Like a chapter from a Jack Kerouac novel, "via Mexican and Canadian borders" (Beecher Falls, Vt. to Haverhill, Mass.): A Senior Citizen just could not take it any more because his Government had overwhelmed him. So, in Colebrook, a small town north of the Notches, five people met their untimely ends that day.
First, two from NH's "F" Troop, (yes NH has an "F" Troop) discovered rust on the senior's
pick-up. The senior shot them and took their car. He then went and found a former Selectman- judge-attorney and shot him. While there a hanger-on from the local Sentinal newspaper got involved and was also shot. The last was the old timer himself, meeting his demise in an all afternoon chase and shoot-out with the law.
This is but a cautionary tale that government sometimes looses perspective and they should always be aware that they are not in a personal game, but are dealing with real people.
It happened that way -- just ten years ago.
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ATKINSON's Vietnam HONOR ROLL as VOTED and PASSED by 2005 Town Meeting and re-approved at Special Town Meeting Sept. 12
EDITORIAL-
A voice of compassion, an example of fairness and reasonable government.
One who believes in the strength and comfort you, your children and your family can draw from good government leadership.
A person who knows Atkinson is our home -- our most important possession that must be preserved and protected through fair taxes and sound community planning and where our children must be safe to grow to become a new generation of leaders.
One who knows that the citizens of Atkinson are all neighbors with her leadership to be dedicated and responsive to all.
One who believes that when those from Atkinson have served our nation and honors are deserved, those honors must be given.
In Valerie Tobin, we now have a leader we know we can entrust with these responsibilities because they are part of her character.
It is our honor to endorse Valerie for election to Atkinson’s Board of Selectmen.
Just a note for those who wish to count the deer.
In January 08 this blog had 16,000 hits and 1,500 unique visitors (for the month).
In 2007 this blog had over 100,000 hits and 5,750 unique visitors (for the year).
In 2007 this blog had over 100,000 hits and 5,750 unique visitors (for the year).
EDITORIAL-
"I offer nothing more than simple facts, plain arguments, and common sense . . ." [TP, 1776]
We take no small measure of umbrage at such a hostile official act against this BLOG’s patron. Therefore, a timely Editorial comment is both appropriate and necessary.
Discussion of Atkinson’s financial direction, from any viewpoint, is fundamental and encouraged and we will always attempt to limit and correct errors.
However, Righteous indignation towards purported error of such inconsequential nature is not appropriate.
The ENTIRE car deal is problematic. If it was caused by poor judgement, improper exercise of authority, neglect or mistake or even specious reasoning, this will never trump the facts that the entire questionable transaction started and ended within a very small circle of confidants.
We find the entire circumstances surrounding the disposition of the police Cruiser highly irregular at the least and the "explanations" somewhat trifling and exhaustive of our intellect.
Mr. Consentino: It’s time to go. Being Chief of Atkinson’s Police Department is NOT a birthright. That is a fabled legend of yesteryear.
Historically in Atkinson, police chief appointments were made "under the hand of the selectmen" for terms of one year at a time, as was also the case in the beginning of Mr. Consentino’s assorted and discontinuous stream of appointments to this position.
Your only remaining credential established on a claim of indispensability has faded.
So time is neigh. Plan a graceful exit, Clean out your desk, Accept the gratitude and tearful sentiments from some. We plan no editorial recriminations. It is time. Thank you for your service, We wish you a long and happy retirement. Bon Voyage.
LETTER
"To All Atkinson Residents,
I am writing to ask for your help. A member of the Atkinson Police Department needs our help. I am here to ask for your help in Corporal John Lapham's fight for his life. As you are aware, John has been diagnosed with Leukemia. He has been once again hospitalized with an infection that is threatening his life. He is one of the bravest people that I have ever met. He has never asked of anything from the residents of the town. Now is our chance to step up and help both him and his family out. As everyone is aware John has been out of work for a few months. His family has been busy helping John to get better. He needs our help, and I am hoping that this town can step up to the plate and help. From the moment that I met John, I have admired him. He does alot, but never asks for anything in return. He has helped so many people in this town. I for one am one of those people. Please help him.
