Man About Canton: The Anonymous Letter
By Joe DeFeliceDID YOU KNOW …
An anonymous letter recently sent out to many Canton residents questioning the relationship between former Conservation Agent Robert Murphy and a company that he formed that did business with Canton developers had to have originated, in MAC’s opinion, from members of the Canton Conservation Commission, as it quotes from the minutes of their executive session. The letter from “Canton Citizens for Honest Government” did bring up some excellent points but loses its credibility when the writer or writers refuse to sign their names to the letter. The letter goes on to “rant and rave” about two of the selectmen and their initial vote not to terminate Murphy’s contract. One of them is up for reelection, yet no one came forward to run against him. You might as well put that letter in the circular file where it belongs.
Murphy’s contract with the town was eventually terminated by the selectmen on a 5-0 vote. The circumstances that led to Murphy’s termination were first reported in the Citizen on January 31 and later picked up by the Boston Globe. Stay tuned as we may not have heard the last about this episode in Canton politics.
When you are brushing your teeth, don’t forget to brush your tongue at the same time because 90 percent of bad breath comes from a dirty tongue.
Governor Deval Patrick recently announced a deal under which Amazon.com will begin collecting the Massachusetts 6.25 percent sales tax for online purchases after November 1, 2013.
Gas prices are accelerating at an alarming rate, aggressively moving to $4 a gallon. This is a case where the consumer can’t win. As the economy gets better, oil prices rise.
Massachusetts has one man to thank for the recent legalization of medical marijuana. Peter Lewis, an Ohio billionaire, bankrolled the entire expense (to the tune of $525,000) to pay professional signature gatherers to guarantee the question on the state’s November ballot. Lewis has supported similar efforts in Ohio and Washington.
The Canton Planning Board will ask voters at annual town meeting to amend the town’s zoning bylaw Section 11.0 by adding a new subsection 7.7 to read as follows: “to enact a temporary moratorium on medical marijuana treatment centers.”
The 91-year-old Reader’s Digest Magazine recently filed for bankruptcy — another case where American consumers have shifted from print to electronic media. The magazine is $465 million in debt.
It is interesting to note that Canton Holdings LLC, a subsidiary of the Napleton Company, donated $17,500 to be used at the discretion of the selectmen as part of the ownership transfer of the Reservoir Pond to the town.
MAC congratulates 15-year-old Spencer Polsgrove of Canton’s Troop 77, who was awarded the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America program.
The Canton Sons of the American Legion, in addition to their ongoing coat drive, are looking for donations of new socks and new toiletries. Items can be dropped off at the Legion or by calling 781-828-9766 for a pickup.
As first reported in the Citizen on January 3, the new state park being constructed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation at the old Canton airport on Neponset Street will be called The 1st Lt. Arthur E. Farnham, Jr. and SSgt. Thomas M. Connolly Jr. Memorial Park in honor of two World War II heroes. Both men worked as mechanics at the Canton airport during its heyday in the 1930s. Connolly settled in Canton after the war while Farnham returned to his hometown of Needham. The park will be dedicated in honor of Farnham and Connolly in the summer of 2013, the targeted date for completion.
The Mass Audubon Visual Arts Center, located at 963 Washington Street in Canton (the old Morse Estate), has been renamed the Museum of American Bird Art at Mass Audubon. According to Director Amy Montague, the museum recently received a generous donation of $200,000, which will be used for the museum’s “continuing efforts toward strategic growth.”
According to a study done by Banfield Pet Hospital, the top four dog names of 2012 were Bella, Max, Buddy, and Daisy.
The Canton Public Schools’ graduation rate over the past four years has increased from 85.9 percent to 96.8 percent, one of the highest in the south shore.
Kelly McGowan of Canton was among 12 inductees to the New Agenda: Northeast Women’s Hall of Fame. Kelly was the founder of the Bentley University lacrosse program and was the school’s field hockey coach from 1995-2008. She is a four-time Northeast 10 Conference Coach of the Year and was named NCAA Division 2 Coach of the Year in 2001 when Bentley won the national championship. McGowan was a 2004 inductee in the Canton High School Hall of Fame.
Here are a few of the recent lopsided girls’ high school basketball scores: Duxbury over Middleborough 70-9, Abington over Cohasset 43-17, Blue Hills over Tri-County 62-19, Pope John over Cristo Rey 62-12, and Medford over Malden 55-16. All those games were played on the same day.
Life has more questions than answers.
This is all for now folks. See you next week.
Joe DeFelice can be reached at manaboutcanton@aol.com.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=19195
Posted by Joe DeFelice
on Feb 28 2013. Filed under Featured Content, Man About Canton, Opinion.
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