There are now plans to build 5 or 6 farm projects in the Rondout-Esopus Valley between Sawkill and Mamakating, all with a different emphasis. This could be the new identity for the Rondout Valley as a farm destination. Let's get those tourists down off the mountain — they're just a few minutes away from Colony Farm at Minnewaska State Park. Check out TheCATS.org.

John Adams
Ellenville

I want to encourage all my friends and classmates of the Class of 1960 to financially support our 'hometown' newspaper, the Shawangunk Journal, with a generous donation as I have already done.

Remember, it is the "local paper" that helps us keep in touch and up-to-date with Ellenville, where we all got our start and received our education, which prepared and paved our way to advance in the world that we inherited after we were graduated from Ellenville High School, while having been nurtured by the village 'nestled in the valley.'

Give yourself a Happy New Year 'pat on the back and profound reassurance' that the Shawangunk Journal will survive WITH your FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.

Dagmar Mielisch Yaddow
Rhinebeck

What is the Republican leadership up to with our healthcare? The previous Republican House of Representatives wasted plenty of time passing bills to repeal Obamacare over 50 times. Now they have the ability to repeal it. But they don't have anything to replace it. What have they been doing all this time?

The Affordable Care Act has greatly reduced the number of Americans living without health insurance, has protected people with pre-existing conditions, has allowed college students to continue on their parents' insurance. Are there problems? Of course, any major new program needs to be revised as experience exposes problems. But the ACA has a solid record of accomplishment.

And then there is Medicare, which millions of us who are retired can depend on to cover our healthcare needs. Will the Republicans really try to privatize it? Leave our (or our children's) retirement healthcare at the mercy of the stock market and the financial community? Next time the markets crash, will people's retirement healthcare crash with it?

Will we allow these backward moves? Is this making America great again?

Kathy Gordon
Saugerties

I had the opportunity to speak directly to John Faso, R-Kinderhook, last October after the debate in Albany between him and Zephyr Teachout. At that time, I asked if he would ever vote to defund Planned Parenthood, as his predecessor US Rep. Chris Gibson, R-Kinderhook, did twice.

Faso assured me he would note not vote to defund Planned Parenthood and all residents of the 19th Congressional District should know he freely shared his thoughts with me on this subject.

As all informed citizens know, only three percent of Planned Parenthood's services include abortion: 97 percent of their critical work is health screenings, birth control and other services for women.

It should also be noted John Faso voted against doing away with the independent ethics office in Congress on Jan. 3.

Joanne Michaels
West Hurley

The Shawangunk Journal is the only real source of information for the area it covers. It is a well written paper and has interesting articles that are not found in larger papers. I am now living in Florida and receive the Journal by mail. I also have two Sunday papers delivered: The Sun Sentinel and The Palm Beach Post. In my opinion, neither of these publications meets the standards of the Journal. I know these are hard times for print journalism but please try to keep your paper alive.

Sharon Reid
Delray Beach, FL

Thank you for the coverage of The Donald Trump. We have just completed eight years of GOP whining about President Obama. Now the shoe is on the other foot and we will be reading about our new president, The Donald Trump; how much whining will we be hearing from the GOP now?

It is critically important that all the news about him is published, because how else will we find out about the $10 trillion increase in debt under his watch? Or the loss/reduction of Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, and veterans benefits? Oh wait, those programs could well be privatized and, after the private companies take their ample portion for profit, we will get the remains.

How about the news on the infamous border wall; it now appears the American taxpayers will get to pay for it after all. And news on where the money is coming from to pay down the deficit should be helpful; hello, middle class?

How about news on the new Cabinet; I'm sure that billionaires and ex-generals will be looking out for the middle class and poor, but being kept informed will be helpful.

Oh, and it will also be helpful to be kept informed of the difference between the truth according to The Donald Trump and actual fact.

Ed Rengers
Woodstock

Congratulations to Matthew Hattley on his new freedom. Most probably, the Journal's courage and spirit of innovation in publishing Hattley's writings was partly responsible for the Governor's commutation of his sentence. The articles have been fascinating to read. And just as fascinating has been watching the evolution of Hattley's writing and thinking as he spiraled out from the day to day life of a prisoner to exploring topics such as parole and the effects of long term incarceration on inmates. His accounts of life inside were so different from what we see on TV (example: OZ) and the movies. Best wishes to Mr. Hattley. Let's hope all goes well for him and that he is successful in his new life.

