The Ithaca Journal reports this morning that Jason Kelly was sentenced to 90 days in jail and five years probation for a DWI last June that cost the lives of two friends riding in the car.
Dryden Town Talk reports that the Dryden Grange honored Bob and Sue Cardwell "in recognition of their dedication to the Dryden community," and also honored the Dryden Hobby Club, founded in 1943. If you're hungry for chicken barbecue, you can find it on Friday from 4:00pm to 7:00pm at the Dryden VFW, as a fundraiser for the Student All-Night Extravaganza (SANE). There will also be a chicken barbecue on Saturday at noon at the Dryden Assemblies of God church (map) to raise funds for artist Tom Gordon to go to Denver for the national competition of the Fine Arts Festival of the Assemblies of God churches.
Groton Town Talk reports that there will also be a barbecue in McLean on Saturday, starting at 11:00am at the McLean Fire Station, but the Fireman's Field Days will not happen this year.
At the county level, the legislature is considering a 3% tax levy hike cap again, after trying last year and getting derailed by capital projects. There's also discussion of a proposed ban on burning plastics.
At the state level, it looks like the decision of which voting machines to use may come down to the county level. I have to say I'm mystified that they'd do this, after decades of having the state on a single system. Hopefully we'll get through without too much chaos, but this seems like it has potential to create massive confusion, especially in statewide races or even in close Assembly, Senate, and Congressional races.
In letters, Leslie Cleland of Dryden writes to encourage voters to support both the Dryden school budget and the incumbent candidates, while Tompkins County Democratic Committee Chairwoman Irene Stein writes to question the Journal's policy of not publicizing political events while it runs editorials calling for more participation in politics. In an editor's note, the Journal replies:
The Journal's policy on including political announcements in our free Briefly in Tompkins community news section is simple: The event must be free and open to the public, or otherwise newsworthy. Announcements of political fund raisers, one-party solicitations for candidates or other internal party communications are not included in that free community space. The policy is applied to all political parties.
I'd have thought political gatherings would qualifying under "otherwise newsworthy," but apparently the Journal wants its candidates to grow like mushrooms: in the dark.
If you have a Dryden event, political or otherwise, I'll be happy to publicize it here.
Posted by simon at May 11, 2005 8:08 AM in Freeville , Ithaca Journal , McLean , crime , politics (local) , politics (state) , schools (Dryden)