Editor:

I had a very scary event that happened and I can’t thank the first responders enough or the anonymous caller.

I want to take the time to thank the Medina Police and Fire Department for the quick response time when a neighbor walked by my house and called 911. I want to thank the person that called 911. I don’t know who you are but to me you are a guardian angel.

The electrical wire outside of my house was sparking and on fire on Feb. 2. I am not sure if the neighbor was walking or driving by but I have a great deal to be thankful for. I was sound asleep on the second floor when I heard pounding on my door. My home had smoke throughout.

Officer Joe Frentz said he was only giving one more knock and he was kicking in the door.

I was blessed that day. I lost power for the day until the electrician came and ran a new service to my home. Damage to the outside is the worst.

I also want to thank my neighbor Sue for taking me into her home until Rick got home and we were cleared to enter our home again. Thanks you all so very much.

Monica Tobin
Medina

Editor:

Not understanding why it would be a disaster to have a bully representing the United States as President is like thinking Michigan Governor Rick Snyder isn’t responsible for the lead poisoning crisis in Flint. Both may be based on a lack of information.

Though bullying is normally associated with children, adults are subjected to bullying as well. Fearing retaliation, adult victims, who often work for the bully, may acquiesce to intimidation. But what happens when the targets of the bully are elected officials, life appointees, or leaders of independent countries?

Candidate Trump’s repeated assertion that Mexico will pay for a border wall is the tactic of a bully. Does he value our relationship with Mexico or not? We have seen the reaction it evokes. The last three Mexican Presidents have, in effect, told candidate Trump to “go pound salt.”

When the brash billionaire told Jeb Bush to “Shut up,” he displayed the petulance and disrespect that might make one wonder who he would not talk down to. Perhaps to appear Presidential, Bush went along.

How does Ted Cruz running a tape of Tim Russert’s interview with the stridently pro-choice 1999 version of currently pro-life candidate Trump warrant the threat of a lawsuit? Was he saying, “If you exercise your First Amendment right of free speech, I will sue you?” Such a legally baseless, ridiculous attempt to intimidate is nothing more than the m.o. of a bully. His threats to sue or run as a third-party candidate are further attempts to bully.

Donald Trump has said he is smarter than most of our generals. Who, then, does he intend to take counsel from? When you think you are smarter than anyone in the United States government, do you really need to surround yourself with anyone other than sycophants and bodyguards?

When questioned about Paul Ryan’s stern admonition that there was no place in the Republican Party for hate groups, Trump bragged, “I’ll get along fine with Speaker Ryan, and if I don’t, he will have a very big price to pay.” Does he think Paul Ryan is a bell hop at Trump Tower? Perhaps he thinks Ryan’s youth, stature, or hair style, make the Speaker of the House someone he can bully with empty threats.

Attacking people on a personal level is indicative of a bully as well. Though Carly Fiorina’s interjection cut short his implosion in the first debate, he later questioned, “How could anyone vote for that face?” Those who question him are “losers,” “fat pigs,” or “stiffs,” or, in Megyn Kelly’s case, something else. Or perhaps their ears are big and they sweat a lot (like working people do). Ted Cruz is “Liar Ted,” and Marco Rubio is “Little Marco.” These, too, are typical of bullying behavior.

Though he chirps a lot about veterans, Trump has even disrespected the military. The McCain prisoner thing was a pathetic example. He said the military would break the law and torture if he told them to. That may not be how it works when it comes to ordering people to break the law.

As we found out disastrously in 2000, anything can happen in an election. If the American people do not inform themselves quickly, a great nation may be in for an unprecedented four-year embarrassment that will make George W. Bush look like Mt. Rushmore material.

Sincerely yours,

Gary Kent
Albion

Editor:

Village elections will be held Tuesday, March 15. There will be three candidates who will be on the ballot:

Mayor – Mike Sidari. For the last two years, Mike has had a great experience as a Village Trustee. Mike has quickly learned the interworking of local government, and has been pro-active in saving the taxpayer money. Being retired, he has the time to be readily available to all of the department heads, as well as to the residents of Medina.

