No More Overrides! (click here to save your hard earned dollars)UPDATE: 5:30 PM Where's Mr. Hood when you need him? So I was trying to add a sitemeter to the website and somehow managed to republish a draft version from a month ago. Yikes! Have contacted tech support and our other webmaster, so hopefully it will be restored to the version seen above soon.
UPDATE: Saturday morning: So Ricky Boy Hood, unfortunately a shoe in candidate for School Committee, is reporting over on Catherine Sanderson's blog that A-Rod is having a medical procedure done in Miami (which had originally been planned for mid-to-late April, when of course the weather in Amherst turns rather pleasant.)
Ricky Boy does not explain the sudden change in plans, or why the Superintendent did not think it important enough to let the Regional School Committee know or why officials did not post it on the ARPS website for all to see.
Hmm...so much for "transparency."
ORIGINAL POST:
Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning. Winston Churchill (no relation to Andy)
We don't have a budget problem we have a spending problem. Hey spend all you want, we can always tax the people to pay for it. It's just a cup of coffee, don't ya know. If they would take notice of the fact that Starbucks is not exactly the booming enterprise it once was. People are not buying that cup of joe any more. For you see we brew it at home where it is COST effective.
ReplyDelete-Ryan Willey
Hey Ry,
ReplyDeleteThe Black Sheep will be in trouble without you.
A quick question here, coming into the debate a bit late, I need clarification: is your position for no more overrides, ever? Or just not until unless the state and municipality cleans up their acts?
ReplyDeleteThe latter
ReplyDeleteCan you say "Fck the tax-payer?"
ReplyDeleteI knew you could.
"No relation to Andy"
ReplyDeleteSweet ass slam-a-rama, Larry.
Yeah, strangely enough I don't have tremendous problems with the word fuck--although, like seasoning, it should be used VERY sparingly.
ReplyDeleteI still remember one of my lay (meaning not a priest or nun) freshman teachers at my catholic school explaining that it stood for "Felonious Unlawful Carnal Knowledge" (He got in trouble with the Superintendent/Priest for that little disclosure.)
And that same year I got into a little trouble with my English teacher (a Nun) for doing an Audio Visual report on "The Catcher in the Rye," where I took a slide/photo of the word "Fuck" chalked on the side of the school building with my hand only partially blurring the U.
The no more overrides website presents false information about teacher salaries. I am an Amherst teacher and I do not make in salary what that website reports. I make less.
ReplyDeleteYou may want to investigate this, lk, since as I looked at the site with some colleagues and we noticed that all of our salaries are being misreported.
Someone, somewhere is lying about town employee salaries.
I make about $6,000.00 less than the website is reporting.
Now why would someone want to lie about town employee salaries and make them appear substantially higher than they actually are?
Does the IRS know this?
Stan Gawle got ALL those figures from the TOWN under a Freedom of Information/Public Documents request.
ReplyDeleteTake it up with the town.
I am assuming the amount is before taxes and including all benefits...
ReplyDeleteAnd if an employee or any override supporter wants our sympathy they can post anon and say its all lies.
Of course it's before taxes, BUT does not include benefits.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteI make about $6,000.00 less than the website is reporting.
Sounds like the employee share of the State GIC Family Benefits if you have the expensive plan.
Sure it isn't that? If it is, YOU ARE earning that, and then spending it.
CAVEAT: be careful which line you look at on your W-2, your actual gross is different from either the Fed or State gross (I forget which) because either the retirement or the medicare contribution isn't calculated as TAXABLE income.
The school salaries are "projected" for FY 11, not this year.
ReplyDeleteThe Town salaries are FY 10
Once again I have to say "thank you" for bringing stuff like these salaries to light. You didn't get my child warm water at Wildwood, but you certainly tried. Now seeing these salaries, I'll certainly vote against the override. The 6 figure administrators in Special Ed makes me sick. Especially when the paraprofessionals', actually working with the children, salaries are in the teens.
ReplyDeleteNo More Overides!
ReplyDeleteSend Amherst officials to credit counseling instead. Maybe then we can figure out how to balace a budget, and still keep many of the programs that people want to keep.
As for the teachers wages, Wake up folks you make more money than me and many of the town employees that work full time year round. Please take a sometime and sit down and account for every hour you are actually working, then do the math and I'll bet many of the teachers are making alot more than they think per hour.
Daler
Larry, Stan needs to put up a paypal icon on the site. Can you get the request to him? Got a donation I'd like to make. I'm sure others would like him to do it as well (that is, if he has a paypal account... if not, he needs to get one)...
ReplyDeleteGood God, I'm just sick over those salaries. And they want an override? Time for a reality check.
ReplyDeleteWelllll welllll welllll, no wonder Ron Bohonowicz is such a bad bad man.
ReplyDeletePeter Crouse handles ~ALL~ the transportation work and Doug Pion (bless him) handles ~ALL~ the facilities work and Ronny does what with HIS $95,000 work day?
