EDITORIAL ‘Trusted Traveler’ Revocations Aside, ‘Green Light’ Bad Law On Sept. 11, 2001, the 19 terrorists who attacked the World Trade Center and Pentagon, or crashed in Schwenksville, Pa., had 30 driver’s licenses among them that allowed them to gain access to and hijack the four jets. Nineteen licenses were from Florida, eight from Virginia, one each from Arizona and Maryland, plus two from California that were issued to two “watchlisted” participants. None were from our state’s DMV, but if…
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After Tilting, Pierstown Grange Is Stable Again Built in 1898, ‘Unpolished Gem’ Due To Be Reopened Next June By LIZZIE COOPER • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com PIERSTOWN – The Pierstown Grange is getting a restoration overhaul. The 1898 structure is undergoing a $130,000 renovation. Grange members and friends had raised about $60,000 in donations for the project when an anonymous supporter offered a low-interest loan to cover the rest. “It certainly speaks to the sense of community that the Pierstown Grange…
BOUND VOLUMES Feb. 12, 2020 200 YEARS AGO Excerpt from a Letter to the Editor dated Albany, February 9, 1820, signed Daniel D. Tompkins: “I occasionally get a glance at your paper, which I am glad to find conducted with a stability and moderation in regard to the political contentions which agitate the state, highly credible to your judgment. Faction has reared its head, and the party in opposition to the state administration, appear determined by “hook or by crook,”…
VIEW FROM ALBANY Reform Bail Reform – And Here’s How By SENATOR JIM SEWARD • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.COM Another week in Albany but still no legislative action has been taken to fix the disastrous bail/discovery laws that are continuing to wreak havoc across our state. Protecting the public is one of the most important responsibilities of government, and when a crime has been committed, the victim, not the criminal, should be our first concern. Unfortunately, the disastrous new bail laws…
LETTER from ROGER LAFRANCE Misinformation Can Lead To Unreasonable Worries To the Editor: In a recent edition of this newspaper, Mr. Brockway offered an explanation of his support for a resolution to make Otsego County a “Second Amendment Sanctuary.” He prefaced his argument with his opinion that, contrary to an accusation in a prior letter, he is not a fearmonger. However, much of the information he cites to support his case is distorted or factually incorrect – the type of…
LETTER from HAL LEGG Gun-Control Advocates Equal Hitler – Really? To the Editor: This news organization recently published a letter in which Otsego County Rep. Rick Brockway, R-Laurens, presented his opinion – certainly worthy of your readers’ consideration – about the general availability of firearms. In contrasting his perspective with that held by Democrats running for president, Representative Brockway wrote: “Adolf Hitler said, ‘To conquer a nation, you first must disarm its people.’” History rules out the acceptability of lightly…
CHERRY VALLEY INNKEEPER ASKS: Did Van Buren Sit HERE? By LIBBY CUDMORE • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com CHERRY VALLEY – During home renovations, Barbara Hall and her husband, Gary Lozier, found where President Martin Van Buren likely sat when he visited the village in 1839. Not a chair. A toilet seat. “The whole back room was garbage,” she said of the former Story Tavern, now her refurbished home at 171 Main St. “As we were cleaning it out, we realized the…
AT MINIMUM, IT WILL PAY $875k IN TAXES West Laurens Solar Farm May Bring Bonanza Here By JIM KEVLIN • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com LAURENS – Young Ryan Storke came across as a level-headed, knowledgeable, straightforward chap. Asked by farmer Gary Lull who would clean up after the 3,000-acre solar farm he is proposing in West Laurens eventually wears out, he matter-of-factly said the state Public Service Commission (PSC) requires a line of credit be maintained sufficient for the job. “All…
HOMETOWN History Feb. 14, 2020 150 Years Ago The Bible in Ohio Public Schools – The Judges of the Superior Court have rendered their decision in the case involving the question of the exclusion of the Bible from the public schools. The action was to discuss an injunction heretofore granted to restrain the operations of the School Board, declaring that the reading of the Bible and religious books should not be permitted in the schools. Judge Hagens held that the…
VIEW FROM WEST DAVENPORT What Was Objectionable In State Of Union Speech? By MIKE ZAGATA • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com This past week we had an opportunity to observe our President highlight his accomplishments and lay out his agenda for next year. Every president does this annually in the State of the Union Address. As is almost always the case, depending on party affiliation, there will be things covered that draw applause and some that draw frowns – and once in…
