Readers’ Column for the week of Nov. 27, 2016

As the play [Hamilton] ended, the actor who played Aaron Burr, Brandon Victor Dixon, acknowledged that Mr. Pence was in the audience, thanked him for attending and added, “We hope you will hear us out.” “We, sir — we — are the diverse America who are alarmed and anxious that your new administration will not protect us, our planet, our children, our parents, or defend us and uphold our inalienable rights,” he said. “We truly hope that this show has inspired you to uphold our American values and to work on behalf all of us.” Pence was not offended saying “[This is] what freedom sounds like.”

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The first snowstorm of the season proved that once again our Highway Superintendent is not up for the job. While the Villages, County, and State all had their plows out to keep the public safe, the Town roads were left in unsafe conditions Sunday evening and into Monday morning as not a single plow was out from the Town until late Monday morning. Our Town Highway Superintendent abandoned all third shift workers, hospital employees, and our Fire and EMS volunteers. He was simply negligent in his duties. I hope the community remembers this next November during election season. It’s time we hire the right person for the job that will rebuild our failing infrastructure, make long-term improvements to our roads, and to maintain them for our kids and grandkids to use for many years to come.

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For those of you who think the demonstrations against President-Elect Donald Trump and his verbiage and actions are unlawful and a sign of disrespect, maybe those opposed are just learning from Donald’s playbook. In 2012, Trump said, “One of the things you should do in terms of success: If somebody hits you, you’ve got to hit ’em back five times harder than they ever thought possible.” “You’ve got to get even. Get even. And the reason, the reason you do, is so important. The reason you do, you have to do it, because if they do that to you, you have to leave a telltale sign that they just can’t take advantage of you.” Demonstrators – Carry on!

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Very frequently I hear that our Nation was founded on Christian principles. After years of Catholic School my understanding of a Christian is this, “A follower or disciple of Jesus; someone who believes Jesus is the Christ or Messiah. The New Testament mentions that the followers of Jesus were first called Christians within a few years after his death.”

If we are actually a Christian Nation, why are we so full of HATE and GREED! I would suggest that all of you who profess to be Christian to reread the New Testament and heed the words of Jesus Christ who would be extremely disappointed by what we have become. To those of you who dismiss my thoughts and comments because I went to Catholic School – exactly my point! If you are offended by my comments then you are the Christians I am referring to.

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To the 90 year old who believes Trump’s election was one of the worst things that has happened during his lifetime. May I remind you, racism, bigotry, and misogyny was here when Obama took office. In fact, he introduced us to it! If you are looking for intelligence, perhaps in your 90 years, you could have contributed something of intelligence but chose not to except to rant about what the evolution has brought us to. Case in point, since you were here way before many us, I have to assume you know more and have contributed anything but this rant? I was wrong. Buffoonery? A word that sounds like it came from the twenties just like penicillin, which perhaps, at this point, you may need a shot of. We have been trying to save the world, environment and whales, not to mention, babies and the unborn. If I were to choose to save, it would be a life rather than the environment Mr. 90 year old. The only common sense, which has finally hit America is that, all religions, all denominations, all Catholics, Lutherans, Baptists, Evangelists, and the God given rest of them voted with their morally sound hearts and minds. We want our country back, which you and the crazy whiney crybabies took from America. We almost lost everything to the New World Order; the value of our dollar is almost gone thanks to Obama’s deficit. For once, as long as Trump is not assassinated by a democrat, we have in office, come Jan. 20, 2017, the next President of the Untied States – Donald Trump! 

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Every time I wake up in the morning and hear some kind of reference to President Trump, I feel like Bill Murray in Ground Hog Day.

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The Candor person with the tree sign apparently can dish it out but can’t take it. When someone walks in front of his or her house with a sign, they call the police and put pictures on Facebook wanting the guy to get “caught”. “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander”, as the old saying goes. Free speech works both ways. Just deal with it.

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I found a young cat at Lockheed Martin in Owego. She is a tortie with brownish / black and cream coloring and has very distinctive patches of cream color on her nose and tail. She is also wearing a collar. Please contact me if she is your cat and describe the collar she is wearing to confirm she is really the cat you are missing. My number is (607) 972-3741.

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I just wanted to say how happy I am to see that the Catatonk Community Hall has been repaired. I remember going there as a child and my mother working there at election time. It’s been an historic building for as long as I can remember, so as a native of Catatonk I say thank you.

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The front page of the Pennysaver details an Honor Flight for local veterans. Our fathers, uncles, and grandfathers fought in a war against Nazi Germany. We still make a big deal about that. Now watch our homegrown neo-Nazis be allowed into President-elect Trump’s administration. Way to go Trump voters. You were easy rubes.

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In looking at what Trump is assembling for his cabinet and other high positions in government, John Cleese of Monty Python fame made this comment, “It’s like he’s assembling the crew of a pirate ship, not a Presidency.”

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Please put in the seamstress number again, whoever called it in before.

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I was wondering if anyone could respond if Mountain Road or some people call it East Beecher behind the Boys Club is done, if this is how it will be because I think it is still unsafe with the different layers of topping on it. If anybody could respond I would appreciate it. 

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I would like to ask the Owego Apalachin School District if they are going to put any type of reflectors on the new road that you turn in by the bus garage off of Route 96. At night it is very difficult to see the road. It’s dangerous I feel, and I was also wondering if they are going to put more lines on the road from the bridge up by the bus garage to the end of 96 because again, that road at night is very difficult to see. If someone could respond it would be appreciated. In all honestly I would like to propose that the road and 96 could use a stop light there in the morning maybe, and the afternoon when the buses are leaving. 

