On the Sturbridge Political Watch blog, Thomas Creamer has written the article “Nightmare Budget”, Doomsday Scenarios, or a Reasoned, Rational Approach.

For the purposes of discussion, I have extracted the following from the Town of Sturbridge Finance Committee Report Fiscal Year 2013.

This proposed budget is an increase of $1,172,795, or 4.6%,over Fiscal Year 2012.

I am not privy to all the background material that, as a Town Selectman, Thomas Creamer is. However, I think I understand the point that the author is making. I have heard this type of discussion many times over in my 50 something years of adult life.  To emphasize the deleterious effects of not raising the budget, proponents of the new budget concentrate all the theoretical cuts needed by a level funded budget in the programs that the citizens want the most.  They do not go through the hard task of finding the programs the citizens need or want least in order to focus the cutting there.  Such an approach might lead to budget cuts that are hardly noticed.  Or at least that is the suspicion when you view the dire warnings.

On the one hand, the proponents of the increased budget will tell you that it is only 4.6%, and as a citizen you can surely afford that.  Yet a 4.6% cut from the proposed budget would bring dire consequences to the town.

Of course the proponents of the level funding are not above their own prediction of the dire consequences of raising spending. They might say that surely we can find 4.6% fat in the budget that should be easy to cut with no harm done.  On the other hand for the citizens of the town to have their taxes raised to cover the 4.6% would be so drastic that they would all find themselves in the poor house with nothing to eat and no roof over their head.

So I think that what Thomas Creamer is asking is for us to put aside the nonsense and try to come up with a reasoned approach about what to do.

For my part, I have no reason to doubt that the Finance Committee and the Selectmen (mostly women) have done their due diligence and put in the hard work of figuring out the best compromises between what we may want and what we can afford.  Unless someone can provide me with strong evidence that these two goups have fallen down on the job in some major way, I am inclined to go along with their recommendations.

If we have to come out in droves to attend the Town Meeting to fight for a rational approach, then that is what we should do.  I intend to do my part.  I am open to arguments to sway my vote one way or another. I just won’t participate in scare tactics for either side.  So I warn both sides, that scare tactics will not work on me.  I will bring along an ample supply of imaginary chill pills to let me hear all sides with calm rationality.