Post by admin on Aug 3, 2006 20:28:03 GMT -5
Your Turn
Marc Le Vine
Guest Column
PEOPLE will press on
in quality-of-life fight
I founded the PEOPLE group after a number of unhappy Freehold Borough residents approached me and asked for my help in dealing with numerous quality of life complaints in town. They apparently recognized my past accomplishments as a former two-term Borough Council member.
They also felt they needed someone who had the respect of the community; the ability to work closely with our governing body; an understanding of our problems; and solid leadership experience, as well as good organization skills and strong oral and verbal communication ability. More importantly, they were looking for someone who loved our town and cared about its residents. It was difficult for me to say no to their appeals for help, so I said yes.
Unfortunately, due to personal and business obligations, I stepped down as the chairman of the PEOPLE group I founded back in September. This role was taking too much time away from my new self-employment and family life. It was not fair to my family or to the community to have to vie for my attention at such a critical period in both my personal life and volunteer service.
I will remain an active member of PEOPLE and continue to fight for improved quality of life conditions for all the residents of Freehold Borough. I will also remain on the Human Relations Committee and take part in healing our community after consensus is finally reached involving the difficult issues we face.
I want to make it crystal clear to those who might think that my stepping down as chairman somehow weakens PEOPLE or the resolve of borough residents. If they think this way, they are greatly mistaken.
Last week an out-of-town pro-illegal immigration group made a grievous error in publicly attacking PEOPLE, calling it a "hate group" in an attempt to slow down its momentum in gathering additional community support.
Did they not realize that in doing so they were insulting nearly every good and decent resident of Freehold Borough concerned with quality-of-life issues? Did they even care?
There are many borough residents who wish to live here comfortably and disagree with a subliminal recommendation to overlook laws and ordinances in favor of permitting illegal immigration and its disastrous quality-of-life effects to continue impacting our community. They will soon learn that our residents do not take kindly to outsiders who call them harsh names and try dictating their local government policy.
As a result of their negative public relations campaign, they will receive a much colder shoulder from our residents regarding support for their absurd positions, which include deliberately and conveniently ignoring the legal differences between American-Latinos and illegal aliens, who might come from any country.
In any case, their actions backfired miserably and will only further strengthen our town’s resolve in supporting our mayor and council in their ongoing efforts to improve quality of life throughout Freehold Borough. In the end, it will be the strong will of our residents and the determination of our governing body that will prevail over those looking to suppress our inalienable democratic rights as Americans and residents of Freehold Borough.
We will all stand together and not allow anyone to demonize our local citizens, whose only crime is in insisting that our laws and ordinances need apply to everyone. We will also ask these special interest groups to leave our town and move on to Washington and Trenton to battle with our legislators over what they believe is right. Only if they are successful there will we listen to them here.
PEOPLE will soon announce a new chair and move on to face even greater challenges with my support and blessings and the residents of Freehold Borough will appreciate the efforts of their neighbors in helping to find lawful, workable and moral solutions for all.
Marc Le Vine is a resident of Freehold Borough.
Marc Le Vine
Guest Column
PEOPLE will press on
in quality-of-life fight
I founded the PEOPLE group after a number of unhappy Freehold Borough residents approached me and asked for my help in dealing with numerous quality of life complaints in town. They apparently recognized my past accomplishments as a former two-term Borough Council member.
They also felt they needed someone who had the respect of the community; the ability to work closely with our governing body; an understanding of our problems; and solid leadership experience, as well as good organization skills and strong oral and verbal communication ability. More importantly, they were looking for someone who loved our town and cared about its residents. It was difficult for me to say no to their appeals for help, so I said yes.
Unfortunately, due to personal and business obligations, I stepped down as the chairman of the PEOPLE group I founded back in September. This role was taking too much time away from my new self-employment and family life. It was not fair to my family or to the community to have to vie for my attention at such a critical period in both my personal life and volunteer service.
I will remain an active member of PEOPLE and continue to fight for improved quality of life conditions for all the residents of Freehold Borough. I will also remain on the Human Relations Committee and take part in healing our community after consensus is finally reached involving the difficult issues we face.
I want to make it crystal clear to those who might think that my stepping down as chairman somehow weakens PEOPLE or the resolve of borough residents. If they think this way, they are greatly mistaken.
Last week an out-of-town pro-illegal immigration group made a grievous error in publicly attacking PEOPLE, calling it a "hate group" in an attempt to slow down its momentum in gathering additional community support.
Did they not realize that in doing so they were insulting nearly every good and decent resident of Freehold Borough concerned with quality-of-life issues? Did they even care?
There are many borough residents who wish to live here comfortably and disagree with a subliminal recommendation to overlook laws and ordinances in favor of permitting illegal immigration and its disastrous quality-of-life effects to continue impacting our community. They will soon learn that our residents do not take kindly to outsiders who call them harsh names and try dictating their local government policy.
As a result of their negative public relations campaign, they will receive a much colder shoulder from our residents regarding support for their absurd positions, which include deliberately and conveniently ignoring the legal differences between American-Latinos and illegal aliens, who might come from any country.
In any case, their actions backfired miserably and will only further strengthen our town’s resolve in supporting our mayor and council in their ongoing efforts to improve quality of life throughout Freehold Borough. In the end, it will be the strong will of our residents and the determination of our governing body that will prevail over those looking to suppress our inalienable democratic rights as Americans and residents of Freehold Borough.
We will all stand together and not allow anyone to demonize our local citizens, whose only crime is in insisting that our laws and ordinances need apply to everyone. We will also ask these special interest groups to leave our town and move on to Washington and Trenton to battle with our legislators over what they believe is right. Only if they are successful there will we listen to them here.
PEOPLE will soon announce a new chair and move on to face even greater challenges with my support and blessings and the residents of Freehold Borough will appreciate the efforts of their neighbors in helping to find lawful, workable and moral solutions for all.
Marc Le Vine is a resident of Freehold Borough.