opinion

Our Readers Write We've Earned Right to Sats. ^ f To Editor: / The following is an answer to Thomas Dixon's comments concerning "Senior Citizens" appearing in your^ issue of April 3. Many attacks are made against senior citizens, but Dixon's letter to the editor concerning us is by far the most vicious, unfeeling, and inconsiderate. As a senior, and in behalf of seniors every where, I feel it necessary to come to our defense. First of all, H is difficult to imagine long lines at any bank, post office, service station, cleaners or hardware store in the middle of March in Cape May County. DID IT EVER OCCUR to him to say, "Excuse me, I would like to get some potatoes", to the middle-aged lady at the produce counter. Secondly, while waiting a few minutes in the check-out line, was something important happening that he was missing? I would like to bring to his attention that seniors do no go to bingo all week; many of us cannot afford to. Numbers of us work, as volunteers, in hospitals, nursing homes, the County Museum, as baby sitters, companions and countless other jobs. ON SATL'RDAWhere are no game shows on television, or "Soap Operas"™r perhaps this is the only day we get to see friends Who knows? Why we choose to go out on this particular day is our business, and we have earned the ^ right to make this decision I would like Dixoh to record his last paragraph for posterity When he retires, and .is sitting home on Saturday, he w ill have lots of time to find an answer to the question, "Why do seniors go out on that day?" I sincerely hope Dixon's aging process moves slowly, so he will not have to face«.abuse such as he so freely gives. VERNIS M. PILERT Stone Harbor Plus Granddaughter To The Editor: I resent Thomas Dixon's April 3 letter. "Senior Citizens" are people, too, and should feel free to shop when they like. I, too, go to the bank, the post office, and the gas station, but I like to go there when it suits me. I also like to shop on Saturdays because it gives me an opportunity to take my granddaughter out, since she is in school all week. It's nice being a "senior citizen," especially when you consider the alternative. PAT GLEASON Avalon Agrees With Dixon To The Editor: I'm writing to say I totally agree with Thomas Dixon of North Cape May (April 3 letter. "Ban Seniors on Saturday?") who wrote about the problem with senior citizens. I went to Shoprite April 5 and three seniors stood in the way of an aisle I was trying to get down. They were totally oblivious of me trying to get down the aisle. ♦ DEBORAH WEITZ Cape May

. f Htralft^V' CAOTEwill fr.f* ry W*4a«»4ay By Tfct Cary P.O. B*n 430 Ctpm H*y (Wl Ho—. N.J. 99719 Joseph R. Zelnik Editor Bonnie Reina General Manager Gary L. Rudy Advertising Director John Dunwoody Special Promotibns Director Darrell Kopp Publisher S*ooo« Corp <985 A* r^Mi rotorvod All p'op—lj rifllin lor *• •or... coor.oli o< lllrt r^rtiu'T'O" lh°1' k* *" e"av*"' °* ** Corp No poo ator b. r.prod«.d DEADLINES News & Photos Thursday Advertising Friday — 3 P.M. Classified Advertising Friday — 3 P.M. 465-5055 For News or Advertising Information VrV. puUr.pMUw -t.mijrr. M Ikr i-hW.Wr. M tfcr HI H *l t> AMI LOTTWN ~4""' - "** " fbralH~wts|rat£H V PM*I*4 Br Th, JJ >.o s— m c*— mhc, emu H — — . y 7

/ v / 5 A * ' / HiRowrros f?eVEMG€ Honor the Older To The Editor: 1 would like to ask Thomas Dixon who wrote (April 13 V to complain about senior citizens doing their shopping on Saturdays, what are they supposed to do — go into a closet and stay out of sight on Saturdays? As he said, they were all spending money in the county. Does he know that sometimes this is the only time these people can get out and shop — when their children come to visit them, and them them out? For some, I know this only happens once a month. * So why doesn't this guy give some consideration to the older people? To hear this guy tell it, his parents never grew old, nor did his grandparents. Does he know these senior citizens are all taxpayers? Without them this county would be in trouble taxwise. "IF THE STORY is known, he is a weekender who would complain if the seniors went to church on Sunday and he could not get a seat. It would be their fault. Wise up, young man ; you will be older and a senior citizen before you know it. Finally, this man should remember to honor the older people instead of condemning them. Or does he want them to be iaken out and shot so as not to annoy him? He also used the word diatribe in his letter. Maybe he thinks the seniors dorYt know what that means. Well when he used that, it meant that he wanted to be abusive and bitter toward them. MRS. ELEANOR DOYLE Eldora

