Editor:

The Supreme Court’s decision returning abortion rights to the states is troubling on many fronts. The decision inserts the state between women and their health care.

How will prosecutors determine if there was an abortion or a miscarriage? Will prosecutors have access to your internet searches or phone records? Will your mail or home deliveries be subject to government scrutiny.

If a pregnant woman travels across state lines on vacation, will she have to tell government officials of her travel plans? Will women or their doctors have to inform the state of their pregnancy and file progress reports every three months?

There are exceptions to save the life of the mother but what does that mean? How sick does a patient have to be before medical professionals can act?

The first sign of grave concern could be an increase in blood pressure. Do doctors and health professionals, who have expertise in these matters, now have to get approval from some government bureaucrat, who has no expertise? Some cancer treatments can also be used as abortifacients. Will they be allowed to treat pregnant cancer patients?

This ruling will also fundamentally change the relationships among the states. Will states that oppose abortion try to prosecute abortion providers in other states? Can the mother of a teenage pregnant daughter be prosecuted for taking her across state lines for an abortion? Would someone in a state where abortion is illegal be allowed to sue someone in a state where abortion is legal? The Supreme Court’s ruling inserts government intruders between women, their doctors and their religious advisors. This decision is truly troubling.

William Fine

Brockport

Editor:

I just received a letter from a friend in Europe. There many predict we, the US, will be an autocracy within 3 to 4 years.

Ben Franklin said we are “A democracy, if you can keep it.” Democracy is a finely turned and balanced endeavor you have to work at. Government created the foundation allowing people to cooperate and  flourish. King George did not permit that. Under him government was all about his maintaining power and accumulating wealth for him and his powerful friends. His whims were law.

Therefore what I write does not address MAGA – his intellectual heirs and the true RINOs of today’s world. They love Trump so much they are willing to get in bed with racists, convicted criminals, disbarred lawyers and all manner of people who do not care to put the common good first.

On this day, the Fourth, we celebrate our founders, the men and women who lost their lives for us, Democrats and Republicans who talk to each other and make sure bad apples, no matter their label, are weeded out.

We celebrate those who remember that free speech and new ideas can not be regulated out of existence as that diminishes us all and stifles the never-ending search for truth and personal advancement.

Right now there are some who, like King George, do not put honor and inalienable rights first as did our forefathers. They stand in the way of our celebration of free speech, freedom of religion, the Ninth Amendment protecting unenumerated but fundamental human rights.

Our rights expand by what the Declaration calls “the laws of nature” as society grows and advances. (Justice Thomas just wrote we need to reconsider and ban contraception. SCOTUS is about to consider a case in which gerrymandered legislatures can regulate and overturn the popular vote.)

For the rest of us today we celebrate our legacy which includes recognizing the traps we have avoided which have brought other democracies down. We celebrate a country where the central government promotes learning and all manner of things to ensure a person can advance as far as talent, hard work and desire allow.

We celebrate that we do not have kings and potentates. That we protect the rights of minorities in our huge melting pot. We still hope we can again celebrate the Rule of Law which until 1984 politicians did not meddle in when it came to Federal Court appointments – looking only to intellectual qualifications.

Today is a day to honor all the hard work needed to maintain the careful balance of interests (and the compassion King  George did not have) needed to make our country work and to pledge to honor that history.

Today real Republicans and Democrats need to re-up on the importance of keeping honorable company and voting for upright leaders. Just as you tell your kids that bad kids will drag them down, politicians that put power before answers are a constant danger. Look at convictions and disbarred lawyers to figure out who was in bed with them – easy pickings with no distracting fake drama that way.

The Fourth of July is a day to rediscover the grace and balance on which our freedom rests. It is a day to remember that easy political answers are often little more than  dangerous propaganda. To pledge to do better.

The Fourth is a day to celebrate how far honorable and selfless people have brought us. We recommit to listening to honorable and expert voices lest we wither into the ashes of history.  In the midst of any and all assaults on our institutions it is a day to pledge to protect them and stop those who would destroy them.

Happy Fourth.  Most of us want to “keep it” – democratic government by humble, well intended and honorable citizens.

Vote for freedom and not personality and power. Prove my friend wrong. Meanwhile celebrate the Fourth while you can.

Conrad Cropsey

Albion

Editor:

I am a candidate running for re-election for the Town of Murray Republican Committee for election District 6 along with Adam Moore.

I still live by the motto, spoken by a past president, I wrote in a letter to the editor 4 years ago, talking about Americans. “We will never give up, we will never give in, we will never, ever back down, and we will never, ever surrender-because we are Americans and our hearts bleed Red, White, and Blue.”

