They don’t like it, but there’s not much they can do about it.
That is the reality facing the town’s Web Site Committee, who are annoyed at Joe Rasberry’s www.oxford-ct.com.
The official town Web site, you see, is www.oxford-ct.gov.
However, up until January 2008, Rasberry’s URL was the town’s official site.
When the local Republican was not re-appointed to the town’s Web Site Committee, Rasberry took his URL with him.
Since then, while the site has kept tons of useful Oxford information online, it also leans heavily toward town Republicans.
Example: On Wednesday, the site’s top story was a picnic to raise money for Republican candidates David Haversat and David Yish.
“This is not Oxford CT’s official web site,” reads a sentence with a font so small it appears somewhat blurry.
Town Attorney Fran Teodesio said Oxford has asked Rasberry to enlarge the sentence.
“The town has asked him to enlarge the print and Rasberry has not done that,” he said. “Now the town has to decide what it is going to do about it.”
Rasberry’s URL is a political site masquerading as the town’s official Web site, according to Herman Schuler, the town’s Economic Development Director.
“This copycat website is hardly in the best interest of the town,” he said.
Rasberry, who has owned the domain since 1997, declined to comment on the charges leveled against him by members of the town’s Web Site Committee, who, by the way, are in constant contact with the town’s attorney regarding the site.
“This is my Web site and the committee is trying to ruin me,” Rasberry said. “They do not like me and I don’t care. I will keep on putting up what I want.”
He then hung up his phone, ending a brief interview with a reporter.
Rasberry is well within his rights, according to Joan Andrews, the director of Legal Affairs for the State Elections Enforcement Commission.
“There are no violations of state election laws if the political ads are attributed to who paid for them,” she said.
According to meeting minutes of the Oxford Web Site Committee, some members are concerned that legions of Web sites still link to Rasberry’s site, still thinking the URL is the “official” town site.
Yahoo, for example, still lists it under “government” in its directory.
The registration data Rasberry entered for the site was last updated in 2008. He describes it as “Oxford CT, Home Page.”
The next line begins “Town of Oxford Connecticut the citizens web site.”
Brett Olbrys, vice chairman of the Web Site Committee, indicated Rasberry simply isn’t playing fair.
Olbrys has a 2008 mission statement he said is from Rasberry. The statement promises to be unbiased when it comes to politics, according to Olbrys.
“Rasberry is duping the public,” he said.
Rasberry has apparently tweaked the town fathers to the point they inserted a rather unusual disclaimer on the official site, apparently prohibiting incoming links to the site, which is impossible to enforce.
Haversat, meanwhile, who is trying to unseat Mary Ann Drayton-Rogers for the First Selectman’s Office, contends information about him on Rasberry’s site was publicly posted on the Republican’s home page.
“If that information is being posted on another site, I have nothing to do with it,” he said.
It should be noted that In addition to Oxford-CT.com, Rasberry also built the Republican’s Web site, according to registration information.
Rasberry is up to his antics again, when will he ever stop? This guy is a nobody and people are paying too much attention to him. He’s as nutty as Augie Palmer, look at his reaction when contacted by this reporter. Rasberry’s only concern, as it says in the article, is to dupe the public into thinking his site is real. The information on that site is as fake as Rasberry’s concerns for the greater good of Oxford.
Why would the Republicans want to have anything to do with Rasberry, especially Haversat? Now that Haversat knows of this site, I wonder if he will tell Rasberry to stop because if he doesn’t, he’s just as guilt as Rasberry. It’s people like Rasberry and Palmer that will cause Haversat to lose.
People, if you ever see Rasberry and his video camera at a town meeting, pay him the attention he deserves, NONE!
Which reporter attempted to interview him? Also, did the city offer to buy the domain?
Mike Russo lied!!! It is quite obvious that Mike Russo is bias to the Democratic Party and will not listen to any arguments which are not in the democratic party interest. It would not surprised me even if Mike Russo finds the way to stop the printing of this comment. Your company and web site newhavenindependent.com needs reporters with fairness and unbiased opinions, not the type of reporters you currently have who twist and warp the facts in one direction. Not the reporters that writes articles to favor the Democratic Party. Not the reporters that distorts the facts and would out right lie to it’s readers.
I’m surprised that Herman Schuler has anything to say at all. He is the biggest screw-up of all time as the Oxford Economic Development Director. Herman is so far up MAD-R a.. it’s a crying shame. I could remember when Herman was packing up his bags because MAD-R won the election. However, MAD-R did not have a plan in place to replace Herman Schular so she hired Herman Schular. Herman, remember about 2.5 years ago you posted your own prices for properties that were not approved by the Board of Selectman. It created big problems for the web site; and poor Mr Rasberry took the heat and blame for it. He covered your stupid mistake. Remember that Screw-up Herman?
