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    <h3 class="title"><a name="#top"></a>Update - November 19, 2005</h3>
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    <ul>
      <li> 
        <h4>&#8220;Crisis in <em>Confidence, Competence &amp; Corruption</em><br>
          in the Commonwealth&#8221;</h4>
      </li>
      <li> 
        <h4>&#8220;Romney Administration <em>Fails Dismally</em>&#8221;</h4>
      </li>
      <li> 
        <h4>&#8220;Governor missing in action while Rome and the<br>
          Commonwealth - <em>Burn</em>&#8221;</h4>
      </li>
    </ul>
    <p>As has been the intent of this web site since its inception in March of 
      this year, my <strong><em>&#8220;Center of Gravity&#8221;</em></strong> 
      has and always will be<strong><em> &#8220;Truth &amp; Justice.&#8221;</em></strong> 
      Unfortunately, these two (2) words appear to be alien to our elected and 
      appointed officials in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts &#8211; many of 
      whom now aspire to higher office. At the conclusion of this update, I shall 
      ask you the question &#8211; <strong><em>&#8220;Are you comfortable with 
      these elected and appointed public officials representing your best interests?&#8221;</em></strong> 
    </p>
    <p>The focus of this update is the Office of Governor Romney, the Office of 
      Lt. Governor Healey, The Office of Attorney General Reilly, the Office of 
      Ms. Beth Lindstrom, Director of Consumer Affairs &amp; Business Regulations, 
      and the Office of the Inspector General. After briefly presenting the facts 
      as they pertain to my experience with each of these offices and results 
      of our investigation that was recently completed, I shall rate the performances 
      of each department and allow you to draw your own conclusions.</p>
    <p><strong><em>Let&#8217;s begin with the Office of our illustrious governor, 
      Mitt Romney.</em></strong> On February 10, 2005, I was advised to and forwarded 
      correspondence to Ms. Beth Lindstrom, Director of Consumer Affairs &amp; 
      Business Regulations alleging unethical, unfair, and prejudicial actions 
      on behalf of the State Board of Registration of Funeral Directors and Embalmers 
      with copies forwarded to the Governor, Lt. Governor, and Attorney General.</p>
    <p>Within days, (dated February 15, 2005), I received a very professional 
      &#8220;boiler plate&#8221; response from Governor Romney indicating &#8220;I 
      have forwarded your letter to the responsible executive office for review 
      and response on my behalf.&#8221; Whomever Governor Romney forwarded the 
      correspondence to must have either been on the campaign trail with him or 
      was a &#8220;stay at home&#8221; public servant for 9+months have passed 
      and NO RESPONSE.</p>
    <p>The Office of Attorney General Reilly responded timely, indicating they 
      had made note of the complaint, and that &#8220;the Office of Consumer Affairs 
      &amp; Business Regulations was the appropriate agency with oversight of 
      such matters.&#8221; </p>
    <p>(As for the Lt. Governor&#8217;s Office, that&#8217;s another story to 
      be presented shortly).</p>
    <p>Several more documents and correspondences were forwarded to the Governor 
      either directly or copy furnished in the past 8 months &#8211; none of which 
      have been important enough, I guess, for an official response from the Governor&#8217;s 
      Office. I, therefore, decided to call Governor Romney&#8217;s office on 
      September 12, 2005 and ask to speak with the Governor. When I spoke to the 
      need to introduce the issues to the media in the event I did not obtain 
      satisfaction from state authorities, the attendant on the phone immediately 
      transferred me to Mr. Jesse Suskin, Director of Media Relations for the 
      Governor. We had a very cordial conversation, and Mr. Suskin was shocked 
      to hear I had not received official responses from the Governor and the 
      appropriate executive offices. He indicated he would immediately go to the 
      correspondence office and would I be available later that very same day 
      for him to get back to me. I indicated I would be in the office all day. 
