Freehold can move quietly to apply for 287(g) fede

[admin]

newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2008/0319/Letters/024.html

Freehold can move quietly to apply for 287(g) federal program

The illegal occupation of Freehold Borough by foreign nationals continues unabated. The good news is, however, that the mayor has apparently relented in his effort to appoint an alleged illegal alien, nonresident to the borough's Human Relations Committee.

My Nov. 7, 2007, guest column addressing the failures of the mayor and the issue of this controversial appointment generated numerous responses from the mayor's colleagues and cronies, each focusing on either the tone of my letter or my residency.

None, of course, addressed the quiet effort of Mayor Michael Wilson to appoint a day laborer with connections to CASA Freehold, a laborer allegedly not legally present in the borough, to theHuman Relations Committee.

The failure of the mayor and his political appointees and friends to address the substance of my letter is no surprise, but it should not go unnoticed that under that pressure, the appointee is no longer a member of that committee.

The replacement of that controversial appointment is an admission of the error of the appointment. Likewise, that replacement is total vindication for those of us with the courage to speak up against an administration that talks tough, but in reality coddles the advocates of illegal immigration who have wrought almost certainly irreversible damage upon the borough.

For some, my opinions on illegal immigration are offensive because, while I lived in Freehold for 30 years, I no longer reside there. That is akin to attacking opinions about Iraq that we all hold merely because none of us live there. At some point we must address the subject of arguments, rather than those who express the opinions.

One must ask oneself a simple question. Why did I know the background of that controversial appointment when residents critical of me did not? Fortunately, my views are based on substance, not geography.

While the mayor and at least one councilman seem to believe, as Councilman Marc Le Vine wrote in his News Transcript letter, that the borough is doing all it legally can do to address the issue of illegal immigration, the truth is, making appointments to a policy-making government body of those working in concert with illegal aliens, or those who themselves may be illegal aliens, is not working to address the issue. That constitutes working to aid illegal aliens.

Indeed, I note that Freehold has not yet done, in 12 years, the one thing it can indisputably do legally to combat illegal immigration. The borough has yet to file for the 287(g) program that hundreds of communities are now using to uproot illegal aliens.

If the borough wants to correct that error like its most recent error, by quietly filing its application, hoping no one will notice, that, too, will be fine by me.
Richard K. Kelsey
Ashburn, Va.

[casualreader]

This letter is so retrograde.

It is so regressive.

It is so neanderthal.

It is so Kelso.

You have to admire a guy who for years has been ignored but who continues to shout from the mountaintops of Virginia how Freehold Borough should be run.

Is there a message board for the town in which you live? Please let me know so I can give them Casual advice on how to do things. Remember my residency in Freehold should not preclude me from offering my advice to the people of your county. Like you, I will offer my services for free because I care about the people of Ashburn, Virginia. I will be searching the message boards and blogs of Ashburn, Va. in the next few weeks -- stay posted.

287g is a bad policy for Freehold -- I am glad no one is listening to you.

Please write some more.

Casually Planning to Advise Ashburn, Virginia

[admin]

Rich,

Your letter is a very good follow through from the last and it sums things up pretty good. Especially the part about the response to your last letter. None of them took on your original points.

It was almost a sweet justice that your letter was printed in the same day as the one from Laz from the LLA. With him writing and taking the approach he did, he effectively backed you up, as well as the very concerns we have expressed on this site.

[admin]

wlisa54 said:

WOW! So let me get this straight. Richard Kelsey is taking complete credit for the council's movement to the right. Perhaps some people who shop at Foodtown might offer some other reasons as well.

Let;s face it Lisa, the council and their apologists did not respond to any of his points in his letter. That coupled with what was written here by many participants may very well play a positive roll in getting the council to go in a better direction.

The council made some mistakes. None of them will admit it, but we were right and they were not.

[richardkelsey]

wlisa54 said:

WOW! So let me get this straight. Richard Kelsey is taking complete credit for the council's movement to the right. Perhaps some people who shop at Foodtown might offer some other reasons as well.

Lisa -- I am not sure how you reached that conclusion -- but rather than getting it right -- you got it wrong.

In fact, what I actually wrote was:

The replacement of that controversial appointment is an admission of the error of the appointment. Likewise, that replacement is total vindication for those of us with the courage to speak up against an administration that talks tough, but in reality coddles the advocates of illegal immigration who have wrought almost certainly irreversible damage upon the borough

.

