Great !!! Congratulations . David is intelligent , classy and cares . Three words I'd never be able to use to describe Mayor Skibitsky . The mayor is rude to residents , dismisses them and is extremely immature . He's like a fifth grade bully --
It is very unprofessional and doesn't reflect the intelligence of our town . And he never shows up for Town Council meetings either
So why does he want to run again ?
To build up his name for something else .
We need a CHANGE -- DAVID HAAS FOR MAYOR !!!

Skibitsky is running and needs to win to keep his name in politics until he can run for Brammy's assembly seat when he seeks Congress.

Karen Egert is a prime reflection of the intelligence of our town! Since her singing career tanked, a useless campaign in a district where gun violence is not an issue is all she has got left to keep herself occupied and in the spotlight.

Karen, please stop attacking those who are true public servants and do not have hidden agendas like you do. It is unflattering to say the least.

David Haas for Mayor. You have my vote and my support. Its time we had a Mayor who represents all of his constituents, not just a few.

I really felt David was a great guy until he started to play partisan politics on the council. It seems as though he now just tries to go against everything the mayor and the rest of the council do just because they have a different affiliation,

I don't have a hidden agenda. My agenda is clear. To do what is best for this town and this country. It's too bad there are people that just have to put others down......
I think our town is better than that

I vote for the person that will represent all Westfielders. Mr Haas you have my vote.

Unfortunately Mr. Haas doesn't represent my point of view and isn't a proven leader like Mayor Andy does.

Ever since the town moved the election for mayor to a non presidential election year, the Republicans have dominated due to decreased voter turnout. After voting for Andy twice I see no reason to vote again for him due to his bucking party tradition and seeking a third term. Westfield needs new leadership. I will be following the campaign of Haas and if I like what I see an hear he will have my vote. Otherwise I will cast a write in honorary vote for Budd Boothe or Richard Bagger.

Mr.M --So working towards reducing gun violence in this country is a useless campaign ? And was the North's campaign for ending slavery a useless campaign as well because there was no slavey in the North?
Is your definition of what has value for the common good and for our society only what is wrapped up in your own little microcosim? That seems quite limited , self involved and lacks the broad perspective of what it means to be a contributing member of society. As an American., I'm working on what we can do better -- and it starts right here at home . In case you haven't noticed. , Westfield doesn't have a fence around it and is part of the country at large . Hmmm.... Mr. M-- are you that short sighted and narrow minded? You can't even leave your name -- but it's easy to attack me isn't it .

The town runs itself. Haas can do just as good a job if not better than Skibitsky. Skibitsky has taken his second term for granted. His ego has grown to overshadow the office of the mayor.

I'm glad I'm annoying you Mr.Rotten . I like to argue my case with relevant and intelligent parallels such as above . I could see why that would annoy someone who can't make their case otherwise . hmmm ... "Mr . Rotten " -- Now that's an interesting and telling screename .....

Karen,

Mike M didn't even use his real email address to sign up for the account. He used mine so needless to say I am not at all impressed. I am the real Mike M, BTW, and I live in Canada. The gentleman that posted the message directed toward you unfortunately does live in your community and sadly for me appears to have the same name as I do.

I don't expect you will see further posts though since I have taken ownership of the account. Unless of course he re-registers using his real email address.

Good luck with your election
Mike M

You can always count on the dems in this town to start the campaign off on a nasty note! Way to go guys!

I am republican and I am tired of Andy's politics. How is it a negative if I choose to vote for Haas?

Mark

Please re-read my post. Someone used my email address to set up an account and posted a reply to Karen. When I realized I took control of the account. The original poster was Mike M from your town. He will be unable to post again unless he uses his own email address

1) Best of luck Dave.....It's time for a change and a Mayor that has the guts to stand up for better gun laws and safer schools. Not signing Bloombergs petition was a mistake- It's a shame the entire town could not vote on that decision- but I guess that is what election day will be all about.

2) Attacking Karen Egert on this board is such an NRA ploy- come on guys- you really have to stoop to this kind of behavior? The woman is taking on a very tough and controversial topic and has the guts to take this leadership. I applaud her hard work and concern for the safety of our children- This is not about the 2nd Ammt. -its just common sense that I believe Thomas Paine would have even supported..

Not signing on is a political ploy by Skibitsky as well. He knows that if he signs on he can kiss his chances of being elected to the NJ Assembly good bye. That's his ultimate goal to reach Trenton and get on the government payroll with benefits for life. He is a political burnout here in Westfield. Time to vote him out.

