To the Editor:

Well done Newtown.

With the eyes of a nation still interested, and somewhat curious about how the town moves forward. the message is clear:  We don’t really care that much. For the second time this spring one out of three eligible voters managed to make it to the polls. Apparently the other 2/3rds of the voters are very busy and don’t have the time. Not my problem so to speak… Just like every other year… Status quo… Really?

Five months after this town has become a political lightning rod, an adjective instead of a noun and unfortunately a tourist attraction, it is not business as usual. Not by a long shot. This, four days after a unanimous vote to spend $50 million on a new school.  A decision based on an unwritten understanding that the town doesn’t have to actually pay for it. Take a look at the comments from throughout the nation after the Sandy Hook School Board recommendation. Like it or not you are still living in a fishbowl. And that will change with time, but slowly. This is not the year to make a stand about taxes. Not with what ultimately needs to be done.

The voters who did decided to make their way to the polls, by a slim majority on the school budget, let it be known that despite electing all the folks who determine the budget, they really have no interest in listening to them. There are 2,500 people in this town who would vote No to the budget even if the budget required no taxes at all. That is just the way it is. And the message to this nation is:  Give us money; we aren’t willing to spend our money. Shame on every parent with a child in the Newtown School system who didn’t bother to vote, there is no excuse. Not this year.

And here’s a message to the PTA and the superintendent and the Board of Education. No, it is not sufficient to send an email blast and say “vote today.” If it’s the budget that you are recommending to the taxpayers, then tell them to vote Yes. If this is the budget you require, then tell people to vote Yes. Otherwise you are requiring the voter to determine if you want them to vote Yes. And the same goes for the Legislative Council. It seems as if the budget is hung out there everyone, closes their eyes, and hopes it passes. Give the voters a reason why they should pass the budget.

Adlai Stevenson once said: “On the plains of hesitation lie the blackened bones of countless millions who at the dawn of victory lay down to rest, and in resting died.”

The voters of Newtown had an opportunity to let the nation see we are one solid strong community. And we as a group failed

Mark Mockovak

3 Nelson Lane, Newtown                 May 15, 2013