Opinions on local elections and support for Ukraine: Letters
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US must continue to support Ukraine
March 4 − To the Editor:
We left our homeland Hungary during the 1956 Revolution as 5- and 6-year-olds. At the time, Hungary was a satellite state of the Soviet Union. For various political reasons, our family faced a grim future, even possible arrest. But we had the good fortune to be sponsored by an American company and allowed to emigrate to the US.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Soviet Union and western nations finally signed a peace treaty ending World War II. The signatories of that treaty, including Russia, agreed to national borders, including Ukraine’s.
Now President Putin is claiming that Ukraine belongs to Russia, and has hinted those other countries, e.g., Poland and Hungary, might also belong to Russia. Ukraine has asked NATO and the European Union for aid and weapons to defend its sovereignty. They are the ones fighting and dying. To date, both the US and Europe have committed billions of dollars for direct military aid to Kyiv. In addition, EU countries have taken in more than 3 million Ukrainian refugees, which have cost them over $60 billion. The European NATO allies have also pledged additional billions in military and economic aid, but a bill to provide further US military support is stalled in Congress, even though Ukraine is running short on ammunition.
Why is supporting Ukraine in the best interest of the United States? Thanks to countries like the US, Canada, Germany, the NATO alliance was created after World War II to ensure no more wars would occur in any NATO state. This alliance had been successful until 2014 when Russia unilaterally annexed Crimea, and two years ago invaded Ukraine.
However, since Russia is now also threatening NATO countries, the US could be pulled into the conflict because of our commitment to defend any attacked NATO country. Our country’s best interest is served by a strong NATO that avoids direct military intervention, and supports the brave Ukrainians who are also fighting for our common democratic values.
We sincerely ask all fair-minded Americans, Democrats, Republicans and Independents, to contact their congressional representatives, and to insist that they support Ukraine.
Peter Somssich, Ph.D and Imre Somssich, Ph.D
Peter Somssich, Ph.D, is a retired physicist and material scientist and former NH State Representative living in Portsmouth. Imre Somssich Ph.D, his brother, is a retired Research Group Leader of the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding in Cologne, Germany.
I would crawl on my hands and knees to vote against Donald Trump
March 5 − To the Editor:
I am a Democrat, and as a matter of perspective, I am beyond dismayed with Joe Biden for a number of reasons, but I would crawl to the polling place on my hands and knees if I had to, to vote against Donald Trump in November.
That said, I have well-educated friends who are utterly unconcerned by the promise of a loss of democracy that an authoritarian second Trump presidency portends. They seem to agree with the late Leona Helmsley who once famously said, “Only little people pay taxes”, and they think Donald Trump is working for them.
I also listen to “little people” on television who are equally unbothered. They don’t much like poor people voting by mail, or Black people voting on Sundays, or gay people marrying, and what baker should be forced to bake a cake for a gay wedding anyway? The concept of a loss of democracy is a bit abstract for them, and they think Trump has been working for them also. What could go wrong?
Well, maybe not much, right away, for the members of either group, but sooner or later, an untethered Trump is bound to make changes that neither agrees with. Little people shouldn’t forget that bills do eventually come due, and the MAGA plutocrats are going to make damn sure that it’s the little people who pay them. Trump and his country club friends aren’t depending on Social Security or Medicare, so little people are going to have to get by with less of each, or pay more, or both.
When the industrial air polluters get their way, and they’re not big Republican donors for no reason, even the moms and kids at the Mar-a-Lago swimming pool will be breathing the consequences, and just wait until some rich evangelical corners Trump on the golf course and acquaints him with the evils of slow dancing … Trump's very own Amy Coney Barrett, the U.S. Supreme Court’s resident Bible interpreter, will be begging John Roberts to let her write the majority opinion!
Some readers might be old enough to remember that when President George H.W. Bush was a Texas congressman in the 1960s, he was one of few Republicans who did not oppose birth control there, and this earned him the nickname “Rubbers”. Don’t look now, but Trump’s Supreme Court appointees were part of setting a precedent in Dobbs v. Jackson that Clarence Thomas himself has suggested, could give states the right to ban contraception again.
Take it to the bank, Trump is telling you some of what’s going to happen, and if he’s re-elected and you start not liking some of the other things he’s doing, there will be a lot less democracy left to do anything about it. If you voted him in, it’s going to be too late to vote him out, because you now live in a pay-for-play, fundamentalist Christian theocracy that rejects the idea of political plurality, and your vote, If you can vote, it won’t mean that much anymore.
