I posted this on the Arlington email list and Facebook
 on Sunday, May 3

Dear Arlingtonians,

It’s been more than 7 weeks since our collective trial has begun. It can feel like a new normal, and it can feel like each day is harder than the one before. For most of us I think it’s a mix of both.

This email is a commentary on how the collective trial is manifesting itself in our community dialog. It’s also a call for personal reflection, and if you feel it is appropriate, some follow-up actions.

Let’s start with some quotes from messages I’ve been sent or cc’d as Selectman. Some of these were to me (as an elected official) and some of these were sent to town employees (non-political).

• One email compared the Select Board to the Politburo.
• Another said that because of insufficient publicity the election process “will be a sham.”
• Another email suggested that town officials were engaged in campaigns to exclude residents in the same vein as campaigns to exclude women and people of color.
• Another says the town is “requiring full hooding” of public meeting participants even as the use of Zoom meetings evolves every week.

The rhetoric in these emails is asymmetric with the problems that are being addressed. They’re over-the-top attacks that aren’t justified by the underlying issues.

Worse, these messages accuse the recipients of some really terrible things – disenfranchisement of voters, bigotry, misogyny, racism, and malice.

The recipients are working hard to keep our town safe and productive, while they’re simultaneously defending themselves from these accusations. These messages are demoralizing and distracting. These messages are about real issues, issues that are worth addressing. But the message style is making everything worse, not better.

Let me bring in a thread from my professional life at Hydrow. We’ve been seeing a huge increase in inbound volume since mid-March, and it’s been very positive. But a couple weeks ago the VP of support messaged me: “Customers are also getting increasingly unreasonable/unstable/abusive in the past week… especially around delivery failures,” she told me. Most of our customers are great, but a handful of them are suddenly being terrible when they weren’t before.

I’m connecting two dots. The people writing these messages (Arlington residents and Hydrow customers both) are under intense personal stress. If you take someone’s psyche and you wring it out like a dishrag with stress, fear, and unknowns, it’s going to squirt out somewhere. Their psychic pain is squirting out in these venomous, unproductive messages.

Thanks for reading this far. Here’s where you can help. It all boils down to this: Be the change you want to see.

• If you you’re writing a message about something that needs improvement, please keep it positive.
• If you see someone who isn’t keeping their cool in their messaging, figure out how to de-escalate it, or maybe just step away. I can tell you this email wasn’t my first reaction when i read some of those emails, but this email will hopefully more effective than my first knee-jerk thoughts.
• Be another positive voice. If you see someone who isn’t keeping their cool, create a whole new message – one that appreciates the work and the progress that we have been able to achieve.
• If you see something you think could be better – think about volunteering! The town is powered by hundreds (thousands) of volunteers, and we can always use more.

As a short-timer on the Select Board I have the benefit of 9+ years of experience, plus the luxury of some perspective. My skin grows thicker, and I can tell you that helps quite a bit.

Thank you all for reading and considering.

Dan Dunn

It’s election season in Arlington, and I offer two endorsements.

Short version: Vote Curro and Byrne for Selectmen.  On your ballot, those are positions #4 and #5.  Be aware that the names on the ballot are very similar and potentially confusing – you want Curro-with-the-O in the 4th slot, and Steve Byrne in the 5th slot.

Long version: We have the good fortune to have several quality candidates for Selectmen this year.  I’ve met them all and listened to their campaigns.  Two of them rise above the rest.  I think they are good for Arlington, and I want to work with them in the coming years.

I’ve had the pleasure of working with Joe Curro for many years on Arlington issues.  I first met him outside a polling location – we spent a two-hour shift chatting and getting to know each other.  I found him to be thoughtful, a good listener, a good questioner, and had a great sense of humor.  He’s proven that to be true and much more.  His work for the town has been as excellent as it has been extensive: on the School Committee, on the Human Rights Commission, on Symmes, on Town Meeting, and more.  When I heard Annie LaCourt and Clarissa Rowe were leaving, I knew that Joe was one of the people I wanted to join me on the board.

I have known Steve Byrne for a shorter time, but he has been very impressive.  When I met him, I was planning on endorsing Joe Curro and no one else.  Steve’s energy and ideas were very convincing, and I’ve been working hard to help him get elected.  Sometimes you meet people with energy, but it’s not effective energy.  Steve, on the other hand, asks really smart questions so that he can apply his energy where it will make a difference.  I like his ideas, and I like the perspective he will bring to the board.  Some have suggested that he’s too young for the board.  I disagree – his perspective and his energy will be a great asset.  The board works best when it has a broad representation of ideas, and Steve brings them.  He has a long history in Arlington, having lived here all of his life.  He has a deep background in how the town and the state govern and function.   I hope that the town chooses to elect him on Tuesday.

I hope that both of them join me on the board!

Polls are open Tuesday from 8am to 8pm.  Some precinct borders changed, and the Thompson School voting location is closed.  You can double-check your polling location here: http://wheredoivotema.com/bal/myelectioninfo.php

When I started this campaign, I knew better than to promise regular blog posts.  As expected, it’s been stinkin’ busy.  That said, I know some people are interested in the nuts-and-bolts of the campaign (I got good feedback on this post).  So here are some notes on the last week:

Thursday, 3/3

• My plan was to start the day by standing in front of Dunkin’ Donuts and say hello, but I cancelled and caught up on sleep instead.  That turned out to be a very good choice.
• At 10AM I met with the Arlington Advocate to answer questions for an upcoming article, then went to work.
• Before I left work, I made my last-minute edits to my entry in the League of Women Voters information booklet.
• I went to the budget hearing at Town Hall, then went home and answered emails.

