Readers’ Column for the week of March 28, 2021

The Owego Pennysaver should be placed in nomination for an aspect of the Pulitzer Award for Journalism. Where can you find the sources, factual material, justifiable differences of opinion, enthusiasm and participation in local and national matters? Thank you, Publisher and participants. The results in the Readers Column and Letters speak highly of the interest and commitment to our way of life. Thank you.

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Someone recently posted a complaint about all of the advertising in the TV programs and how much wasted time they take up. My personal solution was to get a Digital Video Recorder. They are only available from your cable company as a rental: you cannot buy one. For me they are well worth the expense. I simply go through the listing of upcoming programs and click on the ones I want to view after they have been recorded. I also add an extra minute at the beginning and end of each program so I will not miss anything, that way I do not miss any programs if they have come on at an inconvenient time. Then when I want to view them I can fast forward through the commercials, saving a lot of personal time. Also, I can replay sections if I want a second look at some parts. So that is my solution to any annoying commercials on TV.

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To the Village of Spencer – they hired an Acting Code Enforcement Officer. What is an Acting Code Enforcement Officer?

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I think the time has come that the Village of Newark Valley starts taking Code Enforcement seriously.

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A big elbow bump to the engineering genius at the Town of Tioga highway department. It probably sounded like a good idea to dig out the ditches of our local roads with a dredging machine with a scoop about 5-feet wide. That really saved a lot of time. Of course, the way it worked was to park the machine on the far side of the road and use the scoop to pull dirt from back to front. This produced a gently sloping far side and a nearly vertical side next to the roadway. What’s the harm in that? The work was done last fall when things were dry. Now that the ground has frozen and thawed a few times, and with the snowmelt and runoff, the edge of the road is crumbling off and falling into the ditch. In some places there is barely a foot between the pavement and the ditch and it is dwindling. That seems pretty safe, doesn’t it? Let’s pray no one swerves a little off the pavement. Not content to leave a bad job half done, the guy doing the scooping dug lower than the bottom of the existing culverts and moved more than 5 feet between scoops, turning the ditch into a series of locks, where the dirt left between the scoops forms dams to hold water. But wait, there’s more. In the process of making the ditch deeper than the culverts under driveways, they completely blocked many of them.

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Counties, to include our own, are forcing children into quarantine. Imagine being a teenager unable to leave the house for 10-plus days. Talk about lack of empathy. Ten days is the typical time for an inmate to spend in the “SHU” as a method of severe punishment, but the county thinks it’s okay for our kids. For the folks responsible for issuing these quarantines to the children, I hope you’re able to put yourself in their shoes and understand the suffering these lockdowns cause. Follow the science. 

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I must say I agree 100% with last week’s Letter to the Editor. I have been saying for years that our country’s decline started when we told God we didn’t need his help because we knew what was best for everyone. Bravo to the writer of last week’s Letter to the Editor. Good job!

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A major law enforcement incident less than two blocks from an elementary school during school hours and no lockdown at the school? Nice, real nice.

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If you’re concerned the COVID vaccines were developed very quickly, several of the vaccines have been being worked on for 10 or more years in anticipation of a COVID illness occurring. Most of the information has been being developed for 10 years and also used some new science to help make it even quicker. Pennysaver staff, it would be very helpful if you could do an article from medical professionals that are not from the area discussing how the vaccines were developed and their history. 

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Thank you so much to the person who found my purse on Southside Drive and turned it into the police department. Thank you so much! 

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Need a knowledgeable tech person to help me with home electronics issues: computer setup, TV streaming, Wi-Fi, etc. Call Mike at 242-7250.

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For free, many VHS tapes that can be taped over. Call 953-9607.

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I just saw the new rules for weddings in New York State. What a joke! If you don’t want to go to a wedding, don’t go. Otherwise back to normal, okay? This has become so politicized and ridiculous that it’s stupid. Open up everything now.

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Many people don’t even think about what they are putting in their body as far as eating, drinking, alcohol, recreational drugs, etc. So what’s the big fuss about getting a vaccine that will save your life, your family, our community and our state? When it’s your turn, please roll up your sleeve and get a vaccine to save all of us.

