Copied from the New Times/ Bob Norman's Blog
Tue Apr 22, 2008 at 09:58:40 AM
The Sun-Sentinel's Elizabeth Baier reports this morning on the scheme to recall
Cooper City Commissioner John Sims and I think it stinks.
Most recall efforts are bunk. Unless they are truly based on crimes of corruption (that perhaps a certain state attorney might have ignored), I don't want to hear about them. Why? Because the people voted and a few politically motivated players with a clipboard and propaganda campaign shouldn't be allowed to undo democracy. The effort to recall Steve Gonot in Deerfield Beach, for instance, was a sham and a disgrace.
And so it is with this recall campaign in Cooper City. The grounds for recalling Sims are generally pathetic (failing to be prepared for meetings? you have to be kidding), but throwing in the charge of anti-Semitism should get the ol' kick-the-bastard-out-juices going, eh? And what is that based on? A blog that was registered to Sims that apparently depicted Cooper City Mayor Debbie Eisinger with an Adolph Hitler mustache.
First of all, that isn't anti-Semitic on its face. It is, however, American free speech. I don't think the alleged anti-Semitic comments that appeared on the blog have been published, so I'll withhold judgment on them until I see them.
It was a BSO subpoena that proved the blog was owned by Sims, who says somebody else put up the offensive stuff. BSO is saying that the blog postings constitute a hate crime, according to Baier. What utter nonsense. The fact that it's vile doesn't mean it's a crime. BSO threw the Bill of Rights out the window on this one, just as it did in Deerfield Beach when it subpoenaed Google to reveal the owner of another political blog (under the guise that it was part of a sex crimes investigation, no less). They are tying it into an incident where Mayor Debbie Eisinger's campaign manager's car was apparently vandalized with a Swastika. Now that looks like a hate crime -- but there's no evidence tying Sims to it. Why would a man running for commission (and with enough popular support to win) do such a thing? It makes no sense.
Look, the voters can decide what they think about John Sims. They don't need former commissioner Elliot Kleiman to tell them what to do. Voters already decided what to do with Kleiman -- they kicked him out of office. Now he wants to return through a back door. This isn't about anti-Semitism -- it's about anti-Simsitism. It's a move by the Eisinger-led old guard to regain power and put the dissident Sims out to the curb.
Let's hope the residents of Cooper City don't fall for it.
10 comments:
that's right MR Kleiman, you lost your election and now your deperate attempts to get back in office by trying to recall a commissioner who has not even been investigated by the police, unlike you and the current mayor and past commisioners who were boozing and eating on the cooper city dime,.. A formal investigation by FDLE with similar charges in Dade county where arrests were made. Too bad Kathleen Fernandez Rundle doesn't run the broward county state attorneys office or you guys would still be fighting the charges. Arrests should have been made or at least you big spenders should have paid back the money you spent boozing and eating on the city dime... YOU GOT BIG ONES !!!
Until proven guilty, Mr. Sims should clearly remain in office as all the others who were invetigated before him. What makes Kleiman and all these others feel that they can re-call a person whom we don't even know for sure if he even had any knowledge here. Common sense tells us we should wait to confirm his guilt before we act so upity up. And what's happened to freedom of speech around here? Even if something is offensive to someone, don't we still have the right to say it. I hear things that offend me daily, i just don't listen - that's the difference. Grow up people. If you don't like him, don't vote him in again, but for God's sake, let's get on with the business of our city and stop this nonsense.
When will the hatred in Cooper City end? It's Mayor Deb and JS who are promoting this hatred for the purpose of getting rid of John so they can get the fourth vote to do anything they want. Look at the farse of the process for selecting an "interim" city manager. Neil had a name; a friend called Irv, a three time fired City Manager from two cities now has a consulting firm, who they hired on the spot, to select candidates for interviewing, former elected officials sit on a panel to interview, one the son of Kleinman who is initiating the recall of John Sims, and the beat goes on and on and on. Cooper City will never heal under the current hatred and poor leadership of Mayor Deb. Mayor, stand up, and say enough is enough, conduct City business, not public hanging of people. If you ever intend on running for higher office, this will follow you and the people of neighboring towns know what is going on and they would never vote for you to represent them. Cooper City is too small to get you elected for anything else, and, oh, by the way, you only got 48% of the vote of the 30 some percent of people who voted, so you are certainly not a favored official. Cooper City officials, take a breath, start over, put an end to all of this hatred. A recall petition will be thrown out because it does not meet the statutory reguirements and all you will do is parade a list of names in front of John saying these people do not want you in office. Some one else could get 52% of the voters to sign a petition asking for the recall of Mayor Deb because of her drinking and dining of the taxpayers dime - so people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. Behind the scene is JS, who is promoting this hatred for her clients who are trying to take over all of the business in Cooper City. I hope the former City Attorney sues this city for the way they dismissed him. Smells like sunshine law violations to me, as well the perception of the same for letting the city manager go.
