We learned at the last County Commissioners’ meeting, March 11 that the three commissioners, (who are also the Susquehanna County Election Board), have replaced themselves with three nominees who will serve in their place until after the November election.

Two of these replacements are mandated by 25 P.S. Subsection 2641 ( c ) “Whenever a member of the board of county commissioners is a candidate for nomination or election to any public office, the President Judge of the Court of Common Pleas shall appoint a judge or an elector of the county to serve in his stead.....Appointees who are not currently elected office holders shall receive compensation for such service as determined by the salary board plus mileage as specified by the county for expenses incurred when performing election board business.”

There are only two commissioners running for re-election, yet all three of them are being compensated for their positions on the Election Board.  Two of them are rightfully replaced according to statute, leaving a question as to why one commissioner, Mr. Giangrieco, has recused himself from serving on the Board of Elections.  According to Mr. Giangrieco, he did so as to remove the possibility of an appearance of any wrongdoing by remaining on the Election Board.  What wrongdoing?  His place on the Election Board is mandated and protected by Pennsylvania Law.  How can that be correct? Mr. Giangrieco, fiscally responsible until now, has incurred an additional expense for the county by having someone appointed to HIS position on the Election Board, for which he is also being paid.  He has also caused a much less, if not totally inexperienced person to take his place on the Election Board.  Keeping in mind that the Voter Registrar abruptly resigned early in the month, (without any explanation from the commissioners: “it’s a personnel matter”), does Mr. Giangrieco’s reason for his recusal really make any sense for the citizens of Susquehanna County?

Sincerely,

Edna K Paskoff

Montrose, PA

Get a pencil and take this short ten question true or false quiz. Mark a T or an F by every statement. Then look at the end of this letter for the answers. Give yourself 10 points for each correct answer. If you follow these directions, you're guaranteed to learn something completely unexpected about yourself. Let's start.

The center of the earth is extremely hot.

The earth goes around the sun.

All radioactivity is man-made.

Electrons are smaller than atoms.

Lasers work by focusing sound waves.

Most scientist believe the universe began with an explosion.

It is the father who determines the sex of a baby.

Antibiotics kill bacteria and viruses.

Most scientists believe that humans developed from plants, to animals, to us.

The continents are stationary.

Now check your answers and score the quiz. The average grade of the 2,200 ordinary Americans who took this test was 50. How did you do? Above or below average?

Now the key question: What does this reveal about you? Answer: Absolutely nothing and absolutely a lot. First, the questions are gauged to test your knowledge of science. It only measures your interest in that subject. So your core is virtually meaningless.

Yet you bought this newspaper, ergo, you're a reader. Your vocabulary, reading ability, and attention span put you in the 70th percentile or higher. And you have an active interest in community affairs and presumably national news as well, Congratulations! You deserve it.

You may be surprised to get a pat on the back for something so simple. That's because we tend to associate with people like ourselves. You automatically assume that since you can read, everyone else can read. Sadly, this is not true.

Next we must take a detour to a thought experiment. (Be patient. We're going somewhere with this.)

Suppose over several decades you built a successful business. Now you want to hire a manager so you can take a much needed four-week vacation.

Over the last several months you interviewed 100 applicants for a business manager. You were astonished to discover that 14 of them could not read or do simple arithmetic. You're down to 86. You also found that 21 could not read above the 5th grade level. Subtract 14 more who were borderline. That left you with 51 applicants.

Since you want the most able person to run your business, you discard still another 14. Of the original 100 applicants, you whittled this down to just 37.

Here's the point: That business is a stand-in for the US government, the biggest business on the planet. The 100 applicants represent 100 percent of eligible voters, 63 percent of whom are poor at reading and basic math. And that four-week vacation is the four-year term for the presidency.

If you wanted the best manager for your business, surely you would demand no less from the president. That being so, you would therefore be in favor of disenfranchising about two-thirds of voters.

But that has the stigma of elitism, a special group empowered with responsibilities that set them apart from the populous. That seems distasteful, at odds with democracy. But the United States was not founded as a democracy. We are a constitutional republic.

A democracy is ruled by the majority. It is government by the heart. Polls, referendums, and the shrill cries of the “squeaky wheels” are the ones who get the attention. Social justice ranks high on their list. Sound familiar? The Founding Fathers called it “mobocracy.”

Clashing with this is a republic. It is government by the head. Under this form of government laws supersede justice, which is emotionally determined. And unlike a democracy, a republic recognizes the unalienable rights of all its citizens including the minorities.

At the conclusion of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 a woman called out to Benjamin Franklin, “Well, doctor, what have we got a republic or a monarchy?” With no hesitation Franklin responded, “A republic, madam---if you can keep it.”

If, indeed. At present the US stands in the no-man's land between a republic and a democracy, with the tide “running” toward a mobocracy.

The answers: 1) T 2) T 3) F 4) T 5) F 6) T 7) T 8) F 9) T 10) F

Sincerely,

Bob Scroggins

New Milford, PA