Comments on: Latest On State Budget

By: turfgrrl

turfgrrl — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:52:25 +0000

Long ago, maybe, these legislative meetings might have actually been a place where you could speak to your fellow legislators and sway them to support your view on an issue, make an amendment or whatever. These days, these floor speeches do nothing. They aren't covered by the media, the public doesn't see or hear them and no one cares. How are issues framed and vetted in the real world. Through online discussion groups, chats, blogs, tweets and emails. There's an instant record, there are links to supporting documents. Public policy is failing because the rules of engagement were crafted in the dark ages before instant communication. Cafero would have been more effective blasting a list of recommended cuts to his colleagues on the floor right then, then speaking about it. Yet Cafero admits to Dixon he doesn't even turn on his lap top. "I don't know how to turn my computer on, I am embarrassed to say, and I certainly would not know how to get on a solitaire site is there is such a thing, I don't know."

The solitaire players, news surfers, email responders and especially the ones with dark screens, all demonstrate that no effort was being made to tweak this budget.

The picture says our legislative body is broken.

By: giantbeers

giantbeers — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:30:22 +0000

just imagine what they are up to when the press isn't looking in. and the picture says a lot more than being bored…..it says i really don't care. and that is sad. but your comments are a testament of how and why the state is where it is. you don't care either.

you hear that sucking sound???? thats the sound of educated, high earning, taxpayers leaving the state. …..thats the sound of global corporations who once liked doing business here expanding or outright moving elsewhere.

By: WSteward

WSteward — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:08:31 +0000

Norwalkcoach, I found this podcast from NPR to be illuminating, The Myth of Multitasking: http://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/200...

By: OldTimer11

OldTimer11 — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:02:32 +0000

Hartford Photographer Jessica Hill took the picture. Nobody should be surprized that someone is shooting pictures over your shoulder. Her stock just went way up. It is an excellent picture.
From her website, this quote; "I am the Photo Editor at the Journal Inquirer, a 40k afternoon daily newspaper in Connecticut and I have been a regular stringer for the AP in Hartford for the past six years."
Sessions of the legislature are "public meetings" and fair game for self-employed "stringers" for AP or MAD magazine. It was a mistake to presume news photgraphers would be strictly focused on the speaker

By: Publis

Publis — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 13:58:49 +0000

Mega Message: Two Democrats already have made up their minds to raise our taxes, and really do not care what the rest of us think.

By: NorwalkCoach

NorwalkCoach — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 12:51:53 +0000

Not to take sides with the legislators who were playing computer games, but we have to put this into the context of a budget struggle that began a long time ago, and there have no doubt been hundreds of speeches, many of them thinly disguised political campaigning. I don't know what Larry Cafero was saying at the time the picture was taken, and so I can't judge that the legislators were (or were not) missing anything of substance. How many of us have sat at meetings, distracted by something, but half-listening for something of substance to be said, at which time we have paid appropriate attention?

By: jillcooks

jillcooks — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 12:21:10 +0000

Here is the thing…we know that you have "already made up your mind" we know that. But you are asking US to work more so you can spend more of our money…thats the issue, the LEAST you could do is actually act like YOUR working.
So one question…when it come the time where you vote on your own pay increases, how are you going to vote?

By: NwlkSpectator

NwlkSpectator — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 04:45:59 +0000

At least it wasn't poker.

By: WSteward

WSteward — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 21:16:34 +0000

Ignorance is bliss? …but, then again, you had your suspicions all along, neh? It is a great photo.

Maybe it's time for a roadtrip with the video camera. I think that I've just found a font of funny (weird, not ha ha) material.

By: jillcooks

jillcooks — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:54:00 +0000

Wow…outstanding picture! that should be on national news!!!! Thank you…..but why am i so depressed?