Opinion

Continuing our series of interviews with candidates for Selectboard, we now present an interview with Donna Macomber.

Why do you want to be on the Selectboard this year?

Although I was routinely asked, “Are you out of your mind?” when I decided to run for Selectboard, I am excited about the opportunity to serve this community.  I realize it is a big commitment, and there will be a learning curve.  I am level headed and open minded.  There has been a fair amount of discussion, online and otherwise, about the need for emotional intelligence in making some thoughtful, and potentially difficult decisions.  I believe I have this capacity.  I appreciate challenge, and the inevitable learning curve of taking on this fresh responsibility.

Next in our series of iBrattleboro interviews with Selectboard candidates is out interview with Ian Kiehle. Mr. Kiehle is running for one of the one year seats on the board.

Why do you want to be on the Selectboard this year?

I’m able to make the time that the commitment requires, and I feel confident that I can serve the community well as a selectboard member.

Why run for the 1 year seat?

As a result of recent Town Charter changes, counting votes for write-in candidates on Tuesday’s ballot has changed. If a Brattleboro citizen wishes to be considered a write-in candidate for any town office (including town meeting member) that candidate must now declare his/her candidacy to the town clerk no later than 7:00 PM on election day.

Only write-in votes for declared candidates will be counted after the polls close. Providing they have garnered the most votes in the race, write-in candidates for town officers need a minimum of 30 votes to win, town meeting members need a minimum of 10 votes.

Phil Kramer is running for a 1 year seat on the Brattleboro Selectboard. Here are his responses to our questions.

Why do you want to be on the Selectboard this year?

I am running for selectboard at this time because I want to make a difference. These are trying times for  our community, our country and our world. The decisions we make today will have a lasting impact on the future. I have a vision of what direction Brattleboro should be moving. Over the years I have gained a great deal of insight into the spirit of this town and the way things work.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 26 – Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) told the American Legion today that he is “deeply troubled” by unacceptable backlogs in processing veterans’ disability claims.

“I refuse to accept the status quo,” Sanders told the Legion’s annual conference at the Washington Hilton hotel. 

While the Department of Veterans Affairs has processed more than 1 million claims a year for each of the past three years, the number of new claims has outpaced the department’s ability to process the paperwork.

Watch the full Selectboard Candidate forum, which was held Friday, February 22, 2013.

This forum was sponsored by The League of Women Voters, and moderated by Francine Vallario.

I’m running for the three year seat because it takes that long to learn how to do the job with at least moderate effectiveness.  I’ve lived long enough to know the value of experience, practice and training.  If I do a good job and the voters want me back I will remain on the board for additional terms.  My experience is especially valuable at this point because with three new people coming on there is a possibility that among the five member Selectboard we could have an aggregate experience of only 4 years, or less than one year per person.

Brattleboro Citizens Breakfast – Video
February 15, 2013

Brattleboro Citizens’ Breakfast

February 15, 2013

Gibson-Aiken Center – Brattleboro VT

Moderator: Daryl Pillsbury

Wednesday, February 27, at 5:00 PM is the deadline to register to vote in the Town and Town School election. If you are registered to vote in the town you reside in, you do not need to register again.

If you are unsure if your name is listed as a registered voter in your town or for more information about voter registration and early voting, contact your town clerk. In Brattleboro, call 251-8157.

Office hours for the Brattleboro Town Clerk’s office are 8:30AM – 5:00PM, Monday through Friday. In addition to regular hours, the office will open Saturday, March 2, from 9AM to noon for early voting and will be closed Tuesday, March 5, election day.

Voting on March 5, will be held on at the B.U.H.S. gym on Fairground Road. Polling hours are 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM.

BURLINGTON, Vt. (Feb. 20, 2013) – In Brattleboro tomorrow, Rep. Peter Welch will announce legislation to curb the practice of employers requiring prospective or current employees, as a condition of employment, to provide access to password-protected social media accounts like Facebook and Twitter. 

Welch will make the announcement at the Vermont Department of Labor Brattleboro Resource Center at 10 a.m. The Resource Center provides job seekers with access to personal computers, the Internet, educational resources, and information on employers.

Welch’s full public schedule for Thursday is copied below.

Thursday, February 21^st:

Mr. Schoales is running for a 1 year seat on the Brattleboro Selectboard.

Why do you want to be on the Selectboard this year?

I am concerned about the future and whether we will have a strong enough community and local economy to weather the challenges ahead.  When I saw that Dick and Dora were leaving it seemed like it might be an opportunity to be part of a more collaborative board that could work well together toward strengthening our community and economy.

Why run for the 1 year seat?

I prefer to come back to the community for signatures every year rather than risk feeling entitled to the position. That’s why I have always taken one-year petitions for the town school board seat.

This year, two candidates are hoping to get your vote to become Moderator of Representative Town Meeting. 

Lawrin Crispe is one of those candidates, and his interview follows.

Tell us a little about yourself…

David Sanger, New York Times chief Washington correspondent, offers a look inside the Obama Administration’s use of innovative weapons and new tools of American power to manage rapidly shifting global threats and challenges.

Sanger has been part of journalistic teams that has won the Pulitzer Prize twice. In 2011, his team was a finalist for the Pulitzer for International Reporting for coverage of Japanese nuclear disaster.

His background also includes reporting on economic and foreign policy and how these issues effect U.S. competitiveness and relationships with America’s major allies. Sanger has also bee bureau chief in Tokyo for six years. His most recent book is Confront and Conceal: Obama’s Secret Wars and Surprising Use of American Power, Crown, 2012.