“It is up to the visitor to evaluate whether they are reading an honest account�

Why is anonymity offered at this site? Perhaps one answer is that we are not a national blog although occasionally we have visitors from other states and countries. The commentary at this site is focused exclusively on Woodstock CT in areas that are important to all who live in this small town such as:

· The education system which is 74% of the Town budget,
· Town management,
· Town politics,
· State politics as it relates to the Town,
· Neighboring town issues as they relate to Woodstock,
· Local environmental issues,
· Local cultural issues,
· Local social issues,
· Local economic issues, and
· Local lifestyle issues, etc.

It is the perception of many who have spoken here and in the Villager (some anonymously) that for many years our Town has been mis-managed and exploited by sub-par leadership with special agendas or short-sighted and even incompetent leaders that simply have not operated in the best interests of the community. When I moved to Woodstock, the sore point of the period in Town was disbelief by some in the failure of the Town leaders to purchase the Data General Property that could have been converted to a high school or rented to businesses to generate income for Woodstock. This property was subsequently ‘stolen’ by Hyde School, a nonprofit that pays no taxes. I was then exposed to the charming and personable Selectmanship of Mr. Ed Newman and then the rebellion of Town citizenry over the way in which the school system was run. Next we had the angry campaign of Ernest Wetzel that educated me with a lot of half-truths and mis-information. The chaos and complaints over Town management continued under the leadership of Republican Delpha Very, a disciple of Mr. Newman. Ms. Very’s tenure as First Selectman was abruptly followed by unanimous defeat of the Republicans by ‘new’ Democrats last fall. Through all of this my Woodstock associates and I felt that we lived in complete political darkness – even those of us who joined either the Republican or Democratic Town Committees and attended Town meetings. Nevertheless, we have cared about the Town and want to make Woodstock our home for the rest of our lives. Read the rest of this entry »