Enough: No More Cutting the Public Sector in Sullivan County

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"Stimulating meaningful thought & debate in Sullivan County without retribution"  

No More Cutting the Public Sector in Sullivan County

The Resentment of Success, a Growing Problem in Government

by Ruby Pixman

Sullivan County has not been immune from the relentless assaults on its public workforce.

With the election of Ronald Reagan, who declared that government is not the solution, but rather the problem, resentment against those in government service would soon became a national obsession.

Using this Reagan mantra, there's been a relentless set of attacks against effective services that helped the U.S. to maintain its status as a strong and compassionate nation.

Within Reagan's two terms, he and his legislative allies began the first full-scale assault on such formerly untouchable federal programs, such as unemployment benefits, social security disability, food stamps, and even the government's ability to tax corporations and wealthier citizens. 

Reagan became the first president to destroy a labor union, specifically the one representing air traffic controllers who initially supported his election. Their brief strike wasn't even about pay raises, but rather about improving working conditions in order to make air travel safer.

When Reagan departed office, he left his stamp on succeeding administrations, be they Republican or Democratic. 

The G.O.P. used Reagan's popularity to further their openly pro-Big Business, anti-worker agenda, and Democrats lowered their expectations for better wages and benefits in both the public and private sectors. 

As workers rights diminished in the private sector, government employees voted for union representation and struggled to gain many benefits, making public-sector jobs more desirable.

In the meantime, emboldened corporations shipped their manufacturing operations overseas in order to avoid paying U.S.-mandated wages and benefits, resulting in closed U.S. company plants and shrunken union membership. 

Yet in the public sector unions were able to hold their own, if not outright flourish. 

Over the years private-sector worker incomes began to stagnate.  The cost of living rose, but incomes declined.  Many began to believe that workers in the public sector were living high-on-the-hog on the taxes paid by private-sector workers. 

It wasn't long before the idea took hold of doing away with government-sponsored programs and jobs, if only to get back at those piggish public workers. 

Instead of blaming the real culprits, the greedy corporations and their doting, mostly Republican politicos, many cheered on as their programs were either drastically shrunk or eliminated.  "After all," many thought, "if I can't have a decent job with good benefits and pay, why should those damn government workers is so lucky?"

Sullivan County has not been immune from the relentless assaults on its public workforce. 

The previous County Legislature demanded and got union concessions leading to downsizing through attrition, no raises, pay cuts, and layoffs.

The present County Legislature has continued cutting. They have been struggling with trying to deliver on expensive state-mandated programs, while cutting costs and avoiding tax increases. 

Yet the prospect looms that as Big Business continues to consolidate its grip on every aspect of American society, our county legislators will, if they haven't already, eye the next bunch of government workers for the chopping block. 

And the results will be the same: more unemployment, lower quality of government services leading to a much lower standard of living for the vast majority.

The solution lies in recognizing that public workers are like the rest of us. 

They have families to feed, rents to pay, and aspirations for their offspring. 

Their presence makes our lives better.  They and the government are not the problem.  Instead of resenting public workers, we should support them and turn our attention to the real problem causers:  greedy corporations and the politicians they control. 

Once we recognize who are the real sources of our woes, it will become easier to go after them and win!

 

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Is the SC Conservative Party really player in local politics anymore?

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"Stimulating meaningful thought & debate in Sullivan County without retribution"  

Is the SC Conservative Party really a player in local politics?

The truth is that they just an outdated, political paper tiger  

by Abbie Hofferman

Candidates may give lip service to the party, but in actuality, it is a minor, insignificant player in local politics.

 A new election season is approaching in Sullivan County where a number of local officials stand for reelection and many of them will seek to have their names on a number of lines on the ballots.

On the face, the Good Old Boys would want you to think that The NYS Conservative Party is a major player in politics when it comes to giving candidates their line.

For example, recently, the Sullivan County Democrat ran an article “Conservatives' backing coveted” where the reader was left with the impression that all county officials and candidates just can’t win without the Sullivan County Conservative Party’s endorsement.