I am not taking any personal credit -- I am just merely pointing out that the issue was raised - on this board, in print, and around town, from coffee shops, to pizza shops, to the legion and at the dinner tables.

The result was -- the Borough made a change. That's what smart, intelligent activism does, and change cannot happen from one person. It happens when an informed community asks tough questions and demands action.

[lisas84]

Richard,

Are you absolutely positive "the borough made a change" based on "intelligent activism..." and please support that with facts. If you reside comfortably in VA, how do you know for certain about the issue being raised "around town in coffee shops, pizza shops, to the Legion and dinner tables?" Were you there at all venues and is this first hand information? Can you name the coffee shops and pizza shops and the dates of those conversations?

Yes, I respect you are lucky enough to have a close-knit and loving family and friend network here, but that would still be all hearsay, right?

Also, who comprises the "informed community?"

Richard, you are an attorney, come on, you should know better than that! And that's the reason I'm taking you a bit to task here, you're successful and intelligent and way better than resorting to hurling vague or contrived happenstances to support your stance and your points. You could have left your "those of us" without saying, really, and you wouldn't be reading this post!

I don't want to start off on the wrong footing here with you. But Brian consistently posts that he welcomes other viewpoints.

So, the other viewpoint in relation to this is: I feel it makes great sense to appoint a Latino Day Laborer to the HRC, who can help bridge the social more and communication gap between the borough and the newer hispanic community -- yes, many of whom are illegally here, and likely others who have attained their citizenship. The HRC appointee can help to greatly lessen "culture shock" and help teach ways of adapting to American cultural mores and other necessary societal functions while they may remain in the Borough.

[richardkelsey]

lisas84 said:

Richard,

Are you absolutely positive "the borough made a change" based on "intelligent activism..." and please support that with facts. If you reside comfortably in VA, how do you know for certain about the issue being raised "around town in coffee shops, pizza shops, to the Legion and dinner tables?" Were you there at all venues and is this first hand information? Can you name the coffee shops and pizza shops and the dates of those conversations?

Yes, I respect you are lucky enough to have a close-knit and loving family and friend network here, but that would still be all hearsay, right?

Also, who comprises the "informed community?"

Richard, you are an attorney, come on, you should know better than that! And that's the reason I'm taking you a bit to task here, you're successful and intelligent and way better than resorting to hurling vague or contrived happenstances to support your stance and your points. You could have left your "those of us" without saying, really, and you wouldn't be reading this post!

I don't want to start off on the wrong footing here with you. But Brian consistently posts that he welcomes other viewpoints.

So, the other viewpoint in relation to this is: I feel it makes great sense to appoint a Latino Day Laborer to the HRC, who can help bridge the social more and communication gap between the borough and the newer hispanic community -- yes, many of whom are illegally here, and likely others who have attained their citizenship. The HRC appointee can help to greatly lessen "culture shock" and help teach ways of adapting to American cultural mores and other necessary societal functions while they may remain in the Borough.

Sorry -- I have been on vacation. Just caught up to this.

I think you made this far more complicated. First -- this is real simple. The Mayor appointed a person who was allegedly an illegal alien and also connected to the open borders lobby to the HRC in August 2007.

People on this board complained -- and letters were written and published on the issue.

In January, the Transcript published the new appointees to the HRC. It did not include the name of the individual previously appointed.

Thus -- the person either resigned or was asked to leave. That does not happen absent activism.

Now -- why I would have to tell you the names and dates of conversations to prove activism took place is beyond me. The appointee is gone.

Having said that -- you adroitly point out that I have a very large network of friends and family -- may still residing in, working in, and living in the Borough. I also visit and speak with them and my friends. So yes -- I have actual first-hand knowledge of conversations. (Not one -- but many, and the venues listed are not at all exclusive or exhaustive.)

I have received e-mails out the kazoo on this issue, and I have personally sat in on these conversations. Now --- do you think I am lying about that? When a cousin or life long friend phone or e-mails relaying conversations they had with people you know -- should I discount those. Heck, I didn't even include those on the list! LOL

Naming the people, the places, the times doesn't prove my point. Heck, they didn't make the change because I wrote the letter. Wow -- if I was that powerful, results would be greatly different. The change was made because the letter, and other letters and conversations got the ball rolling. It was made because whether one still lives in Freehold, or not, whether one is a Dem or not, people found that appointment very hard to swallow -- given the circumstances.

