I've had a rough week. 

On Monday evening, I came home to an avalanche of posts in my facebook newsfeed regarding the latest installment of the PawSox ownership's tour of the state. Apparently there was a police detail hired by the PawSox ownership - at the most recent stop on the "We're not listening" tour, which took place at the Cranston Public Library a venue - I might add, that is  already funded by taxpayer dollars - which has a benefit to all Cranstonians, and any Rhode Islander that has a library card, for that matter.

One of the more disturbing posts I saw was a video of the removal of a US citizen and Cranston, Rhode Island resident from the "discussion."

Not because he became violent. Not because he advanced on Steinberg and his cronies. He did not appear to be mentally unstable. He was removed from the meeting for speaking his mind; for letting the rich, powerful, and politically connected know that he was, to use a tired quote, "mad as hell, and wasn't going to take it anymore."

What I saw - in the video evidence - was a man being denied his right to question authority, and not even elected or legal authority. An alleged public meeting, held on publicly owned real estate, where a member of the public was SILENCED by the rich and powerful who had deemed speech in support of a miserable and short-sighted idea appropriate, and speech against a miserable and short-sighted idea, inappropriate.

Seeing this action for the SEVERE breach of the First Amendment rights of a fellow Rhode Islander- and one that I take personally as a writer and journalist - I decided to take action. I got in touch with the gentleman that was removed from the meeting, and had a rather lengthy conversation with him. When we finished, I had one simple question, "Who put the cop in the room? Was this officer hired by the PawSox management team, or was he there in his capacity as law enforcement for the City of Cranston?"

It was now just before 9 p.m. on a Monday evening, and that question kept popping into my head. I needed to know. At this point, I used a thing called an internet search engine to search for a contact phone number for Allan Fung, residing in Cranston, RI. As I typed his name into my browser's search bar, I thought, "This is a shot in the dark. There is no way that the mayor of one of Rhode Island's largest communities has a listed phone number," but sure enough, he does. at 8:57 p.m. on Monday night, I called Mr. Fung at his publicly listed phone number. Here's a screenshot from my cellphone's call log.

I'll try to reconstruct the conversation that I had with the mayor to the best of my recollection.

Me: Hello. Is this Mayor Allan Fung?

Fung: Yes.

Me: Hello, mayor. My name is Dave Fisher. I am the co-host of The Coalition airing  Saturday nights on WPRO. I just have a couple of questions regarding the PawSox meeting that took place tonight at the Cranston Public Library. 

Fung: You're calling me at home? This is inappropriate. 

Me: With all due respect, mayor, you are a publicly elected official with a publicly listed number. 

Fung: I've never heard of you or your show. 

Me: I understand. I'd be glad to have an off-the-record conversation if you're more comfortable with that. 

Fung: How do I know you are who you say you are? If you want to speak to me, call my office and speak to my press secretary. 

Me: Thank you, mayor. I'll do just that. 

Fung: This is harassment. (Hangs up.) 

At this point, I finished up some work, planned my journalistic course for the following day, and went to bed around 10:30. 

Well, I never got around to calling Fung the next day because I felt that a second call, even if placed through the so-called "proper" channels, might be construed as harassment. Why, you might ask? 

When I checked my phone the next morning, I noticed that I had received two new voicemails overnight. The first was received at 11:16 p.m. Monday night  from a Sgt. Michael Gates, who identified himself as a member of the Cranston Police Department's Criminal Investigation Unit. He asked that I call him on his cellphone within a half hour because "his night was coming to an end." The second was received at 8:23 a.m. on Tuesday, from Capt. Sean Carmody of the Cranston PD who said he was calling to "verify a conversation that (I) had with the mayor."

To say that I was intimidated by these calls is an understatement. To use the local vernacular: I was scared shitless.

Frightened, but knowing that nothing I had done rose to the legal definition of harassment, I did what journalists do when there is a story to tell, but in the telling, one's objectivity may be questioned. I called another journalist. Then I called a lawyer. I can't thank Kate Nagle of GoLocalProv.com enough for the care and commitment she demonstrated in ferreting out, and publishing the story.

I'll also say that the urgency that the Cranston PD displayed after my phone call to Fung seems to have diminished. I never returned their calls, and have not received a follow-up call since. I will continue to check in with the Providence District Courthouse to see if an arrest warrant is issued, however.

