Sanitary District 1 Residents Get What They Vote For. . .

. . .GARBAGE!

Incumbent Sanitary District 1 Commissioner Joseph Candella, whose special district operations came under fire from the Nassau County Comptroller for alleged improprieties and glaring fiscal irresponsibility, and continue to be under scrutiny by both the NYS Comptroller's office and the Nassau County District Attorney, defeated novice challenger to the status quo, Jeremy Merrill, proving, yet again, that, as Abe Lincoln so aptly declared, you really can fool most of the people (among them, the ignorant, the indolent, the complacent, and the perennially duped), most of the time.

"If people want garbage, are willing to watch their tax dollars squandered, and can live with incompetence at the wheel," said a Cedarhurst resident who asked that her name not be revealed for fear of reprisal, "then they deserve what they get -- garbage!"

The final vote, 1606 for Candella to 691 for Merrill (includes all absentee ballots), was more a homage to the ability of Machine politics to herd the cattle and prod them to the polls than it was a referendum in support of the manner in which the district conducts business.

Truth be told (and don't look to the Commissioners of the Sanitary Districts to tell it), in a district that serves some 18,000 homes, with more than twice that number in registered voters (approximately 40,000), clearly a turnout of a mere 2200 (or 5.5% of registered voters) can hardly be said to be a referendum on anything -- except, perhaps, the apathy of the electorate, who would rather continue to dig deep into their pockets to pay for trash collection than to switch horses -- even when the district is being run by the horse's other end!

Ahh, P. T. Barnum would be proud, indeed, of the residents of SD1!*

A sad day in Sanitary District 1? Not really. By our count, nearly 31% of those who came to the polls on a sultry summer evening for a barely noticed election have said with their votes that they've had enough. Enough of the lies, the mismanagement, the patronage appointments, and the cavalier notion that public officials can engage in conduct that is tantamount to stealing from the taxpayer.

Jeremy Merrill, contacted by The Community Alliance, expressed thanks to his supporters. [Thank YOU, Jeremy, for having the courage to challenge this Goliath that bullies from garbage dump to recycling bin!]

Joseph Candella, who told Newsday that his victory over Merrill "...tells you that the general public was pleased with the sanitary district service and myself," could not be reached for comment.

We suppose Commissioner Candella is out celebrating his lopsided win, perhaps with a $700 steak dinner at Morton's!

Could be that keeping Candella in the Commissioner's seat is a good thing, really. This way, should indictments be handed down by a Grand Jury, we can all watch News12 as the Sanitary District 1 co-conspirators are carted away to jail from the district's headquarters in Lawrence.

That will be the day residents can give a new meaning to the term, "taking out the trash!"
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*An honest man who arrests public attention will be called a "humbug,"' but he is not a swindler or an impostor. If, however, after attracting crowds of customers by his unique displays, a man foolishly fails to give them a full equivalent for their money, they never patronize him a second time, but they very properly denounce him as a swindler, a cheat, an impostor; they do not, however, call him a "humbug." He fails, not because he advertises his wares in an outre manner, but because, after attracting crowds of patrons, he stupidly and wickedly cheats them.

P.T. Barnum--"Humbugs of the World"

How long will residents accept the failure "to give them a full equivalent for their money?" How many times will they allow themselves to be swindled, cheated, and patronized by those whose actions serve as "imposters" of the public good?