The embattled former director of elections, Yolanda Goldsack, will not accept a transfer.Read more at PikeCountyPress.com
Goldsack told the Pike County Board of Commissioners at their weekly public meeting on July 8 that she is withdrawing her request for transfer.
Showing posts with label Bob Goldsack. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bob Goldsack. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 8
BREAKING: PC Press reports Yolanda Goldsack will not accept new position
Goldsack Resigns; Will Not Accept Transfer
Wednesday, July 1
BREAKING: Gary Orben appointed elections director
Gary Orben was appointed director of the Pike County Board of Elections. He replaces Yolanda Goldsack, wife of Delaware Valley School Board president Bob Goldsack.
Read more from the Pike County Press
Read more from the Pike County Press
Saturday, June 20
Elections director Yolanda Goldsack to step down following controversy at the polls
Pike County Board of Elections director Yolanda Goldsack will step down and seek a new position in the county government, according to the Pike County Press and other sources. Yolanda is the wife of incumbent school board candidate Bob Goldsack, who helped fix a voting machine on primary election day while he was campaigning at the Dingman Township 2 polling station.Read more at PikeCountyPress.com
Tuesday, June 9
Witness says commissioners report that Bob Goldsack helped reprogram party ID card encoder on primary election day
The following is a letter to the editor from Dingman Township resident Linda Boyle.
The investigation by the Pike County Commissioners is in process. I have received findings that have been found to be the way that I reported them. I am still in the process of receiving further information regarding my statement.
I am going to state facts only, which were given to me in a letter dated June 1 from Thomas F. Farley, county solicitor.
1. I was the first voter of the day. My card was automatically registered a Democrat because the Democrats are in power. Therefore, the card needed to be placed into an encoder. It was not encoded to Republican.
2. Bob Goldsack did contact the county elections office. He explained the problem with the encoder to an employee in the election office. That employee explained to Mr. Goldsack how to reprogram the encoder to change from Democrat to Republican. Mr. Goldsack then verbalized these instructions to a person working at the polls who, based on the information, instructed the employees how to reprogram the encoder.
3. Because of the law, my candidates of choice cannot be changed to my registered party.
4. The election office provided me with a provisional ballot and explained to me that such provisional ballot would count. A provisional ballot can only be used on Election Day. Thus, a provisional ballot is not the proper remedy nor can it be permitted.
5. The election must be certified. Certification can occur so long as the number of votes equal the election, the total election, or an amount less than the election. There is clearly no palpable error in the total number of votes cast such that election must be certified.
There is one quote that I would like to bring to your attention from an article that was in a newspaper dated May 28.
In a phone interview, it is quoted that Bob Goldsack said, “It’s a lie.” regarding my statement that he phoned the county elections office to get assistance with a voting problem on Election Day. You can see from the Commissioners’ findings that are stated above, that it was not a lie.
There is one quote that I would like to bring to your attention from an article that was in a newspaper dated June 4.
During the Commissioners’ Meeting, Attorney Farley is quoted as saying to me, “Everyone after you caught the error before they voted. You were the only one that didn’t realize and immediately point out the error.” In fact, when my husband and I met with Commissioners Caridi, Forbes, and Wagner, Attorney Farley, and the Chief Clerk immediately following the Commissioners’ Meeting, the “yellow book” was brought to the table. The book confirmed that I was voter No. 1 and one of the group of people who first noticed the discrepancy was voter No. 7.
In no way do I want to place any blame on the poll workers.
Linda Boyle
The investigation by the Pike County Commissioners is in process. I have received findings that have been found to be the way that I reported them. I am still in the process of receiving further information regarding my statement.
I am going to state facts only, which were given to me in a letter dated June 1 from Thomas F. Farley, county solicitor.
1. I was the first voter of the day. My card was automatically registered a Democrat because the Democrats are in power. Therefore, the card needed to be placed into an encoder. It was not encoded to Republican.
2. Bob Goldsack did contact the county elections office. He explained the problem with the encoder to an employee in the election office. That employee explained to Mr. Goldsack how to reprogram the encoder to change from Democrat to Republican. Mr. Goldsack then verbalized these instructions to a person working at the polls who, based on the information, instructed the employees how to reprogram the encoder.
3. Because of the law, my candidates of choice cannot be changed to my registered party.
4. The election office provided me with a provisional ballot and explained to me that such provisional ballot would count. A provisional ballot can only be used on Election Day. Thus, a provisional ballot is not the proper remedy nor can it be permitted.
5. The election must be certified. Certification can occur so long as the number of votes equal the election, the total election, or an amount less than the election. There is clearly no palpable error in the total number of votes cast such that election must be certified.
There is one quote that I would like to bring to your attention from an article that was in a newspaper dated May 28.
In a phone interview, it is quoted that Bob Goldsack said, “It’s a lie.” regarding my statement that he phoned the county elections office to get assistance with a voting problem on Election Day. You can see from the Commissioners’ findings that are stated above, that it was not a lie.
There is one quote that I would like to bring to your attention from an article that was in a newspaper dated June 4.
During the Commissioners’ Meeting, Attorney Farley is quoted as saying to me, “Everyone after you caught the error before they voted. You were the only one that didn’t realize and immediately point out the error.” In fact, when my husband and I met with Commissioners Caridi, Forbes, and Wagner, Attorney Farley, and the Chief Clerk immediately following the Commissioners’ Meeting, the “yellow book” was brought to the table. The book confirmed that I was voter No. 1 and one of the group of people who first noticed the discrepancy was voter No. 7.
In no way do I want to place any blame on the poll workers.
Linda Boyle
Saturday, May 23
Goldsack's Democratic write-in campaign unsuccessful
Bob Goldsack received 133 write-in Democratic votes for the 4-year school board term.The county judge removed Goldsack from the Democratic ballot for substantial errors on Goldsack’s Democratic ballot filing paperwork. Goldsack and his non-profit organization, Taxpayers United, ran a write-in campaign as a result.
Goldsack’s 133 votes still put him behind the lowest vote getter, fellow TU candidate Benny Marasa. Marasa received only 243 Democratic votes.
Whether or not the lack of Democratic support for Goldsack was due to his removal from the ballot will be tested in the general election this fall. In a general election, voters can select candidates from any party. Goldsack will appear as a Republican only, having received the third most Republican votes.
Some notable recipients of write in votes, just one or two each, were:
- Dingman Delaware Middle School teacher Ruth Schneck
- Former DV employee and disgruntled writer of letters to the editor Tony Splendora
- Pike Democratic Committee chairwoman Elizabeth Forrest (ironically, a Republican vote)
- DV class of 2007 graduate Robert Pike
- R. Holdsack, whose evil twin is the current school board president
In the race for sheriff, Goldsack and Chuck Pike each had a write-in. Jack Bauer, from the hit Fox TV show, “24,” had several write-ins for various races.
