The Aug. 15 Reminder carried a report of the Aug. 12 meeting of the Longmeadow Select Board. Highlighted in the headline and the article itself is a discussion of filling the now-vacant slot of registrar of voters (voluntary). This appointment is to be filled with a member of the Republican party (my party designation) in keeping with the town’s traditional non-partisan approach to the board of alternating control of the board between the major political parties. I had applied for the position months ago and was not aware of any controversy surrounding the appointment nor, apparently, was anyone else.
Such appointments are generally non-controversial and I was not aware that the appointment was on the agenda for the meeting, nor was I asked or notified to be in attendance. When the matter of the vacancy came up, Select Board member Dan Zwirko questioned the town’s tradition of alternating control of the board between the two political parties and attacked my character and fitness. Mr. Zwirko had apparently reviewed several years of the postings on my Facebook page and cherry-picked alleged items in order to launch a character assassination attack on me at a public Longmeadow meeting carried on Longmeadow cable, painting me as a bigot.
Nothing could be farther from the truth. I have been a certified public accountant for 50 years and have a 45-year plus record of extensive, dedicated community service that extends throughout the region dealing with persons of all races, religions, preferences, and nationalities. I have lived in Longmeadow for over 40 years. Since I was not at the meeting, I could not respond and defend myself. Are personal and public attacks and smear tactics by our town representatives on town residents now to be tolerated at our Longmeadow government meetings with impunity?
I would be happy to sit down with anyone, including Mr. Zwirko, to compare my record of community service with theirs. Additionally, in my experience working with the media through the years it was alarming to me that this report was published without first contacting me for my input.
Peter S. Benton
Longmeadow
