Archive: Opinions

Village of Lansing Mayor Donald Hartill loves to portray his village as a unique pothole-free oasis surrounded by a plethora of potholes.  It is a recurring theme, especially around budget time (the Village Trustees adopted the 2019-20 budget Monday evening, that includes road projects) when he proudly lauds conservative spending to provide above average municipal services. It has been a chronic thorn in the Mayor's side that over the course of many years of trying, he hasn't been successful in acquiring Graham Road West from the Ithaca Mall.  he wants to make it a Village road that his highway department can maintain so the numerous potholes may be eliminated from the otherwise pristine village.  Hartill especially loves to single out the City of Ithaca for the numerous and sizable potholes that plague city streets.

The Mayor isn't wrong about Ithaca.  Potholes in the city are remarkable. This is a city that has installed speed humps to slow traffic on its roadways, which are a waste of taxpayer money, if you ask me.  After all, potholes provide the same function at no charge to taxpayers.

This illustrates the power of spin.  In software developers ask, 'is it a bug or a feature?'  it depends on how you spin it.  Ithaca views potholes as a bug, but when you consider their function in slowing traffic you can see how they could be lauded as a feature.

Last November the Tompkins County Legislature voted in support of marijuana legalization in New York State.  While the notion has its supporters, many have expressed concerns about unintended negative consequences -- see our own Casey Stevens' editorial in this week's Lansing Star.  But I have come up with a way to transform legal marijuana from a bug into a feature.

Grind up the marijuana and mix it with a durable adhesive.  Pour this mixture into each pothole.  Not only have you smoothed out Ithaca streets, reducing the cost of repairing roads and saving the world by using a renewable substance - what Ithacan doesn't want to save the world?! -- but you have literally transformed potholes into pot-holes.

Who said that driving on marijuana is unsafe?

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