Commentary
O n April 14, the residents of Tisbury will be asked to vote on the sale of beer and wine in our town. The real question that most of us are wrestling with is: how will the sale of beer and wine served with meals at Vineyard Haven restaurants change our town? To answer this honestly and fairly, we must look beyond our town boundaries and try to understand the big picture.
How and why do people come to Tisbury?
In the past several weeks, comments in Island news papers have questioned the necessity of the Martha’s Vineyard Commission or whether Vineyard town zoning laws are now strong enough to protect the Vineyard.
In 1974, the Martha’s Vineyard Commission legislation was drafted by Vineyard residents and put into law by the state legislature to give an added layer of review and protection for the unique resources of the Vineyard.
Super Tuesday Notes
On Tuesday night voters will gather in four of the six Vineyard towns to conduct their annual town meetings. Town meetings are one of the oldest — and some say purest — forms of democracy. The origins of town meeting as an early spring affair date to a time when such meetings were scheduled around the agrarian life and calendar: this was a convenient time for farmers.
Note: The Heath Hen, once a plentiful bird throughout New England, was last seen by James Green in West Tisbury on March 11, 1932.
The Ballad Of Boomin’ Ben
(The Tragic Tale of the Last Heath Hen)
I looked for my lady,
hoped she was near
playing “hard-to-get” games
in the Spring of that year.
I searched and I searched
under brush, by the sea;
Ship to Shore
From Gazette editions of April, 1909:
PAY NOW, PAY LATER
Editors, Vineyard Gazette:
Several people have asked questions about my recent essay and presentations about Tisbury’s unfunded liability for other post-employment benefits (OPEB).
My analysis focused on these benefits rather than on pensions because the town started to fund its pension benefits some years ago. That cost is a regular part of the town’s budget, as it should be.