In the Mahoning Valley, it's business as usual

In the Mahoning Valley,it's business as usual
EDITOR:
I followed the recent election with much interest, but little optimism. The results were as expected by anyone familiar to Mahoning Valley politics.
First the sales tax issues in two counties passed. The blackmail used by commissioners and department heads worked well. Everyone who has their hand in the taxpayers' pocket and all their family and friends got out to assure this tax would pass with no meaningful concessions in wage and benefit packages. Turning the criminals loose worked well again. This tax will absorb about 25 percent of the modest raise I and many others got from Social Security. Of course that percentage goes down for people who have their snouts firmly planted in the taxpayer-filled trough.
The people of Youngstown elected a Democratic candidate who claims to be for all the people. He holds two well-paying jobs while others are out of work. His only reason for running is to keep his hands in the benefit plan and enhance his pension income to the max. Since it is likely the Valley would elect Osama bin Laden if he ran with a "D" after his name, this man is likely the next mayor of Youngstown.
The above items cannot bode well for the future of the area. We already have enough black eyes in the news from the Valley.
We have several crooked judges, law enforcement officers, elected and appointed officials, and a thieving congressman who are all collecting generous pensions and disability claims. If the lawmakers had any morals they would pass a law that convicted crooks would lose their benefits, but most of them are in the position of "There but for the Grace of God."
In the recent past we had several incidents to illustrate the quality of Valley citizens and their leaders.
The trash show of the two Trumbull County women in the Struthers jail would make the Jerry Springer guest look like upstanding citizens.
The judge who from reports I've seen was almost falling down drunk. She claims to have acknowledged her mistake and taken her punishment and is moving on, but she refused to take a required breath test which would have raised the limit and enhanced her penalty. This is not taking responsibility.
Or the report of a teacher arriving at school to teach second grade visibly drunk. If this was common with her, who should have noticed her condition before the police officer who could see her condition.
We also have local judges writing letters of praise for one of the largest distributors of marijuana in recent years and prominent local clergy have a history of praising criminals. Often I suspect some clergy sell their support for contributions.
My advise to young people starting in the world is run don't walk to the nearest exit. The Valley cannot survive so much negative publicity.
ROBERT HUSTED
New Springfield
When the rod was not spared
EDITOR:
I'm 63 years old, but the discussion about education and paddling got me remembering my time in school especially grade school.
I was held back in the third grade, something that isn't done very much today, but was one of the reasons I stayed in school. My fourth grade teacher paddled everyone that didn't do their homework. By the middle of the second six weeks she didn't have to paddle anybody. Today the Children Services fanatics would probably try to put her in prison, but Mrs. Gordon was the best teacher I ever had and the other reason I stayed in school.
I had a sixth grade teacher who was a pioneer of sorts. He put the kids with poor or failing grades in a bonehead row, the kids with very good grades in a egghead row and the rest in the middle. If a kid in bonehead row started doing better he moved them into the middle and the same thing if a kid in egghead row started doing poorly and vice-versa. They do the same thing today, but use more politically correct labels.
GERALD MILLER
Niles