Can't afford increase
Mayor Manzi: an 8 percent raise on water rates? My salary did not increase by 8 percent this year. However, my medical expenses have increased close to that. Food has gone up about 6 percent. Gas has gone up, God only knows how much, but more than I can afford. Taxes are increasing on everything. Everything, Mayor Manzi, including cars, whatever. We haven't got our Massachusetts tax reduction yet. Although we were supposed to go down to 5 percent, but those wonderful minds in Boston have changed their thinking. Mayor Manzi, we cannot afford another 8 percent raise on anything. If you look around at some of the apartment dwellings, they're running water on a regular basis, even when it's raining out. Let them shut the water off. I don't care if their grass is green or not. Mayor Manzi, please have some consideration for the taxpayer. The city of Methuen has been playing games with their water rates for over a year now and they can't seem to get it right. Leave the water bills alone.
Bird abuse
I was very dismayed with your picture of a little boy holding feathers from a bird. He had obviously pulled these feathers from geese and it was a cool act and that he had chased them. I thought it was terrible of you people to put this picture in the newspaper, as if you were encouraging this type of behavior. That is really sick and brutal to poor, innocent animals. Any adult who was with him should have intervened in this situation and instructed the boy that this was very bad behavior.
What change?
I'm sounding off about the candidates talking about change. They've all said that change is key, but none of them has talked about what they're going to change, how they're going to change it, and what effect their changes are going to have on the citizens of the United States.
Stop crying
I am so sick of all these people crying about the "predatory" lenders. If you can't understand a contract, and don't get help so you do understand, then you have no business taking out a loan. I'm watching my property value drop weekly, because of greedy buyers who were buying houses that they couldn't afford, in some cases taking out second and third mortgages on the equity, going on trips, buying luxury items, and when the balloon burst, now are the " victims." And it hasn't stopped — they are still loaning to the same group of unqualified people. They just have new scams — down payment assistance programs through "charitable" organizations, seller concessions such as paying points, closing costs, and "betterment" concessions on the property, just so they can qualify. And they still are putting little or no money down. The real victims are the taxpayers because ultimately it's our money that's being used to bail them out.
Not waiting
Since I heard that the Massachusetts legislators are doing away with the sales tax holiday, I'm off to New Hampshire to buy my new TV. Thanks. Now I don't have to wait another month.
Losing money
Ha, ha, Massachusetts. You're a bunch of fools. You're just losing money from cigarettes to New Hampshire. Let's just give New Hampshire all the money.
Pay the help
Regarding the restaurant manager upset about people who don't tip their delivery drivers: That's typical. They don't pay their help enough. They expect to make all the money on the food and have the customers pay their help. Why don't they just pay their help a little more money Then they wouldn't have to worry about tips as much.
Spin and lies
We always hear about how we should be an informed electorate and informed consumers. It's hard to do that when everyone spins and lies.