Friday, May 22
Republican voter says her vote counted for the wrong party
A Republican voter in Dingman Township 2 said in a letter to the county commissioners that she was given a Democrat card for the computer voting machine.
The voter, Linda Boyle, also said that 4-year term school board candidate Bob Goldsack assisted in the reprogramming of the voting machine at the Dingman Township Firehouse polling location, after receiving verbal directions from the head of the Board of Elections, Yolanda Goldsack, Bob's wife.
Boyle said county chief clerk Gary Orben told her that the county's solicitor said today's canvas of the votes still had to take place as scheduled, despite the receipt of her letter. Boyle then distributed the letter to attendees of the canvas this morning.
⇒ READ HER LETTER
The voter, Linda Boyle, also said that 4-year term school board candidate Bob Goldsack assisted in the reprogramming of the voting machine at the Dingman Township Firehouse polling location, after receiving verbal directions from the head of the Board of Elections, Yolanda Goldsack, Bob's wife.
Boyle said county chief clerk Gary Orben told her that the county's solicitor said today's canvas of the votes still had to take place as scheduled, despite the receipt of her letter. Boyle then distributed the letter to attendees of the canvas this morning.
⇒ READ HER LETTER
May 22, 2009?
Richard A. Caridi, Commissioner
Harry Forbes, Commissioner
Karl A. Wagner, Jr., Commissioner
Gary Orben, Chief Clerk
I feel that the election was flawed and should not be certified today for the following reasons.
1. There was a problem with the voting cards being programmed at Dingman 2 from approximately 7:00 AM to 7:20 AM. I was voter #1. I am a registered Republican and the card that was given to me was a Democrat card. My vote was cast as a democrat and not a Republican.
2. I feel that it is a gross conflict of interest that Bob Goldsack had anything to do with the reprogramming of the card programmer, whether done personally or verbally, after receiving verbal directions from his wife, Yolanda Goldsack, on how to reprogram the card programmer.
3. Not all of the facts are known such as how many other polling areas have been affected, if at all, and if all of the voters after me and prior to the reprogramming of the card programmer have been notified of the problem.
4. I filed a notarized affidavit with the Pike County Commissioners’ Office on May 21, 2009 stating the events that have personally affected me. This information is currently under investigation by all of the Pike County
Commissioners. It is my desire to entrust this investigation to the
above-mentioned Commissioners.
I respectfully request that the certification of votes be postponed until all of the above information is gathered and the investigation is complete.
Linda G. Boyle
Milford, PA
Prior to handing this to the press, I spoke with Gary Orben. I asked him if my request was granted, would it have already been brought up or would it be brought up after the count. He said it would have already been brought up. Gary said that he spoke with the solicitor and the solicitor said the canvass must go on as scheduled.
LIVE: Coverage of the canvass of the votes
Here are the live updates from all today, at the canvass of the votes, which started at 9 a.m. and was held at the Pike County Administration Building. Stay tuned for a full report.
3:31 p.m.
No changes in the Fisher/Silverstone tie. The tie remains. All Republican votes remain unchanged.
3:09 p.m.
Only Westfall remains to be counted.
Tie still remains after all precincts but Westfall have been counted.
⇒ SEE MORE OF THE LIVE COVERAGE
1:42 p.m.
The back of the lone Republican absentee ballot for Matamoras 2 was properly counted on Tuesday night. The Republican totals stay the same. The tie still remains between Fisher and Silverstone for the last 4-year Republican spot.
1:30 p.m.
Still canvassing after a lunch break. Now on Matamoras 2.
Backs of absentee ballots were not properly counted in Matamoras 2. As a result, Silverstone, Schor, Fisher, Greenlaw, Pike each received one additional Dem vote.
Republican ticket at Matamoras 2 and the remaining precincts of Milford Borough, Milford Township. Shohola and Westfall to follow.
11:41 a.m.
Military ballot is a Republican ballot. If that person votes for either Fisher or Silverstone, the tie will be broken. The ballot is due by May 26.
No other provisional ballots were accepted in the school district. The rest of the results will likely stay the same.
11:26 a.m.
Provisional ballot in Dingman 1 added one vote each to Fisher, Lutfy, Greenlaw, Pike, Schor on the Dem ticket.
Bob Goldsack got the following write ins for Dem 4 yr term:
Delaware 1 - 13
Delaware 2 -18
Dingman 1 - 25
Total 56 write in votes for Goldsack from those three precincts.
Of trivial note: Chuck Pike and Goldsack have each had write ins for sheriff. Our good friend Anthony Splendora had a Dem write in for 4-yr school board.
11:03 a.m.
Delaware 1 and 2 are done. Only changes to results: +1 Dem vote each for Schor, Fisher, Lutfy, Greenlaw.
The second provisional ballot is a Dem for Dingman 1. Won't affect the tie.
There is ONE (1) overseas/military ballot out. It can be accepted up until May 26. No word on whether it is D or R.
10:44 a.m.
First provisional ballot was a Dem ballot. Does not affect the Rep tie between Fisher and Silverstone.
10:43 a.m.
At the canvass of votes. Two provisional ballots were accepted in the DVSD.
3:31 p.m.
No changes in the Fisher/Silverstone tie. The tie remains. All Republican votes remain unchanged.
3:09 p.m.
Only Westfall remains to be counted.
Tie still remains after all precincts but Westfall have been counted.
⇒ SEE MORE OF THE LIVE COVERAGE
1:42 p.m.
The back of the lone Republican absentee ballot for Matamoras 2 was properly counted on Tuesday night. The Republican totals stay the same. The tie still remains between Fisher and Silverstone for the last 4-year Republican spot.
2 COMMENTS:
MAY 22, 2009 3:12 PM - Bill Greenlaw said...
Thanks for providing the only source for these election results. The final results will be posted on the county site, but now we know why some of the numbers changed.
Fisher and Silverstone remain a tie.
I wonder where that military ballot is now, and how we ill know if it is received and counted.
MAY 22, 2009 4:26 PM - Sue Schor said...
Bill, According to Mr. Orben the military ballot must be post marked by May 18th and in by the end of the day May 26th.
1:30 p.m.
Still canvassing after a lunch break. Now on Matamoras 2.
Backs of absentee ballots were not properly counted in Matamoras 2. As a result, Silverstone, Schor, Fisher, Greenlaw, Pike each received one additional Dem vote.
Republican ticket at Matamoras 2 and the remaining precincts of Milford Borough, Milford Township. Shohola and Westfall to follow.
11:41 a.m.
Military ballot is a Republican ballot. If that person votes for either Fisher or Silverstone, the tie will be broken. The ballot is due by May 26.
