| 作者 |
 "Hope" and "Change" 北京师范大学出来的华人"女市长" |
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The Fifth Season
[博客]
头衔: 海归中将
声望: 博导
加入时间: 2008/09/12
文章: 4241
海归分: 567427
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作者：The Fifth Season 在 海归商务 发贴, 来自【海归网】 http://www.haiguinet.com
网络版 - "北京师范大学出来的华人女市长"
1, Grandfather 是老早海归 ---
2, During the Cultural Revolution：文革惨痛---
3, 老公是 ---“美国穷人？”
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“钻戒是有一颗---“老公呀，你睁开你那雪亮的眼睛看一看吧，穷人是我，外国人亦是我也。”大律师一听，也知道自己说的没边儿了，还把自己到手的新娘得罪了，只好赔礼道歉，两人携手去结婚登记，飞往新加坡。
六个月后，我们在美国中部的圣路易斯市郊区、大律师的家乡办了一个盛大婚礼，---”
http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_5026be180100bvye.html
Montgomery Township, New Jersey
is a Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 17,481. The Census Bureau's 2006 population estimate for Montgomery Township is 23,243, which represents growth of over 140% since the 1990 Census population figure of 9,612.
On January 4, 2007, Cecilia Xie Birge was selected as Mayor by the Montgomery Township Committee, becoming what may be "the first Chinese-American female ...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montgomery_Township,_New_Jersey
新浪博客 - 从留学生到美国市长-谢兰
谢兰，现名Cecilia Xie Birge，于1968年生于北京,出身书香名门，外祖父周培源是中国著名物理学家和教育家，再上世纪---
http://blog.sina.com.cn/mayorbirge
有好奇心的朋友来信问：在美国做市长，好不好做，好不好玩？
要回答这个问题，就要了解中美之间的差别。中国的GDP占世界第三位，已是世界大国，但是中国国内的财富大多集中在大城市里，乡镇的土木基础建设和文化艺术建设都不能和大城市相抗衡，中央政府对大城市的投资也比城乡投资超出很多。
美国却是另外一番景象：美国的财富大多集中在郊区市镇里，不管是东部的纽约，中部的圣路易斯，还是西部的洛杉矶，大城市多是众人工作、娱乐的地方，但是一般的家庭都选择环境优美、学校优良和安全性强的郊区落户，美国人特别重视隐私权(privacy)和个人自由，所以人越少的地方，环境越优美的地方，地产就越贵。联邦政府和州政府对大城市的投资不少，但是地方政府也有权纳税，富裕的乡镇(city, town, borough)一般肯花钱管理市政，保持市容环境，地方政府的政策对市民的生活、治安、教育质量都有直接的影响，所以她的权力也不小。
新州Edison市市长崔建（左）、我、新州西温莎市市长薛信夫（右）
就拿我所管辖的蒙市来说吧，蒙市位于新洲中部，方圆32平方英里（约83平方公里），近2.5万人口，人均收入被美国《新闻周刊》列为全美前五名。蒙市校区质量一流，近年来，SAT分数连年列为全洲第一，因此吸引了不少亚裔。蒙市又是环境保护的先驱，获奖数次，为了保证环境和市民的生活质量，市政厅采取了一系列控制人口增长的政策。现在，全市近40% 以上的土地被市政府购买并保护起来(deed restricted),永远不能再盖房子、发展房地产，我很为之自豪，可以说我们蒙市确实是“山青水秀人才好的地方”。
在美国做市长与中国不同的地方是：美国市长没有油水。中国政府中的工作人员和领导都是公务员，享受国家良好的待遇，这与欧洲的政府结构相近。在美国，各州的情况不同，但是只要是为政府工作，薪水都不会太高，新洲州长的薪水是全美最高之一，也不过十万美金的年薪。除了州长，推选出来的在职行政官 (elected officials)不算是公务员，大多还是免费服务的。就拿本人来说吧，年薪不过5千美金，连上班、出席社会活动时开汽车的油钱都不够，更不要提还常常要捐钱给公益组织或助选。
当官还不能受礼，新洲规定在职行政官若受到25美金以上的礼品，都要上缴或报个人所得税，我很喜欢这条规矩，既然做事就好好做，拿了人家的钱、收了别人的礼，即便是做好事，也是心上有愧，做得不痛快。当然，有法就有人犯法，时不时还是有人按耐不住，滥用实权，因贪污落狱。人不能老是没有钱，很多在职行政官退伍后到私人企业去做顾问，因为他们对政府结构了解，可以使公司避免几步官僚程序，提高效率，所以他们也可以合法获取高薪。
大多中国人对做官不要钱的事很困惑，这主要有两个原因。第一，美国政体系是建立在信任这两个字上的，就连商业体系也如此，一个公司信誉倒了，顾客的信任消失，就没有生意做了。谈到政府，公众信任(public trust)更是至高无上，不能违背的，所以，它有严格的法律条文保证这种公众对政府的信任感。第二，美国人注意培养公益(public service)信念，也就是中国人所说的社会责任或集体主义精神。比如，小孩子从小就有童子军，年纪小的到市政厅学习了解政府结构，年纪大一些的就会到市政厅帮忙找事做，童子军还经常到野外宿营，学习对付野外自然环境。考大学时，如果只是学习成绩好，没有做过公益事业，好大学是不会录取的。经过这样长期的培训，大多美国人都有一种公益信念，成人后，很多人都在自己的教堂、市政厅、居民管理处奉献自己的时间和精力，成为社区的主动军。在市政厅里，每年的义工就有几百人，如果没有他们帮忙，全靠公务员的话，每年的市政税收就不知要增长多少。
另外，美国政府的透明度大，所有的市政会都要在报纸上发布公告，所有的市政会都是公开会，任何一个市民都可以走进市议会，对市政府作出的决定提出批评与建议。当然，没事儿的人不会来，大多数来的人都是带着自己的问题来抱怨的，所以自从上任后，本人也长了些许白头发。
值得一提的是，美国政府和政治是建立在多数民众意见之上的，但是偶尔情况下，多数民众的意见并不见得是正确意见或对社区发展前途有意的意见（比如伊拉克战争），所以有时被内行人(或历史上)认为是优秀的领袖，却不被众民再选回职，这也说明民主不是一个有效率的政治体系，但是确是富有艺术性的。
综上所述，再答朋友的问题：在美做市长，为自己谋利的机会少，不好做；但是为民谋利的权力大，艺术性有强，做起来很上瘾！人的自身价值不是能完全用市场价来衡量的，更重要的是社会价值。
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"I was born during the Cultural Revolution in China, a time when anyone with ties to the West was persecuted. So as the daughter of U.S.-educated parents, and the granddaughter of one of China's leading scientists, my future was not bright. My grandfather had come to the University of Chicago in the 1920s and earned his PhD in Physics before moving on to head a research lab at CalTech,----
http://changeforsomerset.org/2008/04/why-im-running-by-cecilia-xie.html
Education
B.A. in History, Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