I’m not surprised about fat a.. Brett Olbrys and his comments. After all he does possess a belligerent character second only to MAD-R’s. Remember http://www.Oxford-News.com with all it’s lies? That was Brett’s baby. Is it any wonder that MAD-R now has Brett Olbrys as her Web Master for Oxford-CT.Gov? Just take a look at all the political statements being made on “OUR” town’s web site the Oxford-CT.gov favoring statements for MAD-R. That was never done in past administrations. The Town’s web site is supposed to be for the citizens of Oxford, not for political gain by a POLITITIAN. This never was done until MAD-R puts Brett Olbrys in charge of it.
By the way Brett and the rest of you cronies, Oxford-CT.com is a private web site just like http://WhiteHouse.com. Take a look at http://www.Whitehouse.gov and compare it to http://www.Whitehouse.com, is there any differences?
The only person who could know if the Reporter lied is Joe Rasberry himself, so OxfordMan MUST be Joe Rasberry. I’m not surprised Rasberry would write the comments above because ultimately, he is the cause of all of this.
Like Augie, he whines, cries, and blames others without looking in the mirror. If you care to even look at his nonsense, go look at his site now, as I did, and go to the Reader Comments page. See how warped of a person this guy must be. He calls people names, puts upside down photos, accuses people of inappropriate behavior. It’s the ramblings of a madman!
This is exactly the reason why Rasberry, Palmer, and others are a headache to the real Republicans in Oxford. Get rid of these people from the party and maybe we’ll have a chance again!
Hey OxfordMan, I mean Joe Rasberry, nobody wants to hear what you have to say anymore because we can win this without you and your nonsense!
There is a solution to this web site bickering. Shut down the Oxford-CT.Gov, it’s only absorbing tax dollars and lots of it (over $7,500 per year).
The town is not obligated by any law to have a web site. With the way it’s being maintain today it’s far too expensive. It seems the only thing this web committee knows how to do is spend money to have someone else fix their web problems.
If you take a close look at the web site and you’ll see Maryann (Popowski) Drayton-Rogers claiming 120 miles of road repair, when in reality she tried and failed to remove the $250,00 from the budget. There are several other politically motivated articles on Oxford-CT.GOV is politically motivated. It’s a towns web site with lots of useful information but our web committee is promoting the re-election of Maryann (Popowski) Drayton-Rogers with our tax dollars.
Shut the site down.
Mr. Rosemary (OxfordMan), so your solution is to shut down the official website of the town of Oxford, rather then your own? This really shows your intelligence!
All we saw on your website was political attacks, name calling, accusations against the first selectman and economic development director. Now you have removed all of the content, why? If it was ok, why is it no longer there? Why did you remove the attack page against the first selectman? What are you scared of?
Also, I went to the town’s site and fail to see anything remotely political. Instead of making accusations, prove it, link directly to the political content and share it with us.
Also, how do you know it costs $7,500/year, again, prove it. I bet you are all words because you have no substance to yourself!
Being a neutral party, but viewing both websites and reading the posted comments here, it appears like the .com website is only an attack website, but the .gov website is the town’s actual site that provides important information. Today a page was even posted on the .com website that was attacking and in very poor taste. I made a copy of that page and forwarded it to town officials in case they were not aware of what was being said about them and the accusations being made.
OxfordMan’s comments are almost identical to what was posted on the .com website, so it appears that OxfordMan really is Joe Rasberry as claimed in previous comments.
I hope that based on what I have read and viewed, that town officials go after Mr. Rasberry and sue him for the libelous statments and postings he has made and since copies of his website now exist, it doesn’t matter that he deleted the content because he posted it and now a copy exists.
The fake Oxford web site needs to be taken down. This site does nothing to add to the town. All it does it act as a political way for Mr. Palmer and Mr. Rasberry to continue their efforts to make politics in town nasty.
The town needs qualified people to run of office and yet those same people will not run. They do not want to have to be attacked. Folks look at the level of maturity of the fake website administrator. Placing pictures upside down of our current first selectman. This represents a total lack of respect. This is the same administrator who was the poison pen of the Oxford Rag. An appropriate name for the website.
Mr. Rasberry and anyone who thinks this type of behavior is acceptable should not be allowed in any public office in Oxford. Any person who knows that this type of behavior is wrong should no longer associate themselves with this website. Got it Dave?? How to solve the problem. Either change the name or place as requested by the TOWN ATTORNEY add larger language to allow the reader to understand this is a private website. My questions is why is this so hard? Only Joe Knows..
