I love Southampton Village. I have been a proud member of the Southampton community for over six decades. I’m a businessman by career, a lawyer by training, and I know how to spot someone of good character.
Trustee Bill Manger is one of those people.
I read the local news every week, and it’s been disappointing to see that some have been disparaging Bill to further their own agendas, including the current mayor at his recent Town Hall event. This is disheartening, to say the least, and I would like to take a moment to set the record straight.
I first met Bill Manger over 45 years ago, when we were growing up together. I’ve known him and his family for decades. He has always been an individual of upstanding moral and ethical character. He is unafraid to speak out for what is right, even when that decision is difficult.
He has worked his tail off around the clock for the Village of Southampton. He is kind, thoughtful, experienced and effective. We are fortunate that this individual continues to devote his time and energies to the village.
Local politics should be about just that: helping each other out, making sure that the village is being well managed, listening to all sides of an issue, and working toward a better quality of life for all residents of the village.
From my vantage point, I see a Village Hall mired in petty drama, lawsuits and ill will. Southampton is a gem of the East End, and we need leaders who can work together and deliver good outcomes.
I come from a time when people in Southampton would respect each other, no matter what. It comes from a place of putting people over politics, the way it should be. Village Hall is not the U.S. Congress. There is no place for grandstanding or political overtures here. Running the village effectively should be the No. 1 concern.
Bill Manger is the right person for this job. Anyone who has been fortunate enough to know Bill sees him as reliable, accountable and trustworthy. The Bill Manger I know today is the same Bill Manger I’ve known for decades.
Our village is at a crossroads, and the choice could not be clearer. I am honored to give my friend Bill my fullest endorsement, and hope that you do as well.
John Campbell
Southampton
Shut Him UpFolks: it is time to take Michael Daly at his word(s), unpleasant as that may be. First: glide by his smarmy greeting card calls for “love.” His own words reveal him, above all, and consistently, a purveyor of hate and...
Suffering in SilenceWhen our world gets out of balance, we lose our comfort and security. Too much or too little of anything spikes our fear, and we lose our sense of peace. Those who have what they want and need are comfortable....
Advocate & Adjudicate?The previous administration of [Supervisor Jay] Schneiderman and current board member Tommy John Schiavoni did not give high priority to monitoring appointed public officials for ethical lapses in their private life activities. This laissez-faire policy towards ethics enforcement appears to...
Soil Is CallingIn a book titled “In Old Southampton,” Abigail Halsey reminds us that in the early days of Southampton, “every man was a farmer and a fisherman.” But those days are long gone and most people, today, have no connection to...
A Web of InterestsKudos to Craig Catalanotto [“What Are We Doing?” Letters, April 18] and Barbara Ring [“Tangled Web” Letters, April 18] for their letters to the editor shining a light on the web of special interests, conflicts of interest and misinformation that...
Dates of InfamySeptember 11 and October 7, similar dates of infamy for strong allies with similarly divergent reactions. Now gathered mobs of protesters are cheering on those who cry “Death to America” and call for the complete annihilation and genocide of the...
Your VoiceOn June 25, registered Democrats will go to the ballot box to determine who will represent their ticket for New York’s 1st Congressional District. Although CD1 has recently been held by Republicans, both parties have assumed leadership over the years....
Master ClassI thank Barbara Ring for aptly proving my point. In response to my letter [“An Alliance,” Letters, April 11], which decried the state of civic public discourse in Hampton Bays as being overtaken by misinformation, fear-mongering and conspiracy peddling, Ring...