No other provisional ballots were accepted in the school district. The rest of the results will likely stay the same.
11:26 a.m.
Provisional ballot in Dingman 1 added one vote each to Fisher, Lutfy, Greenlaw, Pike, Schor on the Dem ticket.
Bob Goldsack got the following write ins for Dem 4 yr term:
Delaware 1 - 13
Delaware 2 -18
Dingman 1 - 25
Total 56 write in votes for Goldsack from those three precincts.
Of trivial note: Chuck Pike and Goldsack have each had write ins for sheriff. Our good friend Anthony Splendora had a Dem write in for 4-yr school board.
11:03 a.m.
Delaware 1 and 2 are done. Only changes to results: +1 Dem vote each for Schor, Fisher, Lutfy, Greenlaw.
The second provisional ballot is a Dem for Dingman 1. Won't affect the tie.
There is ONE (1) overseas/military ballot out. It can be accepted up until May 26. No word on whether it is D or R.
10:44 a.m.
First provisional ballot was a Dem ballot. Does not affect the Rep tie between Fisher and Silverstone.
10:43 a.m.
At the canvass of votes. Two provisional ballots were accepted in the DVSD.
Wednesday, May 20
Goldsack the only TU member to appear on ballot in fall; Fisher and Silverstone tie for 4th spot on GOP ticket; Pike sweeps 2 year term
Bob Goldsack, current school board president, will be the only Taxpayers United member to appear on the general election ballot this fall, as a Republican. His running mates Benny Marasa and Patty Wright took major losses to their opponents, and will not appear on the general election ballot.
Jack Fisher, Bill Greenlaw, Pam Lutfy and Sue Schor swept the Democratic ticket for the 4 year term. Lutfy and Schor won on the Republican side, with Goldsack taking the third most Republican votes.
Fisher and Ed Silverstone are in a tie for the fourth spot of four on the Republican ticket. The Board of Elections will recount votes to certify the election later this week to determine if one of the candidates garnered more votes than the other, according to Elizabeth Forrest, Pike Democratic party committeewoman. Both candidates can also demand recounts.
Chuck Pike swept both parties over Wright for the 2 year term. His name will appear on the general election ballot unopposed this fall.
Stay tuned to RB for DV for the latest developments over the Fisher/Silverstone tie.
Additional coverage
Jack Fisher, Bill Greenlaw, Pam Lutfy and Sue Schor swept the Democratic ticket for the 4 year term. Lutfy and Schor won on the Republican side, with Goldsack taking the third most Republican votes.
Fisher and Ed Silverstone are in a tie for the fourth spot of four on the Republican ticket. The Board of Elections will recount votes to certify the election later this week to determine if one of the candidates garnered more votes than the other, according to Elizabeth Forrest, Pike Democratic party committeewoman. Both candidates can also demand recounts.
Chuck Pike swept both parties over Wright for the 2 year term. His name will appear on the general election ballot unopposed this fall.
Stay tuned to RB for DV for the latest developments over the Fisher/Silverstone tie.
Additional coverage
Friday, May 15
Silverstone says he is not affiliated with TU despite his appearance in TU mailing
Incumbent school board candidate Ed Silverstone is one of "only four Taxpayers United candidates," according to a TU mailer sent out to residents of the school district.
Silverstone has publicized himself in the local newspapers as an independent candidate who was not affiliated with either Taxpayers United or Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike, Schor.
"I am an independent candidate," Silverstone said in an email. "I am not affiliated with either group."
⇒ KEEP READING
Residents of the school district began receiving the TU mailer on Thursday. It includes this letter posted on RB for DV Thursday afternoon. It also includes postcards titled "Take me to the polls" with a list of the Taxpayers United candidates and their places on the ballot.
Silverstone's name appears under the list with the heading "Vote for 'only' four Taxpayers United candidates." But Silverstone said in an email Friday morning that he is not affiliated with TU.
"I am pleased that TU decided to recommend me," Silverstone said in an email. "So I'm a candidate TU is supporting and they are saying I'm a TU candidate."
The following instructions to write-in Bob Goldsack also were mailed out to Democratic voters in the school district. Goldsack's name will not appear on the Democratic ballot as per a court order after his filing paperwork was challenged.
Silverstone has publicized himself in the local newspapers as an independent candidate who was not affiliated with either Taxpayers United or Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike, Schor.
"I am an independent candidate," Silverstone said in an email. "I am not affiliated with either group."
⇒ KEEP READING
Residents of the school district began receiving the TU mailer on Thursday. It includes this letter posted on RB for DV Thursday afternoon. It also includes postcards titled "Take me to the polls" with a list of the Taxpayers United candidates and their places on the ballot.
Silverstone's name appears under the list with the heading "Vote for 'only' four Taxpayers United candidates." But Silverstone said in an email Friday morning that he is not affiliated with TU.
"I am pleased that TU decided to recommend me," Silverstone said in an email. "So I'm a candidate TU is supporting and they are saying I'm a TU candidate."
The following instructions to write-in Bob Goldsack also were mailed out to Democratic voters in the school district. Goldsack's name will not appear on the Democratic ballot as per a court order after his filing paperwork was challenged.
Opinion: Lutfy says "0 percent" tax increase a political stunt
To the editor:
Following tonight’s Delaware Valley School Board meeting, I am compelled to compose this letter to the citizens of Pike County. I am ashamed that Board members who voted affirmatively for the 2009-2010 school budget believe the citizens of this county to be idiots!
⇒ KEEP READING
When you wake up tomorrow, you may hear that the DV Board passed a school budget with a “0 percent tax increase.” BIG SHAM!
This so called “0 percent tax increase budget” was calculated with “stimulus fund money” that has NOT yet been provided to our district and possibly may never be provided as pointed out by the very same members who voted for the budget! This is one of the biggest deceptions that I have yet encountered. To tell Pike County citizens that this budget has a 0 percent tax increase when in actuality it may cost the taxpayers anywhere between a 2.5 percent to a 4.0 percent in increased taxes is unconscionable.
I for one refuse to be associated with this ridiculous fabrication. Using stimulus money, which we do not have, to “balance” a budget is highly unprofessional and indicative of an attitude of profound indifference to a fragile business community and struggling homeowners.
DV Board incumbents (Silverstone, Goldsack) recently sent a letter to Pike County residents promising they will provide a 0 percent increase to the taxpayers. Gee, after the election, do you think they will raise taxes to balance the “real” budget? I remember this happening when a former Board member ran for the office of Commissioner. A week after losing the election, the budget was re-opened and the taxes were increased. Interesting how history repeats itself.
Our country is in its worst shape since the Great Depression and our local educational leaders and fellow Board members are the last to understand this! Locally, The Pike County food pantry has an alarming demand. Jobs in Pike County are disappearing daily. Businesses are closing their doors. Apartments sit empty. The department of Public Welfare has never been so busy. There are no summer jobs for college students.
