- I went to the “Town of Woodstock official website” to see how they posted the results of the referendum. The Cafe had posted the results at 8:20 PM Tuesday night front-and-center on the home page to satisfy a flurry of visitors looking for the vote. There was no mention of the referendum on the front page of the Town site. I had to dig into the news’ to find the results. Also, on the First Selectman’s page the only entry was one about Ms. Wholean’s trip to Goree Island with the Academy (fascinating, but who paid?). The annual budget referendum is a uniquely important event for Woodstock … so you’d think that the First Selectman would arrange to have the results on the front page.
Then I began to think about who was behind this website. Of course, there’s no secret that it’s Mr. Rosendahl who is also behind that other website that we call CPSacademy dot com. Mr. Rosendahl is also famous for video-taping members of the BOE during their meetings and posting selective video snippets at his other site (why not the Town site?). Also, Mr. Rosendahl placed himself on sacred ground under a canopy within 20 feet of the exit door of the polls yesterday (June 5th, REFERENDUM DAY) to entice or to bother voters (see Chuckles and Bowman’s comments under Bowman’s article) to sign an anti-BOE petition … not a Town Hall function. Ms. Wholean has clearly aligned herself with Rosendahl by co-authoring and helping to get signatures for that petition, and entertaining his presence within the Town Hall building and on Town Hall grounds. The relationship goes further in that Rosendahl is the main architect of the new “official Town Website” a year and a half in the making.
- Incidentally, the Cafe website took only a cup of coffee, a few bucks, and about two hours to launch.
I accidentally clicked into Rosendahl’s CPSacademy website, of the so-called ‘coalition’ (while searching Google), where all of Rosendahl and Powers’ inflammatory stuff about the BOE is posted. I was probably at that site for no more than 5 seconds. As a consequence of those five seconds, my employer received the following email three days later:
- Dear (President of the company):
Perhaps your employee Mr. Leavitt should spend more time on his job than attacking his fellow citizens with the slander and lies he and his wife post on their website which was researched from your computers and which may open you to a Vicaious (sic) Liability claim…May 18th 2007 02:43:56 PM www.google.com/search?…
See the writings at: http://woodstockctcafe.com
I would appreciate the courtesy of a reply regarding this matter.
Sincerely, Craig Powers
This proves that these website collaborators are watching who enters their sites, and this no-doubt includes the Town site which is essentially Rosendahl’s site. It’s the Rosendahl-Wholean dyad (and their side-kicks) that is behind the Town website and the CPSacademy website… and (don’t let them tell you otherwise) they are watching you when you enter their sites. These sites are for their own personal use as evidenced by Ms. Wholean’s personal postings at the Town site. There may be a so-called ‘committee’ overseeing the Town website but the devious individuals who have access to the inner workings of the site will use it any way they want. For that matter the devious ARE already using the Town Hall for any way they want.
John Leavitt
John,
Thanks for the warning. I’m not happy but also not surprised to see my reason’s for why I stay away from that site being confirmed.
Thanks.
Bowman, I hope you read the March 11 article on the cafe about their monitoring of visitors to the cafe.
Thanks ‘kidding’. We’re happy to provide a link to that article. Admin
And then you forgot to mention the prequel to the March 11 article published on April 4 on Internet Hanky-Panky. Admin
I had read that before. Sure the Cafe knows my IP address(es). I know the IP address of anyone who enters any of our sites as well if I wanted to bother the operations guys to find out or just peruse the logs myself.
The question is, if you want to stay anonymous can you trust the sites you are visiting not to abuse the information they are most likely logging? The Cafe has proved themselves trustworthy (at least to me). The CPS sites, based on actions like the ones above and alleged e-mail hacking by associates, well not so much.
Thanks.
Do people not want to have a town website?
The home page now indicates where referendum results can be found.
Verumi, You read the article and ask … “do not people want a town website?” Of course a functional unbiased website would be useful. I think the author was pointing out that it’s disfunctional and being used inappropriately. Why don’t you address Rosendahl’s involvement, his petitioning at the polls, the first selectman’s involvement with the petition, and the inappropriate use of the website mentioned. In fact you address NO points in the article. And by the way, the word “referendum” is on the front page but a click through does not bring one to last night’s results.
The home page says you can find “Past referendum results under the Office of the Town Clerk. ” Clicking on the link brings one to the Town Clerk page, where there is a tab that says “Referendums.” The results from yesterday’s referendum are displayed at the top.
The News tab seems to be the most logical place where “news” like recent referendum results would appear – instead of on the home page. A home page is usually reserved for welcoming visitors and providing information on what is on the site, and how to navigate.
Typing “referendum” in the search box at the top right hand corner of any page on the site brings one directly to the referendum results.