“From town highway superintendents to supervisors to seeker of county-or even state-offices, everyone wants to be friends with the Sullivan County Conservative Party during election year.”

Poppycock.  The truth is that the Conservative Party’s influence has been declining both statewide and in Sullivan County over the last decade, with less and less voters both registering and voting as conservatives.

In terms of true conservatism, and we are talking Burke, Buckley, Goldwater and Reagan, they don’t even have a clue about how to push a conservative-libertarian agenda that seeks a return to small government, unobtrusive government, and protection of constitutional rights.  And in terms of local issues, have you heard boo recently from the local Conservative party about the terrible SAFE act? About how bad county government functions? About how Sullivan County has become a welfare state?

The Sullivan County Conservative Party is a dying party that cares more to hold a big fundraiser once a year rather than nurture and support truly conservative causes and candidates for office.  Statewide, the party is an obstructionist,  homophobic, anti-abortionist clan that hurts any Republican effort to push back against the overwhelming Democratic dominance in Albany, opposes casino gaming and that fails miserably to effectively push a truly economic conservative agenda in the most liberal state in the nation.

In terms of county government, where once the county chairman of the Conservative Party was a vocal advocate of true small government and wasteful spending, and spent his time attending meetings and berating officials who did not act truly conservative, the Conservative Party now a days is a paper tiger. 

You don’t hear “boo” from County Conservative Party Chairman Steve Burke about how badly dysfunctional our county and town governments are, how high taxes are, how unfriendly the business climate is in Sullivan County, and how actually “liberal” many of the candidates, act that the party endorses in local and state elections. Steve Burke is no Edmund Burke, that’s for sure.

New York State is kind of unique because they don’t have to run just as a Republican or Democrat or just be limited to run on a minor party line alone.

That’s really good for candidates.  It allows people who are diehard Republicans or Democrats to comfortably come off those lines and vote for the candidate of the other major party.

These days, the Conservative Party of Sullivan County is just another line, like the Independence Party, the Green Party, or even the Communist Party.  Votes from their line only matter in very close elections.

So if local candidates attend the yearly fundraiser, like a lot did recently, they may get that line.

Candidates may give lip service to the party, but in actuality, it is a minor, insignificant player in local politics.  

Unlike in the 20th century, most, if not all could get reelected without their support. 

And unlike in the past where leaders were tough advocates of conservative causes and kept on politicians to stick to conservative issues, nowadays, they play the game and keep their mouths shut.

They are much like their arch enemies at the Liberal Party, which, without the Vietnam War and Richard Nixon as issues, has basically kicked the bucket too.

So when you read the headlines proclaiming how significant the Conservative Party is here locally, don’t believe what you are reading, particularly when the paper is named after a liberal political party in the first place.

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The Freedom Associated With Being Insignificant In Sullivan County

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"Stimulating meaningful thought & debate in Sullivan County without retribution"  

Noteworthy Freedom in Country Living: The Advantage of Sullivan County Being Insignificant

We have more freedom because Sullivan County is off the national security radar

by Ruby Pixman

Soon, if the “national security” authorities get their way, in many communities, we may look to the skies and see drones hovering overhead, while trained government snoopers read our every email and review our conduct on our computers and PDAs.

Since that disastrous day “9-11” we've seen a steady stream of legislation and government actions that have been implemented in the name of national security.  They, in turn, have outright laid to waste many of our constitutional rights.

At airports, we have to allow bodily searches.  We have to tolerate surveillance placed at practically every street corner in both the cities and the suburbs.  We condone without question indefinite detention of individuals without their even having been charged with any crime, and without the right to a civilian trial.

Soon, if the “national security” authorities get their way,  in many communities, we may look to the skies and see drones hovering overhead, while trained government snoopers read our every email and review our conduct on our computers and PDAs.

If some of our “patriotic” politicians also get their way, a Great Wall may spread from the eastern to the western side of our border with Mexico in order to keep the illegal immigrant hordes from invading our nation and stealing our jobs.