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If everybody gets vaccinated, then there is less COVID around which makes it much less likely to mutate and turn into another version of itself. So, hurry up and get your shot as soon as you’re eligible and take whatever is offered. This will help prevent or decrease the mutations, because if it’s not there it can’t mutate. 

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I would like to know why we would print an editorial from someone who lives in South New Berlin in The Pennysaver. 

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Enough is enough. COVID is over; our country should be opened up 100%. Let the American people work; $1,400 just doesn’t cut it every few months.

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I must say I agree 100% with last week’s Letter to the Editor. I have been saying for years that our country’s decline started when we told God we didn’t need his help because we knew what was best for everyone. Bravo to the writer of last week’s letter to the editor. Good job!

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A major law enforcement incident less than two blocks from an elementary school during school hours and no lockdown at the school? Nice, real nice.

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If you’re concerned that the COVID vaccines were developed very quickly, several of the vaccines have been being worked on for 10 or more years in anticipation of a COVID illness occurring. Most of the information has been being developed for 10 years and also uses some new science to help make it even quicker. To The Owego Pennysaver staff, it would be very helpful if you could do an article from medical professionals that are not from the area discussing how the vaccines were developed and their history. 

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So do I have this right? The Village of Endicott is turning down a new, locally branded convenience store / dairy / gas station because they happen to sell tobacco products, but New York State is very possibly going to let marihuana be grown in anyone’s home? Just when I thought things couldn’t get any crazier.

National Political Viewpoints

On Jan. 23, I filed my 2020 tax return, in paper form. For me it is a sizable refund. My various sources of income all provided their 1099s and W-2’s by Jan. 20. After two months, the IRS Refund website can’t identify whether they have even received my tax return. This week they now make the excuse that it’s all COVID’s fault. Last week it was not. They are so lazy they won’t even give an estimate of when they will be processed. This is just one of many Federal and State functions that can’t adapt and won’t. While everybody else finds a way, there is no responsibility in government agencies. How many non-governmental entities have failed in their mission / function, except those forced to close? Imagine a world where Cuomo and Biden are responsible for your food, utilities, and air you breathe. Or is it all Trump’s fault? It’s time for Cuomo to take charge of your healthcare.

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Kamala Harris is not Joe Biden’s lapdog. She has not been standing on the sidelines like a lost puppy whenever Biden makes public speeches. She has been working closely with Biden to address the pandemic, boost the failing economy, strengthen voting rights, and she has been appearing with him in meetings to counteract the rampant hate and racism in this country that were fostered by the Trump administration. Harry Truman once famously quipped that the job of the vice president was to “go to weddings and funerals.” But that all changed after Truman succeeded Roosevelt. Today, much of what vice presidents do entails carrying out duties that are not readily visible to the public. For example, the vice president now serves as an advisor to the president, chairs the National Space Council, presides over Senate meetings, and serves as a member of the Cabinet, the National Security Council, the National Economic Council, and most recently Biden’s White House COVID-19 Response Team. Can you name anything of significance that Mike Pence accomplished during the four years he was vice president, besides the disastrous response to the pandemic? No, I can’t either.

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Last week there was a comment that blamed Biden for the increase in gas; you need to read the International news, it’s OPEC that has increased the cost of gas, not Biden. Also, the proposed tax increase that Biden wants is for those earning more then $400,000, so don’t get your panties in a bunch – they can afford to pay more.

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Help me understand; during the COVID-19 pandemic, the governor of each State made the rules that the citizens of that State had to abide by. So why don’t the governors have the same authority to decide how to handle the immigration problems happening within their State? Sounds like another double standard issue.

