SKATE BOARDING & THE NEW SKATEBOARD PARK

Claremont has a new skateboard park and a lot can be said about this. As I am not a skateboarder myself, I can only speak from one who has seen the growth of this activity since its inception in Claremont many years ago. This activity is misunderstood by the majority of adults, not only in Claremont, but in other towns. Most of the opponents of open and free boarding are persons who have forgotten the lessons of childhood, who are afraid of risk-taking in nearly all forms, and who think that the roads and streets only belong to cars. Of course, the roads and streets and highways are becoming less accessible to people in contrast to the days when many of us enjoyed much more personal freedom with out government restrictions. To see this, just look at the old movies of the 20's,3o'40's, and 50's to see what I mean. Later in other comments and blogs, I will give more details for those who wonder what the fuss is all about.

FISKE FREE LIBRARY

The Fiske Free Library, sometimes known as, THE CLAREMONT PUBLIC LIBRARY, has ,at present, an excellent staff and is another focal point of the community always under attack by jFlatlanders and outsiders,who demand a lot more than what is there at times. However, the present building built by Carnegie, has seen many alterations over the years. Originally, the magnificent collection of books that once was there,until the BARBARIANS OF THE '60'S got in there, was at the building that bears its name on Sullivan Street, which also housed, if I am not mistaken, THE GAR, meaning to the iagnoramuses of today: THE GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC!

STEVENS HIGH SCHOOL

Stevens High School has the oldest high school alumni association in the United States, a fact that all the incoming flatlanders, and out- of- towners and education-obsessed parents simply do not appreciate or realize in their zest and zeal to demolish the actual building or re-locate it elsewhere, probably in preference for erecting a huge, monstrosity, like all 'consolidated' and 'regional' schools are: mere warehouses for children and factory lines for 'no pupil left behind' in what can be called, AMERICA'S SACRED COWS! Schools are America's Sacred cows and Compulsory Education is America's Secular RELIGION.

'CITY MANAGERS'

Claremont has had over the years a number of 'city managers' who had come and gone, leaving a lot of things up in the air. Most,if not all of them, have come here merely to pad their resumes and to gain experience in this field of management, usually with little or no real experience and certainly no real ties to Claremont by any stretch of the imagination, except for their pay checks. Aside from this, many of them had 'personal' problems and other 'eccentricities' that sometimes led to their departure, no doubt. You will not, of course, see much of this in the newspaper article that appeared with mention of any of them during their 'reign'. Probably many will not think this a fair or accurate assessment of the many managers whose names escape me at the moment and really do not need any publicity here,especially since they are not on the present scene.

THE EAGLE TIMES, once known as: THE DAILY EAGLE

Although I have lived on and off in Claremont for many years, I do not recall the very first newspaper, but I do recall the Claremont Daily Eagle which metamorphized into THE EAGLE TIMES. Over the years, I have, like so many readers and ex-subscribers, a love-hate relationship with this paper which once had its headquarters right in town,off the square(Tremont, which now has been Christened by well-meaning Flatlanders, as OPERA HOUSE SQUARE, but I much prefer my version which is HORSE OPERA SQUARE! The move from Sullivan St. effectively moved the paper out into the countryside and from the minds of people who might happen to frequent downtown, though many would wonder why anyone would really want to do this! At one time, the building for the paper also had a radio station, WLOB(I think that was it's name) and it was basically FM broadcasting and since I did not have at the time, an FM radio receiver,only AM, I could not hear the one radio program that I wanted: RED RYDER. I think also they had a special Dick Tracy show, different from the 15 min. Monday to Friday serial on AM radio.

CLAREMONT CAPERS

Claremont is a town in New Hampshire 03743 that pretends it is a city.