Some folks were scandalized by the $1.6 million of taxpayer money that the mayoral candidate Gifford Miller, as City Council speaker, spent on campaign literature disguised as government filings. The real scandal was that it was spent on junk mail.

Earth to candidates! No one reads campaign mailings. They go straight to the circular file, because no one believes any of the promises and claims of anyone running for office in this town. Indeed, very few residents ever read those end-of-year newsletters from their representatives, which are supposed to enlighten us on what they are accomplishing on our behalf.

Save the trees. Stop these mailings.

Besides, most voters get their information about candidates from the newspapers, the Internet, and some television advertising. Of course, there’s always the possibility that I could be mistaken, so I pledged to rescue the next campaign mail from the wastebasket and scrutinize it. Lo and behold, it was from the campaign to re-elect Mayor Bloomberg. “