Letters to the Editor May 26

Oh, progressives are bad, bad

I want to fly to the defense of Kathy Lauretano. In her letter last week she pointed out that “progressivism” promotes expansion of corrupt and incompetent government programs to enslave the population through confiscation of personal property and “money” and that it represents the path to socialism and communism.

Thank you, Kathy Lauretano. You have opened my eyes.

Let’s take a look at some of the clique of American progressives. Theodore Roosevelt busted the trusts that were making some truly deserving monopolists rich. He also was an environmentalist and started the national park system. If he still lived today, he would certainly believe in the myth of global warming.

Franklin D. Roosevelt introduced all kinds of socialist programs like Social Security. And when he led the nation and the world in the fight against Hitler his secret agenda was to support Stalin’s gulags.

Martin Luther King Jr. fought for civil rights. He chose to ignore the fact that the blacks of the South were happy not to vote, because he realized that black voting would lead to the communism that he secretly favored.

Undoubtedly there will be letters to the editor by some of the Northwest Corner’s progressives. They will point out that Woodrow Wilson was not a fascist and George Soros is not a communist. They will argue that the socialists and communists of the 19th century never used the word “progressive” and will challenge readers to find it anywhere in the writings of Marx and Lenin.

Ignore them. Progressivism is evil. Ms. Lauretano is right.

Hendon Chubb

Cornwall
 

Participation for all on Memorial Day

Regarding Richard Boyle’s excellent letter to the editor of May 12, I would like to add a few words on the subject of allowing participation of members of all faiths in the Memorial Day ceremony at the Salisbury cemetery.

My late husband, Bill Binzen, marched in his World War II Army Air Force uniform every Memorial Day from 1986 to 2009, and was very proud to do so — keeping in step with his “flyboy” slouch even when he was 91 years old.

For 40 years after the end of the war, he and his crew members had wanted to forget the war and all its wretchedness, but in 1986 they decided to get together again, at their annual 463rd Bomb Group Reunion. There were nine of them — the crew of a B17 — and that reunion showed them something that they had never suspected — that the bond created between them in flying 33 missions from southern Italy over the Alps to Germany was so strong that it could never be broken.

For the next 10 years they had their own private reunion, in each of their home towns, and the last one took place in Salisbury.

The radio operator of this crew was Norman Lear. He and Bill became fast friends after that first reunion, and their memories of those hazardous missions were videotaped by the Library of Congress for the historical record.

If Bill were still alive today, I know for a surety that he would insist that the prayers of his friend Norman’s faith, which is Jewish, should be given equal time on Memorial Day with those of his own, which was Christian, Congregational variety.

 If their “ship” had gone down, as so many did all around them on every mission, wouldn’t they both have gone to the same heaven? Of course they would — and I’m sure that Bill is waiting even now to welcome Norman when he steps out of the cirrus clouds.

They probably won’t be saying their prayers then, but assuredly we should be doing so for them.

Gaile L. Binzen

Salisbury

Good dogs are good medicine

In this relentlessly soggy spring, two straight hours without rain, coupled with enough sun to set a dog panting, provided reasons enough to celebrate. Add to that 70-plus dogs playing musical hula hoops,relaxing with doggie yoga, bobbing for bones and sashaying in the Northwest Corner’s most original fashion show and the celebration becomes a veritable gala.

Last Saturday’s Good Dog Walk and Pooch Party, hosted by Sand Road Animal Hospital and Noble Horizons, was made possible by our generous sponsors, Sharon Hospital, Lantern Energy and Millbrook Equine, along with many local merchants, individuals (including our gifted fashion show judges, Carolyne Roehm and Bunny Williams) and devoted volunteers.  

The wildly entertaining event brought together dogs of every size, shape, color and personality (not to mention costume) in support of The Good Dog Foundation, whose dog therapy teams enhance the quality of life for people in need throughout the Tri-state area and beyond.

The Walk and Pooch Party offered a riotous selection of games, activities and training opportunities, each of which reflected the many and diverse joys of canine companionship.  Through The Good Dog Foundation’s outreach to health care facilities, libraries, schools, community centers and disaster sites, the rewards of this unique and deeply gratifying relationship are made available to all who need and cherish the reassurance of a dog’s unconditional love.

