In response to “Board majority favors tax hike” to fund pensions, I polled approximately 80 people at work as to how much they spend weekly on booze and cigarettes. Not a single person answered close to $85. Where did Butler School Board member Helene Abramowitz obtain her figures?

I have been employed with the same company since 1989. My pension plan was frozen several years ago. My company realized people were living longer — they could not remain profitable if they had to pay pensions to their future retirees.

This is not rocket science, it’s common sense. The school board (and the teacher unions) don’t seem able to figure this out. They continue to raise taxes year after year. They have decreased staff (which negatively affects our kids) and still increase our taxes to fund the pension system.

A better way to fund public schools would be a sales tax. Everyone would be contributing, not just the homeowners. People who spend less (poor and retired) would contribute less. People who spend more would contribute more.