to chance in cases like these when the solution was as simple as a pair of shoes?

Dissecting HB 1: A Responsible Budget Comes From Understanding, Not Pledges

89 days to go....

I don't want to see an Income Tax or Sales Tax, but I would much rather prefer avoiding those taxes to come from an understanding of our spending and appropriations.

So that's why I want to begin the process of going through our state budget with you all on these journals, line by line.

Are they too high? Are they too low? Is it not clear enough what the expenditures actually are? Let's figure it out together.

Today are the line items from section 01-02, the Legislative Branch

Here's the Senate's line items for Fiscal Year 2008.

01-02-01-01-11 Personal Services - Members $580.00
01-02-01-01-12 Personal Services - Permanent $1,282,379.00
01-02-01-01-13 Personal Services - Non Permanent $195,889.00
01-02-01-01-20 Current Expenses $78,500.00
01-02-01-01-30 Equipment New/Replacement $5,000.00
01-02-01-01-46 Consultants $63,000.00
01-02-01-01-60 Benefits $519,820.00
01-02-01-01-70 In-State Travel $150,500.00
01-02-01-01-80 Out-Of State Travel $24,000.00
01-02-01-01-91 Continuing Education $5,000.00
01-02-01-01-92 President's Discretionary Fund $4,500.00

Here's the House

01-02-01-02-11 Personal Services - Members $2,000.00
01-02-01-02-12 Personal Services - Permanent $1,424,587.00
01-02-01-02-13 Personal Services - Non Permanent $183,833.00
01-02-01-02-20 Current Expenses $167,500.00
01-02-01-02-30 Equipment New/Replacement $12,000.00
01-02-01-02-46 Consultants $30,000.00
01-02-01-02-60 Benefits $719,887.00
01-02-01-02-70 In-State Travel $1,077,500.00
01-02-01-02-80 Out-Of State Travel $100,000.00
01-02-01-02-90 Continuing Education $3,000.00
01-02-01-02-91 Speakers Special Account $4,500.00
01-02-01-02-92 Maj. Leaders Special Account $3,500.00
01-02-01-02-93 Min Leaders Special Account $3,000.00
01-02-01-02-96 Contingency $50,000.00

92 Days, 3 Hours and 30 Minutes To Go: Empty Supermarkets, Lawns and Libraries

This story has two points for the price of one.

I was walking down a street in Merrimack and saw the inhabitants of one of that street's houses on their driveway: a teenage girl and an elderly woman each with a lemonade and an elderly man with a beer.

It was a beautiful day, so I decided to walk on up and say hello even though they weren't on the list.

At first they thought I was a salesman, but I quickly let them know I wasn't selling anything or asking for any money, that I was only a local guy running for office and wanted to let them know about myself. The elderly couple each took one of my brochures, and I thanked them and started to walk away.

By about the time I reached the end of the driveway, the elderly woman yelled to me "Hey, Andrew, come back here for a second!"

She liked the fact that I had lived here all my life. Then we started to talk about our town, and she started to talk about how nobody in town seemed to mow their lawns anymore.

I can understand her statement to a point, but there is a vast variation in terms of the status of lawns here in Merrimack. Some houses in town probably have thousands of dollars spent on them every year, some houses in town need machetes and various inoculations to be navigated through.

I don't think that's what she was getting at though. What I think she was trying to get to the heart of was our towns' past in regards to not liking to invest in itself.

For just about my entire life, a warrant article was on the ballot every year to get a new library. While I don't have the statistics, I'd have to assume that our town's library is the smallest in the state if you go by square footage per capita.

I'd estimate that Berlin's library is about the same size as ours, even though our town around three times as many people. Keene has slightly fewer people than we do and i'd be willing to guess that its library is five to ten times larger.

Yet each year, the article for a new library fails. In 2006, not only did the article fail, but an article to empty out the capital reserve fund for building a new library was emptied for tax relief.

So, while I can understand the people who disagreed with this woman (she was a registered Republican I later found out) in regards to a fair tax burden on our taxpayers, but I definitely understand where she's coming from in that we do not invest in ourselves as a town nearly enough.

She then went on to talk about the proposed mall and asked why we were building it when the Old Shaw's Plaza had been empty for years and the Commons shopping plaza had been empty for years until it began to finally began to fill up a year or two ago.

I don't believe that we should tell businesses and industries how to run their operations, and I don't believe that we should invest wastefully (the library is worth an article on its own), but in the end, if we do invest in ourselves as a town, and for that matter, as a state, not only will it be easier for us to find tenants for places like the Old Shaw's Plaza and what we had with the Commons, but attract new businesses and industries to Merrimack that will recoup any investments we make.

Like the old lady with the lemonade might say, we need to make sure we start mowing our lawns.

92 Days and 5 Hours To Go: The Only Thing You Can Promise Is That One Day You'll Die

When you knock on a door out campaigning, you never know what you're going to get on the other side.

A little while ago, I go up to a house, ring the door bell, and hear somebody yell "hey, somebody's at the door, go get it!"

So, I wait for 2 or 3 minutes until a young man comes to the door followed by what I assume was his grandfather.

The grandfather has no shirt on, and looks like a slightly shorter version of Telly Savalas, and I start to go into my script.

Apparently his most important issue is also what i've found to be the most important issue to voters, saying that things suck and all the politicians are crooked and only looking out for each other, so on and so forth.

Once he started talking about the municipal level politicians, I had to be more neutral due to my position on the Merrimack Ethics Committee, telling him about the Ethics Committee and letting him know that it's here for oversight of public employees and public officials and what to do if he thought a town employee or a town elected official was acting unethically.

However, I told him that even with the Ethics Committee, I couldn't promise anything in regards to helping him regain his trust in government, and for that matter I couldn't promise him anything other than the only three things I can promise anybody, and he replied with an interesting statement...

"I don't expect any more out of you, but the only thing anybody can ever truly promise is that one day they'll die."

We talked for another few minutes about things, and he wished me luck, thanked me for coming by as well as for running for office, and said I had gotten his vote.

Still, after that moment of clarity, I doubt that in the grand scheme of things that his or anyone else's vote is truly 100% guaranteed.

93 Days To Go: Taking It Easy

One thing I learned the hard way in 2006 is not to burn out too quickly. Sometimes you've got to take a day off, and that goes for writing too.

Still, i'm making progress on the ground, so far I have more signs on lawns in Merrimack than all other State Rep candidates combined, I probably have about as many as Jeanne Shaheen, Barack Obama and John McCain for that matter.

Add to that pretty good fundraising numbers for a state rep candidate (about $600), an appearance on WMUR's Close Up this morning (i'll try to get the video of it up asap), and i'm more than happy to hold back a bit.

After all, the next few months are going to be busy. I gotta keep up this pace.