And it’s a time to raise taxes??
How dare my fellow Board members show such disrespect to our community! There is no way to get around this con job! Citizens deserve the truth. The real facts of the budget must be revealed and citizens must demand transparency from all Board members. Budgets must be based upon real monies, not reckless gambling behavior.
NEVER have I been so embarrassed to be a member of the DV Board. Never have I been so insulted at the disrespect shown for the taxpayers in our county. So often I hear administrators and Board members lament that parents need to learn how to say no to their children. I think the time has come when Board members need to say no to the requests of the administration and more importantly public citizens need to say no! no! no! to Board member’s shameful actions.
I do NOT support a tax increase. But I would rather present an HONEST budget showing the hidden tax increase than to present a LIE to our citizens!
Citizens, according to Pennsylvania statute you have the right to view the budget during the next 30 days. Please request to view the budget. Ask about the funds and “absence of funds” so you may see for yourself what is happening here. You have a voice about this budget. Get involved and demand better representation. Together we can make a difference.
Fellow Board members, you call this budget an example of fiscal management? What a joke!
Of the Board members present, Pam Lutfy and Sue Schor were the only two members who voted NO for this charade called a budget.
I write this letter because my reputation is more important than an election. For those Board members, not running for re-election: Where is your thinking? Would not it have been less deceiving to simply present the true facts regarding the need for this budget? Give our constituents more credit!
Most sincerely,
Pam Lutfy
Delaware Valley School Board member, 2009 candidate
Following tonight’s Delaware Valley School Board meeting, I am compelled to compose this letter to the citizens of Pike County. I am ashamed that Board members who voted affirmatively for the 2009-2010 school budget believe the citizens of this county to be idiots!
⇒ KEEP READING
When you wake up tomorrow, you may hear that the DV Board passed a school budget with a “0 percent tax increase.” BIG SHAM!
This so called “0 percent tax increase budget” was calculated with “stimulus fund money” that has NOT yet been provided to our district and possibly may never be provided as pointed out by the very same members who voted for the budget! This is one of the biggest deceptions that I have yet encountered. To tell Pike County citizens that this budget has a 0 percent tax increase when in actuality it may cost the taxpayers anywhere between a 2.5 percent to a 4.0 percent in increased taxes is unconscionable.
I for one refuse to be associated with this ridiculous fabrication. Using stimulus money, which we do not have, to “balance” a budget is highly unprofessional and indicative of an attitude of profound indifference to a fragile business community and struggling homeowners.
DV Board incumbents (Silverstone, Goldsack) recently sent a letter to Pike County residents promising they will provide a 0 percent increase to the taxpayers. Gee, after the election, do you think they will raise taxes to balance the “real” budget? I remember this happening when a former Board member ran for the office of Commissioner. A week after losing the election, the budget was re-opened and the taxes were increased. Interesting how history repeats itself.
Our country is in its worst shape since the Great Depression and our local educational leaders and fellow Board members are the last to understand this! Locally, The Pike County food pantry has an alarming demand. Jobs in Pike County are disappearing daily. Businesses are closing their doors. Apartments sit empty. The department of Public Welfare has never been so busy. There are no summer jobs for college students.
And it’s a time to raise taxes??
How dare my fellow Board members show such disrespect to our community! There is no way to get around this con job! Citizens deserve the truth. The real facts of the budget must be revealed and citizens must demand transparency from all Board members. Budgets must be based upon real monies, not reckless gambling behavior.
NEVER have I been so embarrassed to be a member of the DV Board. Never have I been so insulted at the disrespect shown for the taxpayers in our county. So often I hear administrators and Board members lament that parents need to learn how to say no to their children. I think the time has come when Board members need to say no to the requests of the administration and more importantly public citizens need to say no! no! no! to Board member’s shameful actions.
I do NOT support a tax increase. But I would rather present an HONEST budget showing the hidden tax increase than to present a LIE to our citizens!
Citizens, according to Pennsylvania statute you have the right to view the budget during the next 30 days. Please request to view the budget. Ask about the funds and “absence of funds” so you may see for yourself what is happening here. You have a voice about this budget. Get involved and demand better representation. Together we can make a difference.
Fellow Board members, you call this budget an example of fiscal management? What a joke!
Of the Board members present, Pam Lutfy and Sue Schor were the only two members who voted NO for this charade called a budget.
I write this letter because my reputation is more important than an election. For those Board members, not running for re-election: Where is your thinking? Would not it have been less deceiving to simply present the true facts regarding the need for this budget? Give our constituents more credit!
Most sincerely,
Pam Lutfy
Delaware Valley School Board member, 2009 candidate
Thursday, May 14
"Taxpayer United" sends out election mailer
Taxpayers United sent out a mailer to area residents about Tuesday's primary election.
Note: this mailing once again states that since the last election, Taxpayers United "added 45 co-curricular activities (after school programs)." This number is incorrect, according to co-curricular chair Sue Schor, as previously reported on RB for DV.
Note: this mailing once again states that since the last election, Taxpayers United "added 45 co-curricular activities (after school programs)." This number is incorrect, according to co-curricular chair Sue Schor, as previously reported on RB for DV.
Taxpayer United candidates chose not to answer the questions posed by the youth from "Future of Pike County" because the questions being asked were not the most compelling issues facing DV Taxpayers and students.⇒ CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL LETTER
Taxpayers' United candidates and Board Members believe that in today's economic climate, the most important issue is FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY and EDUCATIONAL EXCELLENCE.
The youth have endorsed the Fisher Ticket because they are asking for a return to fiscal responsibility. Apparently they have neglected to do their homework. In the four years that the Fisher Ticket was in the majority, Pike County was experiencing a housing boom. Every home that was built in the district brought in new revenue, millions in transfer taxes, as well as state and federal funding; yet the Fisher Ticket raised our taxes over 20%. Why? Because they were in a spending frenzy. They spent over $800,000 on grass carpet, $60 million on bonds, $90,000 on land, on which they were ready to spend an additional $500,000 for bleachers. They attempted to buy additional land (Santos Farm) for $7 million dollars, and $2.8 million dollars on the Biondo property with the intentions of building $60 million dollar school. The Fisher Ticket over-funded the Capital Reserve by hundreds of thousand of dollars, making it Christmas in July by spending the excess on "unbudgeted items".View the original document (.PDF file)
Even until today the Fisher "Tax and Spend Ticket" makes no apology for their spending frenzy and lays claim to being fiscally responsible. Fortunately, you the taxpayer voted them out of office. You replaced them with the Taxpayers United slate, giving us the majority. Therefore, an endorsement for the Fisher "Tax and Spend Ticket" is a step backwards, not forward.