Noble Horizons is grateful to the many munificent businesses and individuals who made this wonderful community event possible.

If you are a dog lover, please contact Noble Horizons or The Good Dog Foundation to learn more about how you and your dog can help ease pain and loneliness with the soothing nuzzle of a “good dog.”

Ani Shaker , President

The Good Dog Foundation

Brooklyn, N.Y.

Housing must be affordable

Some people find a $1 million house affordable. To some, a $500,000 home is just doable.

To others, $150,000 is impossible. To affordable housing advocates, this reality is an implicit indictment of unfairness and denied equity and/or haves versus have nots, or unspeakably, earned versus unearned. How nice it would be if all citizens in Salisbury had access to nice houses or rentals reflective of their means.

Actually, they mostly do now! Regretfully, a small cadre of social engineers (apparently the Board of Selectmen, for two out of three chair this group) are inflicting upon our community a government-subsidized Housing Commission, said costs of their efforts and product will be paid for by all other taxpayers.

In two exhausting and redundant studies of more than 160 pages, they conclude that an urgency exists in what they perceive as critical threats to the future of Salisbury and dictates an imminent demand to build many — 200 many — villages of affordable houses.

Herein are a few of their “urgently critical reasons and plans” presented by their exhaustive studies:

1. They insist on the need for 200 various housing units.

Comment: This is 10 percent of all housing extant in town. What enormous visual and financial impact would this inflict upon Lakeville/Salisbury?

2. They want to counter the projected 37 percent drop in school enrollment announced by the Connecticut State Data Center.

Comment: Great! Fewer children, smaller class sizes, fewer teachers, less maintenance, lower budget and taxes. No need whatsoever for subsidized houses.

3. They allege that there is inadequate housing for fire and ambulance volunteers and wield a disgraceful threat that private nonvoluntary service will cost taxpayers $4.5 million per year.

Comment: This is a malicious falsehood. All fire/ambulance volunteers are presently housed in both lovely and/or modest homes or a few in rental units as we speak and all in town except one or two in North Canaan.

4. They find as “unsettling” that high school graduates are unwilling to live in their hometown.

Comment: Of course they don’t. There are few, if any, jobs, social or entertainment opportunities in Salisbury compared to swingin’ Boston, New York, etc.

5. They are also concerned about people possibly “living in packing crates and under bridges.”

Comment: No comment.

6. They suffer a deep anxiety that “Salisbury will become an upscale retirement community; a place where people come to visit their parents as in other communities, especially the Sunbelt — is this what we want to become?”

Comment: Yes! The president and all economic prognosticators view the senior population as the largest job growth industry, now and in the future, and Salisbury has an advantageous head start in this job-creating and decent business.

7. And how do they expect to pay for this? “With our taxes and government grants.”

Comment: Connecticut is currently $3.6 billion ($3,600,000,000) in debt.

Let us instead support the worthy and experienced non-governmental philanthropic organizations such as Habitat for Humanity and Salisbury Housing Trust.

Alfred Nemiroff

Lakeville

Day of Caring event was a success, thank you

On Saturday, April 30, about 75 volunteers came together to help “care” for the Girl Scout Camp Maria Pratt. United Way Day of Caring has been an annual event in Northwest Connecticut since 1986.

This year, we have decided to hold two Day of Caring events, the first one designed to help clean up the Camp Maria Pratt for both the Girl Scouts summer camp program and Camp MOE.

On behalf of the United Way Board of Directors, I wanted to take this opportunity to thank all the volunteers and businesses who donated their time or their materials to make our first Day of Caring a big success.

 We had all ages of volunteers at the camp on Saturday ranging from teenagers to seniors. There was enough work for everyone and everyone walked away a little tired and a lot satisfied knowing they made a difference in the lives of some young campers.

A special thank you to the businesses that provided food for our volunteers: Big Y, Price Chopper, LaMonica’s, Alfredo’s, Carbone’s, Pipe Tomato, Mt. Claire, Dunkin Donuts and Super Stop & Shop.

Stephanie R. Barksdale

Executive Director

United Way of Northwest Connecticut

Torrington