Tune in tomorrow for the second installment of this unfolding saga. I'll call it Haters gonna hate: The Fallout. 

You read that right, folks. Every year, Rhode Island representatives and senators buy votes with your tax dollars. As a matter of fact, in fiscal year 2015, members of the House and Senate spent $2,174,730 of your hard earned dollars buying votes all across the state.

"But Dave, how does this not qualify as election rigging," you may ask? 

Well, it's all part of a little scam called the Legislative Grants. Each year, the Rhode Island budget contains earmarks for these grants, which are distributed to organizations all across the state: from police departments to Little Leagues. Even to churches and religious organizations - which seems a clear violation of the U.S. Constitution and decades of legal precedent.

Here's how it works. Let's say that you work for an organization, any organization. It doesn't have to be a non-profit, it could be an organization that is already funded through your taxes like a police or fire department. You approach your state representative or senator, and ask him or her to appropriate some of this do-re-mi for your organization. He or she submits the request to the General Assembly on your behalf, and nine times out of ten, you'll get that sweet moolah for your organization. And I do mean nine times out of ten.This year, RI House members proposed $1,112,250 in legislative grants, and $1,022,250 in grants were approved - just under 92 percent. Senators proposed $1,310,230 in grants, and $1,152,480 were approved - just under 88 percent.

Some of the money does go to worthy causes like food banks, homeless shelters, drug treatment programs, but most of it goes to things like little leagues, VFW posts, public schools, police and fire departments, churches, and Rotary Clubs. (Side note: Does anyone know what Rotary Clubs actually do?) 

Here's my beef, and it should be yours, too. Donating money to these organizations should be YOUR decision. At least when you make a donation directly to one of these outfits, you can write it off your taxes.

If you are an atheist, why should your tax dollars be donated to churches? If you are not a sports fan, why should your money be donated to youth sports programs? If you are any color but white, why should your tax dollars go to police departments?

You may find my headline hyperbolic, but  it isn't. Think about it. If a particular elected official carves out a few thousand dollars for your social club, PTO, or your kids' soccer league, are you more or less likely to vote for that person?

If state elected officials think these organizations are worthy of these funds, they should either a) take it out of their own damn pockets or b) take that money from their campaign accounts, which is perfectly legal in the case of non-profit outfits. Not surprisingly, House Speaker Nick "Pauly Walnuts" Mattiello and Senate President Theresa "The" Paiva-Weed had every one of their proposed grants funded in full.

This is just another example of the perfectly legal corruption that continues to put Rhode Island at the bottom of so many rankings. It's time to start taking this stuff personally, folks.

Below you can download a spreadsheet of all of the FY 2015 Legislative grants. It is indexed alphabetically by last name of the sponsoring representative or senator, and the totals of the proposed, approved, and combined House and Senate grants are included. Which is more than I can say for the static PDF version that is published on the GA website. You're welcome.

Today, one of RI's Good Smaritan laws expired. This law has - and would - protect people from formal charges based upon evidence gathered during police interaction following a 911 emergency call in the case of a drug overdose. Unfortunately, our "leaders" in the Rhode Island General Assembly saw fit to let this law sunset, as of July 1, 2015, largely due to the testimony of State Attorney General, Peter Kilmartin.

Kilmartin saw fit to testify before our legislature to the fact that he would rather score a few more drug arrests and prosecutions than save the lives of Rhode Islanders. He would rather see our sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, and friends DIE, than to sacrifice a few points on crime statistics, in a futile attempt to continue a MISERABLY failed war on drugs. A war which - much like our modern interventionist foreign policy in the Middle East - has absolutely NO exit strategy. This man, Kilmartin, dares to call himself a capital-D Democrat, and his broad acceptance into that party, on a state level, is a big reason why this writer no longer considers himself a Democrat. I didn't leave the party; the party left me - and high and dry, at that.

WOONSOCKET, RI - In October of 2013, a young, first-time candidate by the name of Dave Fisher beat out incumbent mayor Leo Fontaine in Woonsocket's non-partisan primary election. Then, in November - despite being outspent 100-to-1 by former state representative Lisa Baldelli-Hunt, he eked out a victory in the city's general election to take the city's executive office. At the time, in a rare moment of political honesty and humility, Fisher told local  reporters, "I'm in way over my head."

