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June 28, 2009

Cheers and Jeers: June 29, 2009

CHEERS: a big one, for a small gesture, to an unidentified city Public Works Department employee who was mowing the lawn on U.S. Oval at the Old Base a couple of weeks ago. Along came jogger Tim Dodd, who lives on the base, expecting to get a face full of grass clippings and dust as he trundled by the mower. Instead, the courteous and conscientious worker turned off the mower blades, stopped the mower, smiled and waved as Dodd trotted past, unsullied. To some people, this may seem almost incidental — scarcely worth mentioning. But such displays of consideration for neighbors and passers-by are memorable to most, and certainly worth a Cheer.

JEERS: to customers who stiff the Plattsburgh Municipal Lighting Department, leaving the rest of the rate payers to redeem their debts. It has come to light that college students living off campus are particularly prone to this thievery. Some skip out on their last bill for the school year, probably realizing that pursuing them out of county would be counter-productive for the city. If the city files a judgment against them, it is zeroing in on only one of the multiple tenants who owe the money — although you could argue that it would then be up to the student in whose name the service was enlisted to collect from the other deadbeats. But the sad fact is that, usually, collecting the money owed is not worth the money expended in doing it. Do the students know that, and intentionally ignore the bill for the last month of a nine-month stay in the city? It is not the landlord's obligation to see that the tenant pays the city, but certainly the city ought to explore every option in making somebody accountable. Inability to pay because of unexpected misfortune is one thing; not paying according to a pre-determined strategy is another. Historically, student indiscretions have been corrected by a notifying a proven third party: a parent.

CHEERS: to Paige Cotter, who donated $900 to the Breathe for Nate walk for cystic fibrosis. What makes it even more cheerful is the rationale behind the largess. After last year's walk, Cotter contemplated the irony of walking to help someone breathe and the fact that she smoked cigarettes. The following day, she quit cold turkey, and thus the contribution represents the money she has saved.

CHEERS: to all the schools that at this time of year are making efforts to recycle, and in some cases re-use materials. They should have provisions for students and teachers to deposit used paper and then ensure that these materials are taken to the landfill and deposited in the paper-recycling area. CHEERS also to the schools that have containers for students to deposit unused loose-leaf paper, partially used notebooks, unwanted writing utensils, etc. It's unfortunate that the students don't keep these materials for use the following year, but having a re-use receptacle at least alleviates the waste.

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