Election Day 2009

In case you haven’t heard, today is Election Day. While not a presidential election year, there are still a lot of very important elections in many municipalities that can make a big difference. 30 cities in the Commonwealth have mayoral elections, including Boston, which is also electing city councilors today. Is Mayor Tom Menino going to hold on for yet another term, or will Michael Flaherty overcome the power of incumbency?

It will be an exciting day…don’t underestimate the importance of the smaller local elections.

Boston City Hall: Productivity FAIL

So much for productivity in the workplace….employees of the City of Boston are being paid with tax dollars to go on Facebook, Twitter and admittedly, do nothing.

Bored Boston government workers are goofing off on Facebook and other popular social networking sites on taxpayer time, boasting of napping during meetings, playing “Mafia Wars,” creating anagrams of their names and planning Halloween costumes.

The poster girl for the on-the-clock cyber-slacking is Amy Derjue, who earns $39,000 a year as Boston City Council President Michael Ross’ communications director.

The former Boston magazine blogger regularly updates her personal status on Facebook and Twitter throughout the work day, brazenly joking to her online pals about snoozing at a hearing, writing snarky comments about the reality TV show “Jon & Kate Plus 8,” opining on an article about Boston being one of the best cities to meet guys and babbling about her Halloween wig.

“Amy Derjue is going to sit in the Council meeting and nap,” she wrote on Facebook at 11:49 a.m. last Wednesday. The next day, she spent the morning complaining about her chilly City Hall cubicle on Twitter. “Somebody bring me a hot coffee and fluffy sweater, please,” she wrote at 9:32 a.m.

Another workday posting was a link to a cartoon “menstrual flow chart,” to which she commented, “Look at the uterus. It is so cute.” And she was apparently eager to punch out that day, writing at 4:40 p.m.: “20 minutes and I am OUT. Gone. No longer present. Do not contact unless you want to drink, shop, or watch sporting events.”

Really? Must be nice to be communications director at Boston City Hall…goof off all day, and leave early.

Ross said one of the reasons he hired Derjue was to “broaden” his social networking and develop a personality for his office.

“I like what Amy’s doing,” said Ross, adding he encourages Derjue to use Facebook and Twitter to spread his message to constituents. “It’s not so that she’s fritting away her time. . . . She doesn’t have time to waste.”

It think Mr. Ross has a bit of disconnect here. Do you want constituents to know that their tax dollars are being wasted on employees like Ms. Derjue to leave work and go shopping or hit the bars? I certainly wouldn’t. If you want her to use Facebook and Twitter, and other social networking sites to connect with constituents, then Facebook status updates and Twitter tweets would perhaps look like, “City Council President Michael Ross is in a meeting,” or “Boston City Council wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving,” or “We launched our official iPhone app, Citizen Connect,” not links to xkcd, failblog, Texts From Last Night or Graph Jam (to name a few).

In an economic climate that has resulted in fewer services and higher taxes, how can you justify this poor use of tax dollars? You can’t.

This kind of behavior would be completely unacceptable in the private sector, and would be grounds for being dismissed.

Globe Off The Market

Looks like the Boston Globe will remain the property of the New York Times Company.

The New York Times Co said it has given up its plan to sell The Boston Globe and related businesses after drastic cuts it imposed on the daily newspaper earlier this year improved its financial position.

The announcement caps a painful odyssey for the 137-year-old Boston Globe that began earlier this year when the Times threatened to close the paper if it could not get its unions to agree to deep cost cuts.

Selling the Globe would have been a dismal exit from Boston for the Times. The company spent $1.1 billion to buy the Globe in 1993, at the time the most money ever paid for a single U.S. newspaper. The offers it reportedly received for the Globe this month were less than 10 percent of what it paid.

The Times did not mention the bids and officials were unavailable for comment about whether they played a role in the decision to stop the sale. The company instead said the Globe’s financial outlook has brightened.

“The Globe has significantly improved its financial footing by following the strategic plan it set out at the beginning of the year,” Times Chairman Arthur Sulzberger Jr. and Chief Executive Janet Robinson wrote to Globe workers on Wednesday.

“All along, we explicitly recognized that a careful restructuring of the Globe was one possible route and, thanks to your hard work, that is precisely what has been done,” they wrote.

Who still even reads the Boston Globe?

On Sale: Take 10% Off the State Payroll

Christy Mihos wants to see the state payroll take a 10% pay cut, and I have to say, it’s an absolutely fair
idea.

GOP gubernatorial candidate Christy Mihos is demanding a 10 percent pay cut for all state employees to prevent a hit to local aid after Gov. Deval Patrick announced a $212 million revenue shortfall last week.

“The public sector can hardly be held immune from the economic realities of the day,” said Mihos. “The taxpayers who fund state government have themselves suffered job loss and wage reductions. It’s cynicism at best, if not outright arrogance, to suggest that public employees not share in the burden.”

While I’m certain we’ll never see a 10% pay cut at the state level, it is not at all unreasonable to suggest a 5% pay cut, and in conjunction with that, a freeze on wage increases. It’s only fair considering most of the rest of us have had to deal with one or both of those real life risks…that is, those of us who are still duly employeed.

Andy Card Out; Scott Brown To Make State House Announcement

Last night, the Massachusetts Republican Party was asked to release the following statement from Andy Card:

“After careful consideration, I have decided not to become a candidate for the U. S. Senate. Over the past few days, the encouragement and support from so many friends for me to run has been overwhelming. I am heartened and grateful. But ultimately, the decision is what I believe to be in the best interest of my family. Now is not the right time for me to enter a political race.

In these critical times, I know that Massachusetts would be well served to have Senator Scott Brown as the Commonwealth’s next United States Senator. He has my full support.”

Meanwhile, Rob Willington emails to say that “today at 2:00 PM Senator Scott Brown will be making an announcement at the front of the State House in Boston.”

If you can make it to the State House today, you are welcome to attend.