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attending to plead with the Supervisors to approve their particular budget requests. I sat there all morning listening to these people make their pitch for more public hinds. Immediately after each individual or group had made its presentation, these people left the courthouse, their particular interest in the county’s public affairs and the rest of the budget proposal being taken care of for the day.
12 noon arrived and only the county’s public servants had spoken; no one else, up to that time, had been invited or permitted to speak. Certainly no taxpayer who was going to pay for all of it. At noon I got disgusted and came home to get some work done. What happened afterward at the meeting I only know through the Rappahannock News. As a taxpayer, I came prepared with some input to offer the Supervisors and I assure you that it was not supportive of your current “tax and spend” philosophy.
When the public is invited to present its views at a budget hearing, the Supervisors should give their constituents priority at that meeting; most of us have other things to do at home, even when we are retired, and value our time also. The Supervisors should hold a separate session for the County agencies and departments to require them to justify their spending proposals. The taxpayers already know what they are asking for and will probably be content to read about the spenders’ session in your newspaper.
One of the Supervisors is quoted by your paper as saying during the afternoon of June 2, “I’m not one to believe a whole lot in petitions...” I should like to remind that Supervisor, and all others, that the constitution of the U.S. does believe a whole lot in petitions and suggest that all of them take a moment to re-read Article I, the First of our National Bill of Rights, to clear away any confusion which might exist in their minds regarding petitions and public input by taxpayers and citizens of this County and this Country.
ROBERT W. EASTHAM
Flint Hill
Molten lava gives up its heat so slowly that the bottom layer of a lava pond 300 feet deep may .take 300 years to cool completely, says National Geographic.
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