Trustee – Marguerite Sherman. Marguerite has also had an enlightening experience as a Village Trustee for the last two years. Marguerite likes to investigate the issues that come before the board and makes conscientious decisions from the facts that are gathered.

Trustee – Tim Elliott. Tim is currently on the Village Planning Board and regularly attends Village Board meetings where he has readily shared many innovative ideas. Tim owns a local business on Main Street, along with several apartments in the village.

All three of us candidates are committed to serving the village. We believe that the Village is on the cusp of rejuvenation. Along with our two other current Village Board members, Todd Bensley and Owen Toale, we will work hard to improve the village.
Please show us your support in our efforts on March 15. Thank you.

Your Village Board candidates,

Michael Sidari – Mayor
Marguerite Sherman – Trustee
Tim Elliott – Trustee

Editor:

I normally keep my opinions to myself, especially about politics, but the recent decision by the Orleans County Republican Party to endorse Donald Trump for President has forced me to break my silence.

Donald Trump has proven himself to be a xenophobic, bigoted, racist who would be a disaster for the country if elected. The things he has said about women should be enough by themselves to convince people. I have not heard of a single world leader saying anything favorable about him except Putin. That’s enough for me.

I fail to see how our local party leaders think Trump would be good for us. He wants to build a wall to keep Mexicans out. Tell me who will pick our apples and harvest the vegetable crops that our county depends on.

If you criticize or disagree with Trump he calls you names and insults you. Not very presidential.

The man seems incapable of speaking in complete sentences.

We can do better.

I have been a registered Republican for over 40 years. It’s not the party it once was. The only reason I haven’t switched parties yet is so that I can vote against Trump in the primary.

Ronald Mathes
Albion

Editor:

Recently Mr. Ed Morgan, Orleans County Republican Party Chairman, said “Government should be run as a business and not political.”

This is a popular notion among a great many Republicans and some Democrats. Without thinking too hard about it, it would appear to make sense. Those popularizing this notion feel this way because they see business as more efficient.

This must be the case, so the logic goes, or the entity in question would lose market share and go bankrupt. Only the fit survive. But on closer inspection nothing could be more nearsighted, unimaginative or wrong.

We all like efficiency. But efficiency in the private sector means profit. To suggest the government be run as a business is tantamount to desiring it to seek profit. The problem in a nutshell is that, “Not everything that has social value is profitable, and not all that is profitable has social value.”

Reality TV, pornography, fashion, gambling and selling illegal drugs are of questionable social value, but there is little doubt they are extremely profitable ventures. Furthermore – our public schools, libraries, fire and police departments, our national military forces do not exist in the private sector – yet they could not exist at all if they were required to be profitable. Our military is not supported by magazine subscriptions and half-price sales.

How many people do you know would like to see a local fire department sales rep stop by with a brochure that outlines your three different levels of fire protection – please choose the one that best suits your needs and budget.

A business may upgrade and maintain their facilities to stay competitive or increase sales. But they don’t create or maintain roads, bridges, an electrical grid, environmental standards, traffic laws, economic and monetary commerce standards or much of anything else that facilitates and regulates their ability to do business in the first place – and that everyone gets to use free-of-charge. The reason you may wait in a long line to get a passport or driver’s license is because its nonsensical to outsource things like these – as a profitable business might do.

When a business has a belligerent employee, that employee is generally terminated – or in Donald Trump’s TV land, “You’re Fired.” But what if the belligerent isn’t an employee but Syria. Or China. “You’re Fired” sounds like a really bad joke, doesn’t it.

And while a lot of folks are enthralled with the notion of an “outsider” shaking things up in the political field, it’s worth noting that Congress is made up of 535 politicians. So anyone going into a field of politicians as an “outsider” is nearly guaranteed to stay in that position, an outsider. In other words, Peyton Manning doesn’t hit a lot of home runs, but that’s not because he’s a lousy quarterback, it’s because baseball isn’t his game.