      I waited until 7:00PM on Monday, September 12, 2005; but no return call 
      from Mr. Suskin. I have called, left voice mails, and forwarded emails to 
      Mr. Suskin on numerous occasions in the past 60 days, and you guessed it, 
      NO RESPONSE! Seems we have just another &#8220;absentee state employee!&#8221;</p>
    <p>Apparently, in order to get service for the public from the Governor&#8217;s 
      Office, one must have the financial and/or political clout in order to wake 
      up the sleeping giant staff in Mitt Romney&#8217;s Office.</p>
    <p>There is more (so much more) of the same, but suffice it to say, <em><strong>Governor 
      Romney&#8217;s Office gets an &#8220;F&#8221; when it comes to competence, 
      efficiency, honor, and commitment to the ideals that carried Mr. Romney 
      into the corner office at the State House.</strong></em> I guess, just maybe, 
      it is a good thing he is not accepting a salary. From my perspective, his 
      staff should forfeit their salaries as well. </p>
    <p>As we turn to the <em><strong>Office of the Lt. Governor</strong></em>, 
      there is little to be said here. Quite frankly, I suspect Lt. Governor Healey 
      may not have a staff, and I would suspect probably not even an office &#8211; 
      but my mail to the Lt. Governor was delivered and not returned &#8211; so 
      she must at least have a post office box. More than 8 pieces of correspondence; 
      same as that to the Governor and others &#8211; alluding to the corruption 
      and conspiracy that I have the proof to support &#8211; and not a word from 
      Lt. Governor Healey! Do you think since there was no photo opportunity readily 
      available, the issue of ethics violations and corruption just isn&#8217;t 
      important enough for Ms. Healey&#8217;s personal attention? And yet, Kerry 
      Healey wants to be Governor?</p>
    <p><strong><em>&#8220;Lt. Governor Healey and her staff (if she has one) get 
      an F-!&#8221;</em></strong> </p>
    <p>The <em><strong>Office of the Attorney General </strong></em>was a breath 
      of fresh air, and truly is representative of what one would expect from 
      public servants concerned for the integrity of a system they have sworn 
      to uphold with pride and commitment. Each of the series of correspondences 
      forward either directly to Attorney General Reilly or copy furnished were 
      reviewed in a very timely fashion and personally responded to by staff from 
      the Atty. General&#8217;s Office. On each occasion, direction was provided 
      and in the event I wished to contact the responder, this information was 
      provided to me. In a follow up conversation from the criminal division, 
      I was informed that were I to initiate a law suit against the State Board, 
      Division of Professional Licensure, and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 
      the Office of the Attorney General would be compelled to defend the State 
      Agencies in question. In another correspondence with the Attorney General&#8217;s 
      Office staff, it was suggested I seek advice and private counsel; for if 
      I could prove the allegations I have presented the appropriate action might 
      well be the initiation of a civil suit.</p>
    <p><strong><em>The Office of the Attorney General was a bright light and &#8220;breath 
      of fresh air&#8221; in government at the State Level. Congratulations &#8211; 
      Attorney General Reilly! Rating for the Office of the Attorney General &#8211; 
      &#8220;B+&#8221;.</em></strong></p>
    <p>Each State as well as every major agency within the federal government 
      has an <em><strong>Office of the Inspector General</strong></em> that has 
      the power, authority, responsibility, and obligation to independently and 
      without interference investigate alleged improprieties within its State 
      or federal agency. For the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, this responsibility 
      falls upon the shoulders of Gregory W. Sullivan or at least is supposed 
      to. </p>
    <p>On May 20, 2005 I forwarded a five (5) page fact sheet to Mr. Sullivan 
      with allegations and supporting statements to prove corruption and a conspiracy 
      of a magnitude that certainly was worthy of the Office of the Inspector 
      General. Not hearing back from Mr. Sullivan, I followed up with a call to 
      him on June 1, 2005. At that time, I was referred to Mr. Joseph McCarthy, 
      whom I was informed was a deputy director in the Office of the Inspector 
      General. Mr. McCarthy was shocked that he had not seen the May 20, 2005 
      correspondence to Mr. Sullivan as well as the issues I presented to him 
      in summary from the correspondence. Mr. McCarthy asked for a copy of the 
      correspondence, which was emailed to him the very same day. </p>
    <p>Mr. McCarthy asked if I had proof to support the allegations I was making. 
      I responded, &#8220;absolutely, and I would make every document available 
      to him upon request.&#8221; He indicated he would need the documentation 
      at some point in the near future.</p>
    <p>To the best of our knowledge, Mr. McCarthy did meet (or was supposed to 
      meet) with representatives of the State Board and/or Division of Professional 
      Licensure. Within a few days, my attorneys were notified by Mr. McCarthy 
      the Division of Professional Licensure was going to issue a Summary Decision 
      against me without benefit of a hearing. No investigation of the allegations 
      or issues presented to the Office of the Inspector General were ever investigated, 
      and we still have every element of proof in our possession; but the Office 
      of the Inspector General apparently could care less. No official response 
      has been forwarded to us as a result of the complaint I filed with the Inspector 
      General&#8217;s Office as of this update.</p>
    <p><strong><em>Mr. Gregory W. Sullivan, if there actually is a Mr. Gregory 
      W. Sullivan, and the Office of the Inspector General get a very disappointing 
      rating of &#8220;D&#8221; ! I truly expected more from this office, and 
      the people of the Commonwealth deserve better and a great deal more from 
      this office.</em></strong></p>
    <p>And lastly, we come to the <em><strong>Office of the Director, Consumer 
      Affairs &amp; Business Regulations.</strong></em> Five (5) months after 
      I initially forwarded correspondence of corruption to Ms. Beth Lindstrom 
      and the Governor&#8217;s response indicating that I would soon hear from 
      the appropriate executive office, I forwarded a harsh, but factual letter 
      to Governor Romney with copies of past correspondence to each of those entities 
      referenced above. In this correspondence, I referenced corruption, cover 
      up, and conspiracy amongst other statements. Within a very few days, Mr. 
