Point of view | Susanrachel Condon
Reproductive health services
In the last decade or so, pundits and politicians who do not understand the complexity of women’s health care have oversimplified and loudly opined about reproductive health services in the public domain. As a result of politicians’ posturing and rampant disinformation, three things have happened:
1) Abortion care banned or severely restricted in 22 states:
a. Each state restricting abortion has its own gestational age limits, exceptions and restrictions. Some states criminalize giving a pregnant stranger, friend or loved one funds or a ride across states lines to obtain abortion care. Due to the vast array of restrictions, confusion abounds; and clinicians who fear losing their licenses and/or being convicted of a crime for providing health care within their scope of practice have withheld such care — to disastrous effect. What politicians do not seem to understand is that sometimes “abortion” procedures are medically necessary, as in the recent tragic case of Amber Thurman, a mother in Georgia, who died of sepsis after being denied the care she needed even after her pregnancy was no longer viable. It can be difficult for clinicians to discern how to proceed when the law is breathing down their necks. People of childbearing age seeking care for miscarriage may need the same procedures and medications to save their lives as those used to perform elective abortions. When care is withheld, people may hemorrhage, become septic or lose their reproductive capacity. Louisiana recently reclassified the drug misoprostol as a controlled substance. In addition to being used in medication abortion, this drug is widely used to prevent severe complications and death due to hemorrhage after childbirth. Further, politicians are making preposterous, irrational claims that disinform the public — for instance that clinicians are executing newborns at delivery. This is absurd and these lies are dangerous.
2) Mothers and babies are dying.
a. States that ban or restrict abortion also have the worst outcomes for maternal and neonatal morbidity (injury) and mortality (death) — particular for people of color. Maternal mortality is higher in states that restrict abortion; and many of those same states have fewer policies that support families and children — such as Medicaid expansion and paid family leave. Paradoxically, the states that have restricted access to safe and legal abortion have made it harder for families to raise children.
b. Since restrictive abortion bans will result in continuing pregnancies involving genetic and developmental conditions that are not compatible with life, more babies without a chance at survival are being born and then dying. Carrying a pregnancy to term increases health risk for patients, to say nothing of the heartbreak of carrying one’s wanted baby and helplessly watching that baby die.
3) Decreased access to comprehensive women’s health care
a. Women’s health clinics provide cancer screenings and referrals, physical examinations, infection testing and fertility preserving treatment, contraceptive counseling and prescribing and abortion services. Since the Affordable Care Act went into effect, some religious-organization employers have balked at being required to cover contraception. In the Dobb’s decision, the Supreme Court intimated an intention to limit or ban access to contraception. Since many contraceptives are used for non-contraceptive purposes, this would impose a hardship on a large proportion of the public — even for those who are using these medications and devices for conditions such as debilitating menstrual bleeding and endometriosis.
b. As a midwife in full scope practice, I was recently approached by a patient about her 16-year-old daughter, who has Down syndrome, seeking a treatment for heavy and painful menstruation resulting in lost attendance at school for several days every month. Losing access to education and disability services to which she is entitled is disruptive to her education. When I proposed using contraceptive pills — which would safely minimize her daughter’s discomfort and loss of school time and required no invasive examination, the mother was relieved. Further, she pointed out that sadly, sexual assault is common in people with developmental disabilities and, as her daughter grows older and more independent, the pill would also protect her daughter from a pregnancy resulting from an assault.
Alison Esposito, the Republican candidate for New York’s 18th congressional district, is an anti-abortion extremist who has repeatedly pledged to support a national abortion ban from “conception.” She praised the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, saying it was the “absolute right thing.” The incumbent, Congressman Pat Ryan, supports legislation that protects the privacy, dignity and reproductive health of Hudson Valley residents. He has pledged to support legislation to restore nationwide abortion access so people can make their own decisions about how, when and whether to have and grow families. He supports the protections of the Affordable Care Act and paid family leave. That’s why I proudly support Pat Ryan and Kamala Harris, who has stated that once elected, she will enshrine the protections of Roe v. Wade into law if Congress sends her a bill.
Who’s who of scoundrels and scoundrelesses
Below is a list of “Republican presidents of the last half-century and the sycophants who love(d) them,” abridged for space considerations.
We don’t hear the GOP called the “Grand Old Party” much these days, and this list should provide some illumination as to why. I’m hoping it may also illuminate those still undecided about Donald Trump, whose name below is followed by a Who’s who of scoundrels and scoundrelesses. I don’t, however, kid myself that it will illuminate Ever Trumpers, with their seemingly unquenchable thirst for the scoundrel-in-chief’s kool-aid, however poisonous it may be.
I’ve started the list with two non-presidents, because this duo helped usher in the shame that has become the hallmark of the GOP, helped make it the party known for its members’ rap sheet of criminal convictions and blank page of ethical ones. One of these two non-presidents was a senator who to make a name for himself ruined a lot of lives in the 1950s — alleged “Communists,” a bogey-word calculatedly echoed in Trump-speak today; the other, this senator’s henchman, was the man who, after young Donald’s father had laid the groundwork (or the mud, one might say), taught the monster-in-the-making the tricks of the trade — “tricks” being exactly the right word, and “the trade” being the chicanery Trump has always practiced, day in and day out, year in and year out.
The list:
Joseph McCarthy — Roy Cohn.
RICHARD NIXON — Spiro Agnew, John Mitchell, H.R. Haldeman, John Ehrlichman, G. Gordon Liddy, Charles Colson.
GEORGE W. BUSH — Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld.