2009-2010 Town Budget, WEBSITE – $4,400, WEB SITE RENEWAL $2,500. Are these cost close enough Brett Olbrys? Compare this to the cost of computers needed by the Oxford Police which Maryann (Popowski) Drayton-Rogers fought tooth and nails to illuminate from the budget.
It seems to me this administration has it’s priorities focus on re-election which is not in the best interest for Oxford.
I’m glad to see the great response on this subject of Oxford-CT.com, keep those comments coming. It’s not only good for this web site but it drives the traffic to Oxford-CT.COM where the truth is being told.
Haversat-Yish in 2009 for Oxford
Take the web site down! Mr. Rasberry was ASKED by the Town Attorney to make the print larger that says “this is not the Town’s official web site” and he hasn’t done it. Why? Why can’t he be forced to take it down? Why can’t he be fined? It is too confusing for honest residents who really want to know about Town stuff. It looks so much like an official Town web site, it is deceiving. When I went on it a year ago to look for the Town Charter I was sent to a page that said “forbidden!” What is that all about? I had to call Town Hall to find out the correct web site. Mr. Rasberry needs to pack up his stuff including his video equipment, his web site and get out of Oxford, he is not wanted here. Oh and please take Mr. Palmer with you!
Oxford does not need a controversial web site during election year. Oxford-CT.GOV promotes the re-election of Maryann (Popowski) Drayton-Rogers. She forgets that the DOT Gov site is suppose to be politically neutral. Oxford-CT.COM will come down when Oxford-CT.GOV becomes neutral again as it was from 1999 to 2007.
Again shut down Oxford-CT.GOV or neutralize it with no political statements.
As the Vice Chairman of the Oxford Website Committee, let me clear up a couple of accusations, but beyond that, I cannot go into more details as there are pending issues that may arise, so this will be my only comment.
The Website Committee has an annual budget of $4,400 (Town Budget – P.19 – under Town Hall) and of that, $925 is the only recurring costs involved. Any other money we spend, up to our $4,400 limit, is to continue to improve the website with newer features and more interactive content for the residents of Oxford. Be on the look-out for some new features and content coming very soon!
If you look at Oxford’s website now as compared to what there was in the past, Oxford now has a site to be proud of, where residents can:
– post events to the Community Calendar
– receive public notices
– access the latest RFP’s and Contracts
– read the latest Economic Development news
– read the latest town news
– search an interactive town map
– access Oxford’s property field cards
– read Oxford’s latest town profile
– access the newest Education information
– search an up-to-date database of local businesses
– get meeting minutes and agendas
– submit questions to Town Hall
– submit photos to be shared in Oxford’s photo albums
– sign up for newsletters & Code Red
– etc…
The Town of Oxford’s website is the face of Oxford, CT to the world. It is where future residents and businesses will visit to find out important information on their potential future home. This is why it is important to have an active, up-to-date, and professionally designed website versus what there was in the past. A lot of effort goes into making sure the content is current, informative, and appropriate for publication. When questions arise about certain types of material that people would like posted to the website, we have gone as far as contacting State of CT officials to determine if the material is appropriate. No material is published to the Town of Oxford website that is partisan to any particular political group in Oxford. The only information published is information related to Oxford and its residents.
Should you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to contact the Oxford Website Committee at webcommittee@oxford-ct.gov.
Brett Olbrys
Oxford Website Committee – Vice Chairman
Personally, I like the new Oxford website much better then the old one. When I want to know what is going on or what Committee’s have been discussing, I can go read their minutes. Anyone who goes to that other site and believes anything that crazy person is saying, is crazy themselves. I feel bad for Mr. Haversat because there is no way I could ever support him with people like Joe Rasberry behind him.
All I know is that if an Attorney asked me to do something as simple as increasing a font on a web site, I would do it. What is the big deal? How long could it take? To Brett and the web site committee, I think the web site looks phenomenal, people are just jealous. The committee has done a great job, keep up the good work. It should be a model for other Towns to strive for! Maybe the Town should start videotaping different meetings. At least we would be able to see the whole meeting and not just bits and pieces that are chosen for the public to view.
The Chief of Oxford Ambulance has been arrested for driving while under the influence of a controlled substance yet he is still driving a vehicle insured by the town. There was a gang style shooting on Roosevelt Drive. Economic development has stalled. Class sizes are once again out of control and you people are making a political issue out of an odd little man and his web site. Give me a break. Both sides have some crazy people who support them. This should not be an issue. Our safety, quality of life, economic viability and children are the issues. See through the smoke screens.
I’ve read these comments and what does this have to do with the Selectmen candidates? So you have a nut running a website who posts upcoming events and speeches. What is Haversat supposed to do about it when the town attorney and the secretary of state and state election boards can’t get it removed? You are attacking candidates on the issue of a website? Just about all these comments on here are insane. You have Citizen1 calling Haversat a kid, the man’s in his 30’s, was elected multiple times in Oxford, served with my father on a town appointed board, is level headed and respectful. Then you have oxford man calling people liars and making statements that make no sense. Get a life and get real people.