The foregoing is only the tip of the iceberg. Nobody (rich or little) is immune from climate change, air and water pollution, gun violence, book burning or life without rubbers, and slow dancing is just a metaphor for women’s reproductive rights. Who knows where else it will lead in 20 to 30 or 40 years, but anyone with children and grandchildren who thinks that The Donald is working for them would be smart to pay attention.
J. Michael Donovan
Hampton Beach
In Rye − small numbers add up
March 5 − To the Editor:
The Rye Newsletter was published last Friday. The first article dealt with financial items that will be decided on March 12th. Eighteen specific warrant items were listed, with a cost of $722,500, along with associated tax impacts, adding up to a mere 22 cents. Who would worry about twenty two cents? Considering that the Town portion of the tax rate is $2.26, that little 22 cents is a 9.7% increase in the Town tax rate.
We should ask ourselves why no tax impact was shown for the $13,457,939 Town General Fund budget. That $13+ million will have a tax impact of 20 cents. The combined increase is 42 cents, resulting in an 18.6% increase in the Town tax rate. This is the 800 pound gorilla in the room that the Select Board doesn’t want you to know about.
The overall tax rate is made up of a number of items, including the Town portion, the County portion and the School portion. The County budget increase is 4% and the School general fund increase is 3.8%. So, why the disproportionate increase in the Town portion of the tax rate? Having sat through the entire budget process last fall it appears to me that the Select Board does not keep an eye on the big picture (the tax impact) while, at the same time, reviewing specific budget requests, looking for efficiencies and seeking less costly alternatives.
It seems disingenuous at best for the Select Board to list the tax impact of $722,500 in proposed spending while ignoring the tax impact of more than $13 million in spending. This exhibits a lack of transparency and trust in the voters. It is time for more responsible leadership on the Select Board. Please vote for Rob Wright.
Hugh T. Lee
Rye
Vote Tom King for Rye Select Board for balanced, professional leadership
March 5 − To the Editor:
On March 12, I'm casting my vote for experience and respect. My vote will be to re-elect Tom King for Select Board.
On Rye's Select Board, Tom King has consistently made investments focused on public safety, staff excellence, and protection of our town's natural resources. His approach has been balanced and professional.
In contrast, his opponent is running a negative campaign based on half-truths and personal attacks. Aggressive and misleading campaign conduct might rally a base, but are we comfortable with those characteristics in office?
It's clear to me that the right choice for Rye is to reelect the candidate with experience and civility: That candidate is Tom King.
Mark Josephs MD
Rye
Jeff Ross announces bid for re-election to Rye Library Board
March 5 − To the Editor:
My name is Jeff Ross, and I am seeking a third term on the Rye Public Library Board of Trustees on Thursday, March 12.
Much of the conversation heading into the election has been about fiscal restraint and this year’s town budget. The Library Trustees continue to be careful stewards of the resources entrusted to it by the taxpayers. The Library’s operating budget for next year represents just a 3.2% increase over last year’s budget
As is the case with many other departments’ operating budgets, the vast majority of next year’s increase is attributable to the cost of salaries and benefits. Specifically, 83% of the increase in the library budget ($20,000 of the $24,000) is to cover increased health insurance premiums.
While the trustees have no control over those premiums, we have been proactive in managing other expenses, including library employee salaries and wages. Five years ago, to both control costs and incentivize excellence, we implemented a “performance-based” compensation system which links raises not only to an employee’s responsibilities within the library but the quality of the work they do in fulfilling them.
This year is not an isolated example of solid financial stewardship. Over the course of the last decade, the library budget has increased an average of 2.6% (less than $17,000) per year, the lowest of any town department. I hope to continue in my role maintaining this tradition of fiscal restraint.
This prudent oversight has not held back the Library’s operations. The Rye Public Library and its staff are highly regarded and, as 2023’s year-end statistics indicate, the library itself is remarkably well-utilized. It offers almost five times the state average in programming for children and young adults, with almost three times the attendance. Presentations made to other age groups number almost four times the state average and three times the participants.
The Library Director and current Board of Trustees have spent the past several years planning the Library Common, which will create additional space for Library programming called for in our strategic plan, as well as a gathering place for Town events. We have and will continue to manage carefully the financial resources entrusted to us by our supporters, both taxpayers and other generous donors who will make this project possible.
I’d very much like to return to the board this March and ask that the voters of Rye consider allowing me that opportunity.
