Thank you! The collective wisdom of voters has prevailed with a ‘NO’ vote on the recent Proposition 2.5 override. The Westport Fiscal Stability Group, an almost nameless/faceless team, was well-organized but provided no meaningful information. Speculations as to the benefits of a ‘YES’ vote and the resulting horrors of a ‘NO’ vote were misleading, and arguments attempting to justify our ability to pay additional taxes were insulting.

On the subject of insulting, one Westport Finance Committee member went so far as to characterize anyone who would vote ‘NO’ on the override as “cheap.” Her exact words in the February 23, 2023 Page 3 issue of Shorelines are copied below:

“People for some reason like to take some kind of pride in being one of the lowest taxed in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. That's not a badge of honor — that's just a badge of cheapness.”

There is a serious leadership problem in Westport when citizens are publicly insulted, and all issues can be resolved with additional funding. How about addressing the largest cost problems of schools, pensions, and insurance. These expenses represent 58.31 percent of the FY23 town budget.

Elliot F. Whipple

Westport