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To the Editor:
ELON Musk says he is too busy to devote any time to the problems in Franklin, Massa-Taxachusetts.
It appears that the town administrators failed to live within their budgets, for favoritism reasons, and forgot second grade mathematics where two dollars plus two equals four, not Five dollars. Simply their failure shows a $6.8 million deficit, reduced by the rainy day fund, now at $3.8 million indicates the administrator obligation to “due diligence”. So after failing at their well paid jobs, the taxpayer is asked to bail them out with a permanent override beyond the 2.5 percent.
Massachusetts Governor and U.S. President Calvin Coolidge in 1925 said, “The men and women of this country who toil are the ones who bear the cost of the government. Every dollar that we carelessly waste, means that their life is so much the more meager. Every dollar we prudently save means that their life will be so much more abundant. Economy is idealism in its most practical form.” The requested Franklin Override is larceny without a gun.
To expose this corruption, I placed 24 poster signs on approved lawns; four signs were removed by property owners whose relatives objected to the wording, “Not for the children, FLUNKING managers”. But twenty of these disappeared into the night. This proves the bias of the YES groups who dislike First Amendment criticism.
Then the Franklin Neighborhood Alliance issued a simpler 250 poster sign with a simpler message; Vote NO. Now I personally have lost three of these posters. I assume that opposition political messages are not acceptable in Franklin.
The culture to spend, spend, spend continues even when there is a cry for override. Every Town Councilor voted in favor of the $30,000 Special June 3 Election. Since the previous override vote failed, they held six informational meetings for the voters to pass this $3.8 million budget shortfall. Any opposition brought backroom implied threats of doom if voters denied the request. The Senior Center would be cut of its exercise programs and the lunchroom, not to mention Sunshine Club, ad infinitum. Teachers would be laid off. DPW would not be able to mow the lawns or fill the winter road potholes. And there would be no new first responders. And even garbage pickup would be reduced.
And how do we address the out- of- towners who want to change Franklin without enough water into another Cambridge, Natick, Southborough? They silently approve the multilevel buildings where rent starts at over $2000 per month.
There was no mention of the Police Complex coming in a few years. Will that need another Override?
Elon Musk of DOGE would shake his chainsaw and vote NO. It’s not for the children.
Jay Kruza,
independent voter