Friday, 3/4

• A light day. Email in the morning, then work.
• In the evening I wrote a draft of my 5-minute video recording that ACMI was offering.  That proved a lot harder than I thought it would be, and I didn’t finish until 11PM.

Saturday, 3/5

• First, the catch-up from my cancelled Thursday plan.  I stood in front of Dunkin Donuts and introduced myself to the visiting patrons.  This was pretty fun and interesting.
• 10AM is the regular campaign meeting.  We talked about an upcoming mailing and made lots of edits to my 5-minute video speech.
• 2PM – taking photos for the upcoming mailer.
• 2:30PM – debate preparation with 3 volunteers.
• Make a few calls to potential supporters.
• Started practicing 5-minute speech, realized the editing session had made a number of inadvertent errors, and re-wrote parts of it.
• Went out that evening with friends and saw Murder by Death! (It’s a rock band, not nearly as offensive as it sounds, and was a great time.)

Sunday, 3/6

• Went to Panera at 10AM to meet someone interested in applying for work at HubSpot where I work.
• Practiced the 5-min speech.
• Worked on list of people for the mailer.
• Went to the League of Women Voters legislators’ brunch and talked to a number of voters.
• Went home, and sent in the text of my 5-min speech to ACMI for loading into the teleprompter.
• Went to Joe Curro‘s campaign kickoff party.  Met a number of voters.  Collected a few donations to my campaign.  Took more pictures for my mailer.  Helped move furniture when it was done.
• Went to Leba Heigham‘s campaign kickoff event.  Met a few voters.
• Went home.  Did a number of campaign emails.  Scheduled a couple campaign coffees and meetings.  Wrote donation thank-you notes. Updated the campaign Facebook page. Practiced 5-min speech.
• Where did my weekend go?  Went to bed.

Monday, 3/7

• No morning meetings.  Practiced 5-min speech.  Went to work.
• Officer meeting of my fraternity alumni group (Alpha Delta Phi at MIT)  in the evening.
• Went home, did some campaign emails.  Answered a lot of emails about signs that were blown away in the storm the night before.  Practiced 5-min speech.
• Sent Advocate a list of possible topics for the debate on Thursday.

Tuesday, 3/8

• Took a voter call in the morning.
• Worked from home.  Practiced speech.
• Went to ACMI.  After first run-through, the nice woman asked me how I thought it went.  I answered, “wooden.”  She seemed relieved that I realized how bad it was!  Second run was measurably better.  Cameras are hard for me – I prefer people.
• Went home and did some work.
• Met with the reporter from Arlington Patch and had a good interview and a long talk about Minuteman High School.
• Went home and did work, did some campaign emails, did some campaign phone calls.
• Listened to my company’s announcement of a huge investment from Sequoia, Google, and Salesforce.
• Went out and had picture taken with another volunteer for the mailer.
• Sent out a draft of text and pictures of the mailer to be put together.
• Signed up to be at Menotomy Beer and Wine for their Candidates’ Event on Saturday afternoon.

Wednesday, 3/9

• Went to Town Hall at 8AM for the 5-year planning committee meeting.
• Deposited some donation checks at the bank.
• Went to work.
• Went home, wrote opening and closing statements for Thursday’s debate.  Wrote up a list of talking points for the debate.
• Sent out an email with a budget update with an eye to how many people we can afford to send the mailer.
• Made a dozen calls to potential voters, asking for their support.
• Did more campaign emails.

Thursday, 3/10

• Met with a voter for coffee.
• Talked to a couple voters on the phone.
• Went to work, left work early.
• Practiced opening speech 12 times in a row – never got it right once!
• Went to debate at ACMI.  It went OK.  I need other people to see it and see what they think.
• Did campaign emails and a couple phone calls.  Updated website.
• Stayed up late writing this blog post!

I think that gives a decent flavor for the campaign and how I’m doing.  There’s lots of great voter contact, and lots more yet to be done.  Three weeks left!

With excitement, energy, and a healthy appreciation of the challenges ahead, I am announcing my candidacy for the Board of Selectmen. I’m asking for your support in the upcoming campaign, and your vote on election day on April 2, 2011.

My campaign for Arlington:

1. Arlington, like most communities in Massachusetts, is working through a very difficult financial time, and some difficult decisions are facing the town. My experience as a member of the Finance Committee and my knowledge of the town budget will help us make wise choices about preserving important services for our residents while protecting taxpayers.We stretched our 5-year plan to cover 6 years, and it is time to write a new plan for the next few years. Unfortunately, the town has thus far been unable to reach an agreement with its employees that controls health care costs. Until we find that agreement we cannot fully preserve our town services for a price we’re willing to pay. Over the next year we’re going to have to decide which services we can do without and which services we’re willing to raise taxes for.
2. Town residents rightly demand good customer service from the town. They want access to services at hours that are convenient and a fast, accurate, and polite response to their request. I believe that we can harness technology to bring better customer service, 24 hours a day, to the town. The town’s online question-and-answer website has been a good start, but it is time to expand that service.
3. Taxpayers expect smart management of their money. The key to smart management is smart measurement. You get what you measure; if you choose the right measuring stick, you’ll get more of what you’re looking for. I plan on working with the Town Manager, other town officials, and town employees to identify key metrics that we should use to measure ourselves.

I’ve been an active volunteer in Arlington government for more than ten years. I’m a current Town Meeting Member, and a past member of the Finance Committee, Information Technology, Power Municipalization, and other committees.

I’m optimistic about Arlington’s future, but energy and optimism are not enough. I bring new ideas, new experience, and a strong work ethic to this campaign.

As the campaign progresses, please visit this website. I will put up regular updates here.  I welcome all questions and comments at dan@dandunn.org.

Sincerely,

Dan Dunn