Interesting response from a reader

The Taylor/Cristo blog has chosen to attack Phil Malone saying Phil has depended on his Mother and Father in his early adult years and has made no contribution since he has been elected. Ann Taylor lives with her parents, using her fathers veterans tax exemption to get out of paying her fair share,and hasn't been able to hold a job for reasons I'd like her to explain.
Ann was supposed to bring businesses into town using her "expertise". Where are they? I know of none. Where are Ann's definable contributions? The only thing Ann is good at is attacking others and she has cornered the market on bitterness.

Mike Cristo still relies on his parents for a job, can't get out of there and make it on his own - hey Mikey! People realize when Mike was on the board he was nothing more than a troublemaker, a malcontent who wanted chaos instead of accomplishments.

Phil and the entire board have been able to accomplish more in 8 months than Mikey's entire term on the town board.

Yeah Mike and Ann, let's not forget Phil handed the both of you your lunch in the last election so much so that you both were afraid to run this year,

Now let's all say a prayer for Mike and Ann that they can get over their jealousy and bitterness of the lack of accomplishments in their lives and find happiness. Dwight, do you want to lead us in prayer?

Music in the Park Reminder

The Town of East Greenbush proudly presents White Water for your listening pleasure, at Onderdonk Memorial Park on Tuesday, September 6th, from 6-8 pm.

White Water's appearance was originally scheduled for August 9th, but cancelled due to rain. 

Thank you!

EG Talks extends its deepest appreciation to all of those who assisted during Hurricane or Tropical Storm Irene and its aftermath.  All responded efficiently and effectively. 

Remember folks, the first responders; public works and police, fire and ambulance, paid and volunteer all leave the safety of their own homes to protect and assist us and ours.

The utility companies were out in force, as were the tree services, etc.  Our stores remained open for those who failed to heed the warnings and stock up.

Thanks, again.

EG Talks

Jennifer E. O’Brien for EG Library Board of Trustees

Dear East Greenbush Neighbor,

The budget vote for the East Greenbush Community Library is Thursday September 8, 2011 from 9 a.m.-9 p.m.  The library is the only polling place for this election.  The library provides vital resources and programs to residents of all ages as well as numerous community groups; I hope that you will come and support this year’s budget.

In addition, I wanted to let you know that I am running for a position on the Library’s Board of Trustees.  This position, which is voluntary and unpaid, would allow me to ensure that the programs and resources residents have come to rely on at the library will continue.  I also plan to work hard to keep the library running efficiently.  My experience as an educator, administrator and writer will help guide my decisions in the Trustee position.  I kindly ask that you consider supporting my candidacy and let at least 2 friends or neighbors know about the upcoming election.

Thank you for your consideration.  Please feel free to forward this along to other EG residents.

Best,

Jennifer E. O’Brien

Irene is Coming !!

East Greenbush Action Plan

All  Town Emergency Services are on  Alert for the impending storm headed our  way. 

The  Towns Department of Public Works is ready and  waiting,  the  Police Department is always  staffed  24 hrs. a day and remains ready to answer your calls.

The City of Rensselaer has already declared an Emergency in anticipation of  extended flooding. 

PLEASE use the  Towns  Emergency phone line :  479-1212  to report all
hazardous conditions.   If you need  assistance that is NOT an emergency , feel free to call 479-2525.

DPW Phone # :  477-6103

GOOD NIGHT IRENE! (American folk standard) *

* If you read to the end you'll find lyrics to an equally fitting song.

I don't want to alarm anyone, just remind you of the Boy Scout mantra to "Be Prepared".

Today's Troy Record reports "With wind gusts between 70 to 73 mph, the National Hurricane Center and National Weather Service forecast that Rensselaer County will be one of the harder hit areas in the Capital District on Sunday by Hurricane Irene. 

