Readers’ Column for the week of June 28, 2015

You may call the Owego Pennysaver Readers’ Column at (607) 687-2378 24-hours a day, or e-mail comments to readerscolumn@stny.rr.com. We reserve the right to revise or reject any message.

This is my second request and would greatly appreciate any kind of help: Severely injured, disabled gentleman requests assistance by donation of a wheelchair. If someone has a wheel chair, either push or self propelled mobility scooter with a seat 20-inches or larger, please call (607) 642-9912 and keep trying, there is no message machine. First thing in the morning is best before 8 a.m. or after 6 p.m. in the evening.

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To all the people that voted yes on the Tioga Central School budget, Thank You. Now when I pay my taxes do I bring a check with no money, or my deed to my land?

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Could the family on Rock Street where the creek bed gave way reclaim land by installing piers, stand sluice pipes on end and fill with concrete then abut with caged rock and fill in around the piers. Of course an engineer would be needed.

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Anyone who’s concerned that the airbags in their car could hurt them should be aware they can be turned off. It’s not against the law and all it takes is pulling a fuse.

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I do not think there should be a fourth Cal Harris trial. The cost of the trial was posted in the newspaper. It is too expensive for this small rural county. There is not enough evidence to convict him. It’s time to lay it to rest. If he is guilty he will get what is due to him at judgment day. Let’s not waste taxpayer money any more.

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I’m trying to find the lady about the free flowers, bulbs, lamps and rugs. I’ll help you dig. Call Diane at 657-8495.

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I have a good idea. Why can’t we push the Strawberry Festival on down to the fairgrounds? That area would have more parking spaces.

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Hillary Clinton criticizes hedge fund managers for their huge salaries. Guess what? Hillary’s son in law, Mark, is a, get this, hedge fund manager. Chelsea Clinton and Mark and two representatives from Goldman Saks set up the Hillary inspired hedge fund. What a joke! No wonder 68 percent of Americans think Hillary is a liar. Now Bill says Hillary never even looked at the donors to the obviously corrupt Clinton Foundation, which has funneled money into Chelsea and to the Clinton’s on the side. And this woman wants to be president? Give me a break!

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Thank you to all the people who make the Strawberry Festival such a wonderful affair every year. I have a couple things to say though. I didn’t think it was necessary to have so many policemen walking around to make sure nobody had a drink on the street. It sort of killed the atmosphere a lot in this puritan little village where you can buy drugs anywhere you want, but you can’t have a drink on the street.

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Today is Sunday, June 21, Father’s Day. Happy Father’s Day to all those father’s out there. I know it’s going to be a week late. On Thursday, June 18, around seven, I was at the Coburn Free Library in Owego. I met a woman there. I’m computer illiterate, and a woman came over and said she was computer illiterate too. I want to thank her for coming over and telling me that. It was very kind of her. She was a very nice lady. Thanks again, have a nice day!

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I am not a big fan of Donald Trump but his honest answers to reporter questions are a breath of fresh air. Maybe the Donald will inspire republicans in name only to grow a backbone and take on the national socialist democrats in the upcoming debates. Conservatives and especially this country need a real leader for a change.

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To all the Owego police department lovers, I want to tell you what the Owego police force just did during the Strawberry Festival. The Chief of Police sent a letter to all the restaurants who serve alcoholic beverages and told them the people could not buy their strawberry daiquiris and they could not walk outside their premises, they had to drink them on their premises. This law for the past 25 years has always been waived. As a result many of the clubs who have made thousands of dollars for the charities and the kids around Owego lost money because the people had to stand on the lawn or go inside a room and couldn’t walk around with their daiquiris like they have for the past 25 years. So the Owego police department did a great injustice with all the tickets they gave out for drinking without being on the premises, and the people said they would never be back. A lot of people left early. I don’t know why the police sent out a letter because after the letter was sent, the word was they weren’t going to enforce it – it was just a little warning. For the past 35 years there’s never been a letter or a warning and never has been a problem and everyone’s been happy. You people that love the Owego Police Department, make sure that you vote them in and keep them here to spend that million-dollar budget so that the new officers can write tickets for drinking strawberry daiquiris. That’s just about what this village is.