DONALD TRUMP — J.D. Vance, Donald Jr., Eric, Ivanka and Jared, Mark Meadows, Stephen Miller, Mark Robinson, Bill Barr, Mike Pompeo, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Jim Jordan, Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz, Matt Goetz, Steve Bannon, Rudy Giuliani, Tom Cotton, Lauren Boebert, Newt Gingrich, Marco Rubio, Kevin McCarthy, Ryan Zinke, Rick Scott, Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, Michael Flynn, George Papadopoulos, Chris Collins, Allen Weisselberg, John Eastman, Rupert Murdoch, Rush Limbaugh, Sidney Powell, Peter Navarro, Ryan Walters, Ken Paxton, Dr. Ronny Jackson, Mitch McConnell, Lindsey Graham, Mike Lindell, Ron Johnson, Elise Stefanek, Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, Jeanine Pirro, Paul Gosar, Louie Gohmert, Ron DeSantis, Greg Abbott, Kristi Noem, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, Lauren Boebert, Ryan Walters, Ken Paxton.
And the list goes on….
Tom Cherwin
Saugerties
The economic darkness of mass deportations
Donald Trump promised at the RNC-Maga-Russian convention “to launch the largest deportation operation in the history of our country.” During the VP debate, J.D. Vance asserted that removing immigrants from the US would lower housing prices because fewer people would be competing for housing with the “Americans who deserve to be here.”
As Jamelle Bouie writes in the New York Times (this letter is a summary of Bouie’s column, which can be found in its entirety here: < https://tinyurl.com/2e5r4dmh>), aside from the moral dimensions of splitting families, catching the innocent in a violent dragnet and portraying to the world that the US gone from the world’s beacon of decency to a cauldron of chaos, this misbegotten project would “plunge the United States into economic darkness.” Bouie reports the following:
• “A mass deportation plan designed to expel 13.3 million undocumented immigrants over about ten years would crash the economy, immiserate millions of Americans and siphon nearly $1 trillion from the federal government.”
• “The government would need to spend $7 billion per year to conduct the arrests, $12.6 billion per year to carry out legal processing for arrestees and an average of $2.1 billion to remove these immigrants from the country.”
• “For the cost of this program, the United States could build more than 40,000 new elementary schools, construct more than 2.9 million new homes, pay full tuition and expenses for more than 8.9 million Americans to attend an in-state public college for four years, fund the Head Start program for most of the next century and buy a brand-new car for about 20.4 million people.”
• “Mass deportation would lead to a loss of 4.2 percent to 6.8 percent of annual U.S. G.D.P., or $1.1 trillion to $1.7 trillion in 2022 dollars” due to the loss of “about one million undocumented business owners, the revenue they produce and the jobs they create.”
Of course, perhaps Trump and Vance don’t actually mean that the government will conduct the deportations. Lying comes easily to liars: it’s the quality of hate that is not strained. Perhaps they’ll rely on Maga posses to roam the land on self-appointed search-and-destroy missions. The threat posed by Republican-Maga-Russian policies to the American way of life is real.
Vote the Blue Wave! Harris-Walz! Pat Ryan, Josh Riley, Sarahana Shrestha, Michelle Hinchey! When we fight, we win!
William Weinstein
New Paltz
“Jews made the desert bloom” argued my mother
My mother’s voice has been entering my head to an extraordinary and upsetting degree in recent weeks. (My mother died at age 93 decades ago.) It’s as if we are having an ongoing argument over whether the Israeli leader Netanyahu is a war criminal. I say he is right up there with those other war criminals designated by history, which, of course, sometimes unfairly, permits the winners to decide which of the losers truly deserve that designation. I recognize that U.S. policies over the years of the so-called “cold war” have certainly led to the deaths of vast numbers of people. None of the architects of Korea and Vietnam have been prosecuted despite millions of mostly civilian deaths. Nevertheless, for me there is no doubt that Netanyahu qualifies.
Yet I’ve found myself thinking and also saying out loud to anyone patient enough to listen: “I’m glad my mother is not alive to witness what is happening in Palestine….and now, Lebanon.” Because her loyalty to Israel as a refuge for historically oppressed Jews would clash tortuously with her very active human sympathy for the victims of conflict. Especially the children. She would weep over the torment of the children, innocent survivors of bombings that smashed their mothers and fathers and siblings into mangled corpses alongside them. Even if some of the survivors themselves live to grow up, how will they deal with this trauma? Should it shock anyone if a few of them choose to avenge such horrendous pain by inflicting pain of their own? How many potential “terrorists” are being created daily in this Israeli program of slaughter from the skies? From all those Made in America planes and bombs, tanks and munitions that our government supplies, that my taxes and your taxes continue to pay for?
So round and round I go. There were the early days when I was wondering how much this vastly disproportionate response by the Israeli military to the October 7th massacre would have disturbed my mother, but by now I know that she would be in great pain over the massive death and destruction. Many of the dozens of people who I stand with outside the library every Saturday afternoon are Jewish. A few are Israelis. We carry signs like “Never Again for Anyone.” Across the street the signs are different. “Hamas is laughing at you!” makes me skeptical. I don’t think anyone is laughing. There have been just too many lives destroyed. Too much pain, too much suffering. And no end in sight.
Judy Mage
New Paltz
Vote Blue — some day your life may even depend upon it
Senator Michelle Hinchey has an outstanding record of advocacy for a woman’s right of choice. She believes, as the vast majority of Americans do, that a woman has a basic human right to her own reproductive autonomy and healthcare confidentiality. Her personal decisions should be made within the patient’s room with her physician. No one else should have knowledge of this without her express permission, as it becomes part of her confidential medical records.
