To the Editor:
Regarding the Barre School Budget – you can weaponize peoples emotions by threatening to take away their oppertunities and extra curriculars, but that doesnt change the facts:
FACT – Administrative Posistions at BUSD have grown while enrollment has dramatically declined.
FACT – The major part of that 57 Million Dollar Budgets is not in extra curricular activities, not in Teachers salaries, not even in curriculum. The majority of that budget is Administraitive and it’s growing with more administraitors for way less kids earning 6 figure salaries.
FACT – No one who oposes the budget wants bad schools or less oppertunity for our kids. We love them and we want whats best for them.
But whats best starts at home, it doesnt start in the halls of Spaulding or Barre City or Barre Town Schools. What’s best for the kids is families being able to provide for their families and create a stable home and environment. That’s where it starts.
And rents are out of control for young families who can’t afford to even live within the district anymore, why? Property taxes, why? Because of this virtue signaling pride that some have that believe that throwing a bunch of money at the problem will fix it.
Let me ask the question because we’ve been doing that for at least the last 5 years. It’s never enough, more, more, more, but….
What are the test results? What is the enrollment? The teachers unions, the administration who care so much about the kids are now targeting them and young families with threats because come hell or high water and regardless of the fact that it is unsustainable, wasteful and through covid with the homelessness problem in Vermont we learned that throwing money at the problem doesnt solve it!
Because I’m not afraid of the intimidation, not afraid of the virtue signaling, not afraid to look at the problem reasonably rather than let people control my emotions with idle threats rather than doing the work the Taxpayers demanded they do.
I vote no until some meaningful administrative concession is made. Not sports, not extra curricular activities…. the enormous elephant in the room is administration! I love this town, I love the kids, I want what is best, but I will not play in this sandbox of emotional warfare! #IVOTENO Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk!
-TJ Michaes, Barre
To the Editor:
I have been doing a lot of posting in and around Springfield in the 2 papers which don’t refuse my letters, and on Facebook.
The posts are about Vermont being top 3 in numerous categories including homelessness, cost of living to wages, and least business friendly environment.
Needless to say there’s the expected “it’s Trump’s fault”, and that “we have a Republican governor” (sort of.)
Then I tried a different tack: asking democrats why they think democrat incumbents deserve another term. That worked great because people following see that the democrats can’t answer it and just keep deflecting. I recommend that tactic to all of you in democrat controlled districts.
-Keith Stern, North Springfield