It has been a difficult time in our world, state, and town in the last two to four years. We have not given up, backed down, or surrendered. Being on the committee is not easy. Working with others that have differing opinions has been a learning experience. But also understanding everyone has something to bring to the table has been vital.

Adam Moore and I live in our voting district. District 6 residents need to be represented by someone who lives here in their district. Adam and I are willing to serve and represent the residents of our district.

Other than representing District 6 on the Republican Committee, I have no other political, financial, or professional ties to the town’s government. I would like to continue to be a voice for my neighbors reflecting Republican core values and represent them fairly, honestly and openly while serving on our Republican Committee.

Sincerely,

Kellie Gregoire

Murray

Editor:

Heart-wrenching, newspaper ads, placed by formerly enslaved people, searched for loved ones in the decades after 1860. Ads cited enslaver “owner” name… location… last seen place… daughter… son…sister… brother… sold to…sold again to… sold again to…I can be reached at….

Families had been torn apart by domestic slave trade in America. Freed people wanted to see their family again before they died. Runaways who changed names to avoid slave catchers added challenges. The ads were persistently hopeful, unique and compelling. Villa Nova University has devotedly collected over 3,500 ads, digitized and produced a new genealogy tool for tracing family history “LAST SEEN: Finding Family After Slavery,” available free online.

Authentic ads are a window into the deep pain, within the freedom gained. Juneteenth National Independence Day, also called Freedom Day, Emancipation Day, now a federal holiday. Most federal employees receive a day off. 24 states, including NY, legally recognize Juneteenth as a public holiday and state workers have a paid day off. Communities in Erie County have been called out, criticized on local news for not recognizing this day. Following criticism, the Town of Tonawanda put together an impromptu commemorative event. Juneteenth celebration should resonate in new ways for Buffalonians after the recent white supremacist massacre.

Slavery continued in Texas after the Civil War when all slaves had been freed. 2.5 years later federal troops marched into Texas and freed the slaves. Texas has celebrated healing by recognizing Juneteenth since 1980. A National Juneteenth Museum in Fort Worth is planned to be open for Juneteenth in 2024.

Town offices where I live and Niagara County offices were open on the holiday. Did your town recognize the significance of the holiday? I urge reconsideration of Juneteenth in 2023. It’s the decent thing to do.

Carol Nochajski

Wilson

Editor:

My name is Anthony J. Peone and I am on the ballot in the June 28th Republican Primary seeking re-election on the Murray Republican Committee in Election District 2.

I have been a resident of the Town of Murray or Village of Holley for 22 years and strongly believe in what the Republican Party should represent. Less government and lower taxes. Supporting free enterprise and our right to keep and bear arms to insure our right to free speech.

We are facing a critical time for the people in our Town, State and Nation. When Republicans can’t resolve their differences guess who wins? The very people responsible for our current state of affairs.

I have seen a little too much bickering at our Republican Committee and Town Board of late and would like to see this end. If you re-elect me to the Murray Republican Committee, I will not vote to endorse the people I believe are responsible for our current state of affairs.

I humbly ask for your vote in the June 28th Republican Primary.

Sincerely,

Anthony J. Peone

Holley

Editor:

This coming Tuesday is the election for the Republican committee members. Kellie Gregoire and I are running for re-election in District 6 for the Town of Murray.

We do have competition from outside of District 6 trying to unseat us from the committee. I believe that the best people to represent you are the ones who live in your district.

We have your best interest in mind and take our responsibility to choose the best political candidates to represent you seriously.

Raising a family and running a small farm in Murray has inspired me to run for the committee so I can have a say in who I believe will best represent me, my family and yours. Building good government will in turn help us build good community.

Our town is on a strong path forward and I would like you to help us keep it going in that direction. Please get out and vote on June 28th for Adam Moore and Kellie Gregoire and help us keep Murray strong.

Adam Moore

Holley

Editor:

The House Committee investigating the January 6th insurrection is providing detailed fact-based evidence, under oath, that our democracy — your vote — was threatened by the actions of the previous administration and Republican leaders.

Under oath, Presidential aide after Presidential aide, are testifying how the former President undertook extra-legal measures (that is illegal measures) to overturn the will of the voters and establish himself as the ruler.

Under oath, the former President’s inner circle are telling the story of how lies promulgated by Republican leaders created an atmosphere for the insurrection. Under oath, the former President’s aides are testifying how they tried to overthrow our democracy and how Republican leaders acquiesced.

Under oath Republican legal scholar, retired Judge J. Michael Luttig, told the Committee that the former president and his allies are a “clear and present danger” to U.S. democracy. Our democracy is threatened by Republican leaders; that is a serious threat. Please take that threat seriously.

