Portsmouth must cut budget for sake of taxpayers: Letters

Portsmouth must cut budget for sake of taxpayers

May 14 − To the Editor:

Although Mayor McEachern has stated that we should not conflate Portsmouth's budget with property revaluations, the two are connected. Residents of nearby communities have experienced sticker shock after their revaluations occurred when their property taxes doubled and tripled. Some residents were literally brought to tears when they saw their tax bills. Cutting our proposed budget may be Portsmouth's last chance to stop that from happening here.

One of the most unfortunate aspects of this budget is that it will make the cost of housing in our city much more expensive. This council has prided itself on its concern for affordable housing, but anyone who supports this budget in its current form cannot say with a straight face that he or she supports affordable housing.

It would be wise to follow the advice of business columnist Christopher Thomson who urged cities to budget like it's a business. For example, he stated that a city cannot justify increasing its school budget if there are fewer students enrolled.

A rich man was once asked how he acquired his wealth.  He took out his wallet and revealed that he had taped a message on it that said, "Do I really need this?"  It's time for the City of Portsmouth to put this message on its collective wallet.  If each member of the City Council could find one non-essential item in the budget to eliminate, this would be a good start.

Christina Lusky

Portsmouth

The time has come to end the Marconi Fiefdom

May 14 − To the Editor:

I was not surprised to learn that NH Port Director Marconi was once again under investigation by the New Hampshire Attorney General. He was placed on paid administrative leave and continues to receive his taxpayer funded salary. But of course, pursuant to NH "personnel rules"  no information has been forthcoming regarding the nature of the investigation.

I don't wish Mr. Marconi unwarranted harm, but enough is enough. This is not the first time Mr. Marconi has been investigated by State or local law enforcement. It's time for the PDA to step up and appoint a new Director. Preferably one who will run New Hampshire's Port as a business. The time has come to end the Marconi Fiefdom. No more political bailouts.  New Hampshire deserves better.

Kevin M. Monahan

Bow

72 hours is a reasonable waiting period for gun purchases

May 13 -- To the Editor:

The recent article on the pending Maine legislation on firearms purchases indicates that the Maine Sportsmen's Alliance takes the position that a 72 hour wait before finalizing certain gun purchases is an onerous burden. The claim is made that " irreversible consequences" would occur if the proposed law is enacted.

What a stretch! This specious position makes it seem an serious burden to wait 72 hours to complete such a purchase.

Waiting that amount of time to allow the state government to do an adequate background search is unlikely to constitute a hardship for most purchasers.

I have waited during the 72 hour window when making my last purchase at the Trading Post. It was not an imposition considering the gravity of such a purchase.

I felt reassured that a responsible search was made before I took my new sidearm home.

The argument advanced by the Alliance is a somewhat selfish and naïve trope given the need to properly screen people who are buying lethal weapons for either personal protection or sport.

The follow up trip to pick up any firearms covered by the legislation provides another opportunity to browse for or buy additional items.

Responsible folks realize that a waiting period insures (if processed as intended) the safety of the public at large given the extreme amount of violence committed by those who have gotten guns through illicit means. A short 3 day wait is no true hardship to secure the safety of our fellow citizens.

As a sportsman and retired law enforcement professional, I applaud any reasonable effort to make our communities safer and exclude those whose backgrounds preclude gun purchases.

Given the potential lethality of gun ownership, it seems a small price to pay to keep our neighborhoods safer.

M. P. Mulcahy

Portsmouth

Donald Trump disdains, disrespects and dismisses women

May 12 − To The Editor:

Donald Trump has a long history of controversial remarks about women. Our previous knowledge of his view of women has been confirmed and expanded by the sordid trial happening in New York. Obviously, he disdains, disrespects and dismisses at least one half of the human race (and many more if you consider his racist comments about people of color.)

His narcissistic lack of  empathy and concern for people who are different from him disqualifies him for the presidency of the United States. And besides that, he doesn’t like dogs!

Women, the men who love and respect them, and dog lovers must unite in November to keep this man out of  office. He is a despicable and selfish human being who craves power and doesn’t give a whit about this country or other people.

Cynthia Muse

Rye

Biden’s America is a working America

May 14 − To the Editor:

What issues should a President address?  Income? Savings? Safety? Business? Climate change? President Biden has tackled all these, and more because he knows now to get things done.

