`anne Frank' Revival Falls Flat Emotionally

After Holiday, Shoppers Rush Home With Leftovers

Sunday, December 28, 1997 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 16A 





SAYSO &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Let me relate to all of your callers and readers the story of but one
familyIt's a family where the father was Catholic and the mother was
Protestant. Everything seemed to be beautiful until such a time as when the
family was informed that the Catholic children and the husband could be buried
in a Catholic cemetery but the mother could not because the Catholic cemetery
was consecrated, and she was considered an outsider. After a powwow with the
family, 17 members of that family suddenly turned Protestant for the sole
reason they could not tolerate seeing a mother and father divided by some
silly belief. How do I know it's true? It's my family. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; It seems hardly a week passes that there isn't some kind of controversy or
shady deal coming out of the situation of the arena and getting the bills
passed and so forth. Kevin Blaum always shrugs off everything in a sense and
says "so what?" I'm not surprised at the shady deals. I'm not surprised that
even those on the arena board go along with him. What I am surprised at is
that Kevin Blaum has compromised his credibility in so many ways he's
practically useless to the general public. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Thank you, Times Leader, for your wonderful Christmas gift. Specifically, I
am referring to your Christmas edition, page 3A, lower right corner, "No
Corbett." I wish every day was Christmas. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In reply to the SAYSO article concerning Nanticoke's paid fire truck
drivers and for that matter, the fire truck drivers of any community that are
paid. Yes, the drivers may go to the fire and may even arrive there first. But
once there, they have to wait for the volunteers to arrive to fight the fire.
So much for the driver's response time. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Could you find out which of the brain surgeons at the ABC network decided
that the Christmas presentation of "To Kill A Mockingbird" should carry a
TV-14 rating warning? I'm certainly confused. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 This is just a thought from a mighty taxpayer. As enticing as it may sound
to pelt the teachers with snowballs, I realize it would only bring temporary
satisfaction. Besides, I don't get out of work when it snows. However, I do
have a few suggestions. Let's line up the teachers on Fridays and swap
paychecks for a year. After they work Monday through Friday, on holidays,
regardless of weather, every week of the year, and they try to pay the
mortgage taxes, etc., with my paycheck, they will know firsthand why we, the
mighty taxpayers, cop an attitude against the teachers. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Former Mayor Tom McLaughlin was a very nice man, a very likable person, but
come on now, he's been out of office for 10 years. Is shutting down the entire
city for a complete afternoon a rational move, or a rational thing to do? Is
there any way you can find out how much this cost the city to do this? A man
of his stature could be honored in a variety of ways, but for a city having
financial difficulties, it would make me wonder. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Editor's note: SAYSO received several calls raising the same questions,
including one question about the cost of a full-page advertisement the city
ran about McLaughlin's death. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Shannon McNulty, spokeswoman for Mayor Tom McGroarty, said city Hall
employees were paid for a full day. Not all of them took advantage of the time
off, she said. She could not estimate the cost. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The city reached an agreement with three unions to avoid paying their
overtime, she said. A clause in union contracts says emergency workers, who
were not given time off, receive overtime pay for working any time City Hall
is closed. Union leaders agreed to waive the overtime pay, McNulty said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In a written statement, Mayor Tom McGroarty said, "I'm sorry that this
anonymous caller does not think it was appropriate to pay tribute to Mayor
McLaughlin's memory. I thank the leadership of the Police Benevolent
Association, the Firefighters Local 104 and the Teamsters Local 401 for their
support of this tribute. With their cooperation, we as a city were able to
give our former mayor the recognition he deserved and the people who served
with him were able to pay their respects and offer condolences to his family.
Essential city services were not interrupted. ..." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The cost of the ad could not be determined. The Times Leader's ad
department keeps information about advertising costs between the client and
the department, and city officials with whom we spoke did not know the cost.
The cost will eventually become public record. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Can you tell me why the man who got away with molesting his daughter 10
years ago has two Social Security numbers and can get his daughter by court
order for every major holiday and the mother gets nothing under supervision. I
don't understand this at all. Thank you. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Editor's note: Call and give us some detail and maybe we can check out your
claim, 829-7242. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 About the controversy about teachers staying after school after the
children are dismissed for a snow day, it said something about a show of
submissiveness to the almighty taxpayers who pay their salary. I don't think
I'd want to pelt the teachers with snowballs, but boy I sure would like to see
a little bit of that submissiveness to we taxpayers who pay their salaries. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 I'm calling in response to your front page article on a volunteer's
rejection by a fire department. This article rings true throughout the area.
Perhaps Back Mountain volunteer emergency services should be examined also.
Why are there no female firefighters in Dallas? No African-Americans in
Shavertown or Trucksville? Why can no gays be found in any organization? The
cliques that runs these volunteer organizations are tight; no outsiders
allowed. Why do firefighters and ambulance personnel show up on calls with
beer on their breath? Does the drinking help affect the quality of care? Is a
fire truck driver under the influence any safer than any other drunk driver?
Qualified volunteers are often turned away because these organizations don't
want their secrets told. For all the good these groups do, there are also many
faults. Perhaps this article can act as a catalyst for the press to inform the
public and as enlightenment for the ambulance and fire companies to clean up
their act. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Editor's note: How do you know there are no gay firefighters locally? Call
us with information, 829-7242, about firefighters driving drunk. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 This is the day after Christmas, and I'd just like to say to all you
Grinches out there who have these ads in the newspaper selling these Sing n'
Snore Ernies for $300 that the ads are too numerous to even count. Shame on
you. I was in Toys R' Us on December 23rd and they had a pallet full on the
floor for $24 apiece. Thank you. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 I'd like to comment on the article in the paper Friday December the 26th:
"Police comb area for gunman." They have a picture of a cop running down the
sidewalk with a gun, with an automatic rifle flailing at its side. I think
where there's any kind of a situation like cops running around the
neighborhood with weapons or automatic rifles, they should have a vest or a
jacket on identifying theirselves. If I look out the window and see somebody
running through Wilkes-Barre or anywheres else for that matter in plainclothes
I surely don't know he's a cop and we should know. Thank you very much. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Sayso Let Me Relate To All Of Your Callers And Readers The Story Of But One Family.