By DAN VALENTI 

PLANET VALENTI News and Commentary

(FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 2015) — The Skunks are at it again. You know who they are. They go by various names such as The Suits, The Special Interests, and The GOB. They, not you, own the government, and they are running it into the ground.

The school superintendent in Pittsfield also has several manes. Jason “Jake” “JIV’ “Man Up” McCandless, head of a department that at $100+ million eats up 71% of the current Pittsfield budget, wants more. His allies on the Pittsfield School Committee want more. Mayor Dan Bumstead wants more. Council president Melissa Mazzeo and the majority of her brood will want more.

More what? More of your dollars, of course.

How do they intend to get them? By saying they’re “cutting,” of course.

Crying Poor, Again

With Bumstead and this swindling administration, when you “cut” you end up getting more money. Such is the way with politicians at all levels, of all persuasions, as it is with all Del Gallo, Wojtkowski, liberal, conservative, welfare state, laissez-faire, take care of the Big Shots, Democrat Republican budgets. No matter what The Suits say or what political philosophy they claim, they are the face of government run amok. They are grounding you into the dirt.

In Pittsfield, The Little Guy has no chance. The Little Guy, too, has many names: Mary Jane and Joe Kapanski, We The People, Joe Sixpack, and others. Short of an overthrow of local government and a thorough house cleaning, none of them will ever be heard.

Coming Soon: The Usual B.S. With the Budget

Soon, the annual clown show know as the Pittsfield FY16 Budget hits the theaters. Departments, especially the school department, will wail tears and sing sad songs about how taxpayers aren’t carrying their share of the load. The taxpayers are gypping the schools, they will say. They will storm council chambers with The Children in tow, and  you will again lose.

The script when they speak looks like this:

SCHOOL DEPT. TO JOE & MARY JANE: We are losing students. We can’t afford to buy vocational equipment. We’re going to cut positions. We want a new school. You must pay $120 million, $150 million, $200 million — whatever the final number will be. You will have no vote. You will just pay for it.

PLANET‘s Commentator Nails It

Here is a marvlous take THE PLANET received yesterday, from one of the Good Joes:

Waiting for the elections seems like a long time, but it will come. Meanwhile, perhaps what the school committee and the city council need, to say nothing of Bumstead, is the kind of disruption and “take over” tactics that have the mayor and Mazzeo seeking to crush free speech.

Procedure is liquor, but havoc is quicker.

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Mayor Says ‘I Felt Cheated’ — Pittsfield Citizens Know the Feeling

Pittsfield’s mayor COOTCO (the Current Occupant Of The Corner Office) has told some whoppers, but he has topped himself. This guy’s got a lot of names, too: The Empty Suit, TES, Bumstead, etc. Check this one out.

That was TES in announcing he would seek re-election.

He “felt a little bit cheated.”

Trust us Mayor Bonehead, Mary Jane and Joe know they feeling. For them, though, it’s not “a little bit cheated.” It’s The Whole Enchilada. Also, TES, we guarantee you won’t feel cheated this time. Enter Linda Tyer. Enter Craig Gaetani. Enter those to come.

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 TH$ Building Project: Co$t Unknown

For the most current, updated information on items of public significance, people don’t rely on books, magazine, or newspapers. They go the ‘net. Last night, our Right Honorable Good Friends on the city council took on the Voodoo Spreadsheets to the Taconic High School construction proposal. As you likely know, THE PLANET took this data apart last week, so if you want the truth, go there.

What does the School Building Needs Commission have on its website? We went there for the most recent information, especially concerning cost. Take a look:

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“The School Building Needs Commission is a group of 21 individuals who represent varying stakeholders within our community. Both the Mayor and Superintendent share responsibilities in appointing members as outlined by city order. In addition, the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) has expectations for the composition and expertise of members.”

THE PLANET shall, for the moment, put aside the meaning of the word “expertise.” The SBNC current page continues:

“Often, people want to know what a construction project will cost. At this point, we have not advanced far enough into the process to determine the exact construction costs. Thus, the cost to the City of Pittsfield and taxpayers is not available. As options are developed in Phase 3, and a preferred design with construction costs is determined, these figures will be provided. It should be noted that Pittsfield has been certified for 78.3% reimbursement by the MSBA. We are hopeful that, with several incentives, we will reach the 80% reimbursement cap.”

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Point 2: And what are we to make of this: “It should be noted that Pittsfield has been certified for 78.3% reimbursement by the MSBA. We are hopeful that, with several incentives, we will reach the 80% reimbursement cap.”

The SBNC obviously does not care that it has such old and outdated information, which at this point is also false. That statement, standing today, is a lie. The reimbursement rate is absolutely not a “certified” 78.3% let alone 80%. It is now a little more than 60%. Funny how they don’t want the lower number on the website.

As mayoral candidate Gaetani said today in a press release, “The city of Pittsfield is absolutely in no position to go forward with the council vote [on the construction] on April 14.”

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“I really got to use my imagination to think of good reasons to keep on keep on.” — Gladys Knight and The Pips, “I’ve Got to Use My Imagination,” (1974).

“OPEN THE WINDOW, AUNT MILLIE.”

LOVE TO ALL.