Where to Place Sea Isle Polls? By TOM PORCH Sea Isle City is a rather peculiar town. Take the up-coming elections, for instance. You have heard, no doubt, that those opposed to the re-election of Mayor Dominic Raffa refused to allow the polling place to be in the Dominic Raffa Community Center. They argued that having his name on the buiding would be giving him free advertising. A suggested alternative was the post office, but this, of turse, was out of the question because of the candidacy one Cuthbert J. Stamp. No use suggesting the fire house, either, when you have a guy running named J. Hooken Ladder. I hope this problem can be solved before Election Day. ONE THING we can be proud of, though, is the absolute orignality of our candidate's election promises. All seven of the hopefuls have promised the exact same things. They are election promises that I have never in my life heardbefore, such as. "lower taxes," "a cleaner city," "improved streets," and "a government that represents a/1 of the people." In other towns, of course, the candidates always promise: "high taxes," "dirty up the place," "dig pot holes," and "a government thdffTepresents all of my buddies." I don't think, though, that any of the candidates will get very far without recognizing the demands of the Grouchy Old Folks Club. Our demands are: (1) Raise the weekly beach tag fee by five cents. This will keep away the campers who have been clogging up the town. (2) For the people who live in small bungalows surrounded by newly-built huge, towering townhouses, the City Planning Board should furnish them with hats with light bulbs in the front, and a free, lifetime supply of oxygen. (3) Stop spending all of that money on those big-time show biz acts that appear on the Promenade on Wednesday nights. ( I've seen some of thse acts and they must cost a fortune. ) Instead, feature Senior Citizens contests — like break dancing, for instance. . Oh, well, see you at the polls (wherever that is). I ED. NOTE: Porch, wfio designated himself president of the Grouchy Old Folks Club, writes from Sea Isle City.) \ Election Deadline To prevent unanswerable, last-minute charges, no letters regarding the May 14 municipal elections will appear after the May 1 isstie, foe which the deadline is Thursday, April 25. I

-Just Say 'Yes' ^ Why Waste a Full Leg Wax?

By JOE ZELNIK To the relief of those who pay the bills here, there was only one winner in our recent. "Name the Faces" contest. Gertrude Yesgosh of Court House, former executive director of the county chapter of the Red Cross, missed only one face — John L. Aubudon (pictured below). Mrs. Yesgosh thought he was Chopin. One reader thought he was Mozart. And a couple insisted he was Willie Nelson. Most people (but not Mrs. Yesgosh) also got tripped up by Marlin (see photo) the Magician. I WAS GOING TO GIVE first prize to Mrs. Yesgosh whether or not she won because I'm intrigued by her name. In congratulating her on winning the contest. I learned her maiden name was Elm and Yesgosh originally was Jesgenz until Gertrude Vhusband's grandparents came from Poland and legally changed it to as close as the judge could get in English. I guess Yesgosh is better than Goshyes. especially for a female. Mrs Yesgosh will receive lunch for two at the select restaurant. She selected Henny's in Stone Harbor. If there had been a tie, we were prepared to offer second and third prizes. Second was to have be&i^ one week on a king-sized water bed which now will be lyturned to the Wildwood motel from which we borrowed it. Third prize was to have been a full leg wax including bikini line (retail value $38) That can't be returned so, ■"4: , vY I 9P9H — II JH AUDUBON MERLIN

rather than waste it. I'll have the wax job, painful as it may be. THE FUNNIEST misidentification, in the opinion of the judges, was made by Vernis Pilert who identified my. photo as County Engineer Neil Clarke ( I guess the hardhat fooled her). (Incidentally. I am beginning to wonder if only people with strange names read this column.) At any rate. Clarke has been sulking ever since and if Mrs. Pilert finds the street in front of her Stone Harbor home closed for repairs for 16 months, she'll know who to blame. (I spelled Clarke's first name wrong once and found four tons of muck in my front yard the next day. Except for his impatience with little mistakes, Clarke is one of the top three department hepds in county government (I'll let you guess the, other two). But his key achievement, in my opinion, is liability to sleep with his eyes open during monthly Planning- Board meetings. I would give anything to be able to do thaf^. APPRECIATE all the contest entries because my pay is based on readership of my column. • , The way they do this is a bit complicated, so pay attention. We circulate at this minute (it goes up next week) 23,193 papers. Surveys show each paper is read by 2.5 people, which translates to 57,982 readers. Our marketing research staff each week calls 10 homes at random and -asks if they read my column. The percent that answers yes is multiplied by the 57,982 to determine how many read my column. I get a penny per reader. That's not bad if I can hit 50 percent or better, but I eat a lot of peanut butter in the winter when everybody goes to Florida. The problem is that any no answer is considered a nonreader. So. people who don't stay home and answer the phone are hurting my pay. ON THE OTHER HAND, if ail of you stayed home to answer our phone poll, then our advertisers wouldn't have any customers and there wouldn't be any money to pay me anyway. I am currently pushing for the company to poll readers at 2 a.m. each Thursday, a logical time for almost everybody to be home. If we should do this, I hope it won't inconvenience you. If your phone rings at 2 a.m. just pick it up, say "yes," and hang up. Your sleep may not even be interrupted that wiy. I hope you'll agree that doing me this small favor is worth the slight risk that you'll be agreeing to an ohwyw proposition.