The site map also has a listing for referendums.
It’s not clear to me what else could be done to make easier to find the information.
In terms of addressing or responding to personal attacks on individuals and volunteers, I choose not to. I admire Theodore Roosevelt’s words:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena…”
I guess from the original post I am still left wondering wonder whether people in town want a Town website or not. If they do, I would HOPE that constructive input on how it can be improved and be most useful would be welcomed.
Thanks for proving my point. Could the Town website post the RTC and DTC meeting schedule so we could follow Teddy’s advice?
Sorry, are you referring to the Republican Town Committee and Democratic Town Committee meeting schedule? I believe their meetings show up on the Community Calendar if they are held at the Town Hall. At least they appeared on the April 2007 calendar. Even if they weren’t held there, perhaps they could be posted there upon request? There are no pages on the Town site for those committees, as (I assume?) they aren’t sponsored by Town Gov’t (like the boards, commissions and committee listed there.)
There are restrictions on use of a .gov domain name (e.g., woodstockct.gov) Specifically, .gov Web sites may not be directly linked to or refer to Web sites created or operated by a campaign or any campaign entity or committee. Separate Web sites and e-mail on other top-level domains, such as .org, have to be used to disseminate campaign information. Organizations that operate web sites that are not in compliance with the .gov conditions of use may have their domain name terminated.
I don’t normally criticize works in progress, but this has been ‘in progress’ too long. I’ve been checking in periodically and the site seems almost static. The calendars aren’t current. There isn’t even a master listing of standardized meetings. It is interesting that the BOS pages seem activated and, at first glance, current. Then there are the pictures of the First Selectman’s African getaway… I’m still not sure how this relationship benefits Woodstock. The membership of some of the offices and committees are definitely dated. Connie Maynard is no longer the Registrar of Voters and Suzanne Woodward isn’t mentioned on the Registrar’s page. William Casedy III is dead, at least I remember reading his obit a couple of months ago. Anybody who has visited a hosting site knows that there are ample email addresses available with each domain name, so I’m a bit confused as to why people would be directed to go through the Selectman’s email to get direct contact info for the different commissions and boards. Again, I’m not one to criticize, but the result of leaving this non-functioning webpage up for all to see has us wondering if we should bother to come back at all. Will it ever be done? I think it would have been better to have this site only available to the people putting it together until it actually was ready for the public. On a side note, all the bell’s and whistles are fine for people that are internet savvy, but for a broad spectrum appeal and functionality less would have been better. Successful web sites DO NOT require lengthy navigation instructions, font sizes are determined in the site CSS page to create a universality of presentation and general usability (user friendly) is a predominant consideration. So much for not complaining… Does the town want a website? You betcha! Does it have one? NO! The efforts of the volunteer committee are duly noted and appreciated, but this thing needs to learn how to fly!
Verumi, I am reminded from your last comment that the Town Hall is the whore of special interest. For example, last late July there was an email going around that Mike Alberts sent to the Pomfret…. indicating that those interested in going to the Camp Nahaco fundraiser for his campaign fundraiser could call the Town clerk’s office number (spelled out) or the Town Treasurers number (spelled out) to obtain info about how to get a ticket. I guess Mike didn’t understand that the Town Hall was not an RTC contractor.
I certainly don’t suggest that Ms. Wholean, Judy Alberts, or Barbara Rich are responsible for Mike’s ‘faux pax’. So as for your nonsense about “.gov domains”, don’t give us that bull shit. There’s no dot.gov or dot.org domain for the Woodstock website since we go to a dot com address…that is, unless you are talking about “CPSacademy.org”. You should know…you’ve obviously been there…that is, to the town website.
It seems that the Town Hall, especially the First Selectman’s office, has become infiltrated with special interest people like Rosendahl, Wetzel, Shultz, the Academy, etc. This is what the article above is suggesting and I think its very much on target.
The old townofwoodstock.com address redirects to http://www.woodstockct.gov. It is a .gov domain and there are restrictions on .gov site usage. Try typing in http://www.woodstockct.gov. If you care to consider facts, see http://www.dotgov.gov/program_guidelines.aspx. The information I provided above comes directly from those guidelines.
I am in agreement about the slow pace of progress on the website and the lack of content, but was hopeful that would improve with time….
But anyway, thanks, you’ve made it clear that trying to share factual information or engage in civil and constructive discourse here is a waste of time. Honestly, I see no difference between these posts (personal attacks, misinformation) and what comes out of CPS. I had hoped things here were on a different level. But I am disappointed to realize that I was just naive.