The area can expect between three to five inches of rain and sustained wind speed between 55 and 60 mph, said Kimberly McMahon with the National Weather Service. This is forecasted for southern Vermont, Berkshire and Rensselaer counties and will subside by Monday morning."

http://www.troyrecord.com/articles/2011/08/26/news/doc4e573401455eb351798771.txt

According to the Times Union, "With rains from Hurricane Irene expected to start late Saturday and continue into Sunday, forecasters expect localized flooding and trees to tumble -- with the risk worsened, said Maglaras, because this spring and summer have been relatively rainy, leaving the ground saturated and unable to hold much more moisture."

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Region-girds-for-rough-ride-ahead-2141530.php

Yesterday, Governor Cuomo "Declared a state of emergency in New York in preparation for the potential impact of Hurricane Irene, which may hit New York State this coming weekend.

A state of emergency enables New York to use state resources to assist local governments more effectively and quickly, allows the state to activate the national "Emergency Management Assistance Compact" to bring in resources from out of the state, and enables New York to access key federal resources earlier in anticipation of an emergency."

http://www.governor.ny.gov/press/08252011HurricaneIrene

NYC Mayor Bloomberg offered this advice concerning Hurricane Irene at a press conference yesterday: "New Yorkers should prepare themselves by stocking up on some basic supplies and making what’s called a ‘Go Bag’, a bag that you could take with you at a moment’s notice if you have to leave home, and it should include things like drinking water, a first-aid kit, a flashlight, any important medications that you take, essential documents, such as passports or other forms of ID, and an extra set of car keys and house keys."  http://www.nyc.gov/portal/site/nycgov/menuitem.c0935b9a57bb4ef3daf2f1c701c789a0/index.jsp?pageID=mayor_press_release&catID=1194&doc_name=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyc.gov%2Fhtml%2Fom%2Fhtml%2F2011b%2Fpr307-11.html&cc=unused1978&rc=1194&ndi=1

The American Red Cross offers a complete Hurricane Safety Checklist at:

http://www.redcross.org/www-files/Documents/pdf/Preparedness/checklists/Hurricane.pdf

The NYS Emergency Management Office web site offers Hurricane Safety Tips at:  http://www.dhses.ny.gov/oem/safety-info/publicsafety/hurricaneprepare.cfm

Pete Stenson

PS Reminds me of The Band's "Look Out Cleveland"

(Chorus:) Look Out, Cleveland, the storm is comin' through,

And it's runnin' right up on you.
Look out, Houston, There'll be thunder on the hill;
Bye-bye, baby, don't cha lie so still.

Was Wedn'sday evenin' when first we heard the word,

It did not come by train nor bird.
T'was when Ben Pike stepped down to say,
"This old town's gonna blow away."

Chain lightnin', frightnin' as it may seem,

Must not be mistaken for just another dream.
Justice of peace don't know his own fate,
But he'll go down in the shelter late.

(Chorus:)

Hidin' your money won't do no good,

Build a big wall, you know you would if you could, yeah!
When clouds of warnin' come into view,
It'll get the ol' woman right outta her shoe.

(Chorus)

Music in the Park Reminder

The Town of East Greenbush presents proudly Carmine Dio for your listening pleasure at Onderdonk Memorial Park on Tuesday, August 30th, from 6-8 pm.

What do you really have ?

There comes a point when you  have  to ask the  obvious  question! 

What do they really have?     I'm talking about the  failed  Tea Party / Reform  fanatics.   They have sunk to  drudging up all the  same failed  campaign rhetoric with  no new info. or anything of any real substance to add.

The republican candidates are  virtually unknown to most anyone-( except maybe  Ed Gilbert from the  Times Union blog )  and  the  sad part is that these  tea  toting  fanatics have allowed rhetorical embellishers  like  Don Johnson to be the  apparent spokesperson for the  2011 election. 

OK - GREAT !   DEMS  WIN AGAIN !

Honestly - if all ya  got is a  16 year  old  TU  report  that means absolutely NOTHING at all ,  or  maybe  the  OSC  investigation that appears to NOT  be  forthcoming  anytime  soon -  ya  think its  time to seek out  new  spokepeople?!?!