There is a fund set-up in his name at TDBanknorth in Plaistow. Any amount will help John, while he is out of work. It would be great if this town could help ease a burden off his wife.
Thank You
Also if anyone would like to send a card, please address it to:
John Lapham
c/o Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women's Cancer Ctr.
Inpatient mail
75 Francis Street
Boston, MA 02115
United States
Please show Corporal John Lapham, that this community can stand up and show our support to those in need. I for one, miss John and can not wait until he can get better and return to work. Please show him that we support him. "
17 comments:
Pretty tacky I must say. 5 people dead and your making comparasions? You guys have hit an all time low.
there's nothing musing about it
Publius:
Your article has made me sick. My name is Officer Justin Paquette of the Atkinson Police Department; and to hear you mention the Colebrook shootings in such a cavalier manner had deeply offended me; not only as a police officer, but as a human being.
First you make a joke about the State Police's "F" Troop, comparing it to a not so humorous show in the late sixties. I happen to peronally know many of the troopers that work that area; and I am sure that they would be pleased to receive a copy of your mocking and disrespectful charaterization of their beat. The northern area of the state, in particular Troops F & E have lost at least five troopers gave their lives. Two were killed when a logging truck rolled onto them, two more were killed in the Colebrook shooting and another supervisor was shot and killed on a SWAT call....and I happened to go to the police academy with that troopers son, who serves in his father's troop and is proudly carrying on his father's name and tradition.
Next you bad mouth small towns and samll town politics and small town law enforcement. Stop and take a look at two small town police offices who were killed. One from Epsom and one from Franconia. Surely their families would love to hear how the towns they worked for brought all that on themselves.
Joke and laugh, but even in small towns, we deal with things and people that you would defecate in your pants at and run away from.
I am sure that you will not have the courage or decency to publish this, but mark my words a copy of this will be sent up to Troop F, so they can see how you - Publius - pay homage to the police. A copy will be sent to the Colebrook Police and NH Fish and Game, who had an officer gravely wounded in the pursuit of Drega; not to mention members of the NH State Police SWAT team and the Vermont State Police SWAT team; and the US Border Patrol; who all had members injured in the shootout in the woods with Drega. Maybe even the papers should hear what your vaunted view of free speech entails!
You are a coward! And you should be careful about making such vague threats to our selectmen.
I can be found at the Atkinson Police Department anytime, monday through friday 8 to 4. 603-362-4001. My car number is 49, so fee free to stop me and we'll chat.
WOW, I am amazed at the vitriol from one of Atkinson's finest. This blog apologizes if this article caused anyone any duress.
For the first commentor, the title is "Musing" remembrance, not "Amusing" rememberance. For those who are uneducated, and offended by this entitlement, in this context "A Musing rememberance" means "A Thoughful rememberance". Also I see no comparisons made in the article, especially to anyone locally.
For the second commentor, read the above statement, and get a dictionary.
Officer Paquette, this blog welcomes all comments as long as they are discussions, evaluations, or opinions of events, or government. This blog does not allow unwarranted as hominum attacks of a personal nature, even in the pursuit of fosterring discussion. This blog was not aware that the Colebrook shootings were a sacred subject that could not be discussed(you said it made you sick to hear this blog mention this event, There is no cavalier manner, imputed here.)There is also no joke about the State Police's "F" Troop, other than noting for those who didn't know, that there is a Troop of the State Police that possesses that unfortunate name. Perhaps, if your outrage at that notation is genuine you may wish to write to the Union-Leader, and other papers who have made many unflatterring comments about that Troop, We have not.
Also, sir, please forgive this blog for not, as you put it, paying "Homage" to law enforcement officers, we did not realize that this was a profession about which never a discontented word could be heard.However, if you re-read the above article, I think you will find no criticism or disparagement of the officers of "F" Troop. Could you please explain what anything in this article has to do with slain officers in Franconia and Apsom, or any local officers, or law enforcement in general? While your at it, perhaps you could point out the criticisms of small town politics and small town law enforcement, because I can't find those either.
Again this blog apologizes for causing anyone any offense, but at least in Officer Paquette's case, this well respected member of our local constabulary could take a moment to re-read the article and his prior comments, and see if they were really warranted.