Equally as important is the issue of our children's education. When the Fisher Ticket was in the majority, despite the massive spending our children's SAT scores were below the national average. This must change. If our children are going to compete in this global economy, they must be admitted to top universities and colleges. This will never happen if their SAT scores are not raised.
Taxpayers United board members are working with the teachers and administrators in revamping our curriculum from K to 12 in order to raise SAT scores within the next 2 years to the National average. Mr. Goldsack, Mr. Marasa and Ms. Wright are fully committed to this goal and will work with the current Taxpayers United members to make this a reality.
Unfortunately, the youth from "Future of Pike County" did not ask ONE question about our special needs students. While the Fisher Ticket was on their spending spree, special needs students were sorely over looked and under funded so much so that two of the children's parents had to sue the District in order to get what the federal and state government mandated all special needs children are entitled to.
Goldsack, Marasa and Wright are committed to improving our special needs program. DV's motto of "Educating for Life's Journey" MUST ALSO include our special needs children so their dreams and their parent's dreams of continuing on life's journey beyond DV may be realized.
This is our platform. We see these three issues as being the most important issues facing our taxpayers and our students.
In the last election cycle, Taxpayers United candidates promised taxpayers a zero tax increase, we kept our promise. We promised clean drinking water for the children of the Ding Del campus, we kept our promise. We added 45 co-curricular activities (after school programs). We hired armed school police for the safety of our children and teachers. ALL WITHOUT RAISING YOUR TAXES. We promise you continued fiscal responsibility, and as always we stand for "Higher Education Lower Taxes".
We respectfully ask for your vote on May 19,2009. VOTE FOR GOLDSACK, MARASA & WRIGHT.
Courier roundup: Meet the candidates
News
Opinion
- Primary candidates’ positions Inside
- Primary candidates for Delaware Valley Schools (a meet the candidates feature with ALL of the school board candidates)
- HONOR ROLL: Delaware Valley High School Third marking period
- Jazz legend Bob Dorough to perform
Opinion
- Rebuttal to TU school board attacks (a slightly revised version of my letter posted earlier)
Monday, May 11
Opinion: Pam Lutfy supports the needs of our students best
To the editor:
In response to Diane French’s letter (click here), I would remind her of the fight Pam Lutfy has waged for 12 years while sitting on the DV School board to implement new reading and math programs, especially at the middle school and high school. How convenient that Diane French does not remember this. Perhaps Ms. French’s pathetic attempt at power has caused a memory lapse.
⇒ KEEP READING
Pam Lutfy has worked to get DV to implement research based reading programs for far longer than it has been trendy under IDEA. Over the years she has attended learning disability conferences, reading conferences, special education conferences and model schools conferences bringing back her clear vision for change, mingled with her unique background in speech and language and early childhood education. She has met with legislators and education experts from all over PA and the country investigating and questioning.
Year after year administrators and other board members had turned a deaf ear to closing the reading gap at DV, so necessary for children to succeed in our modern society. Ms. French has probably just forgotten the long fought fight that Pam won to add special education teachers, reading specialists, smaller resource rooms, research based programs and a special education principal at the high school. Pam was responsible for DV’s implementation of Special Education Roundtables which allow parents to bring concerns and suggestions to administrators. Before this, parents were often shut out of the process with their special needs children.
Ms. French probably doesn’t even know of the hours Pam has spent with parents going over IEPs and counseling. She has not counted the more than 50 roundtables Pam attended or the hours and days she has spent fighting for our kids all at the expense of her own time, family, and business.
Just recently, Ms. French selected to forget that at the April 16 board meeting, Mrs. Lutfy was the ONLY board member to remind administrators of the fact that there still remains a “black hole” in the reading program at DV. She has forgotten that Pam Lutfy continues to fight for the programs that would have allowed the 142 seniors who didn’t pass the reading PSSA and the 182 who didn’t pass the math PSSA this year to graduate with a chance of succeeding in college and beyond.
I encourage all voters to cast their vote for Pam Lutfy on election day and eliminate Goldsack and Marasa who along with Diane French and the other Taxpayer United Candidates will continue to ignore the needs of our children.
Sincerely,
Mary G. Gordon
Milford, PA
In response to Diane French’s letter (click here), I would remind her of the fight Pam Lutfy has waged for 12 years while sitting on the DV School board to implement new reading and math programs, especially at the middle school and high school. How convenient that Diane French does not remember this. Perhaps Ms. French’s pathetic attempt at power has caused a memory lapse.
⇒ KEEP READING
Pam Lutfy has worked to get DV to implement research based reading programs for far longer than it has been trendy under IDEA. Over the years she has attended learning disability conferences, reading conferences, special education conferences and model schools conferences bringing back her clear vision for change, mingled with her unique background in speech and language and early childhood education. She has met with legislators and education experts from all over PA and the country investigating and questioning.
Year after year administrators and other board members had turned a deaf ear to closing the reading gap at DV, so necessary for children to succeed in our modern society. Ms. French has probably just forgotten the long fought fight that Pam won to add special education teachers, reading specialists, smaller resource rooms, research based programs and a special education principal at the high school. Pam was responsible for DV’s implementation of Special Education Roundtables which allow parents to bring concerns and suggestions to administrators. Before this, parents were often shut out of the process with their special needs children.
Ms. French probably doesn’t even know of the hours Pam has spent with parents going over IEPs and counseling. She has not counted the more than 50 roundtables Pam attended or the hours and days she has spent fighting for our kids all at the expense of her own time, family, and business.
Just recently, Ms. French selected to forget that at the April 16 board meeting, Mrs. Lutfy was the ONLY board member to remind administrators of the fact that there still remains a “black hole” in the reading program at DV. She has forgotten that Pam Lutfy continues to fight for the programs that would have allowed the 142 seniors who didn’t pass the reading PSSA and the 182 who didn’t pass the math PSSA this year to graduate with a chance of succeeding in college and beyond.
I encourage all voters to cast their vote for Pam Lutfy on election day and eliminate Goldsack and Marasa who along with Diane French and the other Taxpayer United Candidates will continue to ignore the needs of our children.
Sincerely,
Mary G. Gordon
Milford, PA
Opinion: Let's restore integrity and vision to our school board
To the editor:
On May 19 our community has the chance to restore integrity to the Delaware Valley School Board with five caring and passionate candidates: Jack Fisher, Bill Greenlaw, Pam Lutfy, Chuck Pike and Sue Schor.
⇒ KEEP READING
These five independent thinkers stand strong after months of Taxpayers United bullying.
TU's Goldsack, Marasa, Wright refused to meet with you, the taxpayers, at two Meet the Candidates events, one hosted by the hardworking volunteers in our PTAs. They refused to answer questionnaires posed by our students and by the union employees who keep our schools running. We voters haven't been worthy of any introduction from Marasa or Wright, yet they expect our votes.