(formerly the Voice of Reason)I thought this article was about David Haas running for mayor? Seems to me all these attacks are a ploy to distract attention from the real issue. Its time for Mayor Skibitsky to go. And the fact that he refuses to support Mayor Bloomberg's initiative is partisan politics as usual. Let us remind the haters that Its Mayors Against ILLEGAL guns. ILLEGAL GUNS! And yes this issue is important to every family in Westfield. We have had enough! I applaud David Haas for having the courage to support this initiative. We will have a sensible, pragmatic and thoughtful new mayor representing the sentiments of our residents soon.

Ah, the Bloomberg, Mr. You're Too Stupid to Decide Things For Yourself, Petition is a joke. I find it funny that Dave Haas never actually cites a statistic in his rant about why this petition is even relevant or needed. Here is what Haas, Mitch, Karen and rest of the anti-gun people are forgetting or actually deliberately omitting from this entire conversation - what happened in CT is absolutely a tragedy, but it should not be used as a springboard to say we need to ban guns or even certain types of guns and high capacity magazines. You want to blame or demonize something that you can control. The reality is that what you really want to ban is violence in our country which, unfortunately, has NOTHING to do with guns. It's in our nature to be violent. See, people like Haas, Mitch and Karen think that taking away your guns will somehow stop gun violence. It won't. It actually encourages people who are prone to be violent to be more violent. But let's put that argument aside for a second and talk about "assault rifles" - the demonizing name for a semi-automatic rifle. According to FBI stats, In 2011 the total murders from firearms were a little over 8,500. Total rifle deaths (not just semi-automatic rifles) was just a little over 300 or about 3% of ALL murders. Compare that with people killed by hands and feet (twice as many as rifles) and knives (5 times as many as rifles). .....

People killed by medical errors in country totaled about 98,000 deaths (about 12 times the amount of people killed by firearms and nearly 300 times the amount of people killed by all rifles). But you don't see anyone talking about banning knives, hands, feet or doctors because people like Dave and Mitch paint with a broad brush and say, knives good, guns bad. Statistically, guns have prevented somewhere between 800,000 and 2 million crimes every year. The Second Amendment is not there to protect us against criminals. It is there to protect us against tyranny and politicians (the same ones who ask for armed security wherever they go or who carry guns themselves). The focus needs to be changed from gun control to crime control. You want gun control, go and enact the 28th Amendment taking away the rights afforded by the Second Amendment and affirmed over and over again by the US Supreme Court. Seriously, if this is the best issue that all of you can come up with for change in Westfield, you have some serious priority issues. My vote is for Andy.

MoveOn.org alive and well in Karen and Westfield. Karne wants to save the children but supports abortion. Karen and her crew are nothing but left wing hypocrites trying to advance Soros' agenda. Move on already!

Take a look at all the other towns/cities in NJ that have signed on to Bloombergs petitition-
Cranford, Millburn, Scotch Plains, Springfield, - Why is WESTFIELD Missing- I love how the NRA lovers always want to change the focus...how convenient......and "tyranny"- yeah that is a word used today in 2013.....
http://www.mayorsagainstillegalguns.org/html/members/members.shtml#NJ

Let me be clear to all of the people out there that fear "losing their guns". Bloomberg's initiative does not state" everyone give back your weapons". It encourages the passage of the Fix Guns Checks Act which emphasizes universal and comprehensive background checks for all gun purchases. Even 80% of NRA members support universal background checks. Your arguments can never hold up. It is easier to buy a gun than a sudafed in most states which is a disgrace! Stop hiding behind the second amendment. This is not about that!

We need to get the guns off the streets of westfield! I'm scared for the safety of my children!

Union Attorney who goes nameless (wonder why?) -
Check your facts- I voted against bundling the Roof/Turf bond..and sorry you got offended by a typo....and though I was elected- anyone who really knows me can vouch that I am no politician- just someone who speaks their mind- using their own name ...I give credit to Brad and Marci for having the courage to do the same- You should try it sometime...

Vote G.R.I.P.
Get Rid of Incumbent Politicians

Dear Afraid,
Is your screename a hint? It seems you are "afraid " to list your real name.
At least Mitch Slater is man enough to post his true identity.
Mitch Slater is an upstanding member of our Board of Education and our community at large. And he has the courage to come and and speak for his conviction in his own voice , with his own name. That in and of itself speaks for his integrity, unlike some others on this post.
Maybe " Mr. Afraid" is scared.... to man up and come out as a real Westfield person-- if you even exists .