Hm?
Yeah Amherst, better double check into this ~mistake~.
Seriously. 10 minutes is all it'll take.
Hey everyone: dont believe everything you read. we know who has posted the document but who was the source? has it been fact checked? there are many people who claim to be on the list who are no longer employed. The errors makes one wonder if the list is accurate. I for one would love some confirmation about its authenticity. Until then I'll spare my blood pressure.
ReplyDeleteHey Linda,
ReplyDeleteGO F' yourself, my pay was miscalculated, more than what I actually make...AMIN and OTHERS do not earn/or deserve anywhere near what they are getting! I KNOW I earn what I am getting and SHOULD be getting much more than that, but I am NOT a part of the "AMHERST CLUB".
I am also not afraid of losing my job, actually I welcome a "pink slip" to get out of this corrupt hell!
Hello, it's here....in your face in black and white on paper, documented...
ReplyDeleteAGNES MCCRAVEN= $72,805 for being a "music teacher", did Beethoven teach her????
Karl Richardson=$45,074 for being a ""MAINT/SPEC/SYS", yet doesn't possess a license!
DENISE GREEN = $76,563 for being "psychologist!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My God, are you all that stupid???
Just in case, how about this one:
Leslie Lomasson = Librarian at the Middle school; $63,770!!!!!!!
The new super: AROD makes more than the town manager for Christ sakes, what the F people!!!!! If that's not enough, what about a teacher at ESAH (East Street Amherst High), making $71,805!!!!! Makes me think I should have gone into teaching or music, perhaps "politics" for a career. NO MORE TAXES ON OUR ASSES!
Okay, let's take one giant step backwards folks & take a deep breath. It's starting to feel like a scene out of Frankenstein where the townsfolk are grabbing their pitchforks and preparing to storm the castle to "kill the monster" but one has to ask...who is the monster in this? The teachers? I don't think so. The administrators who negotiated these salaries? Maybe, partially - though I'd be curious to know how these salaries compare to those of other teachers with comparable experience & education in other cities. The unions? Again, maybe partially - they have been slow to keep their expectations in line with current economic realities for sure. I guess my point is that this is a complex problem with more than one "issue" that needs to be addressed. Let's keep our pitchforks in the barn until we've unraveled some of these complexities. And until you've actually stood in front of a classroom filled with bored, apathetic, and disrespectful teens for an entire academic year I would withhold judgment of our teachers.
ReplyDeleteRealist: POKE, POKE POKE, STAB, STAB,STAB.....You must be one of the "BIG" payroll people, to defend the spending that is going one, fearing your job? Pitch fork in hand and able! NO MORE TAXES ON OUR ASSES!
ReplyDelete"Linda L. must be "connected", must have family ties to the system to get the pay/respect she's getting now...eh? Also, must be afraid to defend her high salary with the tax payers of this town!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeletea BIG thank you to Larry, you got the balls man...you really do... you have NEVER backed down.... you keep on going...you STRIVE on giving the "people" a place to vent and express their opinions, without the scare of losing their jobs! I luv ya Larry!
ReplyDeletethe fact REMAINS, CAN ANYOJE IN THIS TOWN, "JUSTIFY" THE AMOUNTS OF SALARY GIVEN TO CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS/POSITIONS AND BACK IT UP?????????????
ReplyDeletei OWN A PLUNGER AND A SNAKE, CAN i GET A CONTRACT WITHOUT A LICENSE AND WORK FOR THE TOWN AND EARN A WHOPPING 24 PLUS THOUSAND??????? SEEMS SOME PEOPLE CAN. ARE YOU WILLING TO PAY EXTRA IN TAXES FOR THIS "FAVORITISM?" NO MORE TAXES PEOPLE...TIME TO WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteanon= amherst non only normals
ReplyDeleteeeewww, lets invite the IRS into this .... yes...there are some small mistakes.... I welcome it...but I have a feeling YOU, Linda L and the rest REALLY DONT WANT IT.... it is your way to throw the topic off...SO so so typical of Amherst! Enjoy your large salaries while you get em!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteHey, Linda L. you said that you "knew" who put up the list...so, who is it? and you also said that don't believe everything on the list, that it may be out dated including people who no longer work there... give us an up dated list...and if you cant, which I assume you not able to do..then please try to disprove the numbers in the list that is on line.....even if it was out dated by a few months, could you still justify a librarian at the middle school making over 63,00? or a music teacher at elementary school making $63,000??? Yes, I understand that you are fighting for your job, trying to keep your job...but "come on ....really...." enough is enough. NO MORE TAXES ON OUR ASSES Perhaps you should plan a trip down to Miami FL and ask AROD for a position with his NEW school. Oh, by the way, I think that is where he is MIA in miami, looking for a new job and interviewing for a new position.....not like Amherst didn't know it
ReplyDeleteWe can only hope!