I hope God can bless Cooper City soon, or this city will go to h---.
I knew I was right NOT to vote for Elliot. What a sad little man he is.
I can't believe that cooper city mayor and residents are going through all of this over a mustach drawn on a picture,.. are you getting me, geeze mayor are you desperate or what. Rosy O'donnel drew a mustache on the lifesize picture of Elizabeth Hasselbeck when she left the view and it was a big childish moment that everyone got over. Whoever did this was just silly and childish, not anything close to a hate crime, give me a break. Angel Palank sent out ads during the last election of perfectly candid photos of the mayor that were a whole lot worse than the mustache pic. Mayor get back to work trying to HONESTLY govern the city and quit looking for diversions.
Posted by: maryanne
This is another example of the mayor ignoring what the voters of Cooper City want. When she doesn't get her way, she creates controversy to muddy the waters. Please do NOT let her get away with her dirty, underhanded politics.
If you analyze what constitutes a hate crime & what doesn't, check out what the ADL advises police officers. (You can find this on the web.) As I recall, the first question cops are supposed to ask themselves to determine whether a hate crime occured is: "Was the person targeted because of their religion, ethnicity or sexual orientation?" In the case of the mustache....I don't think so. It seemed more about the mayor's political style. Her being Jewish wasn't the point. So can we get back to the real business of running our city, pleeeeze?
Am I the only person who was at the Founders Day Parade this morning and found it inappropriate for the Cooper City Cobras float to have election signs for Judge Julio Gonzalez on it? Can't we have one celebration in this city that isn't politically motivated? Were the other candidates given an equal opportunity to fly their banners?
The article talks about getting this petition drive started on Saturday. This would be the same Saturday as our Cooper City Founders' Day celebration, right? Interesting timing for gathering signatures, no doubt. Please don't trash this family event by bringing this hateful feud to what has been a wonderful tradition in the past. We already stayed home from the so-called "peace rally" because of the painful irony in what's going on with our ridiculously mis-focused commission. Put aside the petty drama, folks, and get back to running the city.
However, now that all this garbage has gone on for so long, I do question commissioners' ability to actually vote in the public interest at all any more. I will always wonder, are you voting your conscience, or just going against whatever your opponent is backing??? Get over yourselves.
Could someone explain, by the way, why the regularly scheduled commission meeting for tonight was cancelled, and instead this petition meeting is being held at roughly the same time?
An Email to Elliott Kleiman....
It was interesting all the things that you had to say about Mr. Sims at the last meeting. It seems to me that the pot is now calling the kettle black. Perhaps you should change your name to Mr. Lily White!!!
I wrote to you several times when you were in office and you never responded. I can only guess that the subject matter that I wrote to you about was CONDONED by you since you didn't bother to respond. You sure have time to write letters now. Should I have jumped up and down and demanded you quit? You were discovered to be drinking and dining on taxpayers money. We should have asked every person who thought it was their given right to wine and dine on our money to take a hike. Were you found guilty by hearsay or by the pictures we all saw of you drinking and dining? It just makes me sick to listen to someone with your background to get up and spout off about other people and demand they be removed. Respect for our community you say and Commissioners should be held to a higher standard.....please, ...that is a big laugh coming from you. You dined and drank on our money and now you talk about respect....that is like throwing a dead fish in the face of the residents.
Maybe you should just enjoy your retirement, try and keep your nose clean and remember, you do not live in a glass house.
Sandra Smith
Another Tax Paying Resident
You flip, flop around..back and forth from one side to the other....
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