Everybody's Column
Let’s be a little neater at Turkey Trot party
With Thanksgiving approaching, I wait in anticipation for the Turkey Trot. It is yet another unique Buffalo event that brings enthusiastic people together to celebrate the day—sort of like a huge family gathering before the real thing takes place in our own homes. It is a well-organized race with great support, and I’m glad to make my contribution to the YMCA. (Updated: 11/20/09 6:49 AM )
We can’t be complacent in the war against terror
Oct. 25 was the 65th anniversary of the battle of Samar. Taffy 3, a small group of destroyers and escort carriers, was thrust into a David-and-Goliath battle against a superior Japanese naval force, including the battleship Yamamoto. The sailors and Marines of Taffy 3 didn’t have the defeatist attitude that many Americans have today toward the war in Afghanistan. (Updated: 11/20/09 6:49 AM )
Seniors being gouged by health care industry
My wife and I left a company “partial-sponsored” plan (passed along from the original employer) to join individual 2009 Medicare Advantage plans having much lower premiums and fair (but poorer) benefits. (Updated: 11/20/09 6:49 AM )
Israel’s enemies have no interest in peace
A recent letter castigated Israeli settlements as an important obstacle to Middle East peace. Yet from 1948 to 1967 there were no settlements, and Israel could not find a neighboring country willing to make peace. Since the Six-Day War in 1967, Israel has consistently maintained a policy of being willing to move or dismantle most settlements in the cause of peace. For example, Israel removed all settlements in the Sinai Peninsula to make peace with Egypt. Similarly, Israel withdrew from all settlements in 2005 when leaving Gaza. During 2000, Israel offered to leave upward of 95 percent of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in return for peace with the Palestinians. (Updated: 11/20/09 6:49 AM )
There’s no justification for the murder of Tiller
In response to the article, “Suspect admits killing abortion provider,” we finally get a glimpse of what went through Scott Roeder’s mind when he chose to kill Dr. George Tiller back in May while he attended church in Kansas. Aside from the complexity of this issue as a whole, it perplexes me to think that he believes killing this man was, as he said, “justified.” I am certainly not in favor of abortion at all, but as I sit in church and think of this tragedy, and as locals bring back the memory of Amherst doctor Barnett Slepian, it is quite unsettling. (Updated: 11/20/09 6:49 AM )
It’s too bad state nixed new license plate plan
While others exult, I’m dismayed that New York drivers won’t be issued long-overdue replacement license plates. It’s been more than a decade since the state issued new license plates. Mine are a mess, as are the plates on many of the cars I see. I was eagerly looking forward to new ones next spring. (Updated: 11/20/09 6:49 AM )
Attica police headed down dangerous path
As reported in a recent front-page story in The News, “The informant said he never will view police again in the same light.” The informant, a young man, a college student from Attica, with no history of having any involvement with drug-related activities, was pulled over on a traffic violation by an Attica police officer and then subsequently coerced by the officer to seek out local drug traffickers and set up a buy. In exchange, the officer would see to it that the young man’s traffic ticket problem “goes away.” (Updated: 11/19/09 7:06 AM )
Find a bigger venue for Turkey Trot party
My friends and I have either participated in or attended the Western New York Turkey Trot for more than 20 years. The run and post-race party are super, although the party the last two years was extremely disappointing. Last year was the finishing touch. The music was so annoyingly loud it was painful to the ears. (Updated: 11/19/09 7:06 AM )
Hotelier should have been jailed years ago
I am deeply troubled to learn of the seemingly never-ending controversy surrounding James Cosentino and his failure to remit taxes that his companies collected from his hotel guests. For more than 16 years, Cosentino has owed upward of $600,000 to a financially strapped Erie County. A proposed settlement agreement has him saving more than $100,000 to close the matter. County Attorney Cheryl Green categorizes the settlement as a “pretty good deal.” (Updated: 11/19/09 7:06 AM )
State desperately needs to cut spending, taxes
Gov. David Paterson was interviewed on WBEN the other morning and it was amazing the things he brought out unknown to most New Yorkers. To quote him, “47 percent of taxes used for education are administrative costs.” Yet from the commercials attacking educational cuts to the budget, we hear another take: “It’s for the children.” (Updated: 11/19/09 7:06 AM )
Let county caseworkers pay for own cell phones
In the letter to Everybody’s Column about cell phones for county caseworkers, the writer stated that she did not think the county executive would walk in those neighborhoods and that he would not want his family to walk in those neighborhoods. Chris Collins did not apply for and take the job of a county caseworker, she did. (Updated: 11/19/09 7:06 AM )
Keillor is on right track with comments on city
In his syndicated column on Nov. 10, “How to pass health care reform,” Garrison Keillor wrote: “And then there is Washington. I maintain that Congress would do better work if it moved to Buffalo, N. Y., and the honorables had to experience blizzards and snow-shoveling and cold weather, which stimulate intelligence— SAT scores rise as you approach the Canadian border. Nothing in the U. S. Constitution says that Congress could not convene in Buffalo. . . .” (Updated: 11/19/09 7:06 AM )
President must make tough decisions now
Our U. S. representatives and senators need to set some priorities: (Updated: 11/19/09 7:06 AM )
Paterson is the only one who’s acting like an adult
To start with, I was not a fan of Gov. David Paterson. To make matters worse, I am a member of the GOP. However, it is sad to say that of the “three men in a room,” Paterson is the only adult. Right now I would vote for him. (Updated: 11/19/09 7:06 AM )
Voters need to hold officials accountable
New York State is running out of money, and it’s suddenly a crisis. No one saw it coming—not the unions with their bloated benefits; nor the politicians shedding massive amounts of pork, but not their payroll numbers; nor voters who have it within their power to scan a circle and make a difference. No one. (Updated: 11/18/09 7:28 AM )