Where are those Republicans who will stand up for the rule of law? Where are those Republicans willing to tell the truth? Where are those Republicans willing to stand up for our democracy? Our democracy — your vote — is at risk.

William Fine

Brockport

Editor:

The Jan 6th images are lasting. “BS”, “Nuts”, “Crazy”, “Ignorant” all words coming from the lips of this nation’s most notable conservatives with impeccable expertise and credentials.

Believing in the “Big Steal” is now  sad, even laughable, folklore. Our election officials knew all along how to run fair elections.

Each day we learn of one, two, three Trump allies who asked for pardons. (Asking for a pardon as you know means admitting guilt because accepting one is an admission of guilt.)  Congressmen, lawyers, officials of every stripe it turns out were included. (The problem with granting them pardons was how to write the pardon without implicating the President; MAGA rallies now talk about re-electing Trump to pardon them once and for all.)

A problem that remains will be those who clamored “Hang Mike Pence” with a gallows prepared outside. They need to be treated as terrorists. (Congratulations to the writer from Lyndonville for not following their phalanxes into the Capital as planned.)

A problem that remains will be the new laws in some states that allow governors to set aside the popular vote. That and making voting harder for the elderly and minorities will require huge turnout efforts. Considerable effort to put the Republic over power will be required.

The power grab will continue and  the average Joe will have to choose between helping others angle for power and simply being laughing stocks who do not wise up about who and what are on their side.

Fortunately the resolution to these conundrums is to cross party lines and vote for politicians who will cross party lines.

The Jan 6th Committee more surely than ever points out that gridlock is a culprit. MAGA is at most more of the same and at worse “a clear and present danger” to the Republic as arch conservative Judge Luttig put it.

Pictures and patriotic conservatives are making the point.

Conrad F. Cropsey

Albion

Editor:

The Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments (GO Health) and Orleans County administration would like to thank Mr. Capurso for his recent Letter to the Editor.

In response to his concerns around vaccination rates in Orleans County, GO Health has been at the forefront of delivering vaccines along with providing data and education to residents throughout the pandemic. Initiatives and focus areas in regards to vaccination have included, but are not limited to:

• Easy access to appointments on the GOHealthNY.org website;
• Ongoing multi-media promotion including local media providers and social media;
• Collaboration and communication with local healthcare providers around vaccine access;
• Providing pop-up clinics which included events, businesses and schools throughout the county;
• Regional promotion and advertising with the Finger Lakes region which included direct mailings to residents in lower vaccination zip codes and television advertisements;
• Weekly vaccination opportunities at the health department; and
• Providing outreach to seasonal farmworkers and in-home vaccinations to those who are homebound.

In Mr. Capurso’s letter, he compared the Polio vaccine efforts to the Covid-19 vaccination efforts. Somewhere in time, the definition of what a vaccination does has changed. With the polio vaccine, the oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) prevented the individual from being infected with the virus and thus the spread of polio declined over time.

The majority of Covid-19 vaccines do not use a live virus. It is common that a vaccinated person for Covid-19 becomes infected with the Covid-19 virus and spreads the virus.  Per the CDC, Covid-19 vaccines available in the United States are effective at protecting people from getting seriously ill, being hospitalized and even dying.

Per the CDC, Orleans County has 82.1% of the population 65 and over fully vaccinated. As we know, this is the segment of the population who is most vulnerable if infected with the Covid-19 virus.

We believe we know how to serve our residents in an effective way that to help protect our most vulnerable residents. We believe we are able to effectively serve our residents without being incentivized by the federal government.

Thank you for this opportunity to exchange information in the public square.

John C. Welch, Jr. – Chief Administrative Officer

Lynne M. Johnson – Chairman of Orleans County Legislature

Editor:

One of the highlights of my 9 ½ year tenure as a member of the Board of Education for the Holley Central School District was attending the annual Orleans County Academic Excellence Awards Dinner at the end of a school year.

Originally this dinner recognized the Top 10 graduates from the five component school districts in the county – Holley, Kendall, Lyndonville, Albion and Medina.

Holley, Kendall, Lyndonville and Medina still remain as a collective group for the county while Albion now hosts its own separate academic awards celebration. I applaud Orleans County and the school Districts for their continued efforts to maintain this now 36-year tradition of recognizing the culmination of 12 years of hard work and diligence of these outstanding students.

When people question what our future will look like I would simply point to these students and say: “It’s in good hands.”

David R. Griggs

Clarendon

Editor:

Why is Orleans County’s Covid-19 two-vaccination rate of 54.29% one of the lowest in the entire United States? Only Alabama (51%), Arkansas (54%), and Idaho (54%) are worse.