Is it your position that after my letter, the letters of the Mayor and his cronies, and the letter of Andrew, that no one in the Borough discussed this matter? Of course they did -- and I don't need to name names. The people talking about this issue are the names and people who have been in that town for years, cutting across both parties. I have heard from some of them personally -- both agreeing and disagreeing.

Heck -- even your new councilman is on record on this site as opposing the appointment of a non-resident illegal alien to a position like the HRC. I have no idea what role, if any he may have played in the change, because he neither posts here nor do I have interactions with him.


So -- just to recap.

The appointment was changed just because I wrote a letter. No chance.

The appointment was changed because the Mayor woke up and without a single conversation or input from anyone, changed his mind. Double no chance.

The appointment was changed because numerous people, having learned of it, raised concerns in multiple fora. Mayor and council got calls, heard from friends, felt pressure, and decided a change was right given the feedback and back lash. (Which probably came from too many sources to ever know.)

Which is the most likely scenario? That should lead you back to some comfort with the "those of us" quote.

The proof -- as they say -- is in the pudding. The controversial appointment is no more.

Now -- the last issue you raise is one this Board discussed at length -- and very intelligently. Should Mayor and Council appoint a legal ember of the community who is a day laborer to the HRC? The opinions varied -- but most people thought that made great sense -- provided the individual was legal.

BTW -- I appreciate your contributions here. I have caught up a bit this morning on my reading since being away.

[admin]

Rich,

Not to burst any bubbles, but recently I have caught wind that the appointee in question is still on that committee. I got that from a good source, but I am not sure as to how accurate it is.

[lisas84]

Richard,

Thank you for your time and effort in replying and also for keeping it civil.

[richardkelsey]

admin said:

Rich,

Not to burst any bubbles, but recently I have caught wind that the appointee in question is still on that committee. I got that from a good source, but I am not sure as to how accurate it is.

Well -- that would be a bubble burster. But -- that appointee was not listed as a committee member by the Transcript in January.

It would be interesting if that name was "accidentally omitted" when they gave the info to the Transcript. LOL.

[admin]

I saw a new letter in the NT coming out against Rich's recent letter. Then I saw the author was only Frank argote Fryre. I am not bothering with posting the letter because it is too predictable and FF is just playing his predictable part.

Now that we see who continues to slam Rich, we get a good picture as to where the governing body really stands. The person I feel bad for is Geo, the new dude. He will have his name dragged into the wrong side of things for all the wrong reasons. The sad part, he is better than that.

newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2008/0402/Letters/031.html

[admin]

admin said:

I saw a new letter in the NT coming out against Rich's recent letter. Then I saw the author was only Frank argote Fryre. I am not bothering with posting the letter because it is too predictable and FF is just playing his predictable part.

Now that we see who continues to slam Rich, we get a good picture as to where the governing body really stands. The person I feel bad for is Geo, the new dude. He will have his name dragged into the wrong side of things for all the wrong reasons. The sad part, he is better than that.

newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2008/0402/Letters/031.html

One other very good point about FF's letter. It is evident that he is well prepared to fight a campaign against 287g. If our governing body ever does the right thing, grows a backbone, stands on their own two feet, and puts in that application for 287g, they had better be well prepared to deal with the assault on our town against it. That will almost be the bigger battle they cannot afford to lose.

[richardkelsey]

admin said:

admin said:

I saw a new letter in the NT coming out against Rich's recent letter. Then I saw the author was only Frank argote Fryre. I am not bothering with posting the letter because it is too predictable and FF is just playing his predictable part.

Now that we see who continues to slam Rich, we get a good picture as to where the governing body really stands. The person I feel bad for is Geo, the new dude. He will have his name dragged into the wrong side of things for all the wrong reasons. The sad part, he is better than that.

newstranscript.gmnews.com/news/2008/0402/Letters/031.html

One other very good point about FF's letter. It is evident that he is well prepared to fight a campaign against 287g. If our governing body ever does the right thing, grows a backbone, stands on their own two feet, and puts in that application for 287g, they had better be well prepared to deal with the assault on our town against it. That will almost be the bigger battle they cannot afford to lose.

Poor Frank can't decide -- Am I a member of the Xenophobic fringe or a prominent attorney?

Without picking at scabs -- I will say this -- Anyone in Freehold who reads FF letter now knows on whose side Mayor and Council should be.