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Should members of the New York State board of Regents share the experience of Common Core 8th grade ELA and Math exams under the same conditions of public school students? Should members of the New York Assembly who vote for the bundled legislation be removed from office, for failure to uphold the Oath of Office? Read Montgomery V Cuomo court case information from the perspective of the individual and from the employees who determine, inform and evaluate the mental condition of the “individual”.

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I would like to make a comment on this Cal Harris trial. I don’t think the man did it. I think they should start going after the boyfriend or one of the other’s she was seen with on the day she disappeared. Why don’t you guys just leave the family alone and let him get on with his life and let his children just have a good life with their father. Stop bringing it up and let the man have peace.

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Why are we spraying so much defoliant around guardrails, highway markers, railroads and power lines? It is ultimately running into the rivers, streams, and ultimately us. Please stop with the Roundup, etc., you are poisoning us.

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This is a question for you, the Pennysaver. The Spencer woman sentenced for the fire department theft, Jennifer Greer, has a picture in the paper stating her sentencing was in court. My question is why is her picture in the paper, and a man that’s charged with child pornography and convicted of child pornography and sentenced to jail time never put in the paper, or even that he was charged and sent to jail? You had this man’s photo on the front page with his picture when he was charged, but there has never been anything else about his sentencing, and he sits in jail to this day. Who knows when he is getting out, I heard pretty soon. You really should treat everyone fairly. Note from the Editor: I believe the case you are talking about was at the Federal level, versus county. Those records are not as easy to access – even with a FOIL. We will try to gain this information again. We requested it, per your last request, but did not receive a reply. The Grier case was more accessible.

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Do any of the Owego local papers like the Pennysaver or the Courier print any of the property transfers for Tioga County by the month?

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If anyone has any legos, not duplos, that they are willing to donate to a children’s art camp project, please call (607) 481-4160 or (607) 657-2615 and leave a message. I am willing to pick up or you can drop off at the Barbershop at 177 Front St., Owego.

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Last week I put a piece about a pedestrian cross cone put in the middle of Court Street so people would know pedestrians are crossing right there. I don’t know why they can’t have it.

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I’d like to thank Mr. Spoonhower and his crew for the fine job they did in front of my house. I called, and within hours they were there and repaired the road from the washout and are doing a great job!

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My family recently had a disaster and I’d like to thank Catholic Charities for everything they did to help. They were wonderful and they didn’t make me feel bad about getting help. In the future, any donations I have will definitely be going to them. Unfortunately I’ve spent way too many years donating to places that don’t help but I will correct that. I just want to say thank you again to Catholic Charities for all their help.

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Am I the only one who finds the estimated cost of $4,800,000 for Owego’s shared campus for municipal services to be completely outrageous?

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I’d like to send kudos to Jeff Soules and the Village Department of Public Works and all the people that work for him, all four of them. The job they did with four guys and a bunch of temporary people. I continue to see in this column and on Facebook how people are complaining about holes in streets, the pool isn’t open, the street sweeper isn’t doing things the right way. You know what folks? If you want a perfect village you have to pay the price. Jeff’s got four permanent people down there and a bunch of college people, and let’s forget the cemetery, the amount of time it takes and how well that looks. I personally think the fairgrounds and all the parks have looked fabulous this spring and for the holidays, like Memorial Day. Let’s not forget, those guys spent the better part of two weeks trying to get the village cleaned up for Strawberry Fest! So, next time you see those guys maybe you should thank them.

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I was wondering if anyone has a sheet of rubber roofing, 6 feet by 10 feet that you would like to sell. Call Bob at 972-6367.

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Well, he did it again. Obama got his facts wrong. The U.S. is not the only country where incidents like Charleston South Carolina happen. The U.S. ranks 8th, with Australia in first place – a country where owning a gun is illegal.

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John Boehner, you are a disgrace as House Speaker by removing those members from committees who voted against the fast track legislation. Like Obama’s tactics, fall in line or be punished.

