By DAN VALENTI

PLANET VALENTI News and Commentary

(FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 21, 2011) — Odds and ends must be tied, and corsets of corruption loosened, which is one of the things this web site is all about.

UP ON TRIPLE CREEK — It wouldn’t be Pittsfield, though we write this FAr from that town, if we didn’t mention the triple murders. Checking in with investigators late last night, one had an interesting observation. We quote:

“Think about it,” Det. Tracy said. “Say you want to knock off three guys, a couple of which have been around a little bit. They can handle themselves a little bit. People don’t die easy. You ever try to kill someone? I haven’t, except when I was [in the military]. People fight, kick, claw, scream, do everything they can to stay alive. So if you want to bump off three guys, you make sure you have more than three yourself. And you have a plan.”

In other words, Det. Tracy is saying there’s a conspiracy and there are more than three people involved in the crime. There are likely accessories during and after the fact who are being investigated and who will be charged.

Also, it appears now that a backhoe was used to dig the trench in the Beckett lot where some of the remains were found. Seems that when the operator was digging the trench, he hit a metal object (a water pipe?), making noise that alerted neighbors. One called officials to ask why the town was doing work at an odd hour, and that led to the arrests.

Also, the back hoe: If one was used, you don’t just pull a backhoe out of the sky. You either have to own one, rent one, or borrow one from someone who has access. That limits the universe of how you obtained the device, and it provides possible clues that can be used to implicate others.

LAY OFF BELLA — We agree with those who have posted in defense of Bella Vendetta, the “ex” of the poster child for these murders, whose mug made world news. If, as it appears, she had nothing to do with this case or with Caius, she should be left alone. The fact that she lives an alternate lifestyle shouldn’t enter into the discussion.

Only she knows the full story, and speculations that would invent fictional scenarios simply because of her differences should be relegated to the fiction worst-seller list. We will say that she hasn’t been charged with anything except, in public opinion, a poor choice of companion.

For that matter, we remind everyone that in the eyes of the law, the three suspects named in this crime are innocent. It will be up to DA David Capeless and staff to prove otherwise. THE PLANET wonders, though, how they could ever get a fair trail in Western Massachusetts?

NEWS OF LAWSUIT NEWS TO LEWIS — THE PLANET recently quoted a team insider saying that Bob Seaman, chief investor in the Pittsfield Colonials, was suing Colonials managing partner Buddy Lewis for $900,000. There has been no official word on this, and probably won’t until after the league meetings early in October.

THE PLANET sought Lewis’ comments, and he replied with words to the effect of, “Someone knows something that I don’t.”

We do know that many vendors are still owed money by the team. Whether they will see a dime remains an open question. THE PLANET is out $,1398 and hasn’t seen a whiff of the money. Lewis has made repeated promises that the bills will be paid. If we ever see that dough, we intend to throw a bash with every last dime. We weigh easy in the debt column. Others are owned much more, including, apparently, Mr. Seaman.

EUPHEMISM TO FIGHT DOWNTOWN CRIME — In our discussion with downtown Pittsfield merchants, we talked to more than a half dozen in various lines of business. Our favorite story comes from one who told this tale of Downtown Pittsfield Inc. DTI has a million committees, some that work and others that don’t. Last year, Downtown Pittsfield, which is supported totally by tax dollars, made “an executive decision” to change the name of its “Crime Watch Committee” to the “QuLITY OF LIFE COMMITTEE.”

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. It’s a standing joke with a built-in punch line. The reasoning for this monumental change: The DTI brain trust decided it would “look better for appearances” to take the word “Crime” out of the committee’s name. Typical: Rather than actually doing something about crime, they resort to a head-in-the-sand euphemism. That’s like a mall security cop not having a gun trying to stop a holdup by yelling: “Hey, you. Stop now, of I’ll press the ‘squelch’ button on my walkie-talkie.”

But that’s Pittsfield for you.

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THE PLANET IS OFF TO THE RACES NOW. UNTIL NEXT TIME,

“OPEN THE WINDOW, AUNT MILLIE.”

LOVE TO ALL.