Residents need to keep an eye on local governments and their push for more power

Editor:

“Patriotism is supporting your country always; and your government when it deserves it.” – Mark Twain, famous American author

If liberty and justice for all are what you desire, then the time for idleness has passed. We, as taxpayers and as American voters, need to pull our heads out of the proverbial sand and act!

There are certain figures strutting around within the town governments who seek to acquire and consolidate the power of authority in their own favor to limit the choices that we can make for ourselves. Long have these people cultivated an atmosphere of blatant corruption within our governmental system, with complete disregard for the will of the people. This is being achieved by the Town Board members and some code enforcement officers also being in control of the Republican committee as well – allowing them to appoint themselves and their friends to positions of influence to sway elections and keep themselves in power.

Months of town meetings packed with patriots and dissatisfied taxpayers watched as the local town of Murray’s elected and appointed officials completely ignored the will of the people and passed sweeping property maintenance laws that effectively removed much of our freedom of autonomy upon our own property!

For example, got a pothole in your driveway? Violation (someone should mail the county about a hundred of those for their roads). Grass a bit too long? Violation. And if you have too much water sitting in your lawn or on your driveway? That’s a violation now too. And if you think you can hide from their enforcement of these laws, good luck – these same people support the use of aerial imagery; effectively spying on the taxpayers to force their compliance.

And if these suffocating regulations weren’t bad enough, the towns use code enforcement as a weapon against political dissidents to scare them into silence. For example one particular code enforcement officer monitors and tickets some people and turns a blind eye to their friends. This was especially evident in the last election cycle, when a political opponent was cited for an obscure violation that the officials endorsed candidate was not cited for.

If you think “well I don’t live in Murray so it’s not my problem,” think again. These government officials are seeking to adopt legislation from Albany to give them enforcement power over the entire county. That means that every ridiculous code and law that they introduce will be enforced upon us all.

It is our duty as Americans and as taxpayers, to remind these would-be lords that they serve THE PEOPLE. We are sick of the bullying, sick of the regulations from people who would call themselves Republicans, and sick of the corruption! We need all of us to get up, go to town meetings, push back against this expanding authoritarianism, and vote the corruption out! Stand up for our liberties! Stand up for our American way!

Arthur Knab

Murray