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| January 6, 2006 Barnstable Patriot |  |
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Council VP Joakim at odds
with president 's objectives
Town
Councilor Janet Joakim has come into
her own.
She has been the public's choice in three hotly
contested precinct elections in four years, has endured
the council meetings' verbal torture chamber known as
"public comment," and has experienced the agony of
making truly difficult decisions under duress.
She has worked more hours than required by a part-
time office to pursue parity in school funding and has
expanded her reach outside the communityto network
with the Statehouse and Massachusetts Municipal As-
sociation, the statewide municipal lobbying arm.
Now,her peers have elected her council vicepresident ,
aleadership position that has been well served intermit-
tently by women. There is no reason to expect anything
less from Joakim.
With that in mind, she is already butting heads with
councilpresident Hank Farnham, whose candid expres-
sionsin the media afew weeks ago concerning more bud-
get control by the council, seceding from the Cape Cod
Commission, dumping the split tax and making cuts in
services raised many an eyebrow -including Joakim's.
"I am very concerned about Hank's stated intent to
cut town programs," she said in the wake of phone calls
and e-mails from concerned constituents, including
town hall workers, youth and elderly. "Hank speaks for
Hank, not the council. 1 do not have any preconceived
plans to make cuts. I trust the manager and his depart-
ment heads to present us with a budget we can change
or approve."
The people in Precinct 6 who elected the 43-year-old
Centerville resident can rest easy their representative to
the town legislature is a woman of her word who, despite
deep feelingsto the contrary,voted with her constituents
for the split tax rate - only because she said she would.
And even for that exercise of integrity, she has come
under whispered criticism from some -aformer councilor
among them -who believe politicians have carte blanche
to tell voters one thing for the sake of being elected , then
do the opposite.
Joakim pays a back-door compliment to the town
administration by saying of town budgets, "There is
little left to cut, and the words 'essential services' begin
debates about what is essential."
She'sheard from constituents dependent on recreation
department and senior center programs who worry
whether they are targets of Farnham cuts. "I encourage
them to speak out to all councilors, not just me."
The die is cast for a 2006 council leadership that is not
in sync -even on Farnham'sstated bid to micro-manage
the budget. "There are others who are concerned about
micromanagement. Iwas asked to run for vice president
to provide a balance to this," Joakim said.
"We have a (town) staff that is constantly bringingus
awards and accolades at the local and national levels.
We (the council ) need to work with the manager and his
staff. We do not need to interfere," Joakim said.
Joakim is not tied to tradition either and won't be ayes
person to the president , she said. That being the case,
Joakim said she is already aware that "council debates
about procedures during meetings put home audiences
to sleep and create unnecessary discord."
Her solution?
"We (councilors) need to follow proper procedures but
not get caught up in what is proper at every meeting.
We have attorneys and clerks that attend our meetings
and can guide us when we go astray."
And what about the aggressive critics taking to the
podium in the last year or two? Joakim has an even-
handed view:
"On the home front , the council will always have its
critics. The council before this one had a different group
that was happy to see the 'new council' that was going
to save the day. Now this council has its own critics that
are a bit more vocal and unfortunately come across as
more disrespectful than previous critics. Leadership
needs to work on balances."
Here 's to a balanced New Year and two contrary
leaders who tell it like it is.
In helping the homeless, we help ourselves
Guest Commentary
By Alan Bur t
columnist@barnstablepatnol.com
On Dec. 21 at the Noah Homeless Shelter
Telethon , I read the names of the seven
homeless men who had died this past year.
Although I didn 't imagine I would add yet
another name to the 2005 death toll, I must
now do so.
On Dec. 28, at 5:10 a.m. at the Cape Cod
Hospital Coronary Care Unit , 77-year-old Hal
White passed into eternity.
My wife. Dawn and myself stayed with Hal
from 8:10 p.m. till his death. Although the
nurses suggested we go home, it didn't feel
right to leave Hai alone. Hal had been home-
lessfor several years, and it seemed onlyfitting
that he had loved ones at his side. Hal died of
a massive heart attack with other complica-
tions, cancer and respiratory problems.
Hal had been a guest of the Salvation
Army'salternative homeless shelter program.
"The Overnights of Hospitality Program."