Jeff Ross
Rye
Please re-elect Sally King Supervisor of the Checklist in Rye
March 5 − To the Editor:
Sally King has been Supervisor of the Checklist in Rye for 12 years and is running for re-election on March 12. I have served with Sally as one of the three Supervisors of the Checklist during this time. Sally is a devoted public servant and always dedicates herself to getting things done right. Her experience and expertise is what Rye needs now, more than ever. Please vote for Sally King to do this important job.
Madeline Chichester
Rye
Inaccuracies in Rob Wright candidate announcement
March 6 -- To the Editor:
In Rob Wright’s announcement of his candidacy for Rye Select Board published on February 19, he made reference to a “lawsuit” in Rye involving a property dispute over the boundary between the Rye Cemetery and the Rye Town Forest, implying that Selectman Tom King was somehow responsible for this “lawsuit.” In fact, there was no such “lawsuit.”
The Rye Conservation Commission (RCC) discovered a boundary discrepancy when it completed a survey of the Town Forest. The RCC did not “drag its feet” in addressing this matter as candidate Wright claims, but immediately notified the Cemetery Trustees and the Select Board as well as the easement holder, the Rockingham County Conservation District (RCCD). The Cemetery Trustees acknowledged that they had known about this for years.
The affected portion of the Town Forest includes the primary trail from Parsons Field to the Rye Recreation area and is heavily used by children and adults alike. To resolve this problem, the RCC spent 18 months working with Cemetery Trustees and the abutting Congregational Church toward a three-way land swap. However, the Cemetery Trustees ultimately vetoed the proposal.
Since the dispute involved a Conservation Easement on the Town Forest, any agreement by the parties had to be reviewed and accepted by the NH Attorney General Charitable Trust Unit. Knowing this, and that conservation easements are difficult to change, the four involved parties each retained legal counsel to ensure that any agreement was properly formulated, presented and fair. This was never a lawsuit, but a prudent legal settlement between the Town, the Cemetery Trustees, the RCC and RCCD. This process did indeed require the expenditure of some tax dollars but it was a collaborative effort that probably saved the Town of Rye many more dollars in potential litigations.
Rye residents are best served by electing candidates who value facts over distortions and innuendo. If you agree, please vote to re-elect Selectman Tom King.
Randolph Werner
Rye
Vote Lafond and Cico for Winnacunnet School Board
March 5 − To the Editor:
I am writing to you today to ask for your vote for Leslie Lafond and Nicole Cico for the Winnacunnet School Board on March 12.
Leslie and Nicole are regularly seen attending and supporting not only the students of Winnacunnet but also the Hampton community at large. When I am evaluating candidates for any board I am looking for level headed decision makers that can take in the facts and make a decision based on those facts. Leslie and Nicole are those kind of decision makers.
Please join me in voting for these hardworking women that dedicate their time and effort to making Winnacunnet High School a better place for all.Amy Hansen
Hampton
JoAnn Hodgdon for Rye Library Trustee
March 6 − To the Editor:
JoAnn Hodgdon has been a library trustee for the last three years and has worked tirelessly on multiple library initiatives to keep the facility a wonderful resource for the town. It was a period that included providing continuing services innovatively and safely during a global pandemic.
The Rye library has become a real gem in the center of Rye that is wildly appreciated by so many citizens from the youngest to the oldest. JoAnn is a team player who will continue to work with the library director, staff, friends and other trustees to continue to improve this wonderful facility.
The library now has a beautiful open space in the center of town that took a concerted effort to acquire and will provide space in the future for outdoor programming and activities. JoAnn has been very active in pursuing ideas for this open space and I am confident she will work with others to improve this space in a manner that all citizens will be proud of.
JoAnn is also well aware of fiscal responsibility for a facility that requires taxpayer funding and she has done a great job helping keep the library’s costs in check while maintaining a stable workforce
I was a trustee of the Rye Public Library from 1990 to 1998 and Chairman for the last four years of my tenure. Much of the work the trustees focused on during that time was an expansion of the library which included fundraising over $525,000 from private citizens for the purchase of the adjacent Parsonage property for future library expansions.
The library is starting a new fundraising campaign for improvements to the common area adjacent to the library. The majority of this funding will come from private donations. JoAnn’s experience within additional non-profit boards, and her success, especially in relation to “fund/friend- raising”, champions her to the task at hand
I hope you will join me to re-elect JoAnn Hodgdon for library trustee on Tuesday March 12th. She is committed to the mission of RPL, strategically and fiscally.
Mark Epply
Rye
Former Chairman; Rye Library Trustees
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Opinions on local elections and support for Ukraine: Letters