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“Later that day, former State Senator Frank Artiles, a Republican, asked Alexis Pedro Rodriguez by phone whether he still owned a home in the suburban Miami village of Palmetto Bay. Because in that case, Artiles wanted something else: to put his friend’s property and last name to use in the upcoming election. The incumbent Democrat, State Senator José Javier Rodríguez, was on the ballot. And Artiles, a crafty political operator with a dubious reputation, had a plan: to plant his friend as a candidate and siphon off votes that could defeat José Rodríguez.” Gee, there was election fraud! “How a Sham Candidate Helped Flip a Florida Election.” — New York Times, March 20, 2021

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So, once again, Claudia Tenney has shown her true colors. She has just voted against the “Violence against Women Act.” So Tenney is telling everyone abusing women is just fine! Really Claudia? Remember she was furious that Brindisi voted 90% party line? Well, so far every vote she has cast has been 99% PARTY LINE! What a hypocrite. So far she has told us, in no uncertain terms, that she could care less about any of us. She voted against the stimulus bill, voted against background checks, voted against nearly every environmental regulation that would keep us safe and healthy, and now this. What a useless waste of space, all she is interested in is power, nothing more! Watch her voting record, and VOTE BLUE IN 22!

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The story behind Trump’s attacks on China was his desperate determination to be reelected in 2020. In 2018, the former president placed tariffs on Chinese goods to illustrate his commitment to make the U.S. ‘a much stronger, much richer nation.’ The tariffs led to a trade war with China and, rather than building a much stronger nation, resulted in a dramatic fall in agricultural exports. Agricultural exports to China fell from $15.8 billion in 2017 to $5.9 billion in 2018. To combat the growing unrest in the agricultural regions of the country, where farm bankruptcies grew by nearly 20% in 2019, Trump paid off farmers hurt by the tariff with subsidies, which made up more than one third of U.S. farm income in 2020. In June 2019, he also begged Chinese President Xi Jinping to help him win the 2020 election. He told him that farmers were important to his election prospects, and begged Xi to buy more soybeans and wheat from U.S. Farmers.” — Heather Cox Richardson, March 18, 2021.

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I see that the illegals who just came over the border, are being sent free on airlines and buses all across the United States to be with relatives; and to boot they are given a stipend of 1,100 each. Most of them are boys between the age of 15 and 19. These boys are not being tested, so I hope for God’s sake they do not have COVID. They shut down the control that the border agents had in place, keeping hardened criminals locked up. Now, they are released out into the public instead of sending them back where they came from. A lot of these criminals are committing crimes when they get out and rearrested and released again. It makes no sense. Ford is moving their electric car factory from Ohio to Mexico, and the United Auto Workers Union, who voted for Biden, are ticked about this. I saw Schumer on TV begging companies leaving New York to stay here and not go to Florida.

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During World War II, Japan planned and wanted to invade the West Coast of this country. Their military commander, Yamamoto, stated, “Don’t do it, it will be annihilation of a huge magnitude! The Americans are armed. Behind every blade of grass will be a rifle aimed at you. You will not survive.” They didn’t invade. Fast forward to today, with the Chinese becoming more militant, Iran, North Korea, etc.; is banning firearms REALLY a good idea? I think not, BIG TIME!

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Anyone seeing the recent pictures of the illegal alien facilities at the southern border has GOT to see that this is a “SUPER SPREADER” in action. We, citizens of America, can’t go to ball games, have family gatherings, go to church, or have anywhere near a normal life, but illegal aliens can congregate, no social distancing, no masks, and be released into the U.S. Yeah, right. We need more of that. Makes sense to someone somewhere I guess, but it sure doesn’t make sense to me.

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I watched Walter’s world last night and he said, “It’s all about the money.” Nearly every major business and financial leader in this country is a supporter of the Democratic Party. They love illegal immigration for the simple reason that their livelihoods are subsidized by illegal immigration while the illegal’s them selves are subsidized by the taxpayer. It’s a redistribution scheme from the poor to the rich. More immigration means lower wages for workers and easier access to servants for their decadent personal lives.” If you want a secure border and higher paying jobs for American Citizens and are against Central Americans being trafficking for drug cartels that earn obscene profits from fentanyl distribution, that makes you compassionate! But that’s how the democrats play the game. God Bless America!

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Why are Socialist Democrats unable to foresee the consequences of their actions? Example; notice the price of gasoline and diesel fuel going up? Thank a Democrat. The democrats seem to think they can just increase prices to give them money to play with without realizing people need fuel to get to work, etc., and their income has not increased in proportion to the increases in fuel, food, clothes, etc. What is their problem?