The Senator successfully passed legislation making New York the first state in the nation to offer paid prenatal leave. Emergency contraception is now available from NY pharmacists, licensed midwives and registered nurses to eliminate another trip to a physician and the additional expense. Senator Hinchey also authored legislation making menstrual products free on public college campuses and in emergency shelter housing, including for victims of domestic violence.
Roe v. Wade was overturned at the federal level by the Supreme Court’s conservative majority, even though it had been settled law. This occurred because a minority of extremists wrongly thought their religious freedom gave them the right to force their practices upon the rest of us. This is a violation of the separation of church and state. Fourteen states passed draconian anti-abortion laws, which has resulted in alarming increases in maternal mortality. Many doctors in these states deny their patients’ life-saving care, for fear of imprisonment and losing their physician’s license. Senator Hinchey is committed to empowering New York doctors to treat their patients and save women’s lives.
In 1983, I was expecting my first baby. Fortunately when I went into labor, I entered a hospital in NYS. After taking my vitals the nurse recognized I was in critical condition. She called my doctor and urged him to come into the hospital. She explained to me that I had developed E-clampsia, a serious condition causing your blood pressure to get so high it causes seizures and even death. My obstetrician performed an emergency C- section. Once our nine-pound-twelve-ounce baby was delivered, my blood pressure returned to normal. We were both fine. Our son turned 41 this year.
I plan to vote for Senator Hinchey, Pat Ryan and all the other Democrats running for re-election or for the first time. Vote Blue. Some day your life may even depend upon it.
Lorraine MacPherson
Salt Point
Neverending Trump obsessions
Neil Jarmel, with his terminal TDS, takes a slightly different approach in his routine Trump bashing. He uses dozens and dozens of fancy and muddled words to elongate his usual basic message of “I hate Trump. He’s worse than Satan.”
William Weinstein sticks his head in the sand when it comes to acknowledging ANY of the countless failures and dangers thrust upon all of us for the past four years by the Biden/Harris party and, instead, wants everyone to totally ignore our plight and blindly continue to vote for everyone associated with this very damaging and dismal ticket of Harris/Walz.
Hal Chorny highlights many gross exaggerations on what HE thinks Trump will do to ALL Americans if he regains the White House. “Eliminate voting?” “End Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid?” That would be political suicide FOR ANY politician, no matter which party! Hal’s concern is absolutely right as he states “our nation faces serious problems and we need the best leadership to handle them.” Unfortunately, Hal forgets that Trump hasn’t been our president for the past four years and that the poor decisions, policies, catastrophes and poor leadership forced upon all of us have been brought to us by the same people Hal wants back in the White House.
Likewise, Doris Chorny cites many people who allegedly say that a Trump presidency is a danger that will threaten all of us. We’ve all heard the many descriptors of Trump manufactured and repeatedly propagandized by CNN, MSNBC, etc. to anyone who still listens to these cellar dwelling cable “news” outlets — terms like racist, white supremacist, bigot, homophobe, xenophobe, etc. and, of course, being a clone of Stalin, Hitler, or any other dictator one can come up with. So, my question is: If these traits are accurate, then why weren’t any of them demonstrated during his presidency? After all, a leopard doesn’t change its spots, right? And, why on earth would Trump have created a record economy, record stock market, record unemployment numbers (the best for blacks and Hispanics in decades), and a border that protected our national security, if he had no regard for anyone except himself? The contradictions and hypocrisy are beyond rich!
Doris says “half the country is poised to vote for Trump and the other half can’t imagine why.” That goes the other way, Doris. With all the hardships we’ve faced over the past four years, most level-headed people are asking “why would I want to vote for four more years of these disasters?”
Doris concludes with “voting for Harris doesn’t make you a Democrat, it makes you a patriot.” You mean the type of patriot who killed 13 U.S. soldiers with a ridiculously inept withdrawal from Afghanistan? You mean a patriot who wants to water down our military strength and preparedness with artificial DEI standards, gender nonsense and proper pronouns? You mean a patriot who resigns after 23 years of National Guard service just before his unit was being shipped to Iraq? You mean a patriot who supports groups of demonstrators who burn our American flag while shouting “F___ America?” You mean a patriot who wants to defund the police and eradicate ICE? No thanks. I’ll continue to support the REAL patriot who stands up for our country and fights for all the freedoms guaranteed to us in our Constitution.
John N. Butz
Modena
The lament of Yankeetown Pond
In Yankeetown Pond where waters flowed, a tranquil pond once brightly glowed, ‘twas home to life, both great and small, now silence reigns — an eerie pall. Where frogs croaked and fish played, now shadows linger, and all, fade to gray. The beaver’s toil met a bitter end; their homes laid waste by hands unbent. A lifeless pit — once rich and bright, now echoes haunt in the starless night.
Erin’s hand or Bill’s decree? Who wrung this pond’s serenity? With wicked plans by greed entwined, they left compassion far behind. With every drain that lost its way, nature weeps for yesterday. The mallet falls on dreams undone; A war declared — the battle’s begun. A lifeless pit — once rich and bright, now echoes haunt inside the starless night.
The elders watch from porches wide, Their whispered prayers a futile tide. For years they’ve loved this sacred ground, now vultures circle all around. How low can one descend in chase? To clear the pines from this dear place? Each dollar spent — a darker scheme, to shatter peace and smother dreams. A lifeless pit — once rich and bright, now echoes further within the starless night.