Verumi – The link you posted above isn’t available and comes with a large warning “Warning! Use of this site is restricted! This computer system is for the use of the United States Government. Unauthorized access, or access which exceeds authorized access is punishable under 18 USC 1030.” Just so you know that the average joe can’t access your facts even though we ‘care to’. I think your protestations are a little thin regarding ‘civil and constructive discourse’. You can’t have it both ways. If you want to have some good give and take, perhaps you should consult with a wider spectrum of the population. I would like to have you continue to interact on this site (I can’t speak for anyone else, but think the whole gang is up for some constructive discourse). Maybe you’d like to get back to the original thread posted by John Leavitt. What do you think of the situation he describes? Do you think there might be some doubt in the minds of the townspeople about the same kind of thing happening on the Town website, given the commonality of persons involved? Why don’t you give us your perspective. And, do you have a time frame within which you think the website might become operational or should we just continue to be hopeful…
Verumi, It’s difficult to “share factual information or engage in civil and constructive discourse� when you are unwilling to address the issues raised in my article even though you took the trouble to leave comments under the article. The problem you have with this discourse is that you just don’t want to acknowledge the facts like, for example, the fact of the petition and the canopied petitioners outside the exit door to the polls. This is no better that the harassment by the CPS candidates at the polls on the day of the last Town election.
There is another place where you might be able to engage in exchanges of “civil and constructive discourse.â€? It’s at the Town website on the First Selectman’s page…that is with the First Selectman, of course. But nothing has been placed there that would elicit “civil and constructive discourse.â€? Having a website without substance is a non-starter.
Thanks, John Leavitt
Verumi, in the past, you have been quite hostile and nonsensical when conversing on this site. I guess I am wondering why you are sounding so victimized and mild mannered with these recent postings. Gee, you are also trying to be reasonable in your own “Verumi” way. Somethings up guys! Watch this one!
Here is a link to the First Selectman’s web page which we will also place on the side-bar of links on our homepage. This will give our readers quick access to “civil and contructive discourse.”
http://www.townofwoodstock.com/HOME/tabid/85/Default.aspx
Unfortunately this link only brings you to the homepage. Just click on the First Selectmans tab ID.
Regarding the links to prior articles placed by Admin in the comment above by ‘Who’s Kidding Whom’, the Cafe decided to publish our findings on IP (Internet Protocol) so that our readers are fully informed or at least as informed as we are on the capabilities of website managers. As was said at the beginning of the first article, we only take note of IP identity when some unusual behavior draws our attention. Our readers will be happy to learn that yesterday we had 375 unique visitors, 97% of which were anonymous. In fact over the last year we have encouraged anonymity and provided suggestions. On the other hand, we are seeing a trend toward commentors identifying themselves. Thanks, Admin
Lucida – my apologies, the link I posted apparently works sometimes (it did last night when I looked at it), but other times it doesn’t and asks for log in. Anyway, here’s one I found that contains the same info on usage of a .gov domain: http://www.maine.gov/oit/dnsrequest/index.htm.
The contacts list on the Town website shows that the town employee email addresses have all changed to @woodstockct.gov to reflect the new domain name. I guess there were a lot of problems with the old email addresses.
Getting the new Town website going (after the money for the previous site was eliminated from the budget) has taken much longer than I would like. I suppose one option would have been to hire consultants to do it, which I expect would be costly, but the work is all being done by volunteers and Town staff. Not every one thinks a Town website is even necessary.
As far as I know, citizens can volunteer to be on the Town Website committee, if anyone is interested in helping to frame it and making it a more useful site.
As to the other points made in the original article, I am unable to speak to the motivations of others. I don’t want to be a part of engaging in personal attacks or gossip. I’m not big on conspiracy theories. I have a lot of regard for people everywhere who volunteer their precious time and energy to try to make the town and world a better place.
Even though I may not always agree with them, I do try to respect and understand the opinions of others. It’s useful to discuss the issues and challenges and try to work together to solve them, but I find muckraking and negativity are distasteful and counter-productive. That’s just my opinion, and I choose to move on.
It would be nice if the CPS contingent that posted all of those styrene white signs around town saying “VOTE NO” remove them. The littering of the Town is unconsciencable. Is that a word?
I did not hear about the vote until the day after. I think this is pretty much the case for the other 75% of those registered who did not vote. We never hear about these budget votes until days after. Why is there very little announcements of an upcoming vote, then when the results are in, it is all over the news. I can’t comment on how I would have voted, but since there was little notice, we will never know the will of the registered voters in the town.
Verumi, the Town website is needed, so success IS the issue. We need something that is functional and logical in navigation. Obviously, after a time, if the website doesn’t work, something is wrong. Perhaps the “Committee” is not working well together or there are too many, or the technical people are not as able to do the job as they (or others ) originally thought. Volunteerism doesn’t excuse the Websites lack of functionality or the length of time that it has been “under construction”. Some changes need to be made. There are many successful Boards and Commissions in Town that accomplish and have accomplished some AMAZING things. We can expect the same for our Towns’ website.