Thanks to the recent massacre at Sandy Hook, Connecticut, we'll soon have heavily armed cops in our schools.  Children will be handcuffed and led away from their classrooms for shooting others with rubber bands.

How does all this apply to Sullivan County?  Fortunately very little.

Why is that so?  It's not because Sullivan County is far more liberal in its outlook than much of the nation. 

It's because we're insignificant! 

Now, before the reader gets upset with my characterization, let me explain.

Sullivan County is about the size of the State of Rhode Island, yet it has a year-round population of only about 67,000. We are a tiny population spread thin over a lot of acreage.

In other words, to a mostly urbanized nation, we are insignificant.

Thus from a fiscal outlook, we're not worth large expenditures in governmental services and resources that includes the costly security policies that have swept, and largely oppressed, much of the nation.

So by comparison, we in Sullivan County are relatively free.

Crime is relatively light when compared to many other regions.  Despite what some local law enforcement officials claim, there's little here worth stealing or bombing for that matter.

One can roam for miles as I have done in my car without the fear of being stopped for no apparent reason, if only to maintain security.  Foolish or not, I leave my home usually secured lightly because I don't fear much about being robbed.  Maybe it's because I have little to steal, and most professional thieves figure that break-ins at my home are not worth the effort.

Yes, thanks to our lack of population and fiscal insignificance, the State and evil-intentioned individuals leave me alone-resulting in almost total freedom.

We poor rural folk may not count for much when it comes to receiving our share of goods and services.

But one thing should remain clear:  While we may be inconsequential in national security concerns, when it comes to individual liberties here in Sullivan County, we in the post 9-11 world are the most significant of all!

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Fracking in Sullivan County: Let's call it what it is and examine the right issues

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"Stimulating meaningful thought & debate in Sullivan County without retribution"  

Fracking in Sullivan County: Let’s call it what it is and examine the right issues

There is plenty of room for compromise enabling capitalism to flourish, yet still protect our environment 

by Ben Math

Last week, Ruby Pixman wrote an article"Fracking In Sullivan County: Governments Can, And Should Tell You It's Not Acceptable" where he argued that both our country's history and de facto status as a "socialist state" justifies the banning of fracking by local town governments. '

He's wrong. Sullivan County landowners have right to be infuriated about new, developing fracking regulations being promulgated at the town level of government. 

America is unique in the world for one simple reason. Our forefathers attempted to create a system where capitalism and democracy could coexist.

In their humility they began our constitution with the words "We the people, in order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity..."

These courageous men had studied the various forms of government that had existed over the previous millennia and boldly decided America would have a capitalistic economy and a democracy for governance.

They knew it would not be perfect, but it would be more perfect than anything in history. 

Socialism was certainly not what our founders envisioned for their posterity.

The words in the constitution are not put into proper context unless we first read the Declaration of Independence which we should all do at least once a year to remind us from whence we came.

It is the parallels to the conditions identified in our Declaration of Independencethat infuriate Sullivan County land owners regarding Fracking.

Yes, our governments at the town, county, state, and federal levels have many parallels to the King of England in 1776 and Sullivan County residents should be outraged.

That is not to say we should unleash fracking in our farmlands without regard to its potential impact on our neighbors.

But there is plenty of room for compromise enabling capitalism to flourish, yet still protect our environment.

In fact, if we are smart about it we could actually improve the environment and create wealth in Sullivan County at the same time.

That means the rhetoric and misinformation perpetuated by both anti-frackers and pro-frackers must to be totally dismissed and we must turn away from the lobbyists behind those positions.  

For starters perhaps those people out there with No Fracking signs posted all over the county should add a line at the bottom "Support your Foreign Terrorist".

Fracking is a relatively new process and industry is still learning more about it every time they drill another well.

I'm glad there has been as much fracking activity around the US as there has before it turned its eye on Sullivan County. There have been errors in judgment by the fracking industry and the permitting agencies.

