Readers’ Column for the week of July 26, 2026

You may call The Owego Pennysaver Readers’ Column at (607) 687-2434, extension 2, 24 hours a day, or email comments to ReadersOP@gmail.com. We reserve the right to revise or reject any message. Please limit your comments to 100 words or fewer. We will not run comments that cannot be reduced to 100 words.

 

I’m not sure who is responsible for the parking lot in the little plaza across from the fairgrounds, but the blacktop is in bad shape, and something needs to be done about it. I love going there. I do not like my car being damaged there. 

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I was wondering when they are going to repave Route 34 from Waverly to Van Etten. This has to be the worst road in New York State!

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I see that the Owego village clerk treasurer has failed yet another state audit. That’s the bad news. The good news is that they have $3.2 million more than they thought they did!

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It’s interesting to me that the Village of Newark Valley can’t find or has available funds for the skate park repairs and maintenance, but they had no issues coming up with funds for a third full-time office employee. Again, the Village of Newark Valley is back to just being an employer with no action. Just think: if this third office employee had not been hired, approximately $40,000 in benefits and salary would be available for projects. People need to wake up! They are charging us taxes for what? To basically employ people in the village.

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I travel on Ott Road in Candor every day. I was wondering if the Town of Candor is ever going to mow along the edge of the road? The weeds are 6-feet tall.

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Update from Tractor Supply in the Owego area (434). They might be able to open in FEBRUARY 2027, missing the summer/ fall/holiday season AGAIN. “Water issues.” Does ANYONE know what’s with that? It seems other projects along that route have not run into this issue. It’s odd that we don’t seem to get the whole story. New York State was just determined to be the highest-taxed state in the country; Tioga County is of special note for desperately needing jobs. All this certainly doesn’t look encouraging to prospective businesses and employers.

 

National Political Viewpoints

Here we have American soldiers dying for no reason at all in the Middle East because we have a president who started something on a whim and doesn’t know how to end it. And where do you see him today? He’s over watching a soccer game, the World Cup, while our soldiers, our fellow countrymen, are dying. Now how does that look, and what is wrong with our Congress, who doesn’t even admit it’s a war? Come on, people, wake up in this country and get this guy out of here!

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Don’t you love the Republicans’ philosophy on elections? It’s either the Republicans won or the Democrats have cheated. Isn’t that lovely?

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I just want to remind Nick Longworthy that Trump values your loyalty; he will have no loyalty to you. When Lindsay Graham died this week, all he had to say about him is that he didn’t play a great golf game; he called me a lot, and there was that one thing about Jan. 6 when he sounded off that he was all done. So, no matter how loyal you are, no matter how much you praise him, no matter how you do everything he wants, it’s for nothing in your case. 

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Times have changed; the voluminous clause will not let those in Congress get more than a $50 gift from any organization or business. When Jimmy Carter ran for office, he sold his peanut farm because he didn’t want it to look like a conflict of interest. When Michelle Obama became 1st lady, Oprah sent her boxes of clothes. Barack said, “You can’t keep those; you have to return them.” Here’s Trump and the Supreme Court and his family, both hands out taking as much as they can: $400 million dollar airplane, gold statutes, there is no ethics in this group.

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Somebody has to get a hold of Donald Trump to let him know what happens when you attack another country and bomb the crap out of them. They’re going to shoot back. Does he think there’s something wrong with them shooting back? What happens if somebody attacks you? You respond. Iran responded the only way they could. Trump is having a fit about it. What does he think? He can kill without any repercussions or consequences from Iraq? What’s wrong with the guy? He thinks he’s God, that’s the problem. Somebody needs to wake him up!

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“A video has gained attention online that appears to show FIFA President Gianni Infantino attempting to move President Trump away from the Spanish national soccer team so they could lift the World Cup trophy without him. In Trump’s defense, that thing’s solid gold. That’s like trying to move Gollum away from the Ring.” — Seth Meyers

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News reports describe Donald Trump, a capitalist, acquiring over $2 billion while in office in his first year. News reports also describe Zohran Mamdani, the socialist mayor of NYC, refusing an 18% raise given to him by the NYC Council. Yeah, Mr. Mamdani.

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It’s illegal to bring a plant into our country because it might upset the ecosystem, BUT bringing in millions of people is supposed to make it better? — Studebaker Hawk

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I see the new young democrats are attacking successful people as if it hasn’t been done before. This time it’s billionaires. Why? Because many of these leftists come from families with money themselves? There are fewer than 1,000 billionaires in the United States. Taking all of their assets is not going to make any difference. Envy is not going to make your life better; it just makes you more unhappy. Stop attacking successful people and demand that your political leaders institute rules that give you a chance to become successful yourself.

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Upstate New York is irretrievably lost. A recent Press article states that we are now the number one highest-taxed state in the nation, with one category being well over 100% higher than the national average! We are number one in a great many other categories. There are too many to list here, and, unfortunately, none are positive. Yet all we can get running on the Republican side (or even a Democratic challenger) is yet another person from downstate, who knows nothing about the entire state outside of NYC. No wonder so many are fleeing. I would, if I could.

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Climate Change is real. Votes for Trump and the Republicans did nothing to keep Canada from burning again because they canceled environmental protections and pushed fossil fuels. We warned you about Republicans’ “Project 2025,” the danger to immigrants, and Trump’s war-hunger. Beware, because Republicans stir your fears about people, like your grandparents, who’ve strived for a better life. But immigrants AND American citizens are being shot by Trump’s ICE, and our soldiers die in Iran. We are warning you about Trump, ICE, Vance, Stephen Miller, and our current Rep. Langworthy. This is serious. Democracy needs your voice.

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What side of the line is your RAGE? Are you raging that ICE killed another innocent man? (26 years old and a dad to a 3-year old). ICE shot five times into his car window, mistaking him for someone else –oops, sorry. Are you raging that ICE also killed an innocent man in Texas? He had three grown sons and a wife who now just wants his lunchbox back to wash it one more time before she must bury him. Or are you raging that an immigrant might take your job because you believe the Republicans in charge of ICE?

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Donald Trump, the man who destroyed the world.