Friday, October 25, 2002
Something has to change in Girard, and quickly
EDITOR:
Maybe it's time for the mayor of Girard to step aside. Clearly he is unwilling or unable to make critical decisions regarding the city. I remember during his campaign he maintained that he was going to be a one term mayor and because of that he would be able to make the tough decisions unfettered by worries of re-election. Evidently, he is worried about his re-election. And so am I. How much can the city take of this do-nothing administration? The state's already here -- is he waiting for the federal government?
We're not talking rocket science here, the decisions he has to make about restructuring the city to cope with the financial mess would take a good CEO about a week. Melfi thought that when the state came in they would do his job. Well they won't. They're simply going to make an accurate determination of how much money the city will have to work with, make some lame recommendations, and look over city officials' shoulders to make sure they've given up their law-breaking ways.
Look, it's simple. You only have so much money and you're not getting any more. And you can't keep writing checks when it's gone. So it all boils down to mathematics, X number of dollars enables the city to have X number of policemen and firemen. Write the pink slips.
Then tell the chief, the detectives, captains and what have you, to stay out of the city building and in a patrol car. It also wouldn't hurt to notice that you have two secretaries sitting four feet apart outside your office door. Get rid of one. Then head up to the court where Emperor Bernard is going to have to stack cubicles on top of one another like Hollywood Squares if he hires one more employee and tell him he's getting a reasonable budget for a change, and if he doesn't like it you'll fight him in court.
Then give the employees the ultimatum. Accept 1997 wages and benefits or see half your membership out of work. Do that for special effect because you already know that for all their "brother this, and sister that" they could care less about their fellow workers. Fifty-one percent of them would see 49 percent of them laid off before they would give up one nickel of their wages.
So, mayor, stop whining. We all know you don't want to reduce the safety forces; we all believe your heart is in the right place. It's your head we're concerned about. What's it going to take to get you to act? WKBN radio has already done a comedy sketch about our city. Please do something before Leno and Letterman come to town.
DANIEL MOADUS, JR.
Girard
X The writer is a former Girard councilman and mayoral candidate.
A better message: Clothes don't make the person
EDITOR:
After reading the article "Image is Everything" in the Oct. 18 Vindicator, all I can say is, & quot;Thank Goodness the Campbell City Schools have their children wear uniforms. & quot;
Where is the parental guidance these children need? Spending $150 on clothes even every other month is ridiculous! Perhaps instead of dropping their daughters off at the mall and endorsing a & quot;judge people by their looks and what they wear & quot; attitude, these girls should be saving for college, donating to a charity, or something similar.
This article endorsed pre-judging people by their clothes and how much money they have. One of the nicest people I ever knew was a woman who is prominent in Youngstown. She had money, did not flaunt it, shopped for bargains, and was a friend to all people, regardless of status.
Unfortunately, this article endorses class status, either by design or through stupidity.
ELIZABETH PETAK
Campbell