🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <01bc27e0$71c00b20$c8a320cc@nebular.ix.netcom.com>, "nebular" <nebular@ix.netcom.com> writes:

SNIP
>  At the convention for
>city mayors recently it was brought to the publics attention that revenue
>sharing (aide to cities ) is being cut.  
SNIP
>Safety is a key point.  Most people don't realize that they are safer in an
>urban environment.  I believe that the statistics would bear me out on
>that.

Actually, that aid has been cut for years.  Now they want to make it "Legal".

I keep track of my city, school and county taxes from year to year, since I bought my house in 1989.  I also check the tax bill for state aid.  A large percentage of our tax hike in those years is from reduced state aid.  Much of the rest is from a declining tax base.  

As for safety, I've lived in my working class residential neighborhood in Schenectady since 1989.  I haven't heard of a break-in anywhere in the neighborhood in that period.  There have been a few store hold-ups in the nearby commercial street, but nothing in the homes.  In my opinion, the fact that there are pedestrians on the sidewalks (Yes, Virginia, there ARE sidewalks) and neighbors who know each other helps make the area safer.  Houses aren't hidden behind a dark hedge where thiefs can work in peace and quiet.

An example of what kind of neighborhood still exists in some cities happened when my cat was killed last year.  He was run over and his body was in the gutter across the street and a couple of houses down.  A few neighbors noticed it before I did.  Five different neighbors knocked on my door that Saturday to express their sympathy.  One neighbor helped me bury the cat.  These people are not close personal friends.  We all have busy lives.  But we do act like neighbors.



Bill Nechamen
Schenectady, NY

A person who designs something to be completely foolproof underestimates the ingenuity of complete fools.