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Public commentary Bennett says MSD is facing hard times because of excessive spending Dear Editor: I see that Massapequa School District Business Administrator Alan Adcock stated in Newsday that the Massapequa School District may have to start making changes to its budget due to out of control oil prices-all while incumbent board members have frightened parents with misleading threats that Gary Bennett was going to cut programs if elected last May 20th. For five years I have been warning voters about out of control salaries. Had they heeded my warnings, and controlled salaries, perhaps important things like programs could have been saved at this critical economic time. Once again, I don't like saying I told you so, but people continue to believe the foxes who are in control of the hen house. Administrative costs as a whole have been budgeted from $2.8 million in 2003 to over $6.9 million in 2007-08, and now the District is going to pull attention away from their gluttony and talk of oil prices. "Acting" Superintendent Charles Sulc went from aproximately $190,000 to over $247,000 just this year and he's not even from Saudi Arabia. I think administrators are way ahead on points here. If it were possible, I'd buy stock in School Administration Massapequa in a minute, because the end is not in sight yet. This sitting board, should I not succeed in litigation, will be negotiating the teachers' contract at the same time we have an oil crunch. Who do you think is going to pay, and pay big? This district has not, will not, does not, and won't listen to reason, while we pay for their arrogance and carelessness. You should know they may indeed hasten teacher negotiations because this is now a defacto board, and anything they negotiate, even if I succeed and turn this election over, will become the responsibility of the taxpayer. In last week's edition of the Massapequa Post, District Clerk Anne Marie Bellizzi said "that all disputed election results had to be forwarded to the Commissioner of Education." The Key word here is "disputed." The recount became disputed as soon as the district refused my request for a recount in a one-vote election. The more the public relies on the word of special interests, the more it will jeopardize not only our childrens' education but also our economic future. Think about it, are you really sure you and your child's best interests are being met? Gary T. Bennett, Massapequa Editor's Note: The writer is challenging the results of the school board election, which he lost by one vote. Under New York State Education law, school districts cannot call for a recount once the district certifies the election results. Only the Commissioner of Education is authorized to do so. McCain's plan for the economy makes sense Dear Editor: For anyone whose #1 issue this election is the price of gasoline should go to the candidates' websites. From there you will find who has the solutions. McCain: He has two immediate plans, reduce the federal gas tax, which means the price at the pump would immediately drop 18.4 cents for gasoline and 24.4 cents for diesel. Second, he wants to stop filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which would put more oil on the market for the public usage. Obama: He has no answers to immediately reduce the price of gasoline at the pump. He opposes suspending the federal gas tax. McCain's long-term plan for getting off foreign oil is to offer a $300 million prize to the individual or company that develops a low-cost, high-powered battery for cars. Obama's answer is to spend $150 billion to subsidize the ethanol and other biofuel industries. That means he wants to spend our hard-earned tax dollars on a process that, without the subsidies, would be more expensive than oil. His plan doesn't even take into consideration the increased cost this will have on the price of other food products, like cereal. This research shows that McCain has the solutions, and is ready to lead the nation. Gary Slavin, Massapequa
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