Slapping  some  insults at the  ethics  committee isn't  buying you any votes  either -  just  saying .   Puhleez -  give the  voting public  some  real honest " anything"  since  November 2010 -  anything.......  but  you havn't  got anything. 
Mooney and Johnson and Grant and the occassional Dwight and Cristo commentary just don't  seem to have  any  real  substance or  bite.

Big words and  veiled  threats clearly arn't the way to go ,  but  hey - it obviously  helps the  Democratic  cause and  that's OK with me !!

Hang in there Dem  supporters - we'll stay focused and dodge the mud slinging by Taylor and her  cadre of political throw-aways and when the  dust settles  after November 2011 - we can once again sit back and  watch the Town continue to progress forward in a positive manner.

btw:  matters isn't in the pictures because he never shows up!  Its that  simple !

 

Congratulations to Rueben Krutz and his teammates at Drexel!

East Greenbush native Rueben Krutz takes weightless flights to test space camera he helped to invent
By James Breig *
Special to The Record
Sunday, August 21, 2011

See the full story here: http://www.troyrecord.com/articles/2011/08/21/news/doc4e50a3203e9bc520244708.txt

* EG Comprtoller Breig's Father

Dear Jack and Pete:

I've requested that this be entered as a new posting.  I appreciate EG Talks' cooperation. 

DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO??  Anonymous ... August 16, 2011 5:07 AM asks a number of excellent questions.  I've repeated the comment here and have attempted to provide answers of the same caliber.

"Dear Jack and Pete:

How about your insightful analysis and comments about the finanacial perfomance of our CFO and Supervisor Rick McCabe and our Town Board? How do you analyze their fiscal wisdom and financial leadership? How do you assess the McCabe junk bond rating response: "We're hoping the economy turns around".

Can you share with all of us citizens a written copy of the town's CFO/ Supervisor and Town Board's plan to recover from our deficit spending and junk bond rating?

Tip O'Neil famously said: "All politics is local". Please apply your thoughful comments to the financial leadership of Supervisor McCabe and this Town Board.

How about applying your analytical skills to the work and more especially to the accomplishments of the CFAC? How about a side by side comparison of the work and accomplishments of the CFAC to the Finance Committee disbanded by the current Town Board?

How about finding and sharing with all of us where that nefarious $3.2 to $3.5 million owed us by Rensselaer is, was or went?

How about your research and talents applied to our town's contining expenditures on overtime?

We would all appreciate such a, hopefully, non partisan analysis.

Thank you.

August 16, 2011 5:07 AM" 
 
* * * * *

Anonymous:

I'm honored and flattered that you've placed me in the company of Jack Conway.  I have the utmost respect for Jack and his wisdom, insights and calm demeanor.  However, I go it alone here, as I am confident that my comments will upset some folks in town.

Finanacial perfomance

The Supervisor has admitted that he's "not a finance guy" and there is no requirement in law that a candidate for that position to be "a finance guy".  Nor is he, to my knowledge, a CPA, certified planner, licensed engineer, licensed attorney, building inspector, police officer, sewer treatment plant operator, water plant operator, truck driver or snow plow operator, etc., etc.  That is why Towns hire people to do these jobs.  Section 125 of the Town Law states "Duties of supervisor. Except where duties specified herein are devolved upon the town comptroller pursuant to section thirty-four of this chapter, the supervisor of each town shall have the following duties:". 

East Greenbush HAS a Town Comptroller.  Comptroller Breig has my complete confidence, respect and support (Disclosure - I am not saying this solely because  Jim's parents and I have been neighbors for 27 years).

There have been oversights made in the past.  Stipends, for example, have reportedly been paid for decades under both Democrats AND Republicans.  The deficit spending and inter-fund borrowings have occurred for years under both Democrat AND Republican Town Boards.  There will likely be errors made in the future under Democrats OR Republicans. The Town Board has been under Democrat "control" for less than one year, since November 10, 2010, to be precise.  I've not agreed with everything the Town Board has done and voiced my concerns in private.  Overall, I'd say they're doing quite well.