Yet beauty begs the eyes to see, Look closely — oh look! What’s left of thee? These creatures’ pulse like strings of fate. Their cries demand the earth to wait. Reclaiming voices lost in years, in every rustle felt their fears. Though waters are going gone and mud remains — this land knows well its bitter pains. A lifeless pit — once rich and bright, now echoes hauntingly beyond the starless night.
So, gather ‘round, ye weary souls. This fight is ours — the heart consoles. We’ll stand as one for what is right — to guard this earth against such man-made blight. Let time erase those who deceive, and in memories, let others find time to grieve. For Yankeetown Pond shall hopefully rise anew, from ash and sorrow blooms a truthful hue.
A lifeless pit — once rich and bright, still the echoes haunt — it must be made right… [either in the weeping daytime and/or in a trembling night] …
Neil Jarmel
West Hurley
The and sign
I’m studying the geometry of the ampersand.
Sparrow
Phoenicia
Our supervisor
Having watched the vice-presidential debate, it appears that Hillary McKenna was correct in pointing out how much Bill McKenna has in common with Tim Walz.
Howard Harris
Woodstock
Why I’m not running
It has been a great honor to serve on the Woodstock Library board for the last ten years. I’m not running for reelection because I feel my job is done. We have a beautiful new building at 10 Dixon for the library to flourish in for decades to come, we have an excellent leader in library director Ivy Gocker, and a younger, revitalized board.
On Thursday October 10 (the last election to be held at 5 Library Lane!) I will be voting Yes for the library budget and for all four incumbents for trustee, and will be writing in Catherine Johnston for the fifth seat as my successor.”
Dorothea Marcus
Woodstock
Good-faith required
Our Supreme Court’s recent decision, giving US presidents immunity from prosecution for actions that can be considered official acts and part of the core duties of the office, was in response to Trump being charged in relation to the January 6 insurrection. It was apparently beneath the court’s far-seeing wisdom that Trump’s actions leading to and on January 6, to encourage his followers to ignore the law and precedent to keep him in power, cannot be considered core functions of the office.
If presidents are expected to send their most ardent followers to the Capitol to protest and ideally block the certification of election results, it would imply that all our presidents, throughout history, were delinquent in failing to allow hordes of supporters of the losing side to smash their way into the Capitol, beating down any police or other security personnel that stood in their way. But perhaps the most glaring flaw in the justices’ decision was assuming that all presidents act in good faith to put the good of the country and her people first. How could they possibly make that assumption, which their decision to grant presidents limitless powers requires, with the example of Donald Trump front and center? When has Trump ever not put himself, his status, wealth, intelligence, golf game — first? So the justices reached a decision that requires the good-faith participation of presidents, motivated by and in clear view of a man who is the embodiment of self-interest. What were the six right-wing justices thinking? The court’s decision in the People vs. Donald Trump is truly in the same steaming manure pile as the Dred Scott, Citizens United, Heller and Dobbs decisions.
Matt Frisch
Arkville
Look under your community’s fiscal stress score hood
Tom DiNapoli’s Office of the NYS Comptroller’s Fiscal Stress Monitoring System produces fiscal stress scores annually for taxing authorities like New Paltz’s Village (8.3), Town (zero), and School District (3.3).
Various financial ratios are calculated to generate an overall score. Lower fiscal scores are better. The state comptroller ranks towns and villages as “susceptible” to fiscal stress if they score between 45 – 54.9. The next levels of stress are “moderate” (55 – 64.9) and “significant” (65 – 100). Our single-digit scores in New Paltz received the ideal “no designation.”
The New Paltz Central School District’s good score of 3.3 was a result of its cash representing 98.2% of its “average monthly gross expenditures.” The target for this financial ratio is > 100% to get a zero added to the overall fiscal score, and the district was very close to this target.
The Village of New Paltz’s good (low) fiscal score of 8.3 was driven by receiving five points for having debt service that represented 20.34% of our total revenues for the last three years. Having 20% or more adds five points. Our rate has improved from ‘21, ‘22, and ‘23 as follows: 24.9%, 18.3% and 17.9%, to generate the three-year average of 20.34%.
The village has actively invested in our community for the last ten years. The bulk of our investments have been for sewer and drinking water capital projects. We have no sewer debt and about $10 million in drinking water debt. The largest investment occurred in April 2019 when we borrowed $3.85 million to replace the water filtration unit in the plant at Mountain Rest Road. Financial services firm Baird lent us the funds for 20 years at 2.74%.
Then there was another $3 million in debt that paid for the new fire station. The village’s goal is to have the fire station all paid off during fiscal year 25-26, while building the fire department’s reserve fund by the end of this fiscal year through May 31, 2025 to $1.482 million.
The Town of New Paltz’s very good “debt service as a percent of total revenues” rate averaged 4.57% for ‘21 – ‘23. This is excellent because the state comptroller’s target for this particular financial ratio to receive zero points is < 10%.
The New Paltz Fire Department debt is paid for equally by the village’s general fund and town-outside-the-village taxpayers. However, all of this fire station debt sits on village books, significantly impacting our “debt service as a percent of total revenues” rate of 20.34% that added five points to our fiscal score of 8.3.
Mayor Tim Rogers
New Paltz
Perceptions and life and death
The Walz/Vance VP debate is over and, though the issue of abortion was raised and Walz spoke of a woman who died because abortion laws had changed in the state where she lived, both the moderators and debaters avoided mentioning exactly what abortion involves: The 1973 Supreme Court Roe/Wade decision legalized abortion and this decision should be viewed as an “insurrection” against the value of human life for this reason: it gave physicians, whose first goal is to “save lives and do no harm,” a license to “kill” human life at its earliest stage of development. Tragically, this ruling gave the perception to many that, since it was now legal, abortion was also moral and, it must be admitted, that this perception has certainly contributed to the deaths of over 64 million (yes, 64 million) growing human beings.