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People of Owego. Do you know how close you are to being taken over by Isis? These butchers are at the door. They have tens of thousands of secret hideouts all over the county. These butchers are fully prepared to strike. Note: The Bible says judgment will begin with the church. So churches prepare yourselves to be raided and destroyed. The walls, the seats, the altar will be covered with the blood of the saints. Wake up! Behold your enemy is at the door. Are you prepared to die a horrible death, you, your family, your children, your babies, and your relatives? Your comfortable life will soon be demanded of you. Are you prepared to defend yourselves or are you going to be mowed down even in the churches. It will be worse than what Hitler did to the Jews, God forbid. Pray Christ will come quickly. If not prepare to die.

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After 150 years, St. Patrick School in Owego is closed. Had a faction of the unnecessarily excessive OACSD union compensation gone to St. Patrick it could have remained viable. Property taxes are insidiously damaging. Like high blood pressure they slowly kill. While the closing of St. Patrick cannot be directly attributable to the endlessly growing property tax burden, it did not help. Now like inner New York City, we have less choice while our BOE prioritizes the interests of the OACSD Teacher’s Union. Academic achievement has declined and we have the most expensive teachers in the Southern Tier.

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Have you seen those yarn bombs in front of the courthouse? Here in the Village of Owego, we may not be able to keep our books straight but at least we keep our trees warm.

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With one-third of seniors relying on Social Security for virtually all of their income and an average annual benefit of just $16,000, it is critical that the White House Conference on Aging go beyond a simple discussion of protecting earned benefits. For years, conservatives in Washington have pushed for privatization and other ways to undermine the Social Security system and enrich Wall Street. These include proposals for means testing, reducing the cost-of-living adjustment, and raising the retirement age. But instead of cutting benefits, Americans across political and demographic lines support expanding benefits and paying for it by raising payroll taxes on the wealthiest Americans. Right now, only the first $118,500 of a wage earner’s income is subject to the payroll tax that funds Social Security. If we ask upper-income earners to pay into Social Security at the same rate as the rest of us, we can expand benefits for the majority of Americans while extending the solvency of the program.

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TAA is a bill to provide “assistance” for all the people who are absolutely going to lose their jobs if the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement (TPP) passes. Make sure your congressman (Reed or Hanna) and your U.S. Senators (Schumer and Gillibrand) all know that you say NO to this nasty stuff they’re trying to pull on us. No to TPP and NO To TAA as it comes attached to TPP.

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Right now, Social Security has a $2.8 trillion surplus, can pay out every benefit owed to every eligible American for the next 18 years, and approximately 80 percent of benefits owed after that. All we need to do is ask the wealthy to start paying their fair share and we not only extend the lifespan of the Social Security trust fund, we can increase benefits for the majority of Americans. Tell your Representative (Reed or Hanna) NOT to kill Social Security but to INCREASE the payments. The U.S. can certainly afford it. For most of our elders it’s their ONLY source of income.

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The villages of Owego and Johnson City both recently failed the state audit very miserably. The Mayor of Owego said, “We have already fixed some of the problems.” The Mayor of Johnson City said, “We have already fixed some of the problems.” NEITHER MAYOR mentioned how many problems were fixed and how many have yet to be resolved or the seriousness of the situation. Does that sound familiar and shady? Does to me! There was no mention whether the cash balanced or not.

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Know what ALL the perps involved with these mass murders have in common? The use of mind-altering drugs. Every one of them. So, why are we looking to ban guns from private, law-abiding citizens? Why aren’t we banning mind-altering drugs? Oh, we play the game, but pot is legal in an increasing number of states. There’s no REAL effort at banning mind-altering drugs, more like a casual effort at playing the game. Ban them from manufacture, PERIOD!

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Jean, the reports I got of your sewing work proved right. I will be back. Call Jean at 687-2069.

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Those who think voting at the schools is a devious plot to win a favorable result via teacher votes apparently doesn’t comprehend that the teachers and other school personnel vote where they reside just like in any other election, not where they work.