I think the Orleans County Health Department could be doing more to educate people and get them vaccinated.

On July 6, 2021, President Biden said, “Now we need to go community by community, neighborhood and oft times door to door – literally knocking on doors to help the remaining people.” This Covid education program was endorsed by Anthony Fauci of Health and Human Services and the CDC in Atlanta.

Since August 2021, 17 states have adopted this program and gone door to door. Among them are Idaho, North and South Carolina, Alabama, Vermont, Colorado, Oregon, Tennessee, and Montana.

The CDC will also provide money to any local jurisdiction to pay for the door to door campaign.  The program is called the “ELC-Enhancing Detection, Expansion and Immunization CoAg Covid-19 Funding Supplementals.” With a little effort the County Health Department could have its share of the $1.9 billion set aside for counties like Orleans to help them go door to door.

When polio was a serious problem in the 1940s and ’50s, March of Dimes volunteers in Orleans County went door to door teaching people how to prevent it and encouraging them to get their children vaccinated.

I ask the County Administrator, the head of the Health Department and the Chairwoman of the County Legislature why Orleans County has not asked for the ELC money and more importantly, why a door to door campaign has not be implemented?

A reasonable way to respond to this letter, would be via this online newspaper.

Jack Capurso, Albion High School Class of 1960

Ashburn, Va.

Editor:

As another legislative session comes to a close, the people of New York have once again been left on the hook with a $220 billion budget that’s more bloated than ever before.

It seems with every year the Majority passes budgets that cost more but do less for the average working family in this state, and while the small tax cuts in this year’s plan were welcome, they simply won’t be enough to give New Yorkers the financial jolt they need now more than ever. As prices on just about everything continue to skyrocket with no end in sight, I am disappointed that solutions our conference proposed to bring our residents substantive relief were not considered in earnest.

Our Inflation Relief and Consumer Assistance Plan (A.8481) would make everyday necessities, such as gasoline, prepared foods, household goods and personal care products, state tax-free for two years. The savings provided by this bill would be immediate and, perhaps most importantly, would help those hit hardest by inflation, some of whom have had to make hard decisions between paying for rent or groceries.

As if the financial strain affecting our communities wasn’t enough to contend with, people now feel less safe than ever in their own communities. According to a recent poll conducted by Spectrum News and Siena College, 7 in 10 New York City residents fear they may become a victim of violent crime. Their sentiments are also shared statewide, according to another Siena poll, finding that our residents are more concerned about crime than any other singular issue.

We need to restore respect for laws and law enforcement. We need to help victims, not criminals, and we need to restore judicial discretion. Our constituents were counting on us to fix bail reform, and it’s saddening that they will now be the ones who will suffer the consequences of its shortcomings in their neighborhoods.

I only hope that this November every voter will remember who stood up for their wallets and their neighborhoods by demanding direct solutions, and those who instead put forward half-measures and downplayed their suffering.

Steve Hawley

Batavia

Assemblyman Hawley represents the 139th District, which consists of Genesee, most of Orleans and part of western Monroe County.

Editor:

This is a reminder to the Village of Holley residents to come out and vote Tuesday, June 21^st, in the Holley Village Office foyer from noon to 9 p.m.

As a member of the board these past five years I have seen many village improvements. I feel your board has done a great job and I would like to see them continue moving forward.

As a Trustee, Mark Bower has been a strong advocate for open and informed policies and wants to initiate a periodic newsletter to keep the residents informed. He also wants to continue to keep costs down and reduce unnecessary spending.

Being a good steward of the residents tax dollars and municipal funds is critical to continued progress. Mark has lived in the village for more than 40 years, served on the Holley School Board as a member and president and served as a member of the Village Zoning & Planning Board. Mark Bower would make an excellent mayor and would work hard to gain your trust.

Connie Nenni is seeking re-election as a trustee. She is a long-time resident and is the District Clerk and Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent of the Holley Central School. Her valued knowledge on policies and procedures has kept the Village Board focused. She is also a proponent of reduced waste and open policies and feels that it takes a truly group effort to make things work in the Village. Your feedback is very important to Connie.

John Morriss, a lifelong resident of the village and former trustee, is a retired Greece school teacher. He is active in the Holley Fire Department and would like your support as a write-in candidate for Trustee. Mr. Morriss shares the fundamental values of fiscal responsibility and he will surely move the village forward.

The many improvements that have taken place include water lines and new sidewalks, with more being replaced as time and funds become available. We are finishing up the new water lines on Park Place and once each resident is hooked up to the new service lines the road can be repaired. The sidewalks on West Union are slated to be next. Additionally, materials for High Street have been ordered.