We will await a response, thank you.
I used to live in Franconia, and remember this story. Wasn't Mr. Draga a thrice decorated green beret combat veteran?
This guy was a loner who was constantly laughed at by the local community. His home was condemned by local officials while he was living there, he filed responses in court, representing himself, he was laughed by the judge, he was laughed at by the prosecutor, he was laughed at by the police. When he was stopped for rust, he finally couldn't take it anymore. He got his gun and went after people. He was not right, but neither were the cops! This was a mistake on a tragic scale.
Wasn't Russ McAllister the town administrator up there when this hapenned?
Dear Officer Paquette and anyone else who, unfortunately, got may have gotten a wrong impression from the article.
The article's purpose was IN NO WAY meant to minimize the tragic loss of life which happened in Colebrook ten years ago today. I sincerely apologize because you very obviously mis-understood my intentions.
The article’s purpose was to remember, on its anniversary, the unexpected tragedy that happened in another New Hampshire town which left that townspeople stunned and dis-believing. People want to believe that something that bad and devastating could never happen in their town or their own state. Sadly, such tragedies are becoming more and more frequent. There is certainly nothing “cavalier” in remembering those N.H. tragedies on the anniversary of its happening and you should be ashamed to even use that term when commenting on those tragedies.
The people in Columbine, another small U.S. town, were torn apart by the loss of so many young lives and teachers at Columbine HS as were the families and friends of the many victims of the mass shootings and loss of life at that Virginia university. Previous to that were the cold-blooded murders of those young and innocent Amish children in their school. Last week we all heard about the cold-blooded lining up and execution of those Newark, N.J. students.
These out-of-state tragedies were all un-expected devastations and were no less tragic in their consequences than what happened in our own state of N.H. Innocent lives were lost and other lives were permanently destroyed The killings of both the attorney-judge-former selectwoman and the reporter in Colebrook were just as much, and no less a tragedy, as were the loss of the two police officers. The senior citizen’s death was also a tragedy. All of those victims, including those victims listed in the previous paragraph, also had family members and friends who loved them, and were all impacted by their tragic deaths.
You’ve interchanged the word in the title – “musing” for “amusing” -- when the two words have totally different meanings. “Musing” is something to think about which those tragedies are.
Mentioning that the slain police officers came from “F troop” was not meant in any way as a joke or
to dis-respect them, but simply to identify their police unit. The fact that there was, many years ago, a comedy tv series about a cavalry troop called “F Troop” is an unfortunate co-incidence and had nothing to do with the purpose or intent of the article. The fact that you see the name of that N.H. troop which lost two dedicated officers as some sort of comparison to that tv comedy is in your eyes only, disrespects the men of that troop, and is not to your credit.
No where in the article does it “bad-mouth” small town politics or small town law enforcement. For your own reasons you are choosing to read into the article things which were not the intent of the author. Also, to say the article makes “vague threats to our selectmen” is ridiculous, since it was never so intended. Again, you are reading into the article what you want to read into it, and what was not in any way, the intent of the article.
Every year on 9/11, we remember the tragedy of so many innocent lives lost. To the surviving family members of these other recent tragedies of mass murders across the U.S., just because the number of victims is much smaller, the loss of those innocent lives lost and families destroyed is no less devastating.
Again, I’m sorry you unfortunatly misunderstood my intentions in remembering this N.H. tragedy on its anniversary.
Hmmmm, I dont get it, I have read the article and the comments, and while I have a lot of respect for officer Paquette, I think he is reading much into this article that just isn't there. I just dont see all the offensive that officer Paquette, states in his comment.
What vague threats to our selectmen? I didn't see any of that in there?
I am kind of curious,
Officer Paquette, you say your shift is 8am - 4 pm, yet your post is at 3:36pm. Why were you surfing the internet, and posting on the taxpayers dime?
Is this what you are paid to do?
I read, re-read and then had to read it again. What, Officer Paquette, was so offensive with the article? Did I read the same one you did? I believe so. I think you should forward it to all the parties you mentioned, along with your reaction to it, they'll take you for a damn fool!