The other day, while my five-month-old grandson was sleeping on my chest, I considered that after five months in the womb (indeed, even later according to New York State law) a mother would be permitted to hire a doctor to end his developing life. Since many bemoan the overturning of Roe/ Wade (which made abortion an issue to be decided by voters at the state level) for depriving physicians of the relatively recent and, for them, lucrative constitutional “right to kill “ some Democratic leaders, including VP Harris, are advocating for the ending of the 60-vote majority to overturn the filibuster rule in the Senate in order to pass legislation that would reinstate the principles of Roe/Wade, uniformly, in every state.
I recently watched a political ad in which a woman was looking into a mirror at a reflection of herself when she was a pregnant college student. As the ad progressed, she told her story of choosing to have an abortion in order to continue her life’s plans unhindered by this unplanned pregnancy. She then proposed (to paraphrase) that sacrificing the life of her unplanned baby enabled her to later have her children who were planned. (I wonder if this woman had informed her planned children of this sacrifice if they would have been grateful or if they, rather, might have asked their mother if she could have done anything else (like offering the child for adoption) that would have avoided the death of their unplanned, inconvenient, sibling.) Since abortion is still an issue that divides America, the political rhetoric on the issue has been heightened during this, important, election cycle. Tragically, often lost in the debate is the fact that every abortion (despite the rationale for it happening) kills a developing human being. Again, since Roe/Wade legalized abortion, 64 million of such killings have occurred. If each one of those lives was placed on the seat of a one-hundred-thousand capacity stadium, 640 stadiums would be filled. With this in view, perhaps when the issue of abortion is debated, the lives of these victims should receive at least some serious consideration so that the legalization of the killing of human life in the womb doesn’t continue to lead to the perception that such killing is moral.
George Civile
Gardiner
A vote for Josh Riley
Josh Riley stands for what most of us want. He strives to give women the right to choose, cut taxes for the middle class, expand access to health care, curb gun violence, fund public education and fight corruption in both parties. He will defend Social Security, secure our borders and protect our environment.
Marc Molinaro has been swallowed by MAGA ideologies. He campaigns on lies to make Riley look bad. He claims Riley wants, “to use your tax dollars on illegal immigrants while veterans struggle to find food and shelter.” He calls Riley a, “left wing radical.” Molinaro has little to offer beyond name calling and lies. Repeating MAGA distortions and lies is easier than addressing our many problems. Riley gives good advice when he tells Molinaro, “Do your job or don’t get paid”.
Hal Chorny
Gardiner
The human psyche and political manipulation
“Emotion turns the wheels of history; the mind merely charts its course.” — Anonymous
At our core, we are feeling beings who happen to think. Emotion shapes our choices, beliefs and alliances like a river carving through rock. Like skilled fishermen, politicians cast their rhetoric into our emotional waters, knowing we are more easily swayed by feeling than reason.
Our ancestors depended on emotions to survive, but today’s threats come not from predators in the wild but from politicians who tap into these primal instincts. They know that fear, anger and love can move us faster than logic ever could. By crafting narratives that feed into our fears or hopes, they manipulate us into supporting causes that may not serve our best interests.
They stir deep currents of tribalism, playing on the need to belong by casting “us” against “them.” These stories, like ancient myths, resonate with our need for a clear enemy, even if the true complexity of the issue is lost. Politicians simplify, knowing that we crave certainty. A straightforward, digestible story appeals to our sense of safety, even if it misleads us.
Emotions don’t just move us — they anchor themselves in our memories. Politicians link their message to solid feelings, ensuring we remember them long after the facts fade. Every image and word is designed to stick like a thorn in our consciousness.
Yet, in recognizing this manipulation, we hold the power to resist it. Knowledge, like light in the darkness, helps us see through the fog of emotional appeal. It allows us to pause, reflect and choose our path. While emotion may guide us, we can understand that it gives us control over the story being written.
Politicians weave emotions into their speeches like threads in a tapestry, but we can pull them apart. We are not just players in their narrative – we are the authors of our own.
Larry Winters
New Paltz
Kingston Community Preservation Fund
Why would the Kingston Land Trust (KLT) support the Community Preservation Fund (CPF)? Wouldn’t this compete with the mission of the KLT? Actually, the CPF would be a force multiplier for the KLT. The mission of the KLT is to preserve open space for the people of Kingston and surrounding communities. But the KLT is limited by our capacity to acquire and manage land. We depend upon the Kingston community to support our work and the lands we protect and preserve through your generous donations. The CPF has a source of funds separate from the charitable giving of Kingston residents.
Funds for the CPF come from a small, one-time, 1.25% tax, levied on that part of Kingston real estate sales in excess of the Ulster County median real estate sales price. So, if a property in Kingston sells for $500,000, and the mean Ulster County price is $350,000, the tax is only on $150,000. The tax in this example would be $1875, and it would be paid by the buyer. Most Kingston property owners and no Kingston renters would pay this tax.
The funds can only be used to preserve open space, create parks and trails, keep the streams and waterways around Kingston clean, and to preserve our historic heritage. The fund will be overseen by a volunteer committee of Kingston residents. The goals and purpose of the CPF are well aligned with those of the Kingston Land Trust. That is why we support approval of Proposition 4 on this year’s Kingston ballot. The proposition will be on the back of the ballot, so remember to turn your ballot over, and vote YES for the Kingston Community Preservation Fund.
