When each person at the public hearing got up to speak against this new loan our town council basically sat staring at the table or gazing off into space. Well — all except the mayor, who tried to shut me up with her little gavel. I sure hope when election time comes some honest people run for mayor and town council.

I say NO to new debt. NO to risky money schemes. If the town can’t take a 20-year fixed rate loan at a current prevailing rate, then we should just pay down our existing debt until we can afford a straight refinance in the future.

Borrowing more cash aside, a refinance at an extremely low variable rate may make sense for a town like this. Let’s face it, it is what it is; if it’s not already the majority, soon the largest part of the population will be retirees, who want to enjoy their retirement now, not later. I understand the argument for a higher, fixed rate, but that’s just too square and practical to make much sense — besides, I don’t think I’ll have a horse in the race 17 years from now. I say let these teenagers with their tattoos, piercings, and weird hairdos deal with it when the time comes (I’ll be in Alabama living with a bunch of goats). The zeitgeist says be like Bacchus, swallow the 2.5% variable rate like a Quaalude, and write the whole thing off as a bad job.

I don’t really have a problem with borrowing another million for improvements, other than it’s stupid — unless this town can somehow figure out a way to curb its appetite for corrupt, ignorant, meaningless waste, I’d recommend they skip filling out the loan application and just go to Kelly’s instead.

Has anyone looked at what they want to do? Replace two pumping stations, when all they have to do is adopt a hobbyist mentality, buy the replacement parts and upgrade, saving hundreds of thousands ($$$). Replace all the manhole covers: why not spend a few grand on a tool (yes, it exists) and repair the ones that need fixing (save hundreds of thousands $$$). Building a walking trail in Cape Charles, the most walk-able town in the USA: maybe make people walk on the sidewalks (that we just spent hundreds of thousands on) and save hundreds of thousands. Don’t even get me started on the waste involved with the harbor — OK, just a quick rant on how we need to spend a few more million dollars on another breakwater to protect the harbor because we saw how well they worked in Louisiana during Katrina. Of course, you have heard about plans for another $350,000 bathhouse, and a two-story brick suite for the harbor master? Now, that is sweet!

I’m depressed now. I’m going to Kelly’s.