It seems that Fisher has gotten his sea legs. Woonsocket's bond rating was just rated an A by Moody's, and despite continuing difficulty in addressing the city's pension liability and adhering to the state appointed budget commission's draconian 5-year plan, Woonsocket seems to be turning a corner. When asked what made this transformation possible, Fisher stated bluntly, " I kept my campaign promises."

Immediately after taking office, Fisher hired a full time grant writer for the city. While some local radio talk show hosts skewered him for, "spending money we don't have, on a position we don't need," it seems that it was the right move for the city. Since the position was created, the city has received grants to update the city's aging infrastructure, increase public safety and education budgets, and drive down the overhead costs of the city's government itself.

"It was really a  no-brainer," says Fisher, "I knew that there were literally billions of dollars available in grants from the federal and state government, as well as private grants available to municipalities.  I  thought: Why are we not taking advantage of these sources of revenue?" 

The city has received grants in the last 18 months to replace broken and missing fire hydrants across the city, institute 21st century, renewable energy education programs at the city's vocational school, and to institute community-based policing across the city. "I think my proudest moment so far has been replacing those hydrants," said Fisher, "after the job was done, I asked the ISO (Insurance Service Organization) to come to the city and update our insurance profile." After the city was re-rated, homeowners insurance rates went down across the city. "That's a win for every homeowner in the city," he said, "not only did we make our city safer, we saved folks a bit of money in the process." The grant writer position has been revenue neutral so far. Most large grants come with built in administrative costs, which means that the city may be cutting the checks, but the money is not dependent on the taxpayer.

Woonsocket had struggled for the last two decades to draw businesses into the city, but that seems to be changing due to Fisher's progressive - and totally transparent - tax incentive policy. Both strip malls on Diamond Hill Road have seen renewed vigor in the last eighteen months, with mostly locally owned businesses filling long vacant storefronts in what was once Woonsocket's prime retail area. 

"When I started thinking about tax policy, I couldn't believe that no one had thought of this before. The only way to incentivize a strip mall owner to keep rents low is to offer them a tax break based on the percentage of square footage occupied. It seemed so simple." Since then, Woonsocket's Walnut Hill development has gone from a 30 percent occupancy rate to a 90 percent occupancy rate. But don't think Fisher is some type of business-desperate softie. "These development owners are required to keep an 85 percent occupancy rate to get the tax break from the city," says Fisher, continuing, "If you're going to  dangle a carrot, you should have a damn big stick to back it up."

Fisher's tax policy also extended to existing businesses. In a bold move, he instituted a policy that rewarded existing and new businesses for employing Woonsocket residents. Currently, any business whose workforce is comprised of 20 percent Woonsocket residents gets a 20 percent tangible tax break. "Look, if you're going to run a business in this city, and employ city residents, you should be rewarded," he said, " I don't care if you're CVS or Ciro's Tavern. Put us to work, and this city will work with you, and for you. If you  have 10 employees, and two live in the city, that's something."

Far and away, Fisher's most bold and laudable accomplishment has been lowering the costs within Woonsocket's school system. After taking office, he immediately began to solicit bids from solar energy companies to install massive solar arrays on the roofs of the city's most modern buildings: the middle school complex and Harris School. Both of these developments have been constructed in the last ten years, and while they both have some degree of energy efficiency, the solar arrays have decreased energy costs in the buildings by 40 percent. "Again, a no-brainer," says Fisher, "Our schools use a tremendous amount of energy for 9 months out of the year. The other three months, they lie relatively dormant. Why not offset the usage while they're open, and make some serious money selling power back to National Grid during peak demand season?"

Fisher's  fourth campaign platform point is proving to be a bit more difficult to realize. Restoring pride in a city that has - for the most part - lost pride in itself, is a Herculean ans Sisyphean task. He attributes this to a local  media presence that does little more than to accentuate the negative. "The Woonsocket media makes it difficult to raise any sort of community pride. When you have a local newspaper, and two local radio stations,  it could - and should - be a tremendous value to the city," he opines, "Unfortunately, one of those outlets seems hellbent on accentuating the negative aspects of the city with ill-informed vitriol and personal attacks on local elected officials and residents of the city. In my view, anyone who participates in this type of clearly short-sighted and biased journalism is in breach of contract with the American people. The airwaves are ours. Their job is to curate them on our behalf."