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Piles And Piles Of Paper Piles

Local Commentaries

Are you drowning in paper like I am? If the computer age was supposed to eliminate paper piles, it’s doing a lousy job. Yes, I know I am supposed to convert all my accounts to paperless – and for the most part, I have. My credit card statements are electronic. The insurance, the bank, gas bill, water bill and township sewer bill all arrive to my inbox monthly. Despite many tries, I have been unable to convince the Pennelec people that this is a convenient idea. When the mail comes each afternoon, a new pile arrives in our mailbox. Occasionally it’s just the newspaper and ...

Randolph board member disappointed in superintendent’s comments

Local Commentaries

I was disappointed that Randolph Central School Superintendent, Kaine Kelly complained about the Amish in our district, about them voting on our budget, May 19th. The Amish Community, in general, are actually reluctant to vote. After receiving Randolph's Budget Newsletter asking for an increase of $2.50 per thousand, clearly, they did the math to realize that equals a 40% tax increase to them! They must have decided to have their voices heard. Randolph's annual tax increase has been staying in the 2-3% increase for many years, which is what New York State recommends school districts to ...

President Trump’s Trip To China

Local Commentaries

We have had a year of confrontations under Donald Trump—the humiliation of the President of Ukraine in the Oval Office, the put-down of the Prime Minister of Canada, threats against our ally Denmark to take over Greenland...I could go on. Thus, it was with a sigh of relief that we watched the unfolding of the President’s recent visit to China. The White House played down having any great expectations about issues like access to rare earth metals, tariff relief, the status of Taiwan, and even of the Iran War—and there were no major breakthroughs announced on these matters. Yet, ...

Is One Person/One Vote Rule In Jeopardy?

Local Commentaries

As the Warren Supreme Court wisely declared in the famous voting rights case Wesberry v. Sanders (1964), which established the One Person/One Vote rule, "the weight and worth of the citizens' votes as nearly as is practicable must be the same.” In other words, the weight and worth of all votes cast in our elections must be, in practice, equal in value. Unwisely, the Roberts Supreme Court has decided all voters and their votes are equal but some voters and their votes ‘may’ be more equal than others. In effect, the Roberts Court turned the One Person/One Vote Rule on its head ...

Action Requires Movement

Local Commentaries

Pablo Picasso once stated that “action is the foundational key to success.” While he likely wasn’t referencing the Second Amendment, his words find a striking parallel in the world of firearms. For the gun enthusiast, “action” refers to the central functional mechanism of a breech-loading gun—the “breech” being the rear end of the barrel where the cartridge is loaded. This mechanism is responsible for the critical movement of loading, locking, firing, extracting, and ejecting cartridges. Because this movement is the heart of the machine, a gun owner must prioritize ...

Wetlands Law Challenge Takes Surprising Turn

Local Commentaries

CHAUTAUQUA LAKE—The court challenge to New York’s wetlands law has taken a surprising, fascinating turn. To understand this, let’s pick up where we left off six weeks ago. That’s when acting state Supreme Court Justice Richard Platkin struck down the New York state Department of Environmental Conservation’s, or DEC’s, wetlands regulations. * * * Such law can be devastating for Chautauqua County, particularly because of the impact on Chautauqua Lake. By increasing controls over what the DEC labels as wetlands, the law can turn Chautauqua Lake into a weed farm, ...