All of the candidates in this election favor fiscal responsibility. Everyone feels the pain of the economic crisis.
The difference from TU is that Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike, Schor show they are much more in touch with the needs of taxpayers, students, teachers, parents – everyone in our community. They've volunteered for decades in our schools and community, with our PTAs, with special needs children, with Odyssey of the Mind, with our Warrior athletics, with the Rotary Club. They all have children attending or graduated from DV. They've been endorsed by the Future of Pike County and the DV Education Support Professionals.
Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike, Schor will keep your taxes low, but unlike TU, they will do so responsibly, with integrity, with accountability, with transparency, with careful attention to the facts, and with sensitivity to the many stakeholders the school board represents.
Instead of educating voters, TU thought it was a better use of their time to launch personal attacks on their opponents and, more sadly, on graduates from the school district they supposedly lead.
Their attacks have ashamed and hurt me. I am embarrassed at the circus TU has made of the school district I attended for 13 years.
But more importantly, their attacks have encouraged me.
They've encouraged me to major in education policy at the Maxwell School of Public Affairs. They encouraged me to intern at a New York City public school as a Participation in Government teacher this spring. The eye-opening experience of teaching in a high school where per-pupil costs exceed DV’s by thousands yet whose graduation rate is 50 percent, reinforced my position to always support educational leaders with integrity and vision.
The TU smear club has tried silencing me because I do not personally pay school taxes. They don't mention that my family proudly pays our taxes, in gratitude, to the school district that raised my brother and me. Through the tough financial times our family is also experiencing with college tuition bills and costly unexpected medical expenses, we realize the importance of good leadership for the future of Delaware Valley.
May 19 is our day to come together as a community and stop the madness. Please, let's restore virtue and vision to our school board by voting Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike, Schor.
Respectfully,
Ryan Balton
Milford, PA
On May 19 our community has the chance to restore integrity to the Delaware Valley School Board with five caring and passionate candidates: Jack Fisher, Bill Greenlaw, Pam Lutfy, Chuck Pike and Sue Schor.
⇒ KEEP READING
These five independent thinkers stand strong after months of Taxpayers United bullying.
TU's Goldsack, Marasa, Wright refused to meet with you, the taxpayers, at two Meet the Candidates events, one hosted by the hardworking volunteers in our PTAs. They refused to answer questionnaires posed by our students and by the union employees who keep our schools running. We voters haven't been worthy of any introduction from Marasa or Wright, yet they expect our votes.
All of the candidates in this election favor fiscal responsibility. Everyone feels the pain of the economic crisis.
The difference from TU is that Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike, Schor show they are much more in touch with the needs of taxpayers, students, teachers, parents – everyone in our community. They've volunteered for decades in our schools and community, with our PTAs, with special needs children, with Odyssey of the Mind, with our Warrior athletics, with the Rotary Club. They all have children attending or graduated from DV. They've been endorsed by the Future of Pike County and the DV Education Support Professionals.
Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike, Schor will keep your taxes low, but unlike TU, they will do so responsibly, with integrity, with accountability, with transparency, with careful attention to the facts, and with sensitivity to the many stakeholders the school board represents.
Instead of educating voters, TU thought it was a better use of their time to launch personal attacks on their opponents and, more sadly, on graduates from the school district they supposedly lead.
Their attacks have ashamed and hurt me. I am embarrassed at the circus TU has made of the school district I attended for 13 years.
But more importantly, their attacks have encouraged me.
They've encouraged me to major in education policy at the Maxwell School of Public Affairs. They encouraged me to intern at a New York City public school as a Participation in Government teacher this spring. The eye-opening experience of teaching in a high school where per-pupil costs exceed DV’s by thousands yet whose graduation rate is 50 percent, reinforced my position to always support educational leaders with integrity and vision.
The TU smear club has tried silencing me because I do not personally pay school taxes. They don't mention that my family proudly pays our taxes, in gratitude, to the school district that raised my brother and me. Through the tough financial times our family is also experiencing with college tuition bills and costly unexpected medical expenses, we realize the importance of good leadership for the future of Delaware Valley.
May 19 is our day to come together as a community and stop the madness. Please, let's restore virtue and vision to our school board by voting Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike, Schor.
Respectfully,
Ryan Balton
Milford, PA
Saturday, May 9
Opinion: All that glitters is not Goldsack
To the editor:
I am supporting Jack Fisher, Bill Greenlaw, Pam Lutfy, Chuck Pike and Sue Schor in the May 19 primary election for Directors of the Delaware Valley School District. These candidates, while varied in their experiences and priorities, will bring vision and transparency to a Board I’m embarrassed to sit on in this my 14th year of volunteer service.
Bob Goldsack says he and I have a “Love-Hate relationship." I told Bob that I don’t hate anyone, but I dislike many things that he does.
⇒ KEEP READING
I dislike that Bob removed me from the Negotiations Committee on the teachers' contract and then inadvertently increased starting teachers' pay by $15,000, matching what a teacher with five years of experience would earn. The Board as a whole didn’t learn of this until after the teachers' union voted to approve the proposed contract.
I dislike that Bob asked the Board to hire four school security officers at a cost of $250,000 per year, expecting that there would be Safe Schools money to offset the cost. We hired the staff – didn’t get the money.
I dislike that Bob ran for and won an election and held a position on the Pike County Republican Committee while holding the elected office of School Director, which violates the Pennsylvania School Code.
I dislike that Bob filed a petition to remove Pam Lutfy and Sue Schor from the 2009 primary ballot and then had his lawyer withdraw the petition. Noticeably Bob’s petitions had the same uncrossed T’s and un-dotted I’s as his opponents petitions.
I dislike that Bob said in a public meeting that, “It would be the happiest day of my life,” if I would resign from the Board. Imagine that, happier than the day he was married or the birth of his children.
I dislike that Bob repeatedly held meetings in violation of the Sunshine Law by either not announcing committee meetings or allowing Board business to be discussed with five or more Board members present.
I dislike that Bob told parents of students at DVES that he would not support moving the new elementary school off the campus, but would continue work on building a new school on the existing site. Then, Bob announced that Long Range Planning would not work on a plan to rebuild the school at all, due to the economy. To further offend these parents, Bob allowed the money borrowed to build the school to be spent on capital construction projects and the new water delivery system at the Dingman-Delaware campus.
I dislike that Bob boasts of the new $900,000 water delivery system as providing cleaner water at Dingmans. The water is no cleaner after the system went on-line than before. In fact, the pristine water that was delivered to the primary school now has chemicals added to it. How do the parents at the primary school like that change?
