1. General.
2. Brief description of latest outrage.
3. The possibilities.
4. What will happen?
1. General.
On February 1, 2013, at http://charlesriverwhitegeeseblog.blogspot.com/2013/02/dcr-proposes-more-destruction-on.html, I reported on yet another outrage facing the Charles River. The state wants to double the destruction which it and Cambridge installed at Magazine Beach through flat out lies and lies of omission.
This plan was presented to the “Neighborhood Association” which is the local front for the Cambridge Machine.
At the end of the discussion, the latest proposal for destruction was tabled for consideration at the next meeting of the alleged group.
That was January. The group meets monthly on a rather religious basis.
I am unaware of any meeting or announcement of a meeting to date, definitely none in February..
2. Brief description of latest outrage.
This front organization has been created since Cambridge and the DCR decided to inflict environmental destruction and heartless animal abuse in the area of the BU Bridge on the Cambridge, MA, side of the Charles River.
The organization followed standard procedures concerning the multiple outrages.
It did not want to know anything.
In the meantime, there was loud “activism” claiming to be defending the untouched woods of the Alewife reservation. That “activism” is now far progressed. Acres of virgin woodlands have been destroyed with massive killing of an animal population dating back centuries.
A couple of key lies have been proven false. (1) that the destruction was necessary, and (2) that the accomplished destruction was all that was needed. So the fake neighborhood association lost interest in Alewife and announced it was interested in the Charles River.
The representatives have run around claiming to be concerned with the BU Bridge / Magazine Beach area, and they lied that they wanted to “improve” it. I use the word “lie” because the key problems at Magazine Beach are overwhelmingly centered in destruction accomplished by Cambridge and the state over the last 13 years.
So the people who “love Magazine Beach” and "want to improve" it include in their definitions a total antagonism toward discussing the problems in the Magazine Beach area. The Cambridge Machine very clearly is controlled by a very destructive city government, and the last thing that very destructive city government wants to do is undo its own outrages, and the key person has justified ignoring the outrages because her government is so irresponsible.
Mass environmental destruction, heartless animal abuse.
This antipathy exists even though ALL of the problems were created through flat out lies or lies of omission.
Since then, the governor has implemented major Machine demands. He seems to have overridden responsible bureaucrats and assisted a destructive new highway on the banks of the Charles and in the Charles with mass destruction of habitat, wetlands, and hundreds of trees.
The latest outrage features a state manager who has been involved in belligerently lying about the project from the beginning.
This irresponsible state manager has a goal. He wants to extend the irresponsible behavior which was done in secret over the last 13 years to the area to the west of the area of outrage.
The meeting opened with the key “activist” expressing an intention to rubber stamp the state proposal. During the meeting, she backed down on her broad support.
I communicated the problems at the meeting. A lot of people were unhappy with what they saw.
The meeting deferred action, but nothing has happened, at least nothing I have been made aware of.
3. The possibilities.
A. Robots.
This sort of group commonly troops people into meetings who know nothing about nothing and want to know nothing about nothing, just as long as the Cambridge Machine proceeds with its intended goals. That is one obvious technique.
B. Rogue steering committee.
This sort of group has been known to conduct actions in the core group of the organization which exists, among other reasons, to pull the strings. If they can’t achieve what they want in public, they do it in closed door secret sessions.
An excellent example of such behavior occurred in the first Massachusetts Avenue downzoning petition, the La Trémouille petition. The organization voted in open session to seek to restrict development on Massachusetts Avenue between Harvard and Central Squares. The core group was presented with the committee’s recommendations. The core group insisted on destroying first floor housing and first floor open space by legallizing retail everywhere. Retail generates 9 times the vehicular traffic as residential. Office generates 3 times the vehicular traffic as residential. Massive increase of vehicular traffic through retail, retail, retail is a given in the zoning initiatives of the Cambridge Machine. One of the Cambridge Machine’s most consistent and most hypocritical lies is that it is core environment.
During the consideration of the petition, we had the petitioners on one side, and the rogue steering committee on the other. The rogue steering committee lied that it was acting on behalf of the neighborhood association. We finally forced a vote of the neighborhood association. The neighborhood association rejected the rogue steering committee and support the committee which drafted the zoning petition.
But, the Machine’s rogue behavior destroyed meaningful attempts to get a responsible petition passed and a petition based on the rogue steering committee’s irresponsible proposal was accomplished in those area where retail was already legal. Allowed density was slightly lower. Nominal open space was directed. And a monster canyon was created on both sides of Bay Street, in the middle of the zoning area.
18 years later we got a responsible downzoning which featured ground floor housing and ground floor open space where the Cambridge Machine was demanding retail, retail, retail.
The fake Cambridgeport Neighborhood Association has a fake environmental group associated with it. The fake environmental group’s next meeting features on one of the key people in that outrage. He will be the lead speaker, lying that he has environmental sainthood.
C. Flat Out Lying.
The East Harvard Square (Natalie Ward) Downzoning is one of my greatest victories but, in spite of major agreements with the Cambridge City Council, the Cambridge Machine lied its way to a major decrease in our victory. The lie was spouted by the same guy this fake environmental committee is presenting as its speaker and an example of environmental sainthood.
“You have made your deal with the City Council. Now you must negotiate with the Planning Board.” Flat out lie, but the destroyer brought the usual group of robots and they bullied major concessions.
We forced Harvard University to build the Inn at Harvard at a density much lower than Harvard wanted. Harvard wanted it 72% larger and built to the sidewalk. We forced that open space on Harvard.
Killed were protections for side street housing and side street open space.
Total area impacted by the zoning petition was cut in half without compensation as a result of this guy’s bullying and lies.
D. Etc.
I could keep going, and going, and going.
I would not deign to figure out which will be the next dirty trick.
The Cambridge Machine follows a script, but within that script, the dirty tricks can be very innovative.
4. What will happen?
I do not know. I stopped a long time ago saying “They would never stoop so low.” That has been proven wrong too very much often.
Heartless animal abuse, mass animal killings. Belligerent and defiant environmental destruction lied to be responsible or simply kept as secret as possible until it is too late.
These are really rotten people.