History has already shown Fracking if done without proper constraints can seriously impact the environment and individual landowners.

So what will we do within the limits of our democracy to prepare for it so it is mutually beneficial on all fronts?

History has already shown Fracking if done without proper constraints can seriously impact the environment and individual landowners.

However, history has also shown Fracking can be accomplished with only positive impacts on the environment.

Why are some wells a disaster while others a blessing? This is the issue we should be collectively focusing on.

So what will we do within the limits of our democracy to prepare for it so it is promotes the general welfare of the citizens of Sullivan County while preserving or enhancing our environment?

People in Sullivan County are so busy fighting over it they have not spent the time needed to understand what they can gain from it and how they can reasonably regulate it. 

Rest assured, we will not stop it. It’s capitalism in one of its most powerful forms.

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The McDonaldization of Sullivan County

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"Stimulating meaningful thought & debate in Sullivan County without retribution"  

The McDonaldization of Sullivan County: Being late to work for a cheaper cup of coffee: 

It’s worth the extra buck to buy your morning joe & breakfast at a local bakery or diner

by Tommie Jefferson

The other day, a friend of mine was on his way to work, and made his usual stop at McDonald’s in Monticello for a cup of coffee and a breakfast sandwich.  

He had about 20 minutes to spare to get to his job in Liberty in a timely manner.

After getting stuck for 15 minutes in a long line to get his food there, he landed up arriving ten minutes late to work, and got the expected tongue lashing from his pissed off boss,. And it was not the first time this happened either.

He used to go to a local diner every morning and run in for his breakfast roll and coffee, where for years I often met him, but he found a few months ago that he saved two bucks a day getting his coffee and a morning sandwich off the fast food chain’s Dollar Menu. 

Ten bucks a week buys a little more than two gallons of gas these days, and as most of us know, that helps make ends meet here in Sullivan County. And McDonald’s coffee is actually pretty good to boot. 

So despite that his food tasted better and he always got it very quickly at the diner, he made the change.

My friend is not the type to be late for work.

He was taught by his dad long ago, who employed a number of hourly workers in a business and where he first worked and then took over until it closed, that you always tried to arrive at work 15 minutes early to make sure you actually got there on time.  While he now works for someone else, he still prides himself on his individual work ethic.

When my aggravated friend told his boss what happened at McDonald's to explain his lateness, he got this curt reply: “What do you expect?  They don’t give a shit how long you wait, how bad their service is or how crappy and unhealthy their food is.  You should know that. They may say they are cheaper but they really aren’t, and it’s usually not “fast” food too.  And you should be supporting the diners anyway. Jeez, stop being cheap.”

My friend knew he was right, and was pretty upset about the whole thing. 

So he posted a comment on one of his social media sites, and found to his surprise an immediate response from McDonald’s customer service.  He was asked to click a link and fill out a complaint form.  He did so and then received an email from a manager of the Monticello’s McDonalds, about two hours later.

While surprised, and even impressed with the quick response, he asked me: “Do you really think anything will actually change there?”

I told him no.

Our county now has a number of big boxes and fast food establishments that continue to compete against our locally owned restaurants, diners, lumber yards, and other well established entities that have managed to survive.  Some of Sullivan County’s family businesses have been put out of business in the last decade or so because many of us abandoned them for the better prices the national chains charge, even if it only a dollar or two more.

My friend abandoning his egg, ham and cheese on a hard roll at the diner is an example of that. 

And yes, that low balling $1 dollar coffee that McDonald's offers has seriously affected the morning breakfast business of Sullivan County’s eateries.  Many of us have opted to go through a drive thru, even if we have to endure poorly trained employees and inconveniences. As a result, there are more empty stools and booths in local diners in the morning.

We have also lowered our standards as part of this McDonalization. In 2013, our expectations are never high when we go to these national chains. 