Jean Lerner
Kerhonkson

Economist Milton Friedman said, "There's no such thing as a free lunch." Yet, last week, our Governor introduced his "Free College Tuition Plan."

Like others I know who attended college, I paid tuition with a combination of work/study, scholarships, grants, loans, and family assistance, Nobody I know got "free" tuition paid entirely by others.

To be clear, increasing opportunities for higher education is a worthy goal. This goal could be accomplished by: enhancing work/study availability; creating private/public sector scholarships in high demand fields; and, initiating zero interest state loans to be repaid upon employment.

Instead, plans that pander to populist movements are offered by politicians seeking higher office. Even worse, unrealistic numbers are used to further those plans. I have made a political career in Orange County fighting for truth when unrealistic numbers are presented. We should do no less with Albany numbers!

The Governor's plan offers "free" tuition at all New York public 2-year and 4-year colleges to students whose families earn less than $125,000 a year. When fully phased in, he estimates 210,000 students would participate with only $163 million a year cost to taxpayers. Please note: this is only $779 per student.

Yet, Assemblyman James Skoufis, who introduced a similar "free" college tuition bill, stated, in a recent TV interview, the true costs are a FEW BILLION dollars per year.

So, what is the truth and what can we really expect to pay for "free" tuition? Here are the facts:

The average tuition is $5,500. The average student gets $2,000 in PELL and TAP grants, leaving $3,500 tuition cost. Currently 717,297 students are enrolled full time and 1.4 million part time. When Tennessee implemented a similar program, enrollment skyrocketed 24.7 percent for full time students.

Thus, we could easily reach a million full time students and face yearly costs of $3.5 BILLION, amounting to $42 BILLION over ten years when factoring in tuition increases. When all students realize they can qualify by filing a single tax return for themselves, these costs could be much larger.

Interestingly, "free" tuition at the City Colleges in the 1970's — when tuition costs were only one-tenth as much — helped lead NYC to near bankruptcy. The federal and state bailout of the city in 1976 mandated that "free" tuition be stopped at CUNY. Politicians never learn! I ask you: Why should my constituents pay that $3,500 tuition for a student whose family earns $60,000 or $80,000 or $120,000? Working, even at minimum wage, in a work/study program, any student can earn TWICE the $3,500 working only 12 hours per week over a year. Are you telling me students should not work and that my constituents should pay instead?

For those that don't see anything wrong, trust me, a large number of my constituents — be they Democrats, Republicans or Independents — see what is happening here.

For those politicians who won't heed the words of economists, maybe they will listen to movie personality Sylvester Stallone who says, "Don't be gullible. Understand there are no free lunches, and for every action you take, there's a reaction."

New Yorkers know they bear the highest tax burden of any state in our nation. Their reaction is not surprising. Various annual studies consistently place New York in the top one or two states for families moving out. I bet you are not surprised! The highest taxed state results in the highest outbound migration state.

As they move forward unfazed, these politicians in Albany will call this a "Free College Tuition Plan" — I call it the "New York Taxpayers Mass Exodus Plan."

Mike Anagnostakis,
Orange County Legislator
Towns of Montgomery & Newburgh

New Year's resolutions for 2017 should be pretty obvious, particularly when it comes to diet: The year will go down in history as the year when plant-based meats have revolutionized the food industry.

A dozen startups, led by Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods, are creating plant-based burgers and other meats that are more delicious, convenient, and healthy than the old-fashioned animal-based variety.

They are backed by tech industry pioneers like Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Google principals Sergey Brin and Eric Schmidt, and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel. Even animal meat behemoth Tyson Foods has announced a $150 million venture capital fund to explore and invest in these products.

The plant-based food revolution is going mainstream. Hundreds of school, college, hospital, and corporate cafeterias have embraced Meatless Monday. Fast-food chains Chipotle, Panera, Subway, and Taco Bell are rolling out plant-based dinner options.

And American consumers are responding, with fully one-third reducing their intake of animal-based meats, milks, and other food products.

Let's make this New Year's resolution about exploring the rich variety of delicious, convenient, healthy plant-based dinners, lunch meats, cheeses, milks, and ice creams available in every supermarket. The internet offers tons of recipes and transition tips.

Kevin Kellerman
Kingston

A recent cartoon comparing FDR's "New Deal" to Trump's "Raw Deal" continues to try and divide us without debating how we came to be a divided nation. I believe you have an opportunity to help us all come closer together. I suggest the following for your New Year's Resolution: Think positive; print positive.

Paul J. Vinett
Clintondale