We are seeking estimates for the roof repairs for the gazebo, bathrooms and kiosk directory. We are waiting for grant monies to start on the state-required upgrades to our waste water treatment plant, and estimates are bring sought for roof repairs needed due to wind storm damage.

The Holley June Fest returned this year on June 4th. It was great seeing neighbors and visitors having big-time fun. I enjoyed visiting the yard sales, checking out all the vendors and fun activities along the canal walk, as well as sampling some tasty pizza, baked goods and ice cream.

We welcome our newest business: Red White & Moo Ice Cream stand, and look forward to the co-located Restoration Brewery which should be sometime in the fall. The Train Depot Museum is open again for visitors from noon to 3 p.m. Saturdays. Please stop by and learn about the history of Holley at the Train Depot Museum.

Rochelle Moroz

Holley

Ms. Moroz is a Village of Holley trustee.

Editor:

Tuesday, June 14, is designated as Flag Day. The flag of the United States is a symbol for the ideas and ideals of this nation: that all men are created equal, justice for all and self sacrifice for the common good.

I know there are some in our community who reject these ideas because they fly the Confederate flag. The Confederacy was formed in opposition to the idea that all men are created equal and their flag is the symbol of that idea.

Alexander H. Stephens, one of the founders of the Confederacy stated quite plainly that the cornerstone of the Confederacy is slavery; completely rejecting the ideal that all men are created equal and idea of equal justice.

Some may try to argue that the Confederacy stands for states’ rights but this is completely wrong. South Carolina, the first state to secede, made quite clear that they were leaving the Union because northern states would not change their laws and return runaway slaves. So it wasn’t that the northern states were telling the South what to do; it was because southern states couldn’t dictate to North what laws to pass, totally rejecting states’ rights argument.

By their very words and deeds the founders of the Confederacy believed that only the privileged few should have justice and be free. The Confederate flag, representing the Confederacy, is the very antithesis of the United States.

Flying the Confederate flag shows your hatred for the U.S. Constitution and all the men and women who have served this great nation. In this country you are free to display your distain for freedom, for equal justice and your hatred of all this nation stands for. That is your right.

I am a patriot, I defended this nation in war when it was not popular and I will display my American flag proudly. I believe in the ideas and ideals of this great nation.

Reference: 1). The Cornerstone Speech by Alexander H. Stephens in Savannah Georgia 3/21/1861. 2). Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union, 12/24/1860

William Fine

Brockport

Editor:

There is a new effort by wind developers to propose “community wind” projects. These are projects consisting of one or two industrial wind turbines that would be approximately 640 foot tall and be sited on town or private property. They’re being touted by at least one developer, Borrego, in their information, as “NOT a utility-scale wind farm.”

Is this a new tactic by developers in an effort to get around the issues associated with siting large scale industrial wind projects in New York State? Put one or two up, scatter them around a town and no problems, right?

But while the energy generation is below the threshold for State review of the project, the size of the turbines is industrial. The turbine size of 640 feet was shared by Borrego in a May 3rd presentation in the Town of Shelby.

That is one or two hundred feet taller than the tallest building in Buffalo or Rochester! For turbines this tall, the FAA would require them to be fitted with blinking lights. In the Town of Somerset, we know what something this tall looks like. The stack at the power plant can be seen all the way to the Niagara Escarpment.

How much sound will these turbines emit? Borrego’s website for the proposed project in Shelby states that “these turbines typically produce no more than 50 decibels of sound that will blend into the background noise.” In many rural areas, the ambient noise level is typically closer to 30 decibels. Setbacks from neighboring property lines will be critical to minimize the impact.

Some towns are not welcoming Borrego “community” projects with open arms. In the town of Glen, Borrego withdrew its application in May, after months of review by the town. A project was blocked in Middleburgh, also in May, after “months of debate and public hearings” as people objected to the size, the lights, and the noise of these industrial turbines.

Local laws are important. These projects will not go through the Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES). Your town board will have the ultimate say in what happens. Check with your town to see what ordinances are in place for these types of projects in terms of height of turbines, setbacks and noise levels. And be watchful. The timeline for this project in Shelby began in 2020 but many people are just now aware of it because of the public hearing notice.

There is going to be a public hearing in Shelby on June 14th at 6:15 p.m. The purpose of this hearing is for the public to comment on the “special use permit and site plan applications submitted by Borrego Solar System, Inc. for the installation of two wind turbines on South Gravel Road.” If you live in that area, it is important to attend. Become informed of the details and ask questions.

Pamela Atwater

Somerset

President of Save Ontario Shores, Inc.