Ironically, Hal just got a housing certificate
and was looking for a place of his own. As Jill
Scalise, Hal'sfriend and caseworker from the
Cape Cod Council of Churches, said."Hal has
better and permanent housing now "
I must say that I was so touched , so im-
pressed with the coronary care staff at Cape
Cod Hospital. In addition to excellent care,
they treated Hal as though he was a family
member. At the time of his death , there were
tears in the eyes of his nurse. Although Hal
had been unconscious the whole time there ,
they came to know and love him just the
same. Hal's death was not only our loss, but
their loss as well.
I cannot sing praise enough for the Cape
Cod Hospital. Dr. Lee, Hal's doctor, was also
so personal, so touched by the calls of so many
of Hal's friends on the streets who wanted
to see him. Dr. Lee felt badly that they were
not allowed in. but Hal had stipulated that
he did not want visitors other than immedi-
ate family, who did allow for myself, my wife
and Jill Scalise along with two other friends
of Hal's, Cindy and Jenny.
If Hal's life and death can serve a greater
purpose ,that of a reminder to all of us.I would
suggest we agree that a 77-year-old man. a
World War II veteran should not have been
homeless and on the streets. And far from
this being an unfortunate oversight , it is a
commonplace situation for hundreds if not
thousands of elderly veterans who sacrificed
so much for our freedom. How is it that we
continue to ignore the rights and needs of
our heroes, is the burning question we must
continue to ask ourselves.
It is well documented that , in the next two
decades , we will have more elderly citizens
in poverty than ever before. Are we going to
simply accept and adjust to stories like this
and continue on as if there is nothing we can
and should do about this? Or, are we. the Cape
Cod citizens, going to take a stand and create
the safety net that is needed for our aging
citizens, veterans and non-veterans?
It is not enough for us to simply agree that
our State and Federal programsfor the elderly
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
ACROSS TIME 6PLACE
RETROSPECTIVE S FROM THE ARCHIVES
WELL , WELL - This
picture from Mary
Sprague 's 1964 book
Barnstable , A Bit of
Nostalgia, shows the old
well at the foot of Post
Office Hill in Barnstable
Village, down from the
old Customs House.
Judgingbythe markings
on the front of the well,
it was constructed, or
at least updated , in
1889 for the town 's
250th anniversary. For
those who enjoy rare
glimpses andfragments
of Barnstable history,
Sprague's thin book is
worth searching out.
Wonder what we have Inthe archives? Drop usa notewith a request for some past Barnstable scene andwe'll see what we
can find. P.O.Box 1208,Hyannis, MA 02601 or by fax: 508-790-3997 or via email: editor@barnstablepatriot.com
Through The Looking-Glass
By Stew Goodwin
columnist@bamstablepatnot.com
I
have to confess that the goings-on in Washing-
ton, D.C. often baffle me. Moreover,just when
things seem to be getting less murky some
bizarre statement or incident defies rationality,
and it's back to square one.
So, in an attempt to penetrate the fog of mystery
enshrouding our capital city I have been studying
two books by Lewis Carroll, Alice 's Adventure s in
Wonderland and Through The Looking-Glass. My
research has produced results, and I will share a
few of them with you.
The most valuable insight was provided by the
Cheshire Cat. When he met Alice for the first time
he spoke to her as if she were a freshman senator
or representative newly arrived in the city. "We're
all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad. " "How do you
know I'm mad?" asked Alice. "You must be," said
the Cat , "or you wouldn 't have come here."
By the way, does the Cheshire Cat remind you
of anyone as he enigmatically materializes from
an undisclosed location , makes a few pronounce-
ments, and melts away to another undisclosed
location?
For many years I have been wrestling with the
complexities of the federal budget , with little
success I might add. But after reading what the
White Queen had to say, I'm beginning to get it.
"The rule is jam tomorrow and jam yesterday
- but never jam today." "It must come sometimes
to jam today, " Alice objected. "No it can't." said
the Queen. "It's jam every other day: today isn't
any other day, you know."
Carroll also let me in on the secret of how
Medicare Part D (prescription drugs ) could have
passed through Congress even though many
members didn't know how it would work or how
much it would cost when he explained Alice's
earnest recital of the poem Jabberioocky despite
it being meaningless. "You see, she didn 't like to
confess, even to herself , that she couldn't make
it out at all."
I m certain we would agree that many of Wash-
ington'spoliticians suffer from the same symptoms
that the Red Queen diagnosed in Alice. "Fan her
head she'll be feverish from so much thinking."
