The Dryden Courier's editorial this week reverses a policy it had set after the last round of local elections, when it decided "to no longer print letters supporting local candidates." They've changed their minds because:
Local elections hit closer to home than any state or national contest. While bureaucrats on Capitol Hill argue over policies that will never have an affect on our small communities, the local elections can affect decisions like local taxes, what kinds of improvements are needed on our streets, etc.
While I suspect that Capitol Hill has more local impact than this editorial acknowledges, I like their general point: local politics matter in very direct ways. There's a level of concreteness in dealing with a smaller area and a smaller group of people that you just can't get at the federal or even the state level of government.
They've also posted rules for these letters, which I'll list here for future reference:
The Finger Lakes Community Newspapers will print letters to the editor on any topic of interest to our readers. Letters must be signed and include a phone number for verification. Any letters that do not include a signature or a phone number will not be printed. Letters should not exceed 500 words. The editors reserve the right to edit any letters that exceed the limit. Letters that can be considered a personal attack will not be printed.
They'll accept letters about Village of Dryden elections through Friday, March 5th.
In the news, the Courier looks at two Dryden schools stories, with a profile of Cassavant Elementary School crossing guard (and all-around hard worker) Marge Albern and a story on student representation at the Dryden School Board, where Amanda Christofferson and Ryan Mott are liaisons. Mott is profiled this week, and Christofferson will be profiled next week.
TC3 has a new writing certificate program, and there's an announcement of a session called "Does Higher Income Per Cow Interest You? If So, Let's Talk Grazing!" The session, which will focus on improving milk production from cows by having them graze. Some of the research that will be presented is from Dryden. The meeting will be held from 10:30am to 2:30pm on February 23rd at the Dryden Fire Hall (map), with a $3 charge for soup and salad.
There's also a piece on the Tompkins County Legislature Public Safety Committee unanimously endorsing a resolution calling on New York State to abolish the death penalty. Dryden legislators Martha Robertson and George Totman were among those voting for the resolution.
In sports, there's coverage of Dryden boys wrestling, including a picture of Dryden wrestler Anthony Jerome, and both a picture of the boys swim team and coverage of their preparation for the IAC Championships this weekend.
Posted by simon at February 13, 2005 1:56 PM in Dryden Courier , politics (local) , politics (state) , schools (Dryden)