      David A. Murray, Office of Consumer Affairs, contacted my attorneys and 
      asked for information to support the statements made in correspondence to 
      Ms. Lindstrom. This information was provided on July 20, 2005 via fax &amp; 
      1st class mail to Mr. Murray, and in and of itself should have been sufficient 
      to initiate a full scale investigation of the allegations and accusations 
      we have presented. (In a subsequent &#8220;update&#8221; I will present 
      and release for publication the actual correspondence from Attorney Daniel 
      P. Flynn, Bowditch &amp; Dewey LLP, to Mr. Murray). I suggest you will (maybe 
      you won&#8217;t) be shocked by the lack of action on behalf of Ms. Lindstrom 
      and the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulations, who has jurisdiction 
      and oversight of the State Board of Registration of Funeral Directors &amp; 
      Embalmers.</p>
    <p><strong><em>Ms. Lindstrom and the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business 
      Regulations get a rating of &#8220;D&#8221; &#8211; a true disappointment 
      to say the least.</em></strong></p>
    <p>I indicated in the introduction of this update that based upon my experiences 
      and the content of this update (every word being 100% factual and supported 
      by documentation that everyone in State Government for the Commonwealth 
      is petrified to see, let alone review) that I would be asking you to ponder 
      the following question &#8211; </p>
    <p><strong><em>Are you comfortable with the following elected and appointed 
      public officials / civil servants representing your interests in the Commonwealth 
      of Massachusetts (and one case, potentially the White House)? </em></strong></p>
    <p>Read on!</p>
    <p> My responses to the question are reflective of my experiences in the past 
      two (2) years with the listed individuals and or members of their staffs 
      and are not meant to influence you or anyone in any way; but are presented 
      so that you may reflect upon what you personally expect from those elected 
      to serve in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and what you expect and demand 
      from those who are appointed as &#8220;servants of the public trust&#8221; 
      in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.</p>
    <div class="insert"> 
      <ul>
        <li><strong>Mr. Romney &#8211; Governor a second time &#8211; &#8220;Little 
          Confidence&#8221;</strong></li>
        <li><strong>Mr. Romney &#8211; President or National Office &#8211; &#8220;No 
          Confidence&#8221;<br>
          <br>
          </strong></li>
        <li><strong> Ms. Healey &#8211; Lt. Governor a second time &#8211; &#8220;Little 
          Confidence&#8221;</strong></li>
        <li><strong>Ms. Healey &#8211; Governor &#8211; &#8220;No Confidence&#8221;<br>
          </strong><br>
        </li>
        <li><strong>Mr. Reilly &#8211; Attorney General another term &#8211; &#8220;Vote 
          of Confidence&#8221;</strong></li>
        <li><strong>Mr. Reilly &#8211; Governor &#8211; &#8220;Vote of Confidence&#8221;<br>
          <br>
          </strong></li>
        <li><strong>Mr. Sullivan &#8211; Off. of Inspector General &#8211; &#8220;No 
          Confidence&#8221;<br>
          <br>
          </strong></li>
        <li><strong>Ms. Lindstrom &#8211; Off. Consumer Aff. &amp; Bus. Reg. &#8211; 
          &#8220;No Confidence&#8221;</strong></li>
      </ul>
    </div>
    <p>I shall conduct the same exercise in a subsequent update speaking to Governor 
      appointed Members of the State Board of Registration of Funeral Directors 
      &amp; Embalmers and members of their appointed staff to include legal counsels; 
      as well as appointed Members of the Division of Professional Licensure and 
      members of their appointed staff to include legal counsels.</p>
    <p>You won&#8217;t want to miss the rationale for the ratings to be given 
      to the State Board &amp; Division of Professional Licensure. Stay tuned.</p>
    <p>Philip G. Haddad, Jr.</p>
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