I dislike that Bob likes to take credit for bringing the NO-Bullying program to the District when the way he treats people, in my opinion, makes him the biggest bully in the county, to which Bob replied publicly, “If I have to be a bully to get what I think is right, then I guess I’ll be the bully.”
I dislike that Bob defended an outside contractor over the concerns of district employees and when the facts came into light, failed to tell the public himself the outcome.
Bob and I don’t always have to agree. It’s fine to agree to disagree. I have a right to hear what other Board members are hearing and I have a right to be heard.
I agree with Diane French’s letter to the editor, “It’s All About Character.” Bob Goldsack is a character alright. Not a character that should be re-elected.
I’d appreciate your support on May 19 for Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike and Schor.
Thank you,
Sue Casey
DV School Board director
I am supporting Jack Fisher, Bill Greenlaw, Pam Lutfy, Chuck Pike and Sue Schor in the May 19 primary election for Directors of the Delaware Valley School District. These candidates, while varied in their experiences and priorities, will bring vision and transparency to a Board I’m embarrassed to sit on in this my 14th year of volunteer service.
Bob Goldsack says he and I have a “Love-Hate relationship." I told Bob that I don’t hate anyone, but I dislike many things that he does.
⇒ KEEP READING
I dislike that Bob removed me from the Negotiations Committee on the teachers' contract and then inadvertently increased starting teachers' pay by $15,000, matching what a teacher with five years of experience would earn. The Board as a whole didn’t learn of this until after the teachers' union voted to approve the proposed contract.
I dislike that Bob asked the Board to hire four school security officers at a cost of $250,000 per year, expecting that there would be Safe Schools money to offset the cost. We hired the staff – didn’t get the money.
I dislike that Bob ran for and won an election and held a position on the Pike County Republican Committee while holding the elected office of School Director, which violates the Pennsylvania School Code.
I dislike that Bob filed a petition to remove Pam Lutfy and Sue Schor from the 2009 primary ballot and then had his lawyer withdraw the petition. Noticeably Bob’s petitions had the same uncrossed T’s and un-dotted I’s as his opponents petitions.
I dislike that Bob said in a public meeting that, “It would be the happiest day of my life,” if I would resign from the Board. Imagine that, happier than the day he was married or the birth of his children.
I dislike that Bob repeatedly held meetings in violation of the Sunshine Law by either not announcing committee meetings or allowing Board business to be discussed with five or more Board members present.
I dislike that Bob told parents of students at DVES that he would not support moving the new elementary school off the campus, but would continue work on building a new school on the existing site. Then, Bob announced that Long Range Planning would not work on a plan to rebuild the school at all, due to the economy. To further offend these parents, Bob allowed the money borrowed to build the school to be spent on capital construction projects and the new water delivery system at the Dingman-Delaware campus.
I dislike that Bob boasts of the new $900,000 water delivery system as providing cleaner water at Dingmans. The water is no cleaner after the system went on-line than before. In fact, the pristine water that was delivered to the primary school now has chemicals added to it. How do the parents at the primary school like that change?
I dislike that Bob likes to take credit for bringing the NO-Bullying program to the District when the way he treats people, in my opinion, makes him the biggest bully in the county, to which Bob replied publicly, “If I have to be a bully to get what I think is right, then I guess I’ll be the bully.”
I dislike that Bob defended an outside contractor over the concerns of district employees and when the facts came into light, failed to tell the public himself the outcome.
Bob and I don’t always have to agree. It’s fine to agree to disagree. I have a right to hear what other Board members are hearing and I have a right to be heard.
I agree with Diane French’s letter to the editor, “It’s All About Character.” Bob Goldsack is a character alright. Not a character that should be re-elected.
I’d appreciate your support on May 19 for Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike and Schor.
Thank you,
Sue Casey
DV School Board director
Tuesday, May 5
Opinion: Vote for leaders, not old school politicans
To the Editor:
Fiscal discipline is hard medicine. Fiscal discipline is unpopular. Fiscal discipline has no short cuts.
However, once fiscal discipline is exercised over a period of time it leads to financial good health, stability and lean financial muscle.
⇒ KEEP READING
Politicians seeking office and the power it brings to them have long loathed fiscal discipline. These power seekers have overspent (creating huge deficits), under invested (leading to failing infrastructure and wiping out long-term reserves) and made promises of future monies without proper funding sources in place (unfunded liabilities left to our children and grandchildren).
This lust for power is evidenced at the federal and state level. Massive new debt, trillions in new deficits. Lack of transparency and accountability.
Now the lust for power has come to the Delaware Valley School District.
DV School Board President Bob Goldsack has reduced reserve funding nearly 80 percent over his four year term. Reserves are the lean body mass needed for financial well being. Such unbalanced long term planning is seriously shortsighted. Bob Goldsack refuses to address the pension problem he helped cause when he voted to massively increase salaries. Ed Silverstone, Chairman of the Budget, Finance and Audit committee, recently commented on the "over 41 percent starting salary increase" at the Matamoras Meet the Candidates night held by my fellow Republicans. Pensions are a mathematical function of salaries. They too are a reserve. Increasing salaries increases the need for pension reserve funding increases. The pension funding issue is awaiting the next school board due to the Goldsack miscalculations and lack of understanding of the role of reserves.
The good folks who support Mr. Goldsack need to ask themselves: Why is spending overall increasing at the same time Mr. Goldsack is touting a single year level tax rate of 100.87 mils? How did the rate of the millage remain the same from the prior year, which by the way Goldsack voted against, when spending went up and student population went down? The answer is that years of fiscal discipline went into setting the rate at 100.87 mils. It did not happen by luck. Why would Mr. Goldsack vote against it in year one and then vote for it in year two?
Answer: He is an old school politician.
I ask the citizens of the DV School District to vote for "Directors" on May 19. Directors are leaders. We do not need more politicians.
Vote for leaders.
Vote for FISHER, GREENLAW, LUTFY, PIKE and SCHOR.
Best regards,
Jack Fisher
Candidate for Delaware Valley School Board
Fiscal discipline is hard medicine. Fiscal discipline is unpopular. Fiscal discipline has no short cuts.
However, once fiscal discipline is exercised over a period of time it leads to financial good health, stability and lean financial muscle.
⇒ KEEP READING
Politicians seeking office and the power it brings to them have long loathed fiscal discipline. These power seekers have overspent (creating huge deficits), under invested (leading to failing infrastructure and wiping out long-term reserves) and made promises of future monies without proper funding sources in place (unfunded liabilities left to our children and grandchildren).
This lust for power is evidenced at the federal and state level. Massive new debt, trillions in new deficits. Lack of transparency and accountability.
Now the lust for power has come to the Delaware Valley School District.
