Summer-the Opening Belle

Plymouth's summer season kicked off last week end, just a few days short of the official opening day on June 21st. Along with a few thousand of our closest friends, we spent some enjoyable Sunday hours on the waterfront as a full complement of tourists (anyone who doesn't live in the 02360 zip code) enjoyed the sights and the fine weather. And lets be clear about tourists. Now that Plymouth apparently won't be morphing into Hollywood East anytime soon, tourism is America's Home Town's primary industry. The term "tourist" is absolutely not a pejorative. Tourists are our friends, ka-ching, ka-ching.

So to mark the new season, here are a few thoughts, observations and recommendations, geared toward making the season more enjoyable for all, or at least those who agree with us.

First, Plymouth should get rid of the Pilgrim Belle. Why anyone who thinks a Mississippi River - style paddle wheeler fits into the historic waterfront, especially when docked alongside the Mayflower II, is beyond us. Send this floating eyesore packing. The Town also needs to replace those parking fee machines like the ones in the lot in front of The Cabby Shack. First it takes your money, then it refuses to print a receipt, then you get an extra souvenir of your visit in the form of a parking ticket. This shouldn't be so hard.

We do not join with those who look down their noses at motorcycles and those that drive them. Most of these bikes are attractive, well-maintained and driven with care. There are a few bad apples, however, that need a whack upside the head; namely those bikers who think mufflers are something you wrap around your neck in winter. Nothing shatters a pleasant afternoon like some yahoo revving up his engine from hell, startling the tar out of all within a half mile radius. And while we are on the subject, someone needs to tell those few riders still looking to recapture the glory days of the Hell's Angels that the tough biker-gang look is at least a half-century out of date.

We will close with a few fashion tips designed to improve the general atmosphere. We understand that the shaved head look is "in", and it certainly implies an ease of care, but this look is not for everyone. Before you venture forth sporting a shiny dome, invest in a good mirror and give yourself a critical look. Remember, you can always wear a hat. Ditto for those into multiple facial piercings. If a mirror isn't in the cards, find a trusted friend with some fashion sense. Also, a sure bet for the most promising career path is that of a certified tattoo removal specialist, when, in just a few years, all these tattoo aficionados start to realize that these things really are permanent.

A more general recommendation to motorists: scrape those fading "Obama for president" stickers off your cars. In spite of the speed with which his presidency is melting down, there might still be time to establish some distance from your support of his election.

So happy summer to all and don't forget the big celebration of Plymouth's 400 year anniversary, in 2020. It's not too early to start making plans now, those T shirts are sure to be collector items.

Bloomsday

When the great lamented Irish man of letters, James Joyce, wrote the novel, ULYSSES, he chronicled the wanderings of one Leopold Bloom as he made his way around Dublin on June 16, 1904.

The annual marking of this day by Joyce aficionados throughout the world provides the perfect opportunity for would-be intellectual types to gain credibility by dropping a casual allusion to the day into conversations. This is almost foolproof, as in spite of the book's historical importance in the field of literature, it remains, we suspect, one of the best known, but most unread books in history.

So if you do decide to slip an allusion to Bloomsday into your daily patter, there is a good chance that others will not have read the book. They might, however, know who James Joyce was and this would give your tender ego a small boost. To be safe, you could actually read the book, or at least the Cliff notes. Then, at least, you might glean a few tidbits, such as our favorite: The word, "yes", as featured in Molly Bloom's Soliloquy.

Have a good Bloomsday!

Jeff Perry Follow Up Interview

Click on the link and hear Jeff perry's response to the flap surrounding the press articles discussed below.

HOWIE CARR INTERVIEW

We think that this exchange goes a long way in putting this issue in perspective.

Jeff Perry, Now More than Ever

This past week, The Boston Globe ran its second FRONT PAGE STORY in five weeks regarding Republican congressional candidate Jeff Perry's involvement, or lack thereof, in a pair of twenty-year old cases involving unlawful strip searches of two girls by the same Wareham policeman.

Let it be said clearly at the outset that this type of behavior should absolutely not be tolerated by any police department or its community. And it should be noted, that Scott Flanagan, the police officer accused in both cases, was fired from the force and later confessed to the acts and went to prison. The Globe articles, as well as several articles appearing in the Cape Cod Times, have attempted to tar Perry who was Flanagan's shift supervisor at the time.

The bottom line is that the guilty party was punished and Perry was exonerated. His only failing was to believe the word of one of his men, but that only lasted until the facts emerged. The incidents gave raise to Flanagan's criminal proceedings as well as two civil suites brought by the girl's families. The Globe and the Cape Cod Times are now sifting through testimony from these events, as well as police records, to find any inconsistencies between those sources and Perry's current recollections. Those with plenty of extra time and access to Google, can revisit the press reports in their dizzying detail. Note to Press: Just because something is maintained in a deposition or trial testimony does not automatically make such statements factual. Trials essentially try to determine which party's perceptions of events most closely resemble reality. These articles are scrambling to connect a collection of shadowy dots to somehow prove, twenty years later, that Perry acted improperly. All this scenario needs is a grassy knoll.