Michael Drillinger, Board Chair
Kingston Land Trust
State Senator Michelle Hinchey: A fighter for education
As Election Day approaches, many voters may be paying more attention to the presidential race than to local down-ballot issues and candidates. This is understandable, given the blanket coverage that media devotes to the top of the ticket for both political parties.
However, local representatives play a major role as advocates for their constituents. Here, in the 41st State Senate district, we are very fortunate to have a forceful individual who has a proven record of service. For some, Michelle Hinchey, currently serving in her second term as a State Senator, may need no introduction. For those who may be first learning about her, she has proven to be highly effective in proposing and passing a broad range of important legislation.
As a retired educator, I am particularly impressed with her achievements in education. In her first term, State Senator Hinchey fought to fully fund foundation aid, delivering on a 30-year promise to fund our schools and ensure that all children have access to a good quality education. She also secured funding to create hundreds of new Pre-K slots, because she understands early educational support can be key to success in later life, while providing childcare for working parents. More recently, she led the campaign to fully fund free universal school meals.
I believe that most citizens, taxpayers and voters would agree that today’s investment in public education is a down-payment for future generations of well educated citizens who will contribute to the long-term vitality of our society. State Senator Michelle Hinchey clearly understands the importance of making that investment now. Her outstanding leadership on this issue leads me to strongly endorse her candidacy in the upcoming election.
Joel Mason
Kingston
Do we want a ghost town?
Has the impact on the Village of Saugerties by the mega-development of Winston Farm been sufficiently assessed? Do we want a ghost town?
Meyer Rothberg
Saugerties
Support Pat Ryan for Congress
I write in support of Pat Ryan for Congress. A West Point graduate, Pat embraces that Academy’s honor code, with its emphasis on honesty and integrity. His campaign stresses the importance of civil rights such as a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions.
Pat’s opponent’s values and views are in sharp contrast. Alison Esposito views Donald Trump’s endorsement as “a signature milestone in her campaign.” Clearly, Esposito is undisturbed by Trump’s blatant disrespect for women and, although she now states that she is opposed to a nationwide abortion ban, in 2022 she stated that she would vote for legislation “to protect innocent human life from conception …”
Esposito’s integrity is open to serious question. A recent article in the Poughkeepsie Journal (8/26/24) disclosed that in 2019 New York City agreed to settle a lawsuit alleging that then-police officer Esposito abused and maliciously arrested a 16-year-old girl during a warrantless search. The complaint stated that she had dragged the girl, handcuffed, by her hair. While Esposito denied the allegations, the City agreed to pay the girl $25,000 to settle the lawsuit. In my experience as a lawyer and mediator who handled civil rights cases in Manhattan federal court, the City does not pay — especially to the tune of $25,000 — for meritless lawsuits against police officers.
Voters have a choice: an honorable Congressional representative who supports civil rights or a challenger whose personal record on civil rights bears a shameful stain.
Amy Rothstein
Pine Plains
Heartbroken
I am writing to express my feelings regarding using Winston Farm to promote monetizing the natural world.
I am heartbroken over the dramatic disregard for this precious resource.
Yes, people need housing, recreation and all that temporary stuff, but the land here must endure.
I can’t speak to the details of this project, because I don’t care about that. I only recognize beauty and the life that exists. This project will impair our world and will reverberate into the future
Please leave Winston farm as a huge parcel of beauty and a gift to all.
Susan Towlson
Saugerties
The future regarding our present benefits, #7
I left off in the previous letter, “ … there was so much turnover, discontent in the federal government in Trump’s four years as POTUS. “Why? “The reason is, “ he did not know anything about the government. And because of this he created chaos. And therein lies the danger for all of us if re-elected.” Let’s explore the meaning behind this statement.
As Mary L. Trump, Donald Trump’s niece, in her book, Too Much and Never Enough, states … “Donald who understands nothing about history, constitutional principles, geopolitics, diplomacy … and never pressed to demonstrate such knowledge, has evaluated all of this country’s alliances and all of our social programs … through the prism of money … his ego has been and is a fragile and inadequate barrier between him and the real world, thanks to his father’s money and power, he never had to negotiate himself.”
0r as Bob Woodward states in his book, Fear, Trump in the White House, “Trump had no understanding of how government functioned. At times he would just start drafting orders himself or dictating.”
That was then, 2016-2020. Needless to say, he had all kinds of trouble, mostly with personnel who knew what they were talking about. But according to what I have read and from what I have gathered listening to him talk, he was in over his head in that office. But this is 2024, four years later. The time spend in the oval office during the last four years has educated him to what he wants to do. And my belief, it is not in my best interests. A case in point was and which I mentioned previously, him trying to pass a payroll executive tax cut which would eliminate payroll taxes. Without payroll taxes paid by the employer and employee, there would be no money for Social Security and Medicare.
Now that he is wiser, not in governing, but knowing what he wants and has to do to change the system to his liking, is where the problems and danger arise, not only regarding my benefits but a host of other government innovations, which are beyond my purview at this time. Not that I am not concerned about any elimination, changes to regulations and innovations by past Republican and Democratic administrations but as stated numerous times, at my age of 85 I am deeply concerned about my benefits that I have paid for since 1962. The Republican Party has hated this innovation into the heretofore capitalistic culture of the country and wants to get rid of it.
In the first paragraph above, I mentioned there was so much turnover, discontent in the federal government in Trump’s four years as POTUS. I have discussed this numerous times and the next letter will address and discuss a book by Tom Schaller and Paul Waldman, entitled, White Rural Rage. We’re going to explore this a bit farther and reference some of the statements and research of the above two authors. This should shed some additional information on the rise of MAGA and Donald Trump.
Until next time.
Robert LaPolt
New Paltz
The truth about Trump and his lies
During the early days of the Covid outbreak, Trump, our president at the time, told the public, over and over again, that it was simply a hoax. Many of his followers trusted him and believed him. Were you one of them? Many of those followers refused to wear a mask when they saw a defiant Trump toss the mask away in a public ad. Many of his followers came down with the dreaded virus. Many of them died.
According to hospital reports there were thousands of people who got very sick and needed to be incubated to help them breathe. Some survived thanks to caring doctors and nurses and their own immune system. But many of those who died while alone and incubated, died defiantly insisting that they did not have the virus because Trump told them it was a hoax. They passed away in a very sad way, alone and totally confused about the truth about their disease.
Over one-million Americans died during that horrible time. But there is the belief that half-a-million did not have to die. But their unwavering belief about their President Trump and his words about the virus, the China Flu, being just a hoax, was instrumental to their inevitable demise. They could not believe that Trump would ever lie to them. But he did.
Now Trump is lying about almost everything as a desperate attempt to get enough people to vote for him in the election. He’s lying constantly, and most of his followers don’t seem to care. Maybe some think it’s just Trump being Trump. Maybe others continue to rigidly believe in him and everything he says. But what Donald Trump is NOT saying is how terrified he is. He’s terrified about his future if he loses the election. He’s terrified of all the court cases, coming up right around the corner, all the mounting financial debt, and the real possibility of spending the rest of his life behind bars. Jail for Trump may really be only a few months away.
So, if you are a Trump devotee, and have been loyal to him as many have over the years, it’s time to wake up. Trump didn’t lose a minute of sleep from worrying about all his loyal followers who believed in him about the Covid virus … and then died. And now, he certainly does not care about you either, if you choose to follow him right over the cliff, or not. And many of you will probably stay loyal and give up your lives rather than choose to change your mind. That’s your choice and you get to choose. But even some long-time mercenaries, at some point, decided to give up that choice of life for one that possibly could bring something better. Are you married to Trump, for better or worse, til death do you part?
Marty Klein
Sarasota, FL
Kingston, NY
Update
I wish to share with the public and HV1 an update on a police report of my arrest in June.
In many cases such as mine, unless there is follow-up reporting, it can leave reputational damage, even if the accused is later determined to be completely innocent of the charges, as I was. This past week, the case was dismissed by Marbletown justice Claudia Davenport citing no evidence of any crime was presented to the court.
I sincerely appreciate this opportunity to update the public record on this previously reported story.
Rich Lanzarone
Accord
For John Lennon, b. 10/9/40
Working Class Hero
long gone
who used to
plant acorns for peace
and sing
Power To The People
We All Shine On
Lord
those who remember him
know
he imagined Nutopia
a New World
Tell him some of us
are still its citizens
Mister Death
Patrick Hammer, Jr.
Saugerties
Tear down this wall!
My family and I have lived New Paltz for over 50 years. My wife, an alumni of SUNY New Paltz, has used the college track in the morning for many years. Recently, a barrier has been put up obstructing entrance to the track. It came as a shock to us as no advanced notice or reason was given.
SUNY, New Paltz administration — tear down this wall!
Tom Losee
New Paltz
Senator Hinchey’s hard work for housing
One of the most vexing problems facing us today is the lack of affordable housing. The very definition of “affordable” is absurd; municipalities setting aside new units for “affordable” apartments use measurements for AMI (area median income) to establish rents that are wildly unaffordable for the Hudson Valley families who are theoretically eligible.
Fortunately, Senator Michelle Hinchey has worked relentlessly and smartly in the state legislature to address the housing crisis. Her efforts to create tax exemptions for homeowners who build accessory dwelling units (ADUs) paid off, with owners now eligible for a five-year exemption on assessed increases in the home’s value. More ADUs will increase the housing supply. Also, she brought back $10 million to communities with land banks. That money will help renovate old buildings that can become sustainable homes for families.
Renters will benefit from the senator’s work in several ways. Proliferating short-term rentals have reduced the long-term housing supply and robbed communities of anticipated tax revenue. Hinchey sponsored and helped pass bipartisan legislation that would create New York’s first short-term rental registry. If signed into law, municipalities would have the information they need to determine how much more housing they need to build in our communities while collecting sales and occupancy taxes to support local services.
Additionally, Senator Hinchey wrote legislation that allows communities to stabilize rents when vacancy rates drop below 5%, keeping the Hudson Valley affordable.
Senator Hinchey has notched important wins for homeowners and renters. We are lucky to have her on our side. And we are smart — after all, we elected her! This November, it’s time to once again vote senator Michelle Hinchey into office.
Tom Denton
New Paltz
Saugerties development and a growing safety concern
Over the past couple of days, Saugerties has seen multiple car accidents, one even involving a first responder en route to help at another crash site. These accidents are alarming on their own, but even more so in the context of the continued push for overdevelopment in our town. With the Winston Farm proposals that would add an extreme amount of housing and entertainment units, I can’t help but ask: what are we doing to our community?
Saugerties is already feeling the strain. In recent years, we’ve added significant developments — Summit on Hudson and the unfinished condos by Diamond Mills along 9W, Country Meadow Apartments on North Street and a new neighborhood of single-family homes off Glasco Turnpike. This, on top of a road system that seems increasingly unable to handle the traffic. The recent accidents make it painfully clear that we’re pushing beyond what our infrastructure can safely accommodate.
On top of it all, the constant alarms from the fire department and other first responders make it feel like we’re living in New York City rather than a small upstate community. The pace of development is turning Saugerties into something unrecognizable, with no relief in sight.
I’m glad the town board recently voted down the pro-housing designation, a win for common sense. If New York State can’t see that Saugerties has done more than its share while the rest of Ulster County hasn’t stepped up, then the blame is on them. We are not the dumping ground for every housing project just because we’ve shown we can handle growth in the past. We need responsible development, not unchecked expansion.
When you have multiple serious accidents in just two days, shouldn’t that be enough to warrant a pause? Let’s not wait for a tragedy to realize we’ve overdeveloped. It’s time for our town leaders to hit the brakes and truly assess the impact on public safety before charging ahead with even more growth.
April O’Neal
Malden-On-the-Hudson
Full of wonder
When asked to name what they considered to be seven wonders of the world, respondents named the following(and more) for consideration: the Great Barrier Reef, the Great Wall of China, the Panama Canal, the Taj Mahal, etc. A response that I found to be most curious was: taste, touch, sight, hearing (deep listening), laughter, feeling (emotion), and love. At what point can some or all of these wonders congeal to stem the tide of division/power-seeking/untruths? What is required to maximize respect and support for those inside/outside geopolitical borders, nourishment of the planet of which we are stewards and make it unthinkable to produce and proliferate weapons that can obliterate children, women and men. We have the natural resources listed in bold print above. Will each person step forward to be a force in creating the world that we want future generations to inherit? I wonder.
Terence Lover
Woodstock
Hate in our backyard, silence from our leaders
To mark the one-year anniversary of October 7, I watched Screams Before Silence with my community. I remain stunned by the horrors I saw — the senseless brutality, mass rapes, the burning alive and dismemberment of innocent people. Yet what is perhaps even more disturbing is how some people, including those who’ve written in to HV1 almost every week for a year, attempt to minimize or deny these atrocities.
I understand the struggle for Palestinian rights, for dignity, and the call for equality. However, justifying war crimes like rape, burning people alive, and hacking them to pieces is not the pursuit of justice. Praising organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah—groups that reject coexistence and openly advocate for genocide— crosses the line. The relentless spread of disinformation only worsens this. Distorting the truth and denying the humanity of those who suffered is anti-Semitism.
Anti-Semitism is the refusal to recognize Jewish humanity, to see us as people deserving of safety. It is the refusal to empathize with Jewish suffering, to dismiss our pain, to celebrate our destruction. Peace cannot be achieved by siding with one nation over another. Equitable coexistence requires mutual recognition and respect.
There are ways to advocate for justice and equality for Palestinians without demonizing and delegitimizing an entire nation. No cause can ever excuse such inhumanity.
Last week, for the second time in the past year, Congregation Emanuel was vandalized. I reached out to our assemblywoman, Sarahana Shrestha, hoping she would make a public statement against bias-motivated hate. As of the time of this writing, I have yet to hear a response. When leaders claim to stand for equality, social justice, and empathy, what does it mean when they remain silent when acts of hate unfold at our own doorsteps? When prejudice strikes our community, where is that empathy? Where is the action? If our assemblywoman truly believes in these values, why the silence now?
Sarah Stone
Hurley
Woodstock, please take the survey!
The Woodstock Zoning Revision Committee (ZRC) is working to update the town’s Short-Term Rental (STR) zoning law. The ZRC is conducting a survey to know Woodstock resident opinions on the town’s current STR regulations and the impacts of STRs in our community. Woodstock residents, our ZRC would like to hear from you. Your input is critical to the ZRC proposing Woodstock STR law updates that are the best fit for the people of Woodstock. Please take the survey at www.tinyurl.com/2024strsurvey.
Laura Ricci
Woodstock Town Council Member
Comment on stupid is as stupid says
Mr. Berelli,
First of all, if you were a serious student of foreign policy, you would not resort to mocking and name-calling. Arabella Colton (we would all be so fortunate to have such a beautiful name) is neither Arab nor anti-Semitic. She is a human possessing compassion for the killing of innocent beings.
While the current violence in Gaza and now Lebonan was initially provoked by a murderous incursion into Israeli territory, the response by Israel has been disproportionate, fitting the very UN definition of war crimes. In Gaza alone, the death of 40,000 soles, much more than 1,200 Israelis, has comprised largely non-combatants. The buttressing of your position by quoting a right-wing ideologue like Douglas Murray only solidifies the extremity of your opposing views.
In the future, if you have serious information to share, please do so with established facts and commentary free from gratuitous attacks on others, including their given name.
William Barr
Saugerties
Thanks for supporting our gem of a public library
On behalf of the board of trustees, executive director Crystal Middleton and the library fair committee, we wish to thank the hundreds of volunteers and generous local businesses who made the 67th annual Elting Memorial Library Fair a resounding success. The money raised at this year’s fair will support children’s and teen programs and other important initiatives.
Please remember to support our local businesses. When you do, your money stays in the community and makes events like the library fair possible. Also, our ongoing thanks to the SUNY New Paltz athletic department for providing over a hundred student athletes to help with the heavy lifting needed to put the fair on each year.
Finally, we offer our profound gratitude to the New Paltz community for coming out to the fair and for supporting our gem of a public library throughout the year.
Chris Watkins, Chair
Elting Library Fair Committee
Join the family! 