Donald Trump has been very successful at many things. He’s also getting sued for $40-million and has declared bankruptcy several times over. That’s business. I get it.

But it’s not the way our country should be run.

Our country doesn’t have the luxury of filing for bankruptcy protection and it can’t plead innocent in a court of law. Businesses can, we can’t. I wish Mr. Morgan appreciated these realities more.

Darren Wilson
Lyndonville

Editor:

I have been a lifelong registered Republican, having voted for every party candidate for presidential election since Gerald Ford’s failed 1976 bid.

I have always considered myself a moderate Republican; conservative on fiscal issues and moderate on social ones. Over the last several years, I have seen my party change to the point that I no longer wish to be considered a Republican.

The final straw was the announcement that our local Republican Party has endorsed Donald Trump as President. To me, Trump is at best a blowhard, and at worst a dangerous person who could possibly lead our country down a dangerous road.

Any student of history can see similarities between the fervor that surrounds Trump, and the rise of other dangerous individuals that have attracted a disaffected portion of the electorate and have advanced themselves because there is not respected voice speaking out against them.

Trump not a Republican or a Democrat. He is an opportunistic buffoon who will say or do whatever will rile the crowds. I have decided to leave the Republican Party and have re-registered as an independent.

Thomas Minigiello
Kendall

Editor:

I would like to thank the Somerset Town Board for the update in the town law with regard to wind turbines; a lot has changed in the past 10 years with regard to this industry.

Certainly the size and technology has changed; in addition, as more of these have been built near people, negative effects have been reported world-wide. In fact, many communities are banning them from being built. Unfortunately Article 10 has stripped that right from us in NYS so the board trying to protect the community as much as possible is greatly appreciated.

I understand why leaseholders and Apex are opposed to this; they are in it for the money without regard for the community and neighbors. What I can’t understand are others who support this project or don’t appreciate the town law trying to protect us from some of the harmful consequences.

To think that it will help our towns and make it so our children can stay here is delusional. Visit the towns that have had these built near them; they are not bustling with economic trade! In fact, many report people leaving, some even abandoning their properties because of health concerns. Do you really think these effects and concerns are made up? That there is a mass conspiracy world-wide to discredit wind turbines?

People with no financial gain are speaking up; do you really believe what the companies, who stand to make millions, say over residents who have lived with the effects of these industrial wind turbines? The World Health Organization, among countless others, has recognized the negative health effects when turbines are sited too close to people. Frankly, from what I’ve read, even 2,000 feet is not far enough away; there are reports of negative effects as far as two miles away from industrial turbines.

As proven with the recent elections and multiple surveys, the great majority of residents oppose this project for the following reasons:

1. The energy benefits are minimal. Wind turbines in NYS work less than 24% of the time. Even when generating power, the output is variable, so it cannot reliably replace other sources on the grid and only causes peak load plants to ramp down or switch from generation to standby, in which mode they still burn fuel.

In addition, as reported in Forbes this past October U.S. Energy Administration data shows that electricity rates have soared in states generating the most wind power. That is not a coincidence. Speaking as an environmentalist, this inefficient source of power doesn’t make the grade; its disadvantages far outweigh its advantages, especially when sited inappropriately.

2. The addition of noise, light, and visual pollution is unacceptable. We are talking about approximately 70 structures 60 stories high! I am tired of hearing from leaseholders that they should be able to do what they want with their land. I can’t put a small one story shed within 15 feet of the property line with my neighbor but they should be able to put a 570 foot industrial structure across the road from me? What is right or fair about that?

These turbines must be lit and will be noisy, not to mention creating flicker and infrasound; even Apex acknowledges some of the negative consequences, although they try to minimize them by calling them “annoyances”. We also have to worry about radar and telecommunications interference; there’s a reason that Invenergy has to pay the cable bills in Orangeville.