The other day, someone posted on the Uncensored Facebook Page about how someone provided them great service at Home Depot in Monticello. They were surprised, even shocked. Even my friend was shocked when he got a response from McDonald’s about his complaint.

That personal service and friendship we take for granted in our locally owned Sullivan County businesses is disappearing in much of our country’s suburbia and cities-and it’s changing America for the worst. 

We need to support that small town, local way of doing business - and stop taking it for granted too.

While most of us like to whine about Sullivan County, one of the best things about living here is that when we go into a locally owned diner or a restaurant, or any other business, we usually know the owner and his/her staff who, for the most part, try to make it a point to provide good service, be friendly, and provide quality items.  They may charge a little more, but they usually have to pay higher costs for goods and also pay higher living wages to experienced, loyal workers too. 

So like my friend found out, you get what pay for.

Next week, on your way to work, make it a point to stop at a local diner and get an egg and cheese on a fresh hard roll and coffee-and don’t stop there.

Make it a point to support our local family businesses, even if it costs a little more.  It will help preserve our nice, mostly unappreciated small town quality of life here in Sullivan County. 

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Fracking In Sullivan County: Governments Can, And Should Tell You It's Not Acceptable

writersworkshopofsullivancounty.blogspot.com "Stimulating meaningful thought & debate in Sullivan County without retribution"   Fracking In The Catskills & Our Socialist American State:  The Government Can't Tell Me What I Can Do with My Land, Or Can They? by Ruby Pixman So, if you think that land ownership automatically allows you to lease to gas companies to conduct fracking on the lawn, YOU'RE WRONG! Awhile back a newspaper reported on a public meeting in a Sullivan County town to discuss whether or not to allow natural gas excavating known as fracking.   Fracking is a very controversial issue here, and in other regions of upstate New York and the US. Upset with an upcoming decision to forbid fracking in the township, one pro-fracking woman defiantly arose stating, "The government has no right to tell me what to do with my land!" The applause was deafening. Sorry to inform you ma'am, but you're wrong-the government tells you what you can and can't do on with your property any day in most anyway.  You can't run a prostitution ring on your land.  You can't grow marijuana.  You can't burn garbage.  You can't build a structure without the government's permission in the form of a permit. If your land is zoned for residential use you can't build a factory.  In fact, you can't even keep your land if you don't pay property taxes to the government. And as recent court rulings confirm, they can also tell you not to frack on your land. So, if you think that land ownership automatically allows you to lease to gas companies to conduct fracking on the lawn, YOU'RE WRONG! That indignant lady, as others, may disparagingly consider this government intrusion in a socialistic sense - and in some instances, they may be correct. Contrary to popular belief, since the founding of the United States, our country has been a largely and lawfully a socialistic society.  For further proof, just refer to the U.S. Constitution. That sacred document starts off with the words, "We the People," probably the shortest, most poignant outline of socialistic ideology.  The Preamble goes on to define the duties of the government, most broadly empowering it to "promote the general welfare,"  a term that has led to the creation of public schools, hospitals, interstate highways, libraries, disease control centers, even baseball stadiums. All of these enterprises are achieved via the consent of the governed, who ultimately pay for them with their payment of taxes. Further evidence of our socialistic state: A sacred national oath recited daily by millions, the Pledge of Allegiance was composed by a socialist, Frances Bellamy- which was purely socialistic in form until the words "Under God" were wrongfully inserted by an act of Congress. Socialism is not anti-American. When someone "accuses" me of being a socialist,  I smile, nod my head, and say, "Yup!"  So, the next time you drive to a public school, use a municipal hospital, buy uncontaminated meats, drink clean reservoir waters, and vote for a town board that prohibits fracking, you're a practicing American socialist too.                                                                         ## Join Our Mailing List! Feedback? Click Here  This Writer's Forum was created to be a forum of free discussion of events and politics in Sullivan County. If you are interested writing in this forum, contact us at sullivancountywritersworkshop@gmail.com.   All identities of authorship will be kept confidential. Click To Sign Up for Sullivan County eNews Roundup