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Vladimir Putin is trolling our president by challenging Joe to a public live debate. Don’t worry; there is no chance Joe will accept. Now we learn that the National Guard stationed in Washington D.C. has no ammo in their weapons and that leaves us perplexed as to their real purpose.

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You had a reader post that if you don’t believe in socialism that you shouldn’t take the rebate and you shouldn’t take the child credit, but it’s the same thing as you send me $10,000 and I’ll send you back a $3.50 check, and don’t cash it because socialism takes 30 to 40% cut out of the money before it gets back to you.

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The Biden buffoonery continues. 200,000 illegal aliens per month are invading our southern border. They are given free airline flights, $1,100 per illegal alien, and free bus rides to cities all over the U.S.A. Biden ordered a shutdown of all communication with even the fake news, and no media coverage of the illegal alien child housing container cages. Peaceful but strong resistance is mandatory at this point. We need new leadership to do just that.

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Trump won by so much that in order to beat him Biden had to have the most votes in history. Just think about that for a second. A basement dwelling man who is in his third try got the most votes in history. Amazing. –Studebaker Hawk

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Democrats are degrading our culture in every way possible. They attack traditional cultural values. They praise perversity, pornography and violence as long as it is liberal based. They are corroding American values by controlling our education system, our religions, the military, and our entire political system. I am afraid we are headed towards a civil war. There is no other solution in sight.

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I’m a democrat, I voted for Joe Biden. I think he’s doing an excellent job even though all you Republicans in Tioga County like to put him down. He’s done more for America in his first four months than Trump as done in four years. He’s taken care of the pandemic as opposed to Trump lying to us about it. He’s trying to stimulate the economy. Yes, he has problems at the border and this is where I disagree with him. He should let the press in. From what I understand he won’t allow the press to see what is going on with the border. To me, that’s un-American. You know, like you Trumpsters. 

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It amazes me how many people out there think the election was rigged. I think you’ve been watching Fox News and scrolling on Facebook too much. You Trumpsters are brainwashed. He’s yesterday’s news. Take down your Christmas decorations and take down your Trump signs. You lose. 

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Joe Biden tripped three times going up the stairs to his plane. Yet you don’t see it on CNN or any of the fake news. Geez, I wonder why. Just like they cover up everything he does. How about covering it, news? 

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The left can put whipped cream on [expletive removed] all they want, but 70 million Americans are outraged about this befouled election. We don’t accept this fraudulent result and none of us are inclined to bury the hatchet with a mob that lied, cheated, burned, and looted to get their way.

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$86 million is being spent to house illegal immigrants in hotels while our national guard is told to sleep in parking ramps on the ground. Do I have that straight? How ridiculous that someone would say things are so much better under Biden. We should be ashamed of treating our national guard that way. 

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I keep reading all these anti socialist republican / fascist comments in the column. I guess all you anti-socialists will be sending your stimulus money back to the government because you don’t want any of that handout free money. Also, I guess you won’t be calling the fire department if you have a fire because that’s socialism. Probably you won’t have to have your mail delivered either.

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These Biden supporting comments make me laugh. Keep them coming, I really enjoy this Pennysaver. Some people out there are just delirious and there’s no convincing them otherwise, but I laughed so hard! Thanks again!

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A-tisket a-tasket, we found a yellow basket, and in it there was $5 billion, so we do not need any more money. How odd! Last week we were in trouble looking where to cut the budget because our gambling dollar income is WAY down this past year. BAH! HUMBUG! 

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Hooray for Florida Governor DeSantis for standing his ground and not allowing “Critical Race Theory” being taught in Florida schools. He wants the basic that we learned in school taught to our kids of today. Such as what makes our country unique, our constitution, and great leaders such as Lincoln, MLK, and Reagan winning the cold war. The Critical race theory teaches our kids to hate our country and each other; it’s divisive and basically an identity politics version of Marxism. DeSantis said it doesn’t belong in the classroom and should not be funded by tax dollars. Why is $4.38 billion of the stimulus being given to illegals that don’t pay taxes? The Biden Administration confirmed yesterday that illegals are not being tested and no court dates are being set up, they are just being released into the U.S.A.