To The Editor:
This year we have been celebrating the 200th birthday of our county.
During this year we have been enlightened by Legislator (Shawn) Doyle’s renditions about Historic moments in Oswego County.
I would like to take you forward:
The year: 2216
The place: A futuristic classroom in Oswego County school district. A government class during the county’ celebration of its 400th birthday.
The instructor is giving a lesson on historical happenings in the Oswego County Legislature during the year 2016.
He is reading a news story about an Oswego County Legislative meeting held on September 15.
His focus is on a resolution in which the legislative body was voting to sell two parcels of county owned land to an organization called the Industry Development Agency (Operation Oswego County).
The main points were the lack of a set amount of money, no development plan, and loss of revenue to a city called Fulton and its school district.
One of his very bright students asked a question: You mean they were voting on selling something but they didn’t know for how much, what they were going to do with it and a revenue loss to one of their own cities and one of its school districts?
The teacher said YES.
Another student asked: Did the resolution pass teacher?
The teacher said YES – It says here only two legislators voted NO.
A big sigh from the class is heard.
One more student asked: Were these educated people?
The teacher said: YES
Yet another student being puzzled asked: If they were educated were they appointed to their positions?
The teacher said: NO! They were elected by the people, like we do today.
Student #1 asked: If they were elected and educated then why would they vote YES to selling something not knowing the selling price, unknown future of site and financially hindering one of their cities and school districts?
The teacher answered: In the year 2016, unlike today, there were political parties and political parties controlled a majority of the elected officials. Therefore elected officials voted the will of the political party not the will of the people. Also in 2016, unlike today, they were never held accountable for their reckless handling of the people’s money.
Student #2 asked: This IDA is that the same organization we learned about last month about how they had a major failure with a manufacturing company called Nestles in a city called Fulton in 2003?
Teacher: YES
Student #3 asked: Teacher didn’t we also learn during another lesson that a resolution passed by a Oswego County Legislature was a contributing factor to the beginning of the end of a city called Fulton. Is this that resolution?
Teacher: YES
Student #1: Teacher didn’t we learn also that during that time we started losing our farmland through over housing developments and this was the beginning of the country becoming less self-sufficient and therefore becoming reliant on foreign food products?
Teacher: It is thought to be a contributing factor.
Class: We are sure glad we no longer have political parties and we now hold elected officials accountable for their handling of the people’s money.
This is the end of today’s history lesson and a story from the future.
Legislator Frank Castiglia Jr.
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