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Oh the horror of it all! These Democrat paid off, non-working rioters and so called college students are crying over Trump’s triumphant victory. At Cornell they are giving counseling and hot chocolate to soothe their psyches. They are promised safe zones, which they require for their piece of mind. Their Socialist Marxist mindsets are about to be squashed. Go Trump!

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LeBron campaigned for Hillary, and she lost Ohio; Bruce Springsteen played a Pennsylvania concert the eve of Election Day, she lost Pennsylvania. Celebrities don’t carry any weight; let the American people speak for themselves. I’m still gloating and laughing. I voted for Trump.

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The Clean Air Act 111applies to power plants, it does not apply to private property owners who occasionally burn a log or two in their fireplace or wood stove after spending a great deal of time and money relining chimneys and capping them. Surely greasy old burning furnaces used 24/7 are not environmentally friendly. I enjoy coming into Owego and walking around also. I am hoping that and I and my out of town visitors do catch a whiff of wood smoke; that reminds us of many other historic areas and also many events where there is outdoor cooking. I’m jealous and wish I could cozy up to an occasionally well-controlled fire instead of scrubbing oil stains off my walls.

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To those who think of Trump as “the devil himself”, I’ve got news for you. I believe that Hillary would have been the real devil. All her policies in my opinion would have been some hell itself. I am so thankful that Trump won. To the people who were whining about him running, I say get over it and move on!

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I believe we should give Trump a chance to prove himself and I don’t think it’s right that people are calling him the devil. Aren’t you judging as well? You ought to be ashamed of yourselves. Give the guy a chance. Let’s see how it all works. 

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There was an LP record stolen from Chris Peterson’s booth called “Ain’t That A Grand and Glorious Feeling”. The thief stole the record but left the jacket and the sleeve behind. If the person wants that bad enough they should pay the antique center for the record and take the jacket and the sleeve. That would be the honest thing to do. I hope the thief reads this message. 

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Being a graphic artist for over 50 years I totally disagree with the new logo that Owego Free Academy has come up with, or the Owego Apalachin School District. It’s a deadly weapon that they’re displaying. It’s one of the things this nation is against at this point. I can just see headlines when the Owego sports team loses that they fell on their arrowhead or they were impaled on their own arrowhead. As far as the Apalachin part of it goes, I was around in the days when Owego and Apalachin consolidated. Well, Apalachin was more than happy to join up with Owego Free Academy and all of Owego’s present signage, logos and so on. To try to make that a combination thing now is something against what everyone agreed upon years and years ago. Again, a deadly weapon, I think it’s wrong.

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Here are a few quotes for the anti-Trump bible thumper. “He who is without guilt, let him cast the first stone.” Here’s another, “The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits.” 

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I wonder what the 90 year old who wrote in last week thinks about Hillary defending a rapist of a 12 year old girl and then saying the girl asked for it. That is a definition of a misogynist. In about two months I will once again be proud of our country in which the eight years I have not been. Also, hopefully Hillary, Bill and Chelsea will go away and not resurface ever again.

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Here’s a message to Hillary’s supporters. As Nancy Pelosi put so aptly a few years ago, we won, you lost, shut up and sit down!

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I have a question to put forth. I wonder if there would be protest if Hillary won. I think that men who instigate these anti-Bush, anti-Trump protests ought to be arrested along with the other crybabies. 

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I’d like to know why we’ve got two deputies on the Town of Owego Highway. They don’t have a superintendent, I know that. He’s never there to speak of. Maybe the councilman in charge of that could answer that question if he knows. It’s getting a little bit ridiculous. 

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Tioga County and the Village of Owego New York have both passed local ordinances to protect the schools and public buildings by not allowing any weapons, firearms, whatever in those buildings, which I think is a wonderful thing. I’m totally disturbed that the new logo for the school is actually a weapon, an arrowhead, which by today’s comparison would be perhaps an automatic rifle, assault type rife, which would be compared to an arrowhead to the times of the Indians. I think it’s a bad idea. Again, the Tioga County Legislature and the Village Officials who have outlawed weapons in that school as well as other public buildings came up with a bad idea. Again, it’s a sign of a weapon that causes death.

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A Big thank you to the Owego Pennysaver for your delivery over the weekend of Nov. 20. Even though I had to walk through water and snow over a foot deep to get it out of my Pennysaver box, it was well worth it! That has got to be the best largest edition of the Owego Pennysaver that I have read in a long time. A lot of hard work was put into it I’m sure, putting all the articles and pictures together. I want to thank the Pennysaver and have a very Happy Thanksgiving and Christmas!

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Even though I did not vote Clinton or Trump for president, I think it’s funny that the middle class thinks that Trump is going to save them. Get this; he is a billionaire who has never been a middle class citizen. He doesn’t pay Federal taxes. Somehow I don’t think this guy can relate to my struggles or save me.

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Lock him up, lock him up, that’s the chant we’re starting to hear now. Also talk of impeachment and the guy hasn’t even set down in the oval office. He has conflicts of interest you would not believe. He refuses to show his tax returns, he’s meeting with business leaders from around the world, and he wants to capitalize on the presidency as a business venture. Lock him up, lock him up, and impeach the bum before it’s too late.

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Here’s a novel idea for missing cats. Why not keep your cats indoors? I think the term is house cat. They will always be home and safe and not roaming the neighborhood causing destruction and jeopardizing drivers and their passengers. If you love them so much take care of them, keep them home and away from destruction and other peoples property.