To the Editor:

A recent letter to the editor focused on hate being spewed in the town of Berne [“Spewing hate in an already broken world,” letter to the Altamont Enterprise editor, Sept. 18, 2025].

The letter accused the Berne Republican party of dirty politics by lying and swaying voters because caucus winners are not supported. It also chastised board members for “walking out on their oath.”

It needs to be pointed out that a political committee is not required to support caucus winners; they can support whomever they desire. If Republican campaign signs are used to sway voters, well, that is their right and is the purpose of campaign signs.

As for “walking out on their oath” — how was this done?

The oath of office states: “I, [Name], do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of the State of New York, and that I will faithfully discharge the duties of such office according to the best of my ability.”

All accounts have pointed to the resignations taking place because these board members could not discharge their duties to the best of their abilities due to the environment and actions of other board members.

From my perspective, the resignations could be because they felt the “best of the ability” of the other board members was sub-par.

New York State Open Meetings Law — not followed. New York State Freedom of Information Law — not followed. Berne Sewer Law — not followed. Town code restricting when political campaign signs can be displayed — not enforced. Town code restricting trailer storage — not enforced. New York mandates yearly sexual-harassment prevention training for all employees — could not be verified via a FOIL request due to accurate training records not being maintained.

The author of that letter pointed out what she believes are problems with the Republican committee. I hope going forward that opinions are based on fact. Anything less will, as the author stated, continue to spew hatred.

Kenneth Guarino

Berne