By DAN VALENTI

PLANET VALENTI News and Commentary

(FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THURSDAY, OCT. 9, 2014) — From our series on the suicidal doings at RSVP, THE PLANET has a few crumbs and leftovers. We’re bussing tables. Don’t get in our way. We’re kicking two butts and charging for seven:

* RSVP Should Help People Not Politicians — RSVP once was a thriving organization, providing useful services to and for Pittsfield citizens. Under mayor Dan Bianchi, however, the organization has morphed from a service agency to a political fiefdom. Saying that does not imply RSVP cannot again help  citizens. Organizing neighborhood watch programs to help people feel safer in their homes, tutoring young people, small construction and renovation projects, and more — that’s what RSVP should be about, not about carrying out the selfish goals of failed politicians.

* Her Ladyship: ‘Get Them Old Coots Outta There’ — Fact: There hasn’t been an RSVP person in city hall for two years, nearly all of Bianchi’s tenure. They used to sit in front as you made your way through the double doors off Allen Street. Word has it that Bianchi’s wife, Theresa, ordered them out. City hall sources tells us, “She didn’t like the way [they] looked, so Dan had them removed. They used to direct people that didn’t know where they were going. … I wonder how many decisions Theresa is involved in. Maybe she is the mayor, only people don’t know it.”

* Books Beaten Off, Too — And remember the RSVP book cart in city hall? It consisted of donated books sold for a dollar or two. Proceeds went to the American Cancer Society. City hall sources say the Dragon Lady ordered the book cart removed “because she didn’t like the way it looked.” We wonder if Lady McBeth likes how her husband is looking in the eyes of Mary Jane and Joe Kapanski, Little Guy and average citizens.

* Seniors are Upset, and They Vote — The Secret Squadron was at the senior center yesterday to get their views of the RSVP situation. Our report, from Agent Z-12: “Most everyone I talked to knew about [the firing of Deborah Sadowy]. They weren’t happy about it. Upset and angry, more like it. Many knew Deb and had good things to say. Caring person, good-hearted, always there for you — that sort of thing. One surprised: Many [seniors] either read THE PLANET or know about it. Guess the computer literate read it and it then becomes part of the gab.”

* Bored Board — The bottom-line malfunction of RSVP can be traced to its board, led by Carolyn Valli. A strong board with an intelligent and applied director would not have allowed the firing of Sadowy. Such a director would have thrown down the gauntlet to the mayor: “If she goes, we go.” Instead, it appears Valli wants to play the politics of appeasement rather than stand up to a bully. Think Neville Chamberlain, 1939.

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BB Does It Again: Schleps for Suits Over Phantom School ‘Savings’

The Boring Broadsheet Tuesday published a classic misdirection story yesterday on behalf of The Suits. Almost daily, it seems, The BB forsakes its role as a member of The Fourth Estate and watchdog on government to publish stories that are cotton candy, fairy dust, and giggles. We refer to the story with the headline: “$600,000 shaved from Taconic High School project.”

THE PLANET reminds everyone but taxpayers — trust us, they sorely know — that you can only “save” from resources you actually possess. If you have $100 in your pocket and buy a product on sale for $50, you’ve saved $50. When your car-repair bill comes in $100 below your mechanic’s original estimate, you did not save a dime. When you pay the bill, that’s how much you’ve spent.

Our good friend Dick Lindsey writes this:

“PITTSFIELD — Architects of a new Taconic High School have shaved nearly $600,000 off the estimated $118.6 million price tag, as the city seeks to lower its share of the project costs.

“The six-figure reduction is due to the Drumney, Rosane Anderson Inc. of Waltham downsizing the proposed building from 255,000 to 253,640 square feet, focusing on space, such as the cafeteria, that isn’t eligible for reimbursement funding, according to DRA President Carl Franceschi.

“[The SBA] takes careful look at the size of the project, because that’s how they control the cost of the project,” Franceschi told the Pittsfield School Building Commission at its Monday meeting.”

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Utter nonsense. This is not a cost savings. It’s the old scam, often practiced by chain-store jewelers: Establish an outrageously high initial price, announce big “cost savings,” and sell the piece for way more than it’s worth.

The price tag here is listed at $118.6 million. The “savings” amount to $600,000. As a percentage, that’s .oo5%. In other words, 99.995% of the cost is intact. Moreover, when all is said and done on this unnecessary spending spree, the odds are extremely high for cost overruns. The original $130 million price tag would seem closer.

Of course, you know and we know that the sane solution to Pittsfield dwindling public school system is one high school that contains both academic and vocational (technical) programs. The one-campus solution saves taxpayers money, consolidates resources, and meets the academic needs of young people more efficiently. In any sane community (Needles, Calif., or Syracuse, N.Y., for example), these would be reasons for the community to come together and embrace change. In Pittsfield, these benefits make The Suits nervous. Follow the money.

In addition to the $130 million+ school, taxpayers:

— Face a steep tax hike when the FY15 tax rate is set;

— Have to cough up half a million bucks for the fraudulent move of city hall offices to 100 North St.

— Pay the enormous salary hike — to 40% — for city managers, department heads, and exempts.

— Pay a $28,000 raise to the mayor.

— Fund creation of six new positions on the city payroll once school committee members board the gravy train. That will put another $4,000 in the mayor’s pocket.

— Fund $500,000 in parking changes.

— Pay for nearly $5 million in capital projects ordered by the mayor

All the while this is happening, The Boring Broadsheet feeds We The People a muck-raking Ruth Bass column titled, “October is more than witches,” and John Seven, having lost count apparently, with the astounding insight that “cellphones and driving are a foolish mix.”

At least Nero fiddled while Rome burned. These yokels are stuffing your head with insulation as the mayor, council, and school committee bankrupt our once-great little city.

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“Look at me, I’m as helpless as a kitten up a tree, and I feel like I’m clinging to a cloud. I can’t understand. I get misty, just holding your hand.” — Ella Fitzgerald, “Misty,” (1954).

“OPEN THE WINDOW, AUNT MILLIE.”

“LOVE TO ALL.”