Mr. Z, You are correct that there was very little advertizing of this important referendum. This can only be blamed on the Town leadership. I saw repeated comments at this Cafe regarding the upcoming referendum but there was not a peep about this referendum in the more widely circulated Villager which is delivered to every household in town. This omission is quite odd since the Villager is starving for something to print each week. I personally am of the opinion that the Villager’s omission was intentional. It seems from the shenanigans that the Villager editor commits with off-target titles of Letters to the editor by Woodstock residents who favor better funding of the school system, that the Villager wanted to suppress the vote by not commenting on the referendum. It will be interesting to see what they have to say in tomorrow’s Villager about the referendum which was likely passed by those favoring school funding and adequate funding for the Town as a whole.
From http://www.maine.gov/oit/dnsrequest/index.htm (a source provided by Verumi in a previous comment and representative of the restrictions for using a ‘.gov’ site in CT per Verumi)
Maine.gov domains should not be used for the following purposes:
• Advertisements: A maine.gov domain may not be used to advertise for private individuals, firms, or corporations, or imply in any manner that the government endorses or favors any specific commercial product, commodity, or service.
• Campaign Information: No campaigning can be done with .gov domains. The maine.gov Web sites may not be directly linked to or refer to Web sites created or operated by a campaign or any campaign entity or committee. Separate Web sites and e-mail on other top-level domains (TLDs), such as .org, will have to be used to disseminate campaign information.
• Link Change Notification: When a link on a maine.gov domain makes the user leave a maine.gov Web site, a notification or screen (i.e., a splash message) should alert users that they are leaving the official .gov page.
• Domain Termination: Organizations that operate Web sites that are not in compliance with the maine.gov conditions of use may have their domain name terminated.
After reviewing this criteria, I do not see anything that would exclude listing the Republican/Democratic Town Committee meetings on the town website calendar. On a side note, I do have some conflicts with some of the other listings that could be construed as endorsement of private individuals, firms, or corporations. This listing is not comprehensive and therefore seems subjective.
As for input from people for the consideration of the Website Committee, how about posting their meetings on the calendar. The calendar and contact information is the first, primary, and most essential information that should be functioning on the website. As for those who feel a website is unnecessary, these will generally be those who are uncomfortable with the technology – and for them there are still the well-known, conventional avenues of contact. For the bulk of people in this town who have varying levels of technical ability, they deserve to be included in the process with a functioning, current website. If there are employees in the Town Hall that don’t think they should have to hone the ability to be at least minimally fluent with technology (email, website data entry, etc.) they are in the wrong profession.
As to your comment about muckraking and negativity being distasteful, I agree. However, the judgment as to the assignation of those particular qualities is subjective. It goes without saying that any individual has the right to choose to move on. Any public official who chooses to move on and/or away from that which is personally deemed muckraking and negativity doesn’t have the personal constitution required to do their job – not that I’m implying you are a public official. I’m simply pointing out that the options available to regular citizens are different from those that are in public service. I deeply value and respect those who volunteer to serve our community, but accepting the mantle of public service exempts no one from the expectations of the public for competence and ethical behavior on the part of those public officials.
Again, thank you for providing the link in your comment, so that those of us who wish to have access to the ‘.gov’ domain criteria do. I accept your assurances that the referenced criteria are the same for ‘.gov’ domains in Connecticut.
The Town of Pomfret seems to have a functioning and logical site. It isn’t much to look at and doesn’t look like it’s real clever, but it works and serves a purpose and is current.
Pomfret’s website can be found at http://pomfretct.org/index.html – Admin
I just checked the Pomfret website. Thanks Chuckles. I have one word for it ELEGANT! Their site is beautiful in its simplicity unlike the cavernous new Woodstock site with no additional information compared to the previous version. To devote a year and a half to developing a dysfunctional website is a testament to Ms. Wholean’s leadership. When’s the next election?
If I was a conspiracy nut, I’d say the fact that the Villager didn’t mention the election and we did not see any CPS ads were both planned to minimize turnout. This election was a small victory but the pro-education crowd needs to get better organized to get out the vote. My bet is that is one thing that CPS does very well.
Take heart “Concerned:” the CPS 5 or so unemployed rabble rousers have only been able to consistently over the years, pull together between 450 – 500 people to vote their way. (Last big November election, they only had between 450- 500 votes per candidate, with Schultze pulling in the least amount of votes). We will succeed in gaining the popular vote for education and a better and more knowlgeable Board of Finance.
Concerned Repubican –
YUP!
Common Man –
HOPE SO!