While we are on the
subject of feverish think-
ing, Tweedledee epito-
mizes partisan debate by
automatically opposing
everything Tweedledum
said. A typical outburst
went like this. "Contrari-
wise! If it was so, it might
be; and if it were so it
would be: but as it isn't ,
it ain't. That' s logic!"
Indeed. Speaking of politics , didn 't the tea party
given by the Mad Hatter and the March Hare re-
mind you of a Senate committee hearing? I'll bet
many a witness has felt like the Doormouse did
after he was repeatedly dunked in the teapot.
It seems to me that most Washington opera-
tives, lobbyists included , would feel right at home
playing Wonderland croquet or running in the
Dodo 'scaucus-race, events where the rules change
constantly and results depend upon individual
interpretation. Pondering strange events made me
wonder whether the Queen of Hearts ' gardeners
(actually playing cards 2, 5 and 7) were engaged
in a pork barrel project when they were painting
the white roses red. Or were they involved in a
conspirational cover-up?
All of us can now recognize what Alice was go-
ing through as she thrashed about in a lake made
from her own tears I shed when
she was much larger). FEMA
came to the rescue, sort of.in
the guise of a confused and
neurotic mouse who ultimately
abandoned her to fend for
herself.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
By Stew Goodwin
Limerick of the Week
BY MAUREEN CONNELLY
Yes. West B's FD has turned a new leaf
With round-the-clock staffing and a new chief!
Responding with urgency
To every emergency.
WB now has faster nighttime relief
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Nyuk , nyuk , nyuk: Soitenly
have a Happy New Year
Is
it just me, or does it seem that only yester-
day the corks were popping off the ceilings
to welcome in the new millennium? More
than half the Oughts are back on the shelf, and
if they're any indication , '06 ought to have a
plethora of unusual events in store for us.
This past New Year'sweekend , I participated
in what has become a time-honored tradition.
No, I didn 't make any resolutions that I wished
hadn 't popped out of my mouth prematurely.
God forbid I would go along with the bunch of
crazies that strip off their clothes and frolic in
the icy brine on some beachfront. (This might
be a sign that my alpha male status in the
pack is sagging slightly, but my buddies and
I deemed it too cold to hit a golf ball around ,
a year-starting celebration we've practiced
dozens of times if there is grass to be seen.)
Nor did I take personal inventory of my sock
drawer and line up my Gold Toes next to the
Ralph Loren Polo socks in asymmetrical order
by color, thickness , and personal preference ,
so I might get off on the right foot this ano
nuevo. (I do, however, think I need to tell the
17 orphan socks, most of which are a slightly
BY JOHN WATTERS
different shade of gray, that their aren 't com-
ing home, and that it's time for them to take
the trash train to Rochester. )
This 21st century middle-aged warrior stayed
in for the better part the weekend and took in
a large chunk of the best television the holiday
has to offer. Nay, not college football; there are
way too many bowls these days for me to wrap
my mind around that. Can someone tell me
when Idaho became a stop on the major bowl
circuit? And don 't you find it funny that the
national powerhouse of a team from Boise got
the nod to play in it? I thought my television or
my mind had started to crash , until somebody
told me that the blue field BC was playing on
was actually called Smurf Turf.
No. I was content to gaze dewy-eyed at my
youth as I watched The Three Stooges mara-
thon. Twenty-four hours of slapstick hilarity
that only Moe . Larry, and Curly (oh , all right:
and Shemp ) can serve up. I do draw the line
at Curly Joe; although Wikipedia will tell you
he was one of the Stooges , he's like Stuart
Sutcliffe . the Fift h Beatle. They both deserve
asterisks next to their names.
The scratchy "Three Blind Mice "intro music
is pure Baby Boomer bliss to my ears.
I realize by making this statement that I
might be looked down upon by those with
higher brows than mine. But as Steve Martin
would say. "Excuuuuuuuuuse me."for as sopho-
moric as those guys were. I'll take them over
shows like Fear Factor, Evil Nannies Attack (or
something like that ), and the Donald telling
you you're fired, any day of the year.
My 8-year-old watches them with me and has
for years. He doesn 't quite get it. He doesn 't like
big-time wrestling either. Sometimes I worry
about him. But he can tell I get enjoyment out
of the vaudeville zaniness the Stooges bring
to the table.
Women hate them , and so did many parents.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
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