More Letters to our Editor Continued from page 3


More Freedom, Less Regulation We have listened and voted for our political candidates. We the people have chosen by majority vote, free from harassment those who would represent us on a state and federal level. Hopefully, we have gotten the best of the best in these candidates. Are those elected, regardless of political party, going to follow the Constitution and Bill of Rights, of smaller government, fewer taxes, private creation of jobs, and less overkill regulation? (Keep them accountable). Or are they going to give us more bailouts, bigger government, less control over our lives, more nanny regulations, more taxes, more mandates, and less jobs (unless government jobs)? Which may lead to a financial debt and political socialistic controlled government by not listening to the American people?


Dem. Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid says, “It


doesn’t make any difference what the House majority Republicans pass on Obamacare, we will not allow it to pass in the U.S. Senate.” I ask you, just who has bought his vote to exercise such power over the American people? Many believe that major changes should take place to make it a better healthcare bill for all Americans. Not a bill to help destroy free enterprise and the free will in America. Do we really want a true extended takeover and regulation by big government over private and individual control of our personal freedom, more government control, and continued disregard for our Constitution and Bill of Rights, by those politicians who believe in liberal, progressive, and centralized government, redistribution of wealth, and the power over everything Americans aspire from the cradle to the grave? Will our freedom and country be lost to socialism ideas and foreign debt? Encourage your representatives to stand for freedom and vote American.


Ed Brooks - Salem Indentured Servitude?


As gas prices and maintenance expenses rise, so do condominium fees, but this year some residents at King’s Court Condominiums are wondering where their money is going. For those who were fortunate to purchase one of these units 15-plus years ago they knew that their money was well spent. Besides the sweet comfort of an honest community the residents enjoyed a swimming pool, a tennis court, well-maintained lawns, well-plowed parking lots, and safe-conscious hand-shoveled steps and walkways.


Phone calls were returned, problems were fixed, bugs were exterminated, and repairs were made. Management changed hands, the tennis court and pool were removed, and now broken light fixtures are barely visible through the layers of eight- foot icicles clinging to the side of a building. One resident peers out through an ice covered sliding door, unable to open it and unable to see through the moisture from the water leaking in. Another owner in the building laughs as she stands


beside water buckets and trays. “I have to laugh,” she says “ at this point there’s nothing we can do. The repairs need to be made when there isn’t snow and ice.” Since their move into the bottom unit six years ago, these damp residents have learned that all closet items need to be stored in plastic bags year round. “It’s a given that every winter, spring, summer or fall


we’re going to get wet. Whether from broken water pipes, gutter backups, or tub and toilet overflows.” “We make phone calls to the management, expect them to make the repairs, they don’t, so we do. And a few months later something else leaks in. Unlike the previous owners, we can’t be dishonest and sell the unit as it is, we can’t rent it, mold is probably an issue, and we can no longer afford upcoming repairs.” “Before we purchased this unit we were renting that leak!” says the owner as she points to the frozen slider on the second floor.


Her son does a running slide down the walkway. “If we don’t shovel we have ice.” The lawns, parking lots, steps, and walkways are maintained by a company hired by the association known to the frustrated residents as “mow and blow.” “In the spring and fall they blow any and all yard debris at us.” She reveals a rock-chip in the window. “In the winter they come through as fast as they can with their plows and blowers leaving inches of snow to melt and refreeze.” “My husband has been shoveling these walks for


years. The management is obviously not concerned for our safety.”


Looking up at the heavy and potentially deadly icicles, a four-foot pile of hard snow in an overhang, directly above the door, slips closer to the edge. “I imagine the management has either really good


luck or excellent lawyers.” Salem’s Slums? The competency of Sutton Management and the


downfall of the King’s Court Condominium need to be addressed. Nothing (of worth) has been done about the water issues for the sixteen years that we have lived here. This is just the tip of the icicle. I have heard said that Sutton is also managing units in Haverhill, Ma that are even worse. But this goes well beyond a harsh winter. Owners and renters have issues year round. What are residents to do? How are we collectively protected? Where is the money going? May I suggest that the team visit and assess the residence. If you wish, I can easily organize a meeting so that other residents can share their own concerns.


Lori Wyatt - Salem School Spending


While reading your January 28 front page article of restoring budget cuts to the Salem School District I wonder if our local politicians are as out of touch as those in Washington. Do they realize what the homeowners in Salem are struggling with? Gas for commuting is over $3 per gallon and rising. Oil for heating a home is over $3 per gallon.