Dear Mr Afraid ,
You are ridiculing any discussion of gun violence as if Westfield exists in a bubble . Did you know that, the Westfield police seized an " Oozie - Machine gun " from a car jacker chased by police in. Westfield on Springfield Ave ? The gunman was finally arrested on Rt22 and in his possession was an Oozie - Machine guns as described by police Dave Wayman . And that's only what was caught . ---This time . Please don't tell me that Westfield is so special that it is immune to illegal guns . After this incident . Mayor Skibitsky has an obligation to join this well respected nationwide organization that educates and informs mayors about this problem . He has an obligation to learn how to get these guns off the streets to protect Westfield residents . We don't have a fence around this town . And Mayors Against Illegal Guns is a network of mayors and law enforcement with a dearth of information to

Dear Mr Afraid ,
You are ridiculing any discussion of gun violence as if Westfield exists in a bubble . Did you know that, the Westfield police seized an " Uzi - Machine gun " from a car jacker chased by police in. Westfield on Springfield Ave ? The gunman was finally arrested on Rt22 and in his possession was an Uzi - Machine guns as described by police Dave Wayman . And that's only what was caught . ---This time . Please don't tell me that Westfield is so special that it is immune to illegal guns . After this incident . Mayor Skibitsky has an obligation to join this well respected nationwide organization that educates and informs mayors about this problem . He has an obligation to learn how to get these guns off the streets to protect Westfield residents . We don't have a fence around this town . And Mayors Against Illegal Guns is a network of mayors and law enforcement with a dearth of information to

Another Distraction Aman77! ATTACK ATTACK ATTACK! Attacking a residents spelling or we should be focussing on medical errors that kill people, or attacking Mitch Slater who is on the Board of education etc. So Karen is not a great speller, but she has guts and heart and feels extraordinary empathy for the victims of gun violence. I certainly don't know how to spell these assault weapons but I can spell DANGEROUS and MURDER. So Karen is getting under your skin. Good! These weapons need to get off of New Jersey streets. And lets not forget the focus of the article we are commenting on. Go David Haas for Mayor!

Another Distraction Aman77! ATTACK ATTACK ATTACK! Attacking a residents spelling or we should be focussing on medical errors that kill people, or attacking Mitch Slater who is on the Board of education etc. So Karen is not a great speller, but she has guts and heart and feels extraordinary empathy for the victims of gun violence. I certainly don't know how to spell these assault weapons but I can spell DANGEROUS and MURDER. So Karen is getting under your skin. Good! These weapons need to get off of New Jersey streets. And lets not forget the focus of the article we are commenting on. Go David Haas for Mayor!

Aman77, this argument again has never been about taking your weapons AWAY! It is so exhausting to fight with mouthpieces of the NRA who by the way can care less about you Aman77, they only care about how much they can double the cost of the AR-15! They only care about money and all of you people think they care about your rights. Well they don't. You are foolish to believe anything else. I am one of the organizers with Karen NJRA and although her spelling is not one of her strengths, she is dedicated and is at least trying to do something about this issue.
We are fluid in this subject but still have a lot to learn. Truth be told, what happened at that Elementary School can happen anywhere even in pristine Westfield. Our society resolves conflict with fighting. Put an automatic weapon in peoples hand, it becomes a mass murder. Aman77, I am sure you can understand where our passion comes from. Those children were scraped off of the floor with shovels. Shovels! We don't stand a chance against assault weapons and assault ammunition. This is not about gun rights and you know that. Its about setting limits on the types of guns that should be allowed in a civil society.

Whoa Aman did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed today?? First of all maybe you should consider anger management, and then come back and really review these comments before you respond. Ask yourself Why you feel the need to attack these woman and our organization for supporting David Haas for Mayor and gun control laws. It's easy to be the angry, nasty guy hiding behind words.

Aman77, selective outrage? You have not walked in my shoes buddy and if you had, you may think very differently about my selective activism. There are too many issues I care deeply about not just "white kids" getting shot. You question our timing? Fine when 20 six years olds get shot up in seconds, black white or otherwise whether it's Chicago or Newtown, it's high time to take our heads out of the sand and say enough! You feel differently, you think it's ok to do nothing, it's your life and your conscience. I know what my responsibility is as a citizen and all your hateful distortions only empower me. So thank you, I am now that much more motivated to get this right. I cannot continue to waste my time responding to you. I have bigger fish to fry.