People have nowhere to turn
Politics is not an area I would consider my expertise but I want to learn more about it. I was mainly concerned with local politics because it seems that the local politicians are the ones that affect me the most. Sometimes it feels like Washington is so far away. It seems like it is a different country and that they’re worried more about “big city politics.” So I was interested in state and local politics more. I became more interested in this area because of some recent events. My son is a schoolteacher and has been greatly affected by some new educational laws that I really did not understand at the time. He explained that it was a federal mandate but it was up to the states to define how each individual state interpret the law. It seems that Pennsylvania interpreted the law in a way to put both financial and mental stress on teachers, especially special education teachers.
The other main reason that spiked my interest was the legislative pay raise. I felt like every other Pennsylvanian that it was unfair and that it was something that has done without the taxpayers’ best interest in mind. So I decided to take some time and do some research.
When I went to delve into these areas, I got very confused. I do not consider myself a rocket scientist, but I am well educated and I consider my family to be well educated. But I could not make heads or tails of anything. I then had what my wife called a “revelation.”
When someone in this area has a problem or has a question about policy or laws there is no one to turn to. There are no political figures that make themselves easily accessible to people of this county. There is no one around to answer my son’s questions about these new education laws and there is no one to tell me why there was a pay raise.
I know many elderly people that have nowhere to turn when they have a question about these complicated new health care laws. Who are they going to turn to? Lawyers that cost $100 an hour? What do they want us to do? Call the 1-800 number in Harrisburg. I tried that once. I had to wait on hold for 30 minutes and got nowhere.
I want someone here. Someone with an open-door policy, someone who will listen to the people of this area. I started out writing this letter because I am frustrated. I am frustrated at the way political figures treat the people of this county. I am frustrated that if a person has a problem there is nowhere to turn.
Most of you probably think this letter is a plug. It is not a plug; it is an “unplug.” I feel that there are current Democratic politicians who are running for different offices who do not deserve to be there. If they cannot listen to the people while sitting in the middle of town why would they listen to the people while sitting four hours away in Harrisburg?
T.D. Michael
McClellandtown