I also have to wonder why you were surfing the web with 30+ minutes left on your shift. As a taxpayer, I resent paying you to play on the computer, please do that on your own time.
How arrogant and self superior do you have to be to think your career demands that everyone "pay homage" to it?
Officer Paquette, you are a public servant, you are a police officer. That is it! You should be out patrolling instead of surfing the web!
I see nothing in this article to outrage you as much as you indicate. I think you should send the article, AND your response to it into the eagle-tribune and see if they will publish it.
Officer Paquette:
I do not know you but must say I do not understand your overly defensive response. Maybe I am wrong but it seems to me you don't quite understand why there is so much disgust with our town govt and PD. Perhaps not you personally, but due to the fact that other than a few labor complaints filed with the state years ago, no other officers have come forward to expose the serious abuses going on in our PD - abuses of the badge, elections and of taxpayer dollars going on in front of all officers' eyes. So if the blue code of silence is being followed by all officers, then you are all complicit in the actions of the entire department to allow the status quo. Your failure to stand up to your boss and expose the facts makes you and all other officers his accomplices as far as I am concerned. This leads me to believe our APD is one big band of thugs. My opinion. I am entitled to it. I wish I had more facts to the contrary.
I for one respect the fact that being a police officer anywhere is by definition hazardous. But that fact has absolutely nothing to do with the taxpayer disgust with the abusive and corrupt behavior of our town officials including your boss. We get tired of hearing the dangerous duty mantra. If you feel the risks of police work are too much for you to live with, my recommendation would be for you to seek alternative employment. The last thing I would want to see is any harm come to you or any other police, fire or other emergency responders.
So, you are either completely bamboozled by a manipulator or are completely in league with him. Which is it?
I have a hard time seeing it any other way.
Then you come blasting on to this blog and sound like the chief has his hand in the back of your head like a puppet.
You talk so tough. "I can be found at the Atkinson Police Department anytime, monday through friday 8 to 4." Do you realize what you sound like?
Sounds to me like you are challenging us all to a fight. That is how I am interpreting it.
You have the badge and gun. I guess I could talk pretty tough if I had a badge and gun. My only weapon is my pen.
Do you really think someone is going to stop by for a visit to chat after this posting you just made?
Do you REALLY wonder why we are all "Anonymous" on this blog?
Read it again and ask yourself, objectively, if it sounds like something that comes from a friendly, local, small town police officer. Think about it. If you were standing on a podium at a town event, would you talk to your friends and neighbors like this in public? I would have no problem reading my post except for my fear of being arrested (no kidding, not making this one up).
Look in the mirror and ask yourself if you really feel comfortable with the way your department operates. If you do, then there is no reason for further discussion. If you don't, then please, please live up to the duty you have sworn to, and DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.
At the end of the day, justice shall prevail. When this house of cards comes crashing down, and it will eventually, where do you want to be when it happens?
Officer Paquette,
The big question is, Why did you so MASSIVELY OVER-REACT to an
anniversary article about something that happened in NH?
Knowing that, in you, Atkinson has at least one over-reacting police officer is not good and should concern all town residents. Heaven
help the resident you pull over!!
You might be interested to know that the day AFTER the blog's anniversary article,the Eagle Tribune, on Tues., Aug. 21, page 5,
ALSO wrote a lengthy anniversary article about the Colebrook shootings, and, in fact, focused on the poor police communications in evidence on that day.
Are you also going to now attack the Tribune for its article?
Re: anon 1:03
In fact, it was an Associated Press article that appeared in the Tribune and likely numerous other publications.
This article, to me, appears to be a simple headline recitation of the events of that fateful day 10 years ago.
I would like my town officials to tell me why they are so bent out of shape at the one article on this blog, that has little to do with Atkinson.
With so many other issues going wrong; Spending going crazy, schools not getting permits, employees getting paid twice for the same hours worked, buying and selling cars without voting in public, etc.
Is THIS really what you people want to waste your outrage on? Officer Paquette, Chief, Sapia, McAllister, Sullivan, Childs, get a life and do your jobs, and quit worrying about events that hapenned 200 miles away, 10 years ago.
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