Deficit spending and junk bond rating

After the Moody's downgrade of the Town's bond rating, the Town Board retained the services of Fiscal Advisors and Marketing, Inc. to rehabilitate the rating (26-2010 Resolution to Authorize Professional Contractual Services, adopted January 13, 2010).  Many of the recommendations contained in the Fiscal Advisors and Marketing, Inc.  report have been successfully implemented. 

As a result of the Town's actions to address its financial situation, Moody's upgraded the "negative outlook" to "stable" in March of this year.  Remember, the Town's financial situation took years to develop and will take years to resolve.  The November 6, 2008 State Comptroller's letter states "The general fund balance has decreased from a positive position of $112,436 at December 31, 2005 to a deficit of $859,087 at December 31, 2007. The highway fund balance has decreased from a reported deficit of $623,152 at December 31, 2005 to a deficit of $902,644 at December 31, 2007."  This occurred under the Town Board and not just the Supervisor.  Bear in mind, that while the inter-fund borrowing occurred, General Fund and Highway Fund tax increases were suppressed.  In any event, progress has been made.

According to Moody's March 1, 2011 Rating Upgrade: "The town's fiscal 2011 budget represents a decrease of 0.3% or $43,000 from the previous year's actual revenues, including conservative budgeting for sales tax (4.2% decline) and mortgage tax (16.1% decline). Beginning in January 2010 the newly hired town comptroller implemented a number of new policies and procedures to control expenses and budget revenues. Reflective of that is the increase in various user rates, the pay down of Bond Anticipation Notes and the elimination of at least $175,000 of the accumulated deficit. Moody's believes that while positive steps have been taken, management must prove the ability to fully implement the recovery plan."   http://www.moodys.com/research/MOODYS-AFFIRMS-THE-Ba1-GO-RATING-ON-THE-TOWN-OF?lang=en&cy=global&docid=RU_16843827

Councilpersons Cristo and Danaher vacated their Town Board seats prior to the March 10, 2010 Town Board Meeting, thus, the new policies and procedures cited by Moody's occurred under the direction of the Democrats, including the Supervisor, even though they lacked a voting majority until November 10, 2010. 

If one insists, as many do, on blaming the Supervisor for the financial problems, then HE deserves the credit for the Rating Upgrade and the improvements cited by Moody's. 

Furthermore, the Democrat-developed 2011 Adopted Budget includes $270,000 to pay down a portion of the Inter-fund Balances ($175,000 in the General Fund and $95,000 in the Highway Fund).

You may mock the Supervisor's comment about the economy turning around, but the economy does matter.  Mortgage rates are now at, or near, historic lows.  Plans for a number of residential and commercial developments that were shelved due to the recession are being dusted off and are resurfacing.  These developments should generate revenues for the Town, including building permit and safety inspection fees, mortgage tax and sales tax.  They will also generate mitigation fees.  Residential developments and non-IDA commercial projects add to the all-important tax base of both the County, Town and School District. 

The Supervisor and Town Board are working with the Chamber of Commerce and the East Greenbush Business Alliance to attract development.  The Town also has an excellent working relationship with the Rensselaer County IDA.

Financial leadership

The Democrats have had the majority a scant nine months.  Nevertheless, I believe Moody's March 1, 2011 Rating Upgrade attests to "the financial leadership of Supervisor McCabe and this Town Board."  

Citizens Fiscal Advisory Committee

As Chair of the Citizens Fiscal Advisory Committee (CFAC) I can provide a "non partisan" but not unbiased "side by side comparison of the work and accomplishments of the CFAC to the Finance Committee".  I will therefore focus on the accomplishments of the CFAC.  Notwithstanding this approach, I will state that the CFAC completed  tasks that the Finance Committee initiated, namely:

-     The development and adoption of Town Organization Charts (66-2011 Adoption of Town Organization Charts); and

-     The revision of the Town's Procurement Policy, with the able assistance of Purchasing Agent Angelina Cadena (67-2011 Adoption of Procurement Policy).