Biden’s America is a working America and his record shows that he’s helped keep us working.

Income: Biden led the strongest two years of job growth in history with over 750,000 American manufacturing jobs so we make what we buy. Biden reduced unemployment and addressed poverty by targeting groups who experience employment impediments: Hispanics, African Americans, and people with disabilities. The unemployment rates for all three groups are nearly the lowest on record.  Jobs give people income, a sense of pride and self-worth, and expand the economy, so let’s cheer because he helped create nearly 11 million new jobs since 2021. The 3.5% unemployment rate is the lowest in 50 years. Joe gave us the $15/hour minimum wages for ALL federal workers and debt relief for over 40 million people with crushing student loans. Clearly, Joe helps put money in our pockets. What else?

Savings: Franklin taught us that a penny saved is a penny earned. Joe helps us save what we earn. Through 100 strategic actions Joe helped lower household energy costs averaging $100 per year. Such savings continues into the distant future.  Joe reduced gas prices over $1.60 from 2021 prices with his historic release of strategic reserves.  Joe helped students afford college by increasing Pell Grants over $900. Ever get sick?  Millions of Americans saved $800 per year on health insurance. 

Safety:  What good is a job if we’re unsafe?  Biden signed the most significant gun violence legislation in 30 years.  His legislative experience insured bi-partisan support. We are safer from Covid-19 because over 79% of adult Americans are fully vaccinated.

Business:  We can see infrastructure investment in 50 states, territories, and tribal nations in a host of structures that make life convenient, safe, and speedy for households and businesses alike. Their shameful neglect had to end eventually, and Joe chose to rebuild on his watch. Over 16 million households receive lower cost or free high-speed internet to keep Americans informed. Biden guided our economy’s inflation rate over 12 straight months to a soft landing saving us from a post-pandemic shock.

Climate Change: Biden’s actions on climate change deserve a whole letter to the editor. Briefly, his efforts will reduce CO2, increase clean energy, reverse deforestation, innovate clean technology, decarbonize transportation, and help other nations decarbonize their economies. Biden’s goals: carbon-free power sector by 2035 and net-zero emission economy by 2050.  These actions add millions of jobs and grow the economy.

What has Joe Biden done for us?  Plenty, and he’s working on more.

J. Michael Atherton

Dover

US must give Ukraine what it needs to defeat Russia

May 14 -- To the Editor:

The Herald has alerted us to major undeterred Russian advances. Meanwhile Zalinskyy still waits for many crucial NATO weapons. No long promised jets still in sight while Biden puts dampers on long range missiles.

Macron asks if we’re in this war to win or just tiptoeing around Putin’s continuing villainry?

It’s past time for Biden and NATO to pull out the stops and give Ukraine everything it needs to send Russia back to Moscow.

Malcolm Odell

Exeter

Thanks to Councilor Janet Stevens for supporting local fishing industry

May 13 -- To the Editor,

We write this letter on behalf of the New Hampshire fishermen at the Portsmouth Commercial Fish Pier.

The last decade has been one of the most challenging for our iconic fishing industry here in the state, everything from more and more stringent regulations to increasing fuel and bait prices to a pandemic. We have faced every challenge and we keep this industry alive. However, one of the most daunting challenges we have faced has been watching our once thriving commercial fishing facility turn into an unsafe and barely usable structure. For years now the facilities at the Portsmouth Commercial Fish Pier, formerly functioning as the Portsmouth Fishermen’sCooperative, have increasingly disintegrated into the bare bones, eyesore facility that currently exists.

Collectively, we’ve worked to keep this spot, one of the last true working waterfront spaces on our coast, thriving and something that Portsmouth can be proud of. This has been incredibly challenging given the lack of funding available, however, recently, with the help of Councilwoman Janet Stevens, championing our cause, we have been able to secure $1 million in funding to replace the building.

We can’t thank Janet Stevens enough, as well as others, for working tirelessly on our behalf, to make this project happen. We recognize that, due to the number of active fishermen along the coast of New Hampshire, this was not an easy feat. We are grateful for her support for us and the industry as a whole, that she prioritized this issue. In just a short amount of time, we’ve been able to secure significant funding to begin revitalizing our fishing heritage and infrastructure in Portsmouth.

Damon Frampton, Gary Glidden, Jake Eaton, and Jillian Robillard

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Portsmouth must cut budget for sake of taxpayers: Letters