3. The negative impact to the land and to wildlife is significant. Besides acres of clearance and blasting of foundations for thousands of tons of rebar and concrete, new or upgraded roads and high-capacity transmission lines are also required. Construction will affect water flow and quality and cause erosion and flooding, as has been documented in Meyersdale, Pennsylvania. Besides reducing and fragmenting forest habitat, the vibration of the machines drives away wildlife, as noted on Backbone Mountain in West Virginia. Turbine blades are deadly to bats and birds and our location as a major North American migratory path makes this especially troubling.

4. The harm to our rural character far outweighs unreliable pay-offs to affected towns and individuals. As noted in numerous sources, as a project is later sold to national or international investors, payments are likely to be curtailed and taxes contested. The potential legal burden on towns is huge. Construction jobs, the more specialized of which will be filled by workers from elsewhere, are short term.

Approximately 10 permanent jobs are promised, but at what cost? Any business that depends on recreation and tourism traffic is likely to suffer, as will neighboring property values. The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management’s Wind Energy Development Policy “will not grant right-of way authorizations for wind energy development for areas incompatible with specific resource valuesincluding National and Scenic Trails.” Why is this project proposed here, with the Great Lakes Seaway Trail, Golden Hills State Park and the Niagara Wine Trail?

Long after new technology makes giant wind turbines obsolete, or after they are abandoned because of diminishing returns (just visit Altamont Pass, Calif., Princeton, Mass., and South Point, Hawaii), property owners and towns will be stuck with the mess. Frankly, if it weren’t for taxpayer-funded subsidies, these would never be built. We, as local taxpayers, would truly pay twice for this project, not to mention the loss of our quality of life.

Respectfully,

Donn Riggi
Lyndonville

Editor:

Save Ontario Shores, a citizens group formed in response to 600-foot-high industrial wind turbines proposed for the towns of Somerset and Yates, calls upon Apex Clean Energy, Inc. to immediately sign and return to the New York State Office of the Attorney General the Code of Conduct for Wind Farm Development that it received from the Attorney General’s Office on or shortly after Feb. 8, 2016. As of Feb. 18 the Attorney General’s Office had not received the signed code.

There is a Somerset Town Planning Board meeting on March 3 regarding additional MET towers for the Apex’s proposed industrial wind turbine project. This is an excellent example of the type of local decision-making that the code of conduct was meant to protect from any appearance of conflict of interest.

We call upon Apex to sign the code of conduct and comply with it before going before the Somerset Town Planning Board or any municipal body for any Lighthouse Wind project approvals.

Apex Clean Energy, Inc. states on its current website (click here) that “Apex will continue working with the Attorney General’s office as we develop Lighthouse Wind, and we look forward to signing a code of conduct when it is offered by the Attorney General.”

The Attorney General has sent Apex a code of conduct with signature lines and the local community expects that the document be signed immediately, returned to the Attorney General’s Office and expects immediate compliance.

Apex’s delay in signing and complying with the code of conduct adds to the ongoing experiences of citizens who have had questions addressed by Apex with “you’ll find out later” type of language.

People want disclosure. Let us know your plans. Let us know the number and locations and types of turbines you are considering. Stop telling us that you will tell us later. Sign the code of conduct. Comply with it.

Kate Kremer, Vice President
Save Ontario Shores, Inc.

Editor:

“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.” Experience is a great teacher. A better alternative has not been found.

Making mistakes comes with making the attempt. Those who never try fail only because they fail to try.

Someone who has been a governor’s spouse, First Lady of the United States for eight years, a United States Senator and Secretary of State has learned from a variety of relevant experiences. Working with others is in her comfort zone.

The people Hillary Clinton served with as a hard-working United States Senator approved her nomination as Secretary of State by a vote of 96-2. The man she fought for the democratic nomination for President in 2008 nominated her.

Her husband’s transgressions are not hers. She is often faulted for standing with him. I firmly believe she would be faulted had she not stood with him. Regardless of what she does, it is interpreted as “political.” To understand such things, it is important to remember that Bill Clinton committed the unpardonable sin of winning the Presidential election in 1992. She is guilty by association.