The CFAC is developing:

-     A review of and report on the Town's June 30, 2011 (mid-year) operating statements for presentation to the Town Board and posting on the Town's web site.

-     A Long-Term Financial Plan, using an OSC template, which will be completed for the past years upon completion of the 2010 Audit by Toski, Schaefer & Co., P.C. and the filing of the Annual Update Document to ensure that 2010 data is correct.  The Long -Term Financial Plan is intended to project various scenarios concerning the out years; and

-     An Asset Inventory which will yield critical information as to the useful life of Town equipment and enable the Department Heads and the Town Board to anticipate, plan and budget for long-term replacement of equipment.

These projects may prove to be very useful to the Town Board in light of the recently enacted Two-Percent Tax Cap.

$3.2 to $3.5 million owed us by Rensselaer

Supervisor McCabe announced at the July Town Board meeting that the City of Rensselaer had made a payment for the past monies owed to East Greenbush (I've since learned that the payment was in excess of $600,000).  Rensselaer has also reportedly committed, in writing, to make future payments on a quarterly basis.  It is my understanding that these monies will be used to restore Water District Fund Balances and to make future payments against the bonds issued for past Water District capital improvements. 

overtime EXPENDITURES

I'll ask you to do what you ask of Jack and me … "How about your research and talents applied to our town's continuing expenditures on overtime?"  I believe this to be generalization on your part and I prefer to deal in specifics.  Please provide me with specifics and I'll attempt to reply. 

In general, I am personally of the opinion that certain overtime expenditures are unavoidable.  Snow storms, traffic accidents, robberies, burglaries, water main breaks, sewer line breaks, etc., do not maintain a regular 9-5, M-F schedule, but rather a 24/7 schedule. 

It is my understanding that training the police officers and the part-time dispatchers hired earlier this year required overtime for either the officers or dispatchers providing the training or to cover their posts while they trained the new hires.  To me, this would represent an expected and accepted uptick in OT expenses.

It is also my understanding that certain of the Town's collective bargaining agreements with the unions require dual coverage for safety's sake and that when a person assigned to a post is absent, be it vacation, sick leave, worker's comp, etc., another person must fill the post.

Pete Stenson

Music in the Park Reminder

The Town of East Greenbush proudly presents Bow Riders for your listening pleasure, at Onderdonk Memorial Park on Tuesday, August 23rd, from 6-8 pm.

The Oracle Speaks!!

Stop Coddling the Super-Rich

By WARREN E. BUFFETT

NY Times OpEd

August 14, 2011

Omaha

OUR leaders have asked for “shared sacrifice.” But when they did the asking, they spared me. I checked with my mega-rich friends to learn what pain they were expecting. They, too, were left untouched.

While the poor and middle class fight for us in Afghanistan, and while most Americans struggle to make ends meet, we mega-rich continue to get our extraordinary tax breaks. Some of us are investment managers who earn billions from our daily labors but are allowed to classify our income as “carried interest,” thereby getting a bargain 15 percent tax rate. Others own stock index futures for 10 minutes and have 60 percent of their gain taxed at 15 percent, as if they’d been long-term investors.

These and other blessings are showered upon us by legislators in Washington who feel compelled to protect us, much as if we were spotted owls or some other endangered species. It’s nice to have friends in high places.

Last year my federal tax bill — the income tax I paid, as well as payroll taxes paid by me and on my behalf — was $6,938,744. That sounds like a lot of money. But what I paid was only 17.4 percent of my taxable income — and that’s actually a lower percentage than was paid by any of the other 20 people in our office. Their tax burdens ranged from 33 percent to 41 percent and averaged 36 percent.

If you make money with money, as some of my super-rich friends do, your percentage may be a bit lower than mine. But if you earn money from a job, your percentage will surely exceed mine — most likely by a lot.