But the goal of these articles is not necessarily to "prove" anything. What they have been successful in doing is generating headlines that link Perry's name with provocative words such as "strip search". Those of us who know Jeff Perry will dig for the truth in the quasi-allegations. Unfortunately, many others will remember only the headlines.

Jeff perry is guilty, but not of the shadowy charges surrounding these articles. Jeff is "guilty" of offering voters in the Massachusetts 10th congressional district the choice of a candidate with strong conservative Republican principles, who would bring a voice of sanity and balance to the funny farm currently masquerading as the U.S. Congress. Now, more than ever, we need to send Jeff Perry to Congress.

Newsbusters with Jack Coleman

The View is always on the lookout for interesting websites, especially those dealing with national current events. We are, then, pleased to recommend Jack Coleman's blog which is published under the Newsbusters.org umbrella. Click HERE for a look at this well-written and informative site.

A tip of the Hat to Plymouth's own Jack Coleman

Golfing in America's Home Town

To say that golfing venues abound in Plymouth is an understatement as it is home to a staggering ten golf courses, which offer a broad range of difficulty and amenities. These range from casual par 3 atmosphere of The Village Links to the challenging formality of the two Pine Hills eighteens. It also includes the View's favorite course, Atlantic Country Club. All told, the Town hosts over 200 holes of golf. This might not raise many eyebrows in Myrtle Beach, but its quite notable in frosty New England. Accessibility is excellent with seven of the courses open to the public, but two of the private courses, Plymouth CC and White Cliffs, seem to be actively recruiting members. Only the new ultra-private, and ironically-named, Old Sandwich course shields its 163 members, each of whom shelled out a reported $200K initiation fee, with a guarded entrance that prohibits un-invited visitors. What was it that Groucho Marks said about private clubs? But we digress.

We were over at Waverly Oaks last Saturday, playing the nine-hole Executive course with friends as part of an impromptu Nine & Dine. The well-maintained nine-hole is an interesting course that can provide just enough of a challenge to make it an interesting golf experience while still being kind to golfers preferring shorter courses. As an aside, the adjacent eighteen-hole course is not only one of the most attractive golf courses in Plymouth, but perhaps in New England.

The significance of last Saturday's outing was that had the movie studio development plan had gone forward as planned, The Executive would have been under excavation in preparation of multiple sound stages. For several years now, Plymouth Rock Studios has been trumpeting plans for a $500 million project that would transform Waverly Oaks into Hollywood East. Golfers and others shuddered to think of bulldozers destroying this beautiful golf property.

Initially, the project garnered Town-wide support, as would any development that promised jobs and tax revenue and an environmentally-friendly business. Add in the excitement of having Hollywood actors cruising Court Street and the package was hard to resist. Seemingly, the most important among the few that refused to buy-in to the project were the lenders that were expected to provide what amounted to all of the development money. Granted, banks and other lenders have been under the gun due to the the sub-prime mortgage saga, but an early indication came when the Commonwealth passed on the $50 million I-cubed bond issue which would have paid for the infrastructure that would make the development site accessible. In spite of the fact that the project seemed to fit the I-cubed program to a tee, the state couldn't bring itself to fund the project. Many reasons were offered for the turn down, but at the bottom of the pile seemed to be a lack of confidence in the studios business plan. Then came the Globe's Spotlight on the principals of PRS. Suffice it to say, with the exception of certain Plymouth Selectmen, the confidence level for the management team went south real fast. As of late there have been a few minor bleats as PRS goes through its death throes. If Las Vegas were giving odds on the studio ever getting out of the ground, there would be very few takers. With deference to the "never-say-never" school of thought, Plymouth's version of Hollywood East just isn't in the cards anymore, if it ever was.

As we finished our round on Saturday, we all agreed that we were glad that the course was still in place for all to enjoy. This view is also shared by many local golfers who love the facility. We stopped in the clubhouse for the "dine" part of the outing and marvelled once again at the building's magnificence. How this facility could be virtually empty on a Saturday evening make one wonder as to the management skills of the current owners. Now that a buy-out seems unlikely, perhaps they will bring in a management team that could take advantages of the attractive physical plant and allow the course to achieve its potential.

Recognizing the benefits of the tourism industry, Plymouth makes a concerted effort to attract visitors to its historic sites. Given that the golf courses are already in place, the Town could easily promote its golf courses as part of the effort, and at little additional promotional cost. Suggested New motto: "See the Rock and golf like a pilgrim".





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