BY DAN VALENTI

February 25, 2026

Re: Pittsfield is sNOw fair….

Hello blogger Dan Valenti,

Predictable Pittsfield politics’ municipal budgets have looked the same going back decades, which is a FACT that was recently stated by Mayor Peter Marchetti.

The overtaxed, mostly financially constrained local taxpayers are NOT quantitative variables in the city’s financial formulas (cooked books). Instead, this inequitable municipality plays financial shell games with the state bureaucrats in Boston to receive as much money in state administered, federal aid funds as possible, which is in the tens of million of dollars per fiscal year. These funds have been recently cut by many billions of dollars by the Swamp in 2026 and several years beyond this year, which will result in many millions of dollars in lost state administered, federal aid funds to Pittsfield in the years of 2026, 2027, and 2028.

The problem with Pittsfield’s financial management going back decades is that the city government excessively over-taxes local residents by tens of millions of dollars per fiscal year, but then city officials use the excess funds to build secretive Slush Funds that critics call “Pay to Play” Pittsfield politics; it is blatant CORRUPTION by a one political (Democratic) party system of government.

The well-off, politically-connected special interests donate big money to the state and local career politicians, and in return, they receive a majority of the financial benefits, while the fictional Kapanski’s always get screwed over by the very elected officials who swore an oath of office to represent them in the government (and when one paste wings on pigs, then they are able to fly up in the air).

Pittsfield (Massachusetts) is my native hometown. My great-great grandparents were married in Pittsfield way back in 1888. I come from five generations of the Melle (Piedmont Italy) family from Pittsfield, and I relocated to a nearby border state after my parents retired and moved to Southern NH over 22 years ago.

I have a Master of Public Administration degree from U Mass Amherst (1999). I studied and long followed finance and economics in Massachusetts state and local government. On an academic level, I understand many public policies that goes over most people’s heads because many people are financial illiterate, fear the career politicians’ uses of retribution, and know that there is nobody who represents them in the government.

I have studied Pittsfield politics for around the past 3 decades of my life of 50.5 years.

Pittsfield politics practices RETRIBUTION. To illustrate, when “Jon Melle” spoke out against the corruption that I became aware of in state and local government in Massachusetts many years ago, the result was “Jon Melle” being chronically unemployed as a then young man in Pittsfield. If I – Jon Melle – was not a disabled Veteran, I would be impoverished like so many of Pittsfield’s underclass residents. My PRETEND homeless sidewalk is on the corner of First Street and Fenn Street in Pittsfield, Mass. (that way I could give the middle finger to all of the political insiders).

Pittsfield is a very unusual, postindustrial, small city with a distressed local economy and severe economic inequality. It is blatantly corrupt and run by political insiders who practice retribution.

The excessive city spending in Pittsfield is used to reward the well-off special interests who “Pay to Play” with the insider, career politicians who refuse to speak with the best journalist and blogger in Berkshire County, Dan Valenti, who is the voice of the little guy.

To illustrate, Pittsfield spends over $62 million per fiscal year 2026 more than its peer small city, Westfield, which is also located in Western Mass.

There is NO WAY to WIN in Pittsfield politics unless one “PAYS to PLAY”, which leaves out around 99-percent of the local population, especially the fictional Kapanski family. I am glad that I moved 100 miles away from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, close to 22 years ago. It is like a recurring nightmare that many local residents are never able wake up from.

Best wishes,

Jon Melle

Our city leaders are a joke. last night they voted no to a Berkshire gas hike and worded also to “sharply reduce” costs. lol. Im sure they will do that because of that harsh wording. they also said how people in Pittsfield can’t afford the $52 extra a month. agreed, not after the tax increases that the city has handed us for the last ten years while being so short handed at the police department that they have simply given up on enforcing traffic rules. why? simply not enough officers. why? waste! new schools built and they still suck, new roads paved and they are dug up the next year! I am so sick of this town and the idiots running it while taking selfies eating food or holding big scissors and cutting ribbons to projects that the fortunate few private players who receive public money to enrich themselves finish on our dime. this is a downward spiral that I have witnessed for many many years. Talk to anyone, If they could leave they would, but family holds us here and we put up with this bullshit. it’s just pathetic. schools have 50 year old playgrounds while the school budget eats up 60% of the taxes. WTAF!!

“Pittsfield Mayor Peter Marchetti, City Council oppose Berkshire Gas rate increase”
By Tara Monastesse, The Berkshire Eagle, February 25, 2026
[Pay-wall]

*Sarcasm: “Pittsfield’s taxpayers oppose Mayor Peter Marchetti, City Council’s spending rate increases”

IF someone can remove that damn car stuck past Dorchester on Elm Street that would be great. How many more times do we all need to complain? It literally blocks the view turning onto Elm and it’s a dangerous intersection at this point