The fact that Hillary Clinton is treated “differently” is inescapable.

Consider that what might be called a “system failure” cost the lives of 3,000 people on Sept. 11, 2001. Another “system failure” cost the lives of 5,000 Americans, and counting, in 2003. The foreign policy inexperience of George W. Bush certainly contributed mightily to these deaths.

Call it what you will, a failure to adhere to the advice of every member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff cost the lives of 264 United States Marines in 1983. A decided lack of familiarity with the Middle East certainly contributed to that avoidable tragedy. As I recall, there were virtually no official questions asked about these events, much less millions being spent on Congressional inquiries and hearings.

Rationalize the double standard as you will, a Secretary of State has been investigated and pummeled unmercifully for what arguably may have been nothing more than a system failure that cost the lives of 4 Americans while she was Secretary of State. Republicans in a position to know have admitted her treatmentthen and earlierwas meant to destroy her chances of ever becoming President.

I do not support Hillary Clinton because she is a woman. I support her because she is, more than any other person running, the candidate most ready to be President on Day 1. Unlike nearly all of her potential opponents in November, it won’t be necessary for her to be brought “up to speed” on foreign affairs in particular.

Even in a year when all the conventional wisdom is being questioned, there is still no substitute for experience.

Sincerely yours,

Gary Kent
Albion

Editor:

Our community has been deluged by Apex “Clean Energy” with claims as to the positive environmental effects of Lighthouse Wind, ignoring and/or minimizing other aspects of the project that make it unacceptable to the majority residents in the towns of Somerset and Yates and the surrounding area.

As an example, nothing is mentioned about the huge carbon footprint of this project. Carbon footprint being a measure, developed by the environmental community, of the environmental impact of an operation in tons of carbon dioxide, a “greenhouse gas” released to the atmosphere.

The construction phase alone will be nothing more than an environmental and physical disaster to our area, no matter the measurement.

Consider, the 70 huge foundation pits to be dug and filled with tons of concrete and rebar necessary to support these 600-foot monsters.

Consider, the miles of access roads to be constructed for oversize and overweight equipment necessary to assemble and service 70 of the 600-foot monsters scattered along a 12-mile stretch of Lake Ontario shoreline.

Consider, the miles of trenches to be dug and the cabling required to connect 70 of the 600-foot monsters to each other and to the grid at Somerset Station.

Consider, the fabrication and transportation of 210 composite blades weighing many tons each and 150 feet or more in length necessary to “harvest the wind.”

Consider, the tons of steel in the towers required for each of the 600-foot monsters.

Consider, the thousands of gallons of diesel fuel consumed by the equipment necessary to deliver and assemble all of the above.

There is more to consider, much of it yet to be disclosed by Apex “Clean Energy” as they attempt to convince the public, without full disclosure, of all the benefits of Lighthouse Wind. The carbon footprint of Lighthouse Wind is none the less HUGE. Much research confirms this fact.

The counter argument from those who “Fear Not The Wind” is the fuel is “free” and produces no “greenhouse gas” emissions. To support this argument one has to ignore the huge carbon footprint of construction and ignore the collateral damage associated with the operation of the 70 turbines.

Collateral damage of the 70 operating turbines includes but is not limited to, visual pollution, noise, vibration, shadow flicker, ultrasound, killing of birds and bats, loss of forestland and wildlife habitat, destruction of property values, disruption of normal farming operations, controversy among neighbors, groundwater pollution, electromagnetic interference with communications and threats to public health and safety. For those intent on saving the planet there are better ways.

The Apex “Clean Energy” Lighthouse Wind project power is neither clean, necessary, nor desirable in our community. Three independent studies conducted in the towns of Somerset and Yates and the surrounding area have shown that our community opposes Lighthouse Wind by an overwhelming majority of 2:1. Lighthouse Wind should be canceled. It is the wrong project in the wrong place.

James C. Hoffman
Town of Somerset