Property taxes have continued to rise. Let’s be honest, the total cost of living today is on the rise. In addition to unemployment being high, raises in the private sector do not come easily and most retirees (like myself) and Social Security recipients have not received a Cost of Living Adjustment for two years. I have not reviewed the entire budget or read the teachers union contract but I have a couple of comments concerning several issues discussed in the article. First, the school has nine secretaries and not all administrators have one. Is this nine secretaries just for the high school? If it is, I would say nine is too many. Why would each administrator have need of a secretary? Are there more than nine administrators in the High School or is this the entire school district?


Salem Community Patriot February 4, 2011 - 5


Charlie


Outdoors with


Chalk


Hunting Statistics


Second, the position of Dean of Students. This sounds, at best, like a part-time position and the total $104,513 cost to the taxpayers well overpriced, not to mention future raises and benefits. Mr. Delahanty stated in the article that this position was created because of extra administrative work. Then why shouldn’t the work be done by a lower paid administrative assistant? I see this position as an example of a bureaucratic compliance burden placed by an unnecessary law and should not be established. Third are the wage pools. I strongly believe that the best teachers should be rewarded for excellent performance and those not doing the job terminated. However, in this economy why should the taxpayers foot the bill? Why not establish the pool at the beginning of the year with a portion of the employees’ salaries (even the union could chip in) and pay it out at the end of the year based on reasonable and attainable standards. Fourth is a combination of the computers and the $55 million budget. I am a firm believer in automation. When I started working in the 1960s there were only typewriters and secretaries. Often letters and reports would have to be corrected and retyped. When I retired everyone in the office had a computer at their desk. Because of computers the managers would do their reports, evaluations, etc., on the computer, as a result we were able to eliminate three of four secretarial positions. We were also able to eliminate other positions over a


Hunter Demographics – A Closer Look Not surprisingly, the majority of hunters in any state are residents—greater than 80 percent on a national basis. The percent of hunters who are non-residents varies by region—with the West and Southeast regions drawing a higher percentage of non-resident hunters. On average, resident hunters are 41.8 years old. Those hunting in the Northeast are considerably older, on average, than those in the rest of the country. In general, the national hunting base is aging, with fewer young hunters filling the gaps that the older hunters are creating when they no longer hunt. Species Targeted The results also provided information on the species targeted


by hunters, and the overlap between species targeted. Deer were the most targeted species, with 83 percent of hunters purchasing licenses that provided deer privileges. Encouraging deer hunters to take up turkey and waterfowl hunting may be an effective way to increase days afield and help discourage hunters from dropping out. Found: More Hunters! The results found that the pool of American hunters is much larger than previously thought. This discovery, which was funded by the NSSF, could lead to major conservation and economic benefits because if many “casual hunters” (hunters that do not purchase a hunting license every year) can be converted into annual license buyers, contributions to wildlife conservation would increase substantially. The eye-opening report estimates that 21.8 million youth and adult Americans hunted at least once over the past five years.


Charlie Chalk can be reached at outdoorswithcharlie@areanewsgroup.com


period of time. My point ... in the article there is no mention of possible savings to the taxpayers, where is our “bang for the buck?” Mr. Delahanty says these items are critical. How critical are wage pools and positions that never existed before? The article makes it look as if taxpayers could be hit with a $690,000 increase and, thanks to them, it will only be $345,000. As a retired Senior Manager with the Federal Government and someone who had to deal with cutting staff and budget restrictions, I would recommend prioritizing the $55 million budget to find the funding and not placing a heavier burden on the taxpayers of Salem.


Patrick Bick - Salem


DON’T LET THIS HAPPEN TO YOU! 603-883-4683


Let Gray’s Contracting clear your roof every time it snows so you don’t have to!


Roof Shoveling


Roof Dam Removal Ice Build-ups Roof Leaks


•Roofing


•Additions •Painting •Kitchens


•Basements •Siding


•Windows •Garages


•Bathrooms


Ice Dams Cause Leaks, Wall & Ceiling Stains


Over 25 yrs Experience 603-883-4683 www.grayscontracting.com


SNOWBANK REMOVAL


GRAY’S CONTRACTING


Call for SAFE, Professional Roof Shoveling and Emergency Roof/Leak Repairs!


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12