Michael Jones
Michael Jones
Recent Stories
Jones: Why I won’t seek reelection
Yale students are often chided for their lack of concern for New Haven.
Jones: A better future for public schools
Nathaniel Zelinsky ’13 got it wrong in his column Wednesday (“An empty Promise, Nov. 10). The New Haven School Change campaign (including the New Haven Promise) will improve the city’s public schools, and public school teachers and their unions are not “squarely to blame for poor educational achievement,” as Zelinsky suggests. We’ve heard that shortsighted argument time and time again, and it’s still wrong.
Jones and Hausladen: Creating a safer community
The last few days have been tough for our community. We have heard from students who have had their perceptions of the New Haven community radically altered by the alleged actions of a few members of the New Haven Police Department.
Jones: Finding the funds
Local government is all about making tough decisions. Unlike the federal government, we can’t run deficits. We must produce a balanced budget every single year. We also have very limited revenue streams — particularly here in Connecticut. While cities in many states receive at least some income from sales, income or local occupancy taxes, New Haven can only raise revenue though property taxes, fees and permits. As such, New Haven, like many cities, must rely upon grants from the state and federal governments in order to make ends meet.
Jones: A green light for red-light cameras
Red-light cameras can calm traffic. When motorists see such cameras, few choose to run red lights. Furthermore, red-light cameras can ticket violators without forcing police officers to obstruct traffic flow and put themselves in danger.
Jones: Constructive, realistic ideas for New Haven
New Haven is at a crucial time in its history. As its manufacturing sector continues to decline, our city is attempting to rediscover its identity and reshape its infrastructure and institutions within a larger region and within the knowledge-based global economy.
Jones: Seeking the student seat
Campaigns are about offering competing visions for the office the candidates seek. I think our current aldermanic race is a good example of this, as my two opponents and I seem to have different conceptions of the Ward 1 alderman’s role.
Jones: The fierce urgency of then and now
The comparison is irresistible. After all, the fierce urgency of then is the fierce urgency of now. America is still in a struggle to reconcile its rhetoric with its reality, and nearly 40 years after the death of one extraordinarily inspirational African-American leader, America was given another.
Though unfulfilled, King’s dream still perseveres
Forty years ago today, our nation lost one if its greatest servants.
Through legislation, Clinton offers real hope
Again, that candidate is Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton represents change because her campaign is fundamentally different from the successful campaigns of recent history.