Dear Editor:
In the October 22, 2000 issue of the Union City Reporter, in the midst of a recall movement by Brian Stack to unseat then Menendez hand-picked Mayor Rudy Garcia, I referred to the Honorable Brian P. Stack as flashy, tawdry and gaudy and portrayed him as an opportunistic double-crosser who had succumbed to the evil wiles of that round, little fellow and former Union City Mayor Menendez in order to unseat Garcia.
Oh, how I regret ever having written that! It is said that “to err is human.” The colossal injudicious mistake that I made was malicious and inhuman!
The pleasant, innocent, truthful and loyal Brian Stack I had always known and erroneously thought had turned into a villain is still charming, cautiously innocent, sincere, faithful and patriotic. That he is loyal to himself is venerable and speaks of his noble character; but, on a much broader scale, that he is faithful, loving and loyal to Union City and its residents speaks not only of nobility but of altruism, dedication and something very rare in men of politics: Devotion and selflessness!
Had Brian been malevolent and vindictive, I should have been singled out by his triumphal entry into the Mayoralty to be one of the first recipients of castigating retribution. Yet, I was the first recipient of his love, tremendous compassion and continue to receive his ceaseless interest and efforts in helping me to combat the debilitating and incapacitating disease of Alcoholism from which I suffer. Rarely, do consecutive days elapse without him calling me to inquire about my health and to ask what he can do for me. Thus far, what he has done for me has no equal in humanness.
His Mayoralty is his alone! With input from his fellow Commissioners and the residents of Union City, the final decisions are his! No one dictates to Brian not even that unjolly, fat little guy from D.C., has powers of unholy persuasion over Mayor Stack. He has a power that the people crowned him with and he guards that power zealously because he knows it is a gift from the people who elected him and he uses that power only in the interests of Union City and its residents.
Brian, I know I need not ask you for forgiveness in having unjustly judged you – I have had your forgiveness all along!
May G-d Bless you and your loved ones and fill your administration with one success after another.
Orlando Belleber-Betancourt