B.A. candidate, Beijing Normal University Beijing, China
Tsuda College (one-year exchange program) Tokyo, Japan
http://www.birgegroup.com/
Welcome to my website!
Mission Statement
I am running for Freeholder because an open and competently-managed government is something that every resident of Somerset County has a right to expect. At all levels of government, but at the local and county level in particular, decision-making should be pragmatic -- conducted transparently, with public input and the interests of all residents foremost in mind.
As Mayor of Montgomery Township, my guiding principle has been that good government is not a Democratic or Republican issue, it is a universal one. I believe in:
Sound fiscal policy and control over taxes;
Strict prohibitions on unethical practices, including an outright ban on the practice of ‘pay-to-play’ in government contracting;
Consolidation of services where there are redundancies or inefficiencies in order to save tax dollars;
Protection of our open space to preserve the semi-rural character of many of our communities and to act as a bulwark against sprawl, and
Effective long-term planning to avoid unexpected expenditures and to help ensure more stable tax rate.
These are not partisan goals and ob<x>jectives. As Mayor in Montgomery, I have worked tirelessly with my colleagues from both sides of the aisle on these issues – and together we have achieved much success. We have kept municipal taxes stable over the long term. We have dramatically expanded open-space preservation by leveraging available grant money. We have banned ‘pay-to-play’ to ensure open and fair contracting. We have implemented comprehensive fiscal planning measures so we can better anticipate major capital expenditure requirements out into the future to avoid tax spikes.
Our success in Montgomery has been in striking contrast to the county government where partisanship has reigned supreme. No Democrat has served on the Board of Freeholders in 28 years. During this time Somerset County’s property taxes have risen to 4th highest in the nation. County professionals and senior employees loyal to the Republican-controlled Board have been rewarded with, at times, lavish salary and benefit packages. As one example, the County Administrator now earns more in salary than 49 of the 50 state governors. Recent scandals on the Somerset Parks Commission and a continuing refusal to ban pay-to-play contracting practices are emblematic of a Freeholder Board that has become part of the problem, not the forum for solutions.
Absent bipartisan oversight of the County Government, shady practices and wasteful spending are certain to continue.
As Freeholder, I promise to bring a new degree of openness to our county government. Clean and effective government is not a partisan issue, but after a generation of sclerotic one-party rule, Somerset County needs new and independent voices on its governing board. Having successfully worked across the aisle at the local level on issues that all residents can stand behind I am confident that with your support we can solve even the toughest issues before us.
Together we can restore trust in County Government.
Respectfully yours,
Cecilia Xie Birge
Somerset County Freeholder Candidate '08
To learn more about me and my background, please take your time and browse the other content posted in this website. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact me by [email protected]
作者：The Fifth Season 在 海归商务 发贴, 来自【海归网】 http://www.haiguinet.com
上一次由The Fifth Season于2009-3-27 周五, 05:16修改，总共修改了9次
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 "Hope" and "Change" 北京师范大学出来的华人"女市长" -- The Fifth Season - (8927 Byte) 2009-3-24 周二, 12:31 (2775 reads)
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