Cuomo has sold out
If there is a governor who has sold out to the 1 percent, it is our very own Andrew Cuomo. He won’t restore taxes for the very rich, giving our greediest citizens another huge tax cut at the expense of everyone else. He says the billionaires will leave the state if we pick on them, even though several studies have shown that this has never been the case in the past. They like their Park Avenue penthouses and thousand dollar lunches too much to move.
Governor 1 Percent has even drawn a parallel between his father’s principled stand against the death penalty and his own “heroic” defense of an embattled minority: billionaire bankers. How about the embattled workers of New York State? For us, the governor slashes pensions, fires teachers, raises tuitions, and busts unions.
For pompous hypocrisy, Governor 1 Percent just can’t be rivaled. The oil giants want to start fracking without environmental oversights to protect our drinking water. Governor 1 Percent is there, protecting another embattled minority, Exxon Mobil and Halliburton. Wall Street barons don’t want a nickel tax on multi-million dollar stock transfers. Governor 1 Percent is there, protecting their obscene profit margins.
When the Albany Common Council passed a resolution supporting the free speech rights of Occupy Albany, and the district attorney refused to prosecute, there was our courageous governor again, sending his state trooper friends to arrest dozens of campers each night.
How long will the 99 percent tolerate this grotesque sellout as governor of New York State?
Fred Nagel
Rhinebeck
Successful benefit for Kenyan kids
The Kodi Kids Benefit, an evening of music to raise school funds for a Kenyan sibling orphans group, has become a yearly fixture in our community. It always takes place right before Thanksgiving, when so many of us take the time to acknowledge our good fortune. Once again, our generous community has come through for the Kodi children. When our music extravaganza began, we had five children in school. As of today, two have graduated and one awaits her national exam results to learn if she too is a graduate, leaving us with two remaining students.
Many people and businesses are part of the children’s school success. Thank you to the performers George DeLeon, K.J. Denhert, Emily Einhorn, Peter Einhorn and Peter Tomlinson, the merchants Adams Fairacre Farms in Kingston, Hannaford in Kingston and Ulster, Hudson Valley Dessert Company, Shop & Stop in New Paltz and Sunflower Natural Foods Market and thanks to the wonderful donors.
Christine Dinsmore
Woodstock
Thankful for the library
I am thankful for the Saugerties Library for a variety of reasons. Not only do I use in the typical way, i.e., checkout books, movies and books on tapes, I have found friends there! I am part of the KnitWits knitting group and we regularly meet there. I belong to a book group and it is so easy to go online to request our next book, and if (when) I owe money on overdue books, I can pay that online as well!
Rita Ford
Saugerties
I am thankful for our beautiful Saugerties Public Library for many reasons. I try to be thankful for life’s many blessings all year round but sometimes life can get in the way. This library, to which I am thankful to be a newly elected board member, provides so many services to the community, especially helping many who find these times economically challenging. It makes reading and books, newspapers, magazines, using computers and the Internet accessible to everyone. It may help a struggling family use the Internet to find a much-needed income in order to survive, put food on the table, pay the bills. All you need is a free library card.
I am thankful for the weekly story times that provide a fun and entertaining way to introduce the adventures that are hiding in a book to small children. They learn their ABCs through fun songs and books. I am thankful that the Saugerties Public Library is still encouraging my children to open a book and read. I am also thankful for the friendly, knowledgeable staff here at our newly remodeled library and look forward to being a part of the team for many years.
Becky Mignano-Campbell
Saugerties
Join the family! 
