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School tax surprise hits taxpayers this year

Letters To The Editor

To The Reader’s Forum: Despite the fact that taxpayers were told that there would be no increase in our school taxes this year, N.Y. State Democrats have found a way to make that statement untrue. Apparently, by lowering the equalization rate and making the full market value of your home more, it also lowers your STAR amount. Mine went down by $70. This fact along with an increase in the library tax raised my taxes about 25%. So much for the "no increase" promise. It seems that the state just can't get enough of your hard earned money. At least in N.Y. we know who to blame as ...

The human obligation toward animals

Local Commentaries

It was drilled into me at an early age that humans have an obligation to properly treat and take care of animals. Much of this training came from being the son of a dairy farmer. The cows really came first on the farm and taking proper care of them was foremost. Some of this sense of obligation or responsibility was, of course, driven by economics. The cows and the milk they produced were the primary source of revenue for the farm. Just think about it—a cow which may weigh 1,200 lbs., can, in one season of milking (10 months,) produce 20,000-25,000 lbs. of milk. A milk cow is an ...

Progress in help for domestic violence victims doesn’t mean the job is done

In Our Opinion

If one thing is clear after our series of stories detailing the experiences of domestic violence survivors, it is that the system isn't perfect. We agree with Sally Jaroszynski, an attorney who has been practicing law for more than 30 years, though, when she says the courts have made strides in what is a tricky and difficult to navigate system. One of those improvements is the creation of the Integrated Domestic Violence Court, led in Chautauqua County by Judge Stephen Cass. The Integrated Domestic Violence Court allows Cass to hear several different cases or proceedings that may ...

Reserve your U-Haul, NY residents

Local Commentaries

Thankfully the election is over, and we have a brief reprieve from the nonsense and dishonesty that dominates our politics. OK, just kidding. Based on the campaign rhetoric one would think New York had the best economy in the country while leading the nation in unicorns and freebies for people who did not earn it in our “generous welfare system”. If not for Trump, Iran’s Mullahs would forget their 1400-year-old Quranic requirement to destroy everything non-Islamic, and the Chinese would respect Taiwan’s independence. Meanwhile those who oppose “forever wars” fully support ...

What does ‘free’ Democratic Socialism really cost?

Local Commentaries

The promise of government-provided healthcare and other social programs without premiums, deductibles or copays has a powerful appeal. However, politicians promoting Democratic Socialism rarely answer a key question: What will it actually cost, and how will we pay for it? To understand what these promises mean for middle-income families, we need to look beyond the sales pitch and examine the numbers. Democratic nominee for the Senate in Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed recently said about universal healthcare that “it is guaranteed health insurance from cradle to the moment you pass away. ...

Other Voices: While the economy is growing, purchasing power is not

In Our Opinion

The economy is strong by conventional measures, but most voters don’t feel it. Gross domestic product grew 3.4 percent in the third quarter, the fastest pace in a year. Consumer spending increased 3.8 percent, and nonresidential business investment surged 12.7 percent, propelled by artificial intelligence and the data center build-out. At the same time, the final Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll before the midterms found that 75 percent of Americans describe the economy as poor or not so good. Forty-eight percent say they’re financially not as well off since President Donald Trump took ...