Getreal…you are right, Rasberry is a nut, but Rasberry is on the RTC and he runs their website, so if you were Haversat and you didn’t want to be connected to a nut, wouldn’t you tell him to stop? Rasberry is a loose cannon like Palmer and the farther Haversat gets away from them, the better.
The article Mike Russo wrote asks weather or not this is free speech or both? Mr.Rasberry has a right to make whatever statements he might wish to make. However when he makes his statements on a web-site that is meant to make people think they are visiting an official town website that makes a very big difference. People unsuspectingly thinking this is an official Oxford town website would believe that the information Mr. Rasberry is disseminating is officially sanctioned. Therefore it would appear that his statements represent how all of us residents think and/or believe. This is not so. So when Mr. Rasberry’s right to free speech infers that I, or any other resident, feels the same way he does, in my opinion, he has crossed the line.
I also believe that he came very close to libelous behavior in the recent posts that he put on this “fake” web-site. He has since taken them down, which at least shows some sense of propriety his part.
I find it difficult to believe that the Republican party would allow this site to continue functioning as it does. The more notoriety this site gets the more Oxford residents can see just how negative and vicious they (the Republicans) are getting in their attempts to reclaim the first selectman position. Dave Haversat claims he is above all of this behavior.He has yet to prove that to me. If he were truly in control he would ask Mr. Rasberry to act appropriately and with some sense of decorum.
I would like to commend Brett Olbrys for writing and responding to Mr.Rasberry outlandish posts and for the way in which the entire town web-site committee has created a site that all of Oxford residents can point to with pride.
http://www.Oxford-CT.com has been in development since 1997, before Oxford Connecticut had a web site. It’s development and enhancements were made over this period of time. Joe Rsberry is publishing this web site for absolutely no monetary gain and in fact it is being supported with private funding from Joe Rasberry alone. In addition you should know about Joe Rasberry:
* He is not seeking any public office.
* He is not seeking any public appointment.
* He is doing all this work, taking the criticism from the elected powers of Oxford and her followers for the citizens of Oxford
The intent of this web site is to make public of what he sees as poor and questionable public administration which is not in the best interest of Oxford.
Very recently and in the past there is a lot of bad press about this web site http://www.Oxford-CT.com, initiated by the supporters and the current elected and appointed officials of Oxford, Connecticut. There are now in office public officials and appointees that once had a web site called http://www.Oxford-News.com which told outrageous lies and started rumors which got them into the office they are now occupying. They know through their experience what a web site can do for a campaign. That is why they are trying so hard to discredit and shut down Oxford-CT.com. Joe Rasberry is the owner, operator and administrator for http://www.Oxford-CT.com. He refuses to let the current public officials of Oxford, CT or any of the followers of her administration threatened or intimidate him in shutting down this web site.
Any and all political endorsements on this web site are that of Joe Rasberry. The advertisements and any other content contained on this web site are for free of any charges. http://www.oxford-ct.com, like oxford-ct.gov, is another view point of Oxford, CT.
Rasberry…ramblings of a madman!
Palmer = lawsuits from Ann Marie Sagliano, State Police, and Grant Writer
Rasberry = Oxford-CT.com & OxfordRepublicans.com
Haversat = Palmer & Rasberry
Haversat is the wrong choice because look at two of his biggest supporters…two nuts who have been cracked!
Why is that people have to get so nasty? Oxford is a small wonderful community and this should have never become an issue. Nor should we attack each other. We have gone around and around on this blog.. From calling each other names, attacking people in town who have NO connection to this article, to making misstatements about class sizes. This negative atmosphere needs to stop. Try and work with people. Understand that we each have a right to our opinions. But we have no right to attack, hurt or cause damage to the person either by reputation or allegations. I did go to the site today and was happy to see the notice for the picnic removed. Enough is enough. We are neighbors not enemies based upon on political party registration. Many other communities can have disagreements but the negative comments and behavior appears to belong to Oxford. I hope that the site stays unpolitical until after the election. It would be best for both parties and for the ENTIRE community of Oxford.
Shut Down Oxford-CT.gov, it is useless, partisan and bias.
After searching the web for other local towns I came across what could be consider a very good web site, http://www.cityofshelton.org/ It is easy to navigate, has lots of useful information and no political or partisan bull crap. The web committee of Oxford-CT.gov should either take a lesson from it or shut down Oxford-CT.gov.
That is all I have to say other then there is no constructive statements being added to this blog and it’s just not worth the time anymore.
Good Bye