ReplyDeleteI think if the list is outdated then that's fine, it still shows that there are people that are currently earning to much or were earning to much in the past. This is typical union behavior. The "we deserve it" mentality must end now especially with the automatic COLA program where everyone gets an increase even if they don't if they didn't do squat to earn it. If Amherst can't weed out the bad seeds follow Rhode Island's lead lay everyone off and let them re-apply for there jobs. Then let's see if everyone is happy with there pay. I'm sure we can find plenty of qualified people that would take anyone of our jobs in a heartbeat.
ReplyDeleteDaler
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeletethe person that put up the list is the no overrides website. no?
ReplyDeleteYes indeed.
ReplyDeleteThe salaries were obtained by use of the Public Documents Law and came directly from the town.
why call him Rocky boy? what's your intention?
ReplyDeleteoops.. meant to type why call him ricky boy? what's your intention?
ReplyDeleteHaven't you been following Larry long enough to realize that his ONLY intention is to be provocative? And you know what? ... he wins at it because we all tune in.
ReplyDeleteWow, pretty good for a Cowardly, Anon, Nitwit.
ReplyDeleteAnon 2:24 PM: Let's hope Ricky Boy (I do capitalize as a sign of respect) jumps in here at some point--although over on Catherine Sanderson's blog some Nitwit Anon said to avoid engaging me because it was not a "level playing field."
Hmm, Ricky Boy is a webmaster who makes his living on website development (including a just under $5,000 no bid contract for an Amherst school website last year) but somehow engaging little old me on the dusty streets of the blogosphere at High Noon is unfair to him.
IF, however, he has the balls to jump in you will see the mug shot photo he uses for his comments.
So it was a toss up between "Surfer Boy" and "Ricky Boy."
The reason it is not a level playing field Larry, is that Rick believes in civil discourse and that is not in your repertoire. In other words, his playing field is an elevated one and yours is in the gutter.
ReplyDeleteOh Mr. Blogger. What would Amherst be without you? What indeed.
ReplyDeleteI challenge you (no... not your gloves off at high noon on Main Street) to have and encourage among your "followers" only civil discourse. No name calling. No ridiculing. No emotional BS. Just fact-driven, civil, grown-up discussion. Can you do it? OK... One chance to call me a, what is your phrase?...anon nitwit or something. But after that, 72 hours of civility. If you can do it, there *will* be a prize. The hitch is that you have to lead and the followers have to follow. Ready. Set. Go.
You want civility?
ReplyDelete"On a related note,
Superintendent Hochman and I hired our first shared Town/Schools Facilities Director, Ron
Bohonowicz, who came to us with extensive private sector experience in energy management,
operations, and facilities capital planning.
Submitted by
John P. Musante
Interim Town Manager (April 1 – June 30, 2006)"
Incredibly and unbelievably, the final two candidates for this brand new $95,000 position, were paraded before employees of the Maintenance/Transportation department (yeah, bus and van drivers essentially) as a part of the selection process.
Employees having ZERO experience with such things (or business, for that matter), were told to listen to each candidate's pitch and the one they ~liked~ the most would be hired (based on a majority vote)!!
Yes Amherst, it happened.
Sadly, these employees were not informed the candidate they would be choosing had already agreed, if asked to do so, to outsource/dissolve the transportation department...essentially, at anytime.
Amazingly, a ~very~ short time after coming on board, the new hire got to work looking to do just that, by his own admission before the entire department.
Like sheep to slaughter...
Enjoy your high salaries.
(and NEVER forget what was done to the lunch ladies... EVER)
Was there a savings gained from outsourcing transportation? I'm genuinely curious, because we are supposed to be cost cutting, right? And did there used to be two facilities directors before this "shared" hire? Was the combined savings brought about by this new hire worth the high salary? Was there a net gain or loss? Does anybody know, or care? Or do we just want to point disgruntled fingers?
ReplyDeleteI think "Mr. It's Over" (Anon 5:33 above) is perfectly content with just pointing his bitter, disgruntled finger in the direction of the School Transportation Dept. from whence he was fired last year.
ReplyDeleteYou go, Anon 5:28 pm.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great challenge!
It's been over 12 hours.
It looks like your suggestion is working.
Fred
sorry anon. I meant 5:12 PM
ReplyDelete72 hours of civility?
ReplyDeleteNot a chance.
I am surprised by this list. I thought there would be more people making over 100K. I am actually making more than a lot of people on this list. Although, I don't really feel rich.
ReplyDeleteI really don't have many issues with the posted salary list. I'm sure there is some "dead wood" in there however for the most part people are working for their salary and it would be a shame to lose jobs. There are plenty of other places to cut and raise revenue. The golf course could be leased out. Has Leisure Services been looked at? Are there any non -essentials in the budget? Is there a way to lower energy or materials cost? Is there a way to build the business community? Going to the taxpayer for more and more money is not sustainable.
ReplyDelete