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THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, MArCH 17, 2023 Page 15 The Sounds of Saugus By Mark E. Vogler Good Morning, Saugus! Are local politicians and citizens who love to participate in Saugus politics on social media sites becoming cyberbullies? And are they getting a little too cruel, crude, vulgar and downright nasty for the good of Saugus while sullying their own reputations? As an outside observer who tries to observe, but not get caught up on Facebook and other social media sites, it sure looks like that. Maybe I’m a bit of a prude when it comes to this stuff. But I seldom go onto local social media sites to watch how Saugus politicians and their supporters engage in the notorious blood sport of Saugus politics à la social media. Board of Selectmen Chair Anthony Cogliano now finds himself in a bit of a public controversy because he dabbled a little too much in the town’s seedy side of social media, essentially trash-talking in crude ways that he most likely wouldn’t be doing on the street or in public. And selectmen received a recent email from somebody who criticized the chair for making homophobic comments (please see front page story). A lot of newspaper people, including myself, would prefer not to write a story like this. The problem is social media is indeed a public matter, particularly when government emails are used. Normally, I wouldn’t be writing a story about people engaging in crude and vulgar trash talk that might be construed as highly inappropriate. But when a public official is involved, and a person claiming to be offended emails a complaint to the entire Board of Selectmen, several prominent town officials and several media outlets – including The Saugus Advocate – it is worth approaching the entire Board of Selectmen for public comment on the matter. And depending upon what they say would dictate doing a story. So it goes that this past Tuesday, after receiving a copy of an email addressed to the Board of Selectmen and copied to several Greater Boston newspapers, I decided I needed to put the question to everyone on the Board of Selectmen: Do you have any concerns that you want to comment on, regarding the Ross Demore letter that was addressed to the Board of Selectmen in an email today? Are the comments made by Mr. Demore a matter that should be addressed by the Board of Selectmen? Please feel free to comment or elaborate. As it turned out, several of the selectmen expressed concerns to varying degrees about the choice of words used by Board of Selectmen Chair Anthony Cogliano in a social media jousting match. Nobody’s calling for Cogliano to step down from his leadership role, as Ross Demore had called for. But one colleague called for Cogliano to apologize. Another said he should refrain from similar conduct in the future. Another said that Cogliano’s words and actions didn’t represent the Board of Selectmen. Since taking over the editor’s job at The Saugus Advocate seven years ago, I noticed that social media can get downright ugly in Saugus, and I’ve tried to steer clear of it. But perhaps it’s time for all town officials to take a look at the instant case before them and engage in meaningful public discussion about how public officials should conduct themselves on local social media sites. And the discussions shouldn’t just focus on the Cogliano situation. There have been other cases of public officials saying inappropriate things on Facebook and other social media sites. It’s definitely stuff that borders on cyberbullying. What kind of example are adults in Saugus setting for the community’s children in matters of this sort? It’s time for a public conversation. Several of Cogliano’s colleagues would probably agree, based on comments they shared in this week’s Saugus Advocate. Stay tuned. “Saugus over coffee” Early last Monday evening (March 13), I was worried about whether our latest edition of “Saugus Over Coffee” would turn out to be a complete disaster. That was a likely possibility if all five Town Meeting members from Precinct 3 failed to show up for the forum. Shortly after 6 p.m., I already knew that at least two of the five Town Meeting members in the precinct would be absent. Richard E. Thompson and Rick A. Smith, two very conscientious and active members in the precinct had already notified me that they would be out of town on work-related busiMeeting members prepared a statement that was read. On the negative side: 1. Only one of five Town Meeting members participated in the discussion. This is the worst attendance so far 2. At one point, one of the residents tried to engage in a debate with the panel members in an adversarial fashion. 3. The overall discussion involved too much time on procedural matters and townwide issues instead of Precinct 3 issues. Tuesday, April 25, will be the next forum in the “Saugus Over Coffee” series. The original date has been changed because April 17 is Patriots’ Day – a state holiday when the Saugus Public Library is closed. Precinct 4 will be the focus that night. Stay tuned for more inforLast Friday (March 10), future Eagle Scout Jake D’Eon stood outside Prince Pizzeria, where 140 people gathered for a fundraiser for his Eagle Scout public service project. The event raised enough money to pay for supplies to build at least eight handicap accessible picnic tables at Breakheart Reservation. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate) ness. Meanwhile, members Arthur D. Connors and Daniel I. Schena never bothered to respond to the invitation letters I mailed to their homes, or the emails and the phone calls I made to them. I’ve got to wonder whether the residents they represent have received similar treatment. Fortunately, Annemarie Tesora, the subject of last week’s “The Advocate Asks” interview, did show up ahead of time. And the show did go on. I sensed that Annemarie, the self-described “freshman Town Meeting member” in her precinct, would feel nervous and lonely sitting by herself. So, I invited one of her friends from Precinct 3 to join her at the front table, along with Board of Selectmen Vice Chair Debra Panetta. That may not have been a good call, as Annemarie still seemed nervous while Selectman Panetta fielded most of the questions and did most of the talking, sharing a lot of valuable information that applies to Saugus local government. But the purpose of these forums is to focus on precinct-specific issues, with residents from the precinct being showcased doing most of the talking, along with their representatives on the Town Meeting. I drew some criticism from several Town Meeting members from other precincts about allowing a selectman to sit on a panel that was meant for Town Meeting members. Naturally, any selectman with Debra Panetta’s background in local government is going to command a great deal of respect. And she did what any selectman would do – keep the discussion going and sharing her views on a wide variety of subjects. So, here are the “positive” and the “negative” takeaways from Monday’s forum. On the positive side: 1. Seven Precinct 3 residents – more than the first two forums combined – showed up for the forum. Three of those residents, in addition to Annemarie, spoke publicly on issues that concerned them. In the previous forums, most of those attending were from other precincts. 2. There was passionate and quality discussion. The residents who spoke complained about issues near and dear to them. 3. The Precinct 3 residents who spoke came prepared, with notes and written material. 4. One of the absent Town mation as “Saugus Over Coffee” continues. Here is the remaining schedule: Precinct 4 – April 25 Precinct 5 – May 8 Precinct 6 – June 12 Precinct 7 – July 10 Precinct 8 – August 14 Precinct 9 – September 11 Precinct 10 – October 23 Please check with The Saugus Advocate or library for any changes in dates. Residents can check the programming guide on the station’s website (www.saugustv.org) for dates and times. A video of the forum will also be available for viewing on the station’s vimeo page within a day or two after the event (www.vimeo.com/ saugustelevision). Seeking Hall of Fame nominations Do you know of a former Saugus High School athlete who deserves to be inducted into the Saugus High School Sports Hall of Fame? If you do, nominations are open for the Hall of Fame from now until March 28. There have been 263 athletes inducted since the Hall of Fame’s inception (1987). The Hall of Fame’s first class included Arthur Spinney, a Saugus High football great who played for two NFL championship teams with the Baltimore Colts in 1958 and 1959. A Saugus High athlete has to be out of school for at least 10 years before he or she can be nominated. Anyone looking to nominate a former Saugus High athlete can mail their letter of nomination to Barbara Wall at 28 Pleasant St., Saugus, MA 01906. THE SOUNDS | SEE PAGE 16

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