I previously about Mansfield, CT's chronic hypocrisy with neighboring towns. This doesn't apply to everyone but there's a cohort of snobs who think they are just a cut above the rest. The authors of the Mansfield Parks and Recreation 10 Year Plan that recommends eliminating insurance paid memberships for seniors claim that surveys of opinion and a solicitation of ideas to avoid this conclusion were repeatedly made. And the only members who were solicited were from Mansfield.
Normally I would ask myself, "WTF is wrong with these people?" but I don't bother - Mansfield's historical love for the Other.
Mansfield serves as a stalking horse for Region 19's statewide interests. Former CT Secretary of State, Denise Merrill, recently resigned in the wake of state election issues (hmmm). She proved to be a cash cow as local residents held their noses when she discussed politics but were always welcoming the fiscal showers. My suspicion is that the spigot has been reduced - Mansfield still rolling on a sugar-mommy high.
Well I've been discussing the difference between the actual Mansfield Community Center (owned and operated by the town as a public asset) and the public services made available there through memberships.
The elimination of senior citizen insurance options affects ALL members from wherever they reside. And the fact of the matter is that members from the entire region are being taxed (call it what you want) without representation. Aside from insulting, it's discriminatory in mean and potentially illegal ways.
Should this proposed policy ever be implemented a few legal recourses may be applied to protect the senior citizens.
OSHA
Government workers (such as MMC employees) are not subject to OSHA. But given that the town of Mansfield, CT has turned membership into a local profit making enterprise to pay off government debt then conceptually, the senior citizen community targeted to pay the increased fees may qualify as a labor cohort that *is* covered.
Under that novel definition, the violence of invalidating their insurance benefit may qualify as illegal. The all too frequent failure of the air conditioning systems at the MCC is a specific hazard to senior citizens. Finally the impact of local government stress on senior citizen's well-being is a potential issue.
Here I'm just spit-balling superficially but I think a class action suit might be worth exploring.
CHRO
The Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities is another resource worth exploring.
Government (e.g. Town of Mansfield) cannot use taxpayer money to run a for profit enterprise. Unlike commercial fitness centers who are losing money, the government can't pursue strategies pursuing ever increasing cost for public services. The MCC represents a regional, default public good resource.
Current scandals at USAID illustrate the scam. If taxes don't work then obfuscate the spending problems by offsetting increased taxes to a third party - in this case senior citizens.
In this case, government politicians who universally milk the argument that citizens should have access to low-cost health insurance are caught red-handed stripping seniors of using one that they do have based on the premise that their spending habits are more important than the health of their citizens.
Google AI: ""Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness" is a well-known phrase from the Declaration of Independence, articulating fundamental human rights. It signifies the freedoms individuals possess to live, make choices, and seek personal fulfillment without undue government interference. "
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