8
OPINION
Comment at www.fauquier.com
Like us at facebook.com/fauquiertimes
Email at yourview@fauquier.com
Follow us on Twitter @fauquiertimes
WWW.FAUQUIER.COM
Fauquier Times | March 4, 2020
PUBLISHER’S STATEMENT Members of the Woodzell/ Garrett clan were photographed in 1932 in Warrenton. From left, Harry M. Woodzell (b. 1890), Henry A. Garrett (b. 1875); his son C. Irvin Garrett (b. 1905) who was married to the former Virginia Woodzell; and their son, Charles I. Garrett (b. 1929).
FAUQUIER FLASHBACKS FROM THE FAUQUIER TIMES 75 Years Ago March 8, 1945 1st Lt. Ralph A. Wines, Army Air Forces pilot, has been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross after completing more than 500 hours of operational flight in transport aircraft over the dangerous and difficult India-to-China air route, where enemy interception and attack was probable and expected. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Wines of Warrenton. J. W. “Pete” Shirley, 88, a town and county officer for more than 60 years, died March 3 at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Blanche Maxheimer. Mr. Shirley retired in September as county jailor, a position he held since 1914. Col. Everett A. Helmuth and the staff of the 11th Battalion, Virginia State Guard, will be at Middleburg on March 8 to inspect the Warrenton Rifles, Co. 111, Capt. L. R. Bartenstein announces. 50 Years Ago March 5, 1970 A joint hearing with the Supervisors has been scheduled by the Planning Commission for March 23 on the John A. Cooper Co. request to rezone 4,681 acres at North Wales for a 2,340-home planned community. The Cooper Co. made its first rezoning application for the development of North Wales, the former estate of Walter P. Chrysler Jr., early in 1968. In December 1969, Supervisors rejected the company’s cluster plan for 7,300 dwelling units by a 3-2 vote. Sgt. Lewis Allison, son of Mr. and Mrs. Embrey Allison of
Letters to the Editor
The Fauquier Times welcomes letters to the editor from its readers as a forum for discussion of local public affairs subjects.
WRITE: Letters to the Editor 41 Culpeper Street Warrenton, VA 20188 FAX: Editor 540-349-8676 EMAIL: news@fauquier.com
Marshall, has been presented with his second Bronze Star medal in Vietnam, where he is serving with the 22nd Infantry (Mechanized). The Mid-Fauquier Association, organized two years ago primarily to oppose the intense development of the North Wales estate as a planned community, has come out in favor of “a significant increase in the pay of public school teachers,” according to Ralph David Blakeslee, chairman of the Association’s education committee. Dr. Wade Stinson is president of the Association. 25 Years Ago March 8, 1995 Recently the Highland School board of Trustees awarded a general contracting services contract to Scott Long Construction Inc. for new additions and renovations to its lower school facility. Jack Hazel, chairman of the board of trustees, said renovations will begin on the building’s exterior as soon as construction permits for the $1.8 million project are approved. The 25,000-seat Cellar Door Pavilion, located on Wellington Road in Gainesville, will open in mid-May. Cellar Door president David Williams declined to release the names of coming attractions. Sounding what will surely be a familiar theme to his re-election campaign, Del. Jay Katzen (R-31st) lashed out at Democratic legislators Monday for what he called a cynical and undemocratic scuttling of the Republican agenda of tax cuts and term limits. – Compiled by John T. Toler
Letters must be signed by the writer. Messages sent via email must say “Letter to the Editor” to distinguish them from other messages not meant for publication. Include address and phone for verification (Not to be published.) Letters are subject to editing for clarity and length. Personal attacks will not be published. Long letters from those with special authority on a current issue may be treated as a guest column (with photo requested). Due to volume, letters cannot be acknowledged. All letters are appreciated. Letters must be received by 5 p.m. Monday to be considered for Wednesday publication.
Fauquier Times to be delivered with your mail Starting Wednesday, March 11, your Fauquier Times newspaper will be delivered with your daily mail. For some folks, this means you’ll receive your paper a little earlier on Wednesday, for some, a little later. The method of delivery is changing, but the paper remains your best source of local community news. Using the U.S. Postal Service to deliver the Fauquier Times is an innovative initiative that should reduce our delivery costs, while having minimal impact on our readers. Our goal is to make sure all our subscribers receive their paper on Wednesday as usual, but as with any major
change, we expect there will be some disruptions as we roll out the new delivery system. Delivery will still depend on people to make sure you receive your paper, and it may take a week or two to iron out any inconsistencies. We will work to correct these as quickly as possible. If you do experience any delay or do not receive your paper, please email frontdeskteam@fauquier.com. Include your name, address, and the problem you would like to see addressed. We appreciate your support of the Fauquier Times and your patience as we roll out the new delivery system. CATHERINE NELSON Publisher
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
An expensive reality we just can’t deny “That’s the problem with denial. Reality doesn’t care what you think. It just keeps rolling along.” – Lee Childs, “Past Tense.” We can’t get much more of a reality check than a presidential budget proposal. There is no denying that Donald Trump’s 2021 budget is heavy on defense spending – remember that border wall that Mexico was going to pay for? Reality: The proposed budget allocates $7.2 billion of taxpayer money (yours and mine) for the wall, for a grand total of $18.2 billion, so far. The U.S. already spends more on defense than any other country in the world. In fact, the U.S. spent over $649 billion in 2018, which is more than the next seven countries (China, Saudi Arabia, India, France, Russia, United Kingdom and Germany) combined at $609 billion. We can deny that money for in-
creased defense spending will come from our pockets, but now that the Republicans have cut taxes for the wealthy and corporations, for a total of $37 billion less revenue in 2019, who else will foot the bill? Reality: Trump’s budget proposes cuts on domestic spending to pay for increases in the already fat defense budget. The budget includes cuts for Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid, affordable housing, education and environmental protection. What we can’t deny is that we – if we aren’t millionaires -- will all feel the pinch as will our children and grandchildren. Reality: Denial of this administration’s actions and priorities won’t change the way they will spend your hard-earned money. Only voting for and electing officials who care about you, your family and those who are most vulnerable, will affect change.
KATHRYN KADILAK The Plains
School advocate suggests raising teacher salaries is good investment in our children For several years Fauquier County has discussed the poor state of teacher salaries and its impact on teachers and teacher retention. Few people are opposed to teachers earning more money, except when I start talking about where that money will come from. The most direct route is through an increase in local funding, in other words, taxes. Dr. [David] Jeck’s proposed budget noted that getting teachers to 100% of market value for their salary would cost $5.2 million. That seems like an extraordinary amount of money, but if we break it down, it
seems less onerous. According to the census bureau, there are 24,333 households in the county. If each household contributed $5 a week or $260 a year, we would be able to close this gap. That’s less than one large Starbucks a week. As a community, are we willing to sacrifice a little so those who need it can get what they deserve? This is the pact we make to provide public services funded with tax dollars. We are saying we will share our earnings so that the comSee TEACHERS, page 9
