To Steal an Election
City Council President Schedules and Convenes a Joint Convention of the City Council and the Gardner School Committee
GRAVITAS . . . . Fair and Brutal Opinion (Trapped by Facts)
M the Media Project
About Contributing Journalist Scott J. Graves in his own words
Scott J. Graves, Esq., B.S. Biology, M.S. Pharmacology, J.D. Law – Father, Born-and-Bred Gardnerien-American, Gardner Native of Acadien Heritage, Gardner High School Class of 1982, Gardner Citizen-Voter, Gardner Homeowner/Taxpayer, 30-year Gardner Business Owner, 30-year Gardner Lawyer, former 16-year Gardner City Councillor, former Gardner City Council President, and former Gardner City Solicitor and Head of the City of Gardner Law Department.
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March 1, 2022
Our sister publication, Gardner Government Watch (GGW) published a report the other day about your Ruling Class’s attempt to steal one of the two Gardner seats on Monty Tech’s School Committee.
GGW is for facts. GRAVITAS is where we give opinion – trapped by the facts.
The Gardner City Council President, Elizabeth Kazinskas actually scheduled a Joint Convention of the City Council and the Gardner School Committee for February 22, 2022 – to steal one of Gardner’s two seats on Monty Tech’s School Committee – the one held by City Councillor James Boone.
Kazinskas, as City Council President, Presiding Officer, and Chairperson of the Joint Convention, actually convened that Joint Convention to order. You will be able to read the Minutes when the Clerk gets around to them.
Boone was duly elected by this same Joint Public Body as Monty Tech School Committee Member in 2020 – for a 4-year term. The term of his Election is not up until February 18, 2024. Yes, 2024.
But, this Joint Public Body of the City of Gardner Government got together on Feb. 22, 2022 and was prepared to steal that Election from Boone – even though Boone has been acting in that School Committee seat for the last two years since that Election, has two years left in his term, and is not dead.
This has never been attempted before in the history of the United States. Leave it to Gardner Government.
Fortunately, Gardner City Councillor Nate Boudreau and Gardner City Councillor James Boone (the same), and Gardner Government Watch made enough of a rumble about this unlawful government scheme prior to the Joint Convention that the vote was “continued” to a future date.
That “continuance” is only an “oops, we got caught.” The future date will never happen now. The corrupt scheme was detected, and challenged. The jig is up. The Ruling Class was shocked and surprised to learn that someone is actually watching them.
Gardner Government Watch has submitted many Public Records Requests to the City regarding communications between various members of your Ruling Class that led to this reprehensible “Darkness at Noon” show-trial to humiliate Boone and steal his School Committee Election.
The Ruling Class shouldn’t feel too bad, at least they achieved the first part. But, in the process they also humiliated themselves – and the Citizens are ashamed of them.
GGW will get to the bottom of it, so stay tuned.
So, how did this actually get off the ground? Look no further than the City Council President, Elizabeth Kazinskas. Ask her. Nothing would be scheduled, and nothing would be convened, without her approval and without her action – she’s the leader (she is City Council President, and Chairperson of the Joint Convention). GGW is getting the records to get to the bottom of this embarrassing travesty. So, stay tuned.
But, here is what we do know.
The Ruling Class does not like James Boone. So, he’s in the cross-hairs of the Ruling Class, to be vaporized, and taken out. As a City Councillor, the Ruling Class partisans and operatives (and the Mayor’s SuperPAC) will have him defeated as City Councillor in November of 2023, just like they took out James Johnson, Ed Gravel, and Scott J. Graves. Sorry, Jimmy – you’re next, and you just got a preview of it. But, there’s still time to get in line, and vote with the sheep if you want to keep your City Council position.
Why does the Ruling Class hate Boone? Because he doesn’t preach the Ruling Class partisan talking points like a good little robot puppet, like the other City Councillors (with a couple of exceptions – sometimes Boudreau, sometimes Hardern, and, there is hope for Heath – the rookie).
Boone asks questions that the Ruling Class finds, well, “incorrect.” Therefore, Boone is a thought criminal – and he must be eradicated.
So, the Ruling Class has been trying to come up with ways to get rid of him – and they saw his Monty Tech School Committee Election as low-hanging ripe fruit.
They had a few tricks up their sleeve (silly joke emails, fake attendance rules, etc.).
The only dirty trick the Ruling Class could think of that would allow them to steal Boone’s Election with some semblance of a straight face was the fact that the Gardner City Clerk, Titi Siriphan, never bothered to give Boone his oath of office regarding his 2020 School Committee Election, which is her job.
So, they made up this story that Boone’s Election never happened because he didn’t take his oath.
Of course, that notion would be absurd to any normal person. But, you don’t even have to be normal because the Ruling Class’s own “Judge,” Gardner City Solicitor, John Flick, has already issued his legal opinion that the oath of office doesn’t even matter.
When Judge Flick’s buddy and client, Mark Hawke, quit as Mayor of Gardner after just winning another two-year term as Mayor, the Judge ruled that the oath of office doesn’t matter. Judge Flick ruled that Hawke didn’t even have to take the oath, and Hawke would still be the Mayor of Gardner for the full two years because he had been elected.
Evidently, Judge Flick did not tell his legal ruling to his other buddy and fellow Ruling Class compatriot, Elizabeth Kazinskas – the City Council President and Presiding Officer/Chairperson. I wonder why.
Anyway, when Boone got notice that the Ruling Class was going to steal his Election, Boone requested that Clerk Siriphan simply swear him in. She refused to do so. The Ruling Class told her she better not dare step out of line and, (gasp!), do her job.
So, the Ruling Class, instead of just swearing Boone in, which is the easiest task possible, they went through with their Feb. 22, 2022 show trial – to humiliate Boone and steal his 2020 Election.
But, as we said, they were forced to pull the plug on it when Councillor Boudreau and Gardner Government Watch put up a stink.
It worked because Clerk Siriphan just gave Boone his oath of office today!
We wonder what the Ruling Class’s scheme will be next.
Stay tuned. Trust that Gardner Government Watch and M the Media Project surely will.
Will Gardner City Council President Elizabeth Kazinskas feel the pressure from the weeks events surrounding her attempt to strip Councillor James Boone of a duly elected position?
John Flick, of Flick Law Group, P.C. (and Gardner City Solicitor)
Ethan Kolodny, of Flick Law Group, P.C. (and Assistant City Solicitor)
Above, we made a public records request as city officials were no comment when we contacted.
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