Archive: Opinions

Mike Sigler's political stunt in proposing a resolution to the County Legislature in support of repowering the Cayuga Power Plant could have hurt Lansing badly. His ignorance of the thinking of the majority of legislators on the topic was apparent. Had it been introduced, it would have failed. That's why neither Pat Pryor nor any other legislator would bring such a resolution to the floor for a vote. How bad would it have looked to have the County Legislature vote against repowering?

Now Mr. Sigler is saying that the broadband initiative is not particularly important, or words to that effect. I wonder how many families who will finally be able to access high-speed Internet service at a reasonable price will agree with him. Trivializing the very real accomplishments of an opponent only makes him appear small.

Prior to Pat Pryor's election four years ago, Mr. Sigler held her office. During his tenure, his accomplishments were virtually nil. While Pat served as Chair of both the Broadband Committee and the Government Operations Committee in addition to faithfully participating on several other committees and boards, Mr. Sigler was Chair of none and his attendance on his assigned committees, where much of the legislative work gets done, does not compare favorably to Pat's.

Now, four years later, after we have had the good fortune to have had Pat Pryor as the best legislator this district has ever seen in terms of her hard work and accomplishments, Mr. Sigler is trying to take a second bite at the apple. However, he has no record of his own on which to run, so he is running on sour grapes.

Interestingly, one former colleague recalled that, when he previously held the office, Mr. Sigler was best remembered for surfing the Internet during Legislature meetings instead of paying attention to the matters before the Legislature. He also excelled at collecting his pay check and going home.

I guess it's no wonder that Mr. Sigler has to try to attack Pat Pryor's record. Her hard work, accomplishments, accessibility and willingness to listen are all hallmarks of an outstanding elected official. We're lucky to have Pat Pryor as our County Representative and I urge every voter to get out and re-elect her on November 5th.

Eisabeth Hegarty
Lansing
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