Bee Heard

(Editor's note: Call The Bee at 632-0390 and record a one-minute comment on our Bee Heard line. It gives readers an opportunity to comment quickly and candidly on items of local or regional interest. Callers do not have to identify themselves and no callers' names will be used. In the interest of fairness and good taste, The Bee will not publish derogatory or insulting comments. All comments are by our readers and are subject to editing.

.I am one Amherst taxpayer who is growing quite weary of Assemblyman Jim Hayes' propensity toward complaining about the dysfunction of Albany, when what Assemblyman Hayes ought to be doing is finding ways to make Albany work for the Town of Amherst. The same old, same old is getting tired.

.I thought it would be beneficial to participate in the PTA meeting at Mill. What could have been a productive evening of parents and staff working together to benefit our school ended up being a gripe session about babysitting. We ask our children to follow rules and respect authority; however, parents do not. Please let our school teach our children and leave the childcare to the parents.

.Responding to the caller who was pleased with Ed Rath's primary win, your medieval wish for Mr. Rath to leap to Albany is frightening. Not only has he not won a general election, he has no record of any accomplishment. Family dynasties caused our forefathers to rebel. I pray that residents of the 15th Legislative District will not encourage a 21st century dynasty.

.Where is the Amherst Police Department when you need them, enforcing traffic signs at Wehrle and Transit? As a resident of the area,

am tired of getting sworn at. If it's high-traffic time, why aren't the police enforcing the sign so residents of the area can get into their homes, especially between 3 and 6 p.m.?

.I agree with the caller from last week who commented on the fiasco in 2005 in connection with Town of Amherst assessments. My house is an old home and was built before the days when contractors started making three or four in a row. I had a terrible time, and never did succeed, finding one that was comparable with which I could arm myself to face Mr. Williams and see about my assessment. Just because someone works for the town does not mean it's a lifetime achievement. Let's try someone new; let's try someone new in many, many different situations.

.This is just a suggestion to all commercial and residential owners to take the time to clean and clear out the storm drains in the curbs in front of their business or home. It only takes a few minutes, but it does so much to enhance your business and your home.

.Do I see shades of Joel Giambra in Supervisor Mohan's proposed town budget? Mr. Giambra inherited an adequate surplus when Dennis Gorski left office. To balance his budgets, Giambra drew on the surpluses to the point when he virtually bankrupted the county. Susan Grelick left the town with a responsible surplus. Since taking office, Supervisor Mohan has drawn on the surplus twice to balance his budgets. If we have another October surprise or some other large and unanticipated expense, where will the money come from?

.The recent news of the $11 million sexual harassment lawsuit won by the UB staffer is sickening. Many people are going to trash the legal profession even more so than before, not to mention men feeling very uncomfortable with women in the work environment. I'm sure this harassment matter could have resulted in a win-win situation for all parties involved, without being "money grubbers." In fact, I feel it's a form of stealing, although in a sophisticated fashion. This woman could have retained her job at MSG with the legal profession helping her. By this, I mean a third party or arbitrator would be the decider on this woman's competence for this position, which would be the only factor in keeping her employed or not. Lawsuits should be undertaken only when there is physical damage to a human being or property, and the settlements should just pay for the cost of the damage and not exceed well beyond that.