DV School Board President Bob Goldsack has reduced reserve funding nearly 80 percent over his four year term. Reserves are the lean body mass needed for financial well being. Such unbalanced long term planning is seriously shortsighted. Bob Goldsack refuses to address the pension problem he helped cause when he voted to massively increase salaries. Ed Silverstone, Chairman of the Budget, Finance and Audit committee, recently commented on the "over 41 percent starting salary increase" at the Matamoras Meet the Candidates night held by my fellow Republicans. Pensions are a mathematical function of salaries. They too are a reserve. Increasing salaries increases the need for pension reserve funding increases. The pension funding issue is awaiting the next school board due to the Goldsack miscalculations and lack of understanding of the role of reserves.
The good folks who support Mr. Goldsack need to ask themselves: Why is spending overall increasing at the same time Mr. Goldsack is touting a single year level tax rate of 100.87 mils? How did the rate of the millage remain the same from the prior year, which by the way Goldsack voted against, when spending went up and student population went down? The answer is that years of fiscal discipline went into setting the rate at 100.87 mils. It did not happen by luck. Why would Mr. Goldsack vote against it in year one and then vote for it in year two?
Answer: He is an old school politician.
I ask the citizens of the DV School District to vote for "Directors" on May 19. Directors are leaders. We do not need more politicians.
Vote for leaders.
Vote for FISHER, GREENLAW, LUTFY, PIKE and SCHOR.
Best regards,
Jack Fisher
Candidate for Delaware Valley School Board
Thursday, April 30
Friday, April 24
Opinion: Conflicts of interest in Pike election
To the editor:
In the March 1, 2007 River Reporter, an editorial, “Keeping conflicts of interest out of elections,” bemoaned “the controversy over the recently appointed director of elections in Pike County...”. Since then, Pike Democrats have warned against the corrupting conflict of interest in Mrs. Yolanda Goldsack’s presence as Director of Elections.
We predicted trouble this year with her husband, Bob Goldsack, a candidate for office. Sadly, these predictions were realized. The favoritism Mrs. Goldsack showed by accepting her husband’s flawed petition to be placed in nomination as a Democrat in the upcoming election means not only Mrs. Goldsack has violated the law by failing to adequately inspect all petitions, but also suggests she has acted the political operative instead of the neutral public servant.
It is past time for Mrs. Goldsack to be replaced. A deafening silence rings from the Pike County Board of Commissioners on this. Where does it stand on conflict of interest? Are the commissioners not fully dedicated to democracy? Could it be that Mrs. Goldsack’s continued presence is but the symptom of an underlying problem? Could the real pathogen lie in her superiors’ negligence? Her removal would go a long way to settling that concern.
At the very least, the Pike County Commissioners should require that Mrs. Goldsack recluse herself from this election cycle. In defense of the democratic process, it is time for all voters to demand that the Pike County Commissioners serve the public interest in free, fair and efficiently conducted elections by removing Mrs. Goldsack from her position. In the words of the same editorial cited above, “…when it comes to something as important as our votes, election officials ought to be, like Caesar’s wife, above suspicion.” Mrs. Goldsack is hardly above suspicion. She is tainted.
Julius Litman
Milford, PA
In the March 1, 2007 River Reporter, an editorial, “Keeping conflicts of interest out of elections,” bemoaned “the controversy over the recently appointed director of elections in Pike County...”. Since then, Pike Democrats have warned against the corrupting conflict of interest in Mrs. Yolanda Goldsack’s presence as Director of Elections.
We predicted trouble this year with her husband, Bob Goldsack, a candidate for office. Sadly, these predictions were realized. The favoritism Mrs. Goldsack showed by accepting her husband’s flawed petition to be placed in nomination as a Democrat in the upcoming election means not only Mrs. Goldsack has violated the law by failing to adequately inspect all petitions, but also suggests she has acted the political operative instead of the neutral public servant.
It is past time for Mrs. Goldsack to be replaced. A deafening silence rings from the Pike County Board of Commissioners on this. Where does it stand on conflict of interest? Are the commissioners not fully dedicated to democracy? Could it be that Mrs. Goldsack’s continued presence is but the symptom of an underlying problem? Could the real pathogen lie in her superiors’ negligence? Her removal would go a long way to settling that concern.
At the very least, the Pike County Commissioners should require that Mrs. Goldsack recluse herself from this election cycle. In defense of the democratic process, it is time for all voters to demand that the Pike County Commissioners serve the public interest in free, fair and efficiently conducted elections by removing Mrs. Goldsack from her position. In the words of the same editorial cited above, “…when it comes to something as important as our votes, election officials ought to be, like Caesar’s wife, above suspicion.” Mrs. Goldsack is hardly above suspicion. She is tainted.
Julius Litman
Milford, PA
Wednesday, April 22
Opinion: Thank you, John
In this week's Pike County Dispatch, and also on Nick Troiano's blog, is this response to board member John Kupillas' letter in last week's Dispatch.
To the Dispatch:
I thank school board director John Kupillas for his unfounded personal attack in last week’s Dispatch. Better than I could in any letter, John vividly demonstrated the win-at-all-costs strategy of the Taxpayers United political machine. Instead of responding to any of the questions or issues raised, John, like his fellow TU members, finds it most expedient to go after those who dare challenge TU’s actions and decisions.
When you have a record to run from and no platform to stand on, those become the tactics of the desperate. In this, the greater harm is not done to the handful of people trampled by TU’s shallow politics of deception and division, but to the thousands of students in our school district who have them to look up to as supposed leaders in our community.
George Washington offered the following thoughts in his Farewell Address:
”[Factions] may now and then answer popular ends, but they are likely, in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people, and to usurp for themselves the reins of government…”
Taxpayers United is such a potent engine. John Kupillas and Boss Goldsack are among those cunning, ambitious and unprincipled men. The power they subvert is yours. And the reins of government they seek to usurp are those of the school board. We must not stand for that.
James Madison suggested two ways to cure this problem of an unjust faction: by removing its causes or by controlling its effects. Luckily, on May 19, voters can do both. Vote for, and only for, those with the integrity to put the interests of our schools and community before petty politics.
Sincerely,
Nick Troiano
Delaware Valley '07
Milford, PA
Monday, April 20
"Future of Pike" endorses Fisher, Greenlaw, Lutfy, Pike, Schor
The Future of PIke County political action committee (PAC) announced its endorsements for the Delaware Valley school board race in a blog post on Saturday.
The PAC "highly recommends" Jack Fisher, Bill Greenlaw and Pam Lutfy and "recommends" Chuck Pike and Sue Schor. The Taxpayers United slate did not even respond to a survey that the PAC issued.
The PAC "highly recommends" Jack Fisher, Bill Greenlaw and Pam Lutfy and "recommends" Chuck Pike and Sue Schor. The Taxpayers United slate did not even respond to a survey that the PAC issued.
UPDATE:
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