Saitta talks SDPC budget

Dear Editor,

I voted against the School District of Pickens County budget for 2016-17 for three reasons.

This budget again eliminates classroom teaching positions, boosting class sizes. A total of 65 classroom teachers have now been eliminated over three years. As families break down further, and some children become more difficult to teach, the board should be reducing class sizes, not making them larger.

In good economic times, when revenue is growing, the board should be putting money aside. Thus, when the bad economic times hit, the district will have a savings nest egg to fall back on to cope with falling revenue, and it will not have to cut spending as much. This budget runs savings down $1.7 million in good economic times, so little savings (if any) will be available when the next recession hits.

There are a variety of extra pay raises in the budget. It is well intentioned — I support most of them, but too many are being done at one time. It is like with the extra teacher pay raises. I thought it was a good idea to phase them in over a few years, as was originally proposed. However, I opposed the last minute change to give three teacher pay raises in one year, because it threw the current budget into deficit and caused more of a drawdown in savings.

You can see the stress the aggressive spending plan is causing. Look at the actions taken to try and make it all work — closing schools, eliminating teachers and raising tax rates (1.5 mils) on the borrowing side. None of that the public supports.

Alex Saitta

School board trustee Pickens

A letter to America

Dear Editor,

America continues to display the foolishness of man by trusting in man rather than God the Creator. Many now foolishly claim that science proved there is no God. That of course, is man’s lie.

Ironically, God’s truth is questioned by man, who God formed from “the dust of the ground.”

According to the word of God, before God created time, he “created heaven and earth.” And Earth was void (no life), completely covered by water, it was dark, “And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”

And then God lit up the sun when he “said, let there be light: and there was light.” That was the beginning of time, the first day.

Then in the next five days, God separated the waters, made about 70 percent of the earth surface rise above water, ordered earth to produce all sorts of grasses, herbs, flowers, fruit trees. Then “God, out of the ground, formed every beast,” and every fowl. On the sixth day of creation, he formed Adam (the first man) from the dust of the ground and gave him life.

Then “God said, It is not good that the man should be alone.” So God put Adam to sleep, removed one of his ribs, and from that rib, formed the first woman, Eve, for Adam’s wife. And we thank the LORD for that.

God saw that his creation was good. Unfortunately, a few thousand years later, man became very wicked and every imagination in man’s heart was evil. This “grieved Him (God) at his heart” and He “Said, I will Destroy man” and “every living thing.”

But because God found Noah righteous, God gave his living creation a second chance. He had Noah and his family build the ark (a very large ship) to keep them and the animals safe during the “great flood” so they would “replenish the earth,” as God commanded them

Now Noah’s descendants are denying God’s word and denying that God created the heavens and earth and every living thing, including man. But God has said, He created everything that was created, and He rightfully claims he owns everything. Including you and me. It is time we give God his deserving glory. Glory be to God.

Manuel Ybarra Jr.

Coalgate, Okla.