To understand why, you need to examine the sources of government revenue. Last year about 80 percent of these revenues came from personal income taxes and payroll taxes. The mega-rich pay income taxes at a rate of 15 percent on most of their earnings but pay practically nothing in payroll taxes. It’s a different story for the middle class: typically, they fall into the 15 percent and 25 percent income tax brackets, and then are hit with heavy payroll taxes to boot.

Back in the 1980s and 1990s, tax rates for the rich were far higher, and my percentage rate was in the middle of the pack. According to a theory I sometimes hear, I should have thrown a fit and refused to invest because of the elevated tax rates on capital gains and dividends.

I didn’t refuse, nor did others. I have worked with investors for 60 years and I have yet to see anyone — not even when capital gains rates were 39.9 percent in 1976-77 — shy away from a sensible investment because of the tax rate on the potential gain. People invest to make money, and potential taxes have never scared them off. And to those who argue that higher rates hurt job creation, I would note that a net of nearly 40 million jobs were added between 1980 and 2000. You know what’s happened since then: lower tax rates and far lower job creation.

Since 1992, the I.R.S. has compiled data from the returns of the 400 Americans reporting the largest income. In 1992, the top 400 had aggregate taxable income of $16.9 billion and paid federal taxes of 29.2 percent on that sum. In 2008, the aggregate income of the highest 400 had soared to $90.9 billion — a staggering $227.4 million on average — but the rate paid had fallen to 21.5 percent.

The taxes I refer to here include only federal income tax, but you can be sure that any payroll tax for the 400 was inconsequential compared to income. In fact, 88 of the 400 in 2008 reported no wages at all, though every one of them reported capital gains. Some of my brethren may shun work but they all like to invest. (I can relate to that.)

 

I know well many of the mega-rich and, by and large, they are very decent people. They love America and appreciate the opportunity this country has given them. Many have joined the Giving Pledge, promising to give most of their wealth to philanthropy. Most wouldn’t mind being told to pay more in taxes as well, particularly when so many of their fellow citizens are truly suffering.

Twelve members of Congress will soon take on the crucial job of rearranging our country’s finances. They’ve been instructed to devise a plan that reduces the 10-year deficit by at least $1.5 trillion. It’s vital, however, that they achieve far more than that. Americans are rapidly losing faith in the ability of Congress to deal with our country’s fiscal problems. Only action that is immediate, real and very substantial will prevent that doubt from morphing into hopelessness. That feeling can create its own reality.

Job one for the 12 is to pare down some future promises that even a rich America can’t fulfill. Big money must be saved here. The 12 should then turn to the issue of revenues. I would leave rates for 99.7 percent of taxpayers unchanged and continue the current 2-percentage-point reduction in the employee contribution to the payroll tax. This cut helps the poor and the middle class, who need every break they can get.

But for those making more than $1 million — there were 236,883 such households in 2009 — I would raise rates immediately on taxable income in excess of $1 million, including, of course, dividends and capital gains. And for those who make $10 million or more — there were 8,274 in 2009 — I would suggest an additional increase in rate.

My friends and I have been coddled long enough by a billionaire-friendly Congress. It’s time for our government to get serious about shared sacrifice.

Warren E. Buffett is the chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway.

= = = = =

DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO??

Remember back when the Nation faced default because of the disagreement about raising the debt limit?  Republicans and the Tea Party folks held the "economy hostage" (the NY Times' words, not mine) in an attempt to achieve major budget reductions.  

Remember the political posturing against the Obama stimulus proposals? 

Last evening, The Rachel Maddow Show (a) aired a segment that recommended the approval, according to Steve Bennen (b), of Republican requests for stimulus funds for their home districts, many of which specifically identified the number of jobs that would be created. 

This action would create the jobs, tie the Republicans to the stimulus and the economy AND make it hard for them to argue persuasively against another sorely need stimulus package!

The real legwork was done by The Huffington Post (c), which reports: "A Freedom of Information Act request filed by The Huffington Post with three separate federal agencies reveals that on at least 16 separate occasions, (Rep. Michele) Bachmann petitioned the federal government for direct financial help or aid. A large chunk of those requests were for funds set aside through President Obama's stimulus program, which Bachmann once labeled "fantasy economics." Bachmann made two more of those requests to the Environmental Protection Agency, an institution that she has suggested she would eliminate if she were in the White House."  

According to Maddow, Congressperson Bachmann wasn't the only Republican seeking a place at the trough.  She listed a number of those seeking support for pet projects and supposedly aired a segment on the requests last year. 

Maybe the way to get the Republicans to "buy into" a stimulus plan would be to "buy them off".  Sadly, they'd be able to return to their home districts with the bacon (or pork) with increased changes of being re-elected, but that's the risk we'd have to accept to get the economy growing again.  Of course, there's no guarantee that the Republicans would buy into another stimulus after the debt limit debacle.   

Studies have shown that our bridge and highway system is woefully in need of repair. Schools are also in need of repair. Bricks and mortar, concrete and steel, people working (sadly, much of the steel would be imported - "In May 2011, the steel trade deficit widened to -1.65 million metric tons, 20% more than the deficit in April 2011."(d)). What better a time to REBUILD AMERICA??

Links:

(a) The Rachel Maddow Show  "Don't ask don't tell" (aka "The secret Republican stimulus jobs plan") http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/

(b) The Washington Monthly - "How about a Bachmann-inspired stimulus" http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/political-animal/2011_08/how_about_a_bachmanninspired_s031432.php#

(c) The Huffington Post  "Michele Bachmann Repeatedly Sought Stimulus, EPA, Other Government Funds." http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/10/michele-bachmann-stimulus_n_922851.html

(d) US Department of Commerce International Trade Administration "Steel Industry Executive Summary: July 2011" http://hq-web03.ita.doc.gov/License/Surge.nsf/webfiles/SteelMillDevelopments/$file/exec%20summ.pdf?openelement

Pete Stenson

Guest Post - long overdue....

> Why would an innocent person need an attorney?  Michael "Anonymous" Cristo poses the question in reference to none other than Receiver of Taxes Toni Murphy.  I think a brief response is warranted.    
> 
> Please be advised that an innocent person might need an attorney if:
> 
> (a) a town official, like the DPW Commissioner for example, were walking around the Town Garage telling his subordinates that the Receiver of Taxes is going to be "leaving town hall in bracelets" or
> 
> (b) if that same town official, along with say a county legislator, were dining in a neighboring city and loudly professing that "Toni Murphy has been stealing money from the Town"  or maybe
> 
> (c) if those same individuals were defaming the memory of her deceased husband or possibly
> 
> (d) if a blogspot on the internet repeatedly called her "dirty, dirty, dirty", "low-life scum" or a "thief".
> 
> In sum, often innocent folks seek legal advice for the purpose of bringing civil actions against those that are accusing them of bad behavior, because sometimes good people don't like to be accused of thievery and dishonesty.
> 
> Hope this helps!!
> 
> Thanks so much,
> 
> A loyal Murphy supporter (guess who?)

Music in the Park Reminder - WHITE WATER RESCHEDULED

The Town of East Greenbush presents White Water at Onderdonk Memorial Park tomorrow night, August 9th, from 6-8 pm.

THE BAND WHITE WATER WAS WASHED OUT!  NEW DATE IS TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 6 AT 6:00PM.

WHITE WATER PLAYS ALL KINDS OF MUSIC FROM THE 50’S RIGHT ON AND COMES HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE FOR A FUN EVENING JUST LISTENING OR DANCING UNDER THE STARS!

Couse Corners Lane Closures

The Following Lane Closures are for Friday, August 5 and Saturday, August 6:

Couse Place - Friday, August 5 from 7am-3pm Alternating one-lane traffic.

Luther Road, Eastbound Lane - Saturday, August 6 from 7am-3 pm Alternating one-lane traffic.

Music in the Park Reminder

The Town of East Greenbush presents Band of Gold at Onderdonk Memorial Park tonight, August 2nd, from 6-8 pm.