Three years ago Sir Richard Hood showed up in Amherst Town Center a few days before the May 1 Override vote with his Van festooned with posters ripping off the angry yellow jacket design to shout No More teachers, police, or firefighters.
Of course the problem with that hyperbole is it perfectly demonstrates the "fear factor" town officials like to use when strong-arming the taxpayers. Three years ago the Town Manager put five firefighters hired with a Federal Grant on the Override chopping block even though the terms of the grant would have caused much larger repayment to the Feds.
Three years ago I simply chalked up the copycats "sky is falling" rhetoric to the general incompetency of allowing such a naive rookie to take command of the campaign and at that point, in over his head, he simply lost his head.
But now, under new command, they went it did it again. Yikes!
5 comments:
I thought Shaffer already took the firefighters postions off the chopping block. Do you know where we can find the most up to date cut list for the town and for the schools? Just yesterday I heard a confusing conversation about what the override would restore. I think we've all lost track.
You know in my household if I'm having financial problems I don't stop buying food for the refrig or stop buying toothpaste or stop going to the dentist. I hunker down and eliminate the fluff(cable TV, cellphone, internet connection,dining out). I drive my car less and bring my lunches to work. In other words I maintain the essentials and eliminate the non essentials. I also think of ways to increase income by considering a second job or making the one I have more profitable. In essence I manage the money I have. This is the job of a manager. If I poorly manage no amount of money would be enough. I could always spend more than I take in. This has been going on at the Federal, State and local levels and in exactly that order. Unfortunately in order for our managers to get elected(if elected) they have to make promises to just about every special interest groups. Promises they can not keep without going into debt.
I wish *I* had thought of this.
"No More Police" would have gotten probably at least a couple hundred nonchalantly apathetic UMass students to vote against the override.
You folks gotta understand just how nonexistent the relations are between your police and us. And it is that bifircated....
Ed, It's bifurcate. Too bad this comment box won't spell check.
Young Miss Goldstein tells us that if we don't vote for the override, the schools will be "devastated." I'm still trying to find a list showing exactly what will be cut. How am I supposed to make a decision on the override if it's all Chicken Little talk?
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