In his reply to my letter published two weeks ago, Joseph Arpaio asserts that I am ignorant of town issues because “Landau in his letter said that Fountain Hills does not have property taxes.” As always, he twists truth and context to suit his own purpose.

What I actually wrote is that “The Town of Fountain Hills has no property tax, so there is nothing to reduce.” Right on every homeowner’s property tax statement from the county assessor, in bold lettering appears: No City Taxes. There are other property taxes in Fountain Hills, but Arpaio seeks to be mayor, an office that has no bearing on any of those school taxes, library taxes, county taxes, sanitary district taxes, etc.

Arpaio seeks to head the Town government, which I reiterate does not levy a primary property tax. Meanwhile, with none at all, we struggle to maintain roads and other basic public necessities. Our county, school and special district taxes are in line with those of other jurisdictions – but the mayor still has nothing whatsoever to do with them.

So it is he, not I, who as he wrote “is ignorant of town issues.” People in glass houses…

Be mindful also that in an interview some 15 years ago, an East Valley Tribune reporter asked why, then at age 75, he persisted in seeking reelection rather than retirement. The answer, “You think I don’t know that when I leave here, I’m a nothing?” Somehow he avoided the psych eval which that response should have triggered. As I wrote in my “Name in Lights” letter two weeks ago, for him it’s all about and only about his ego. That’s how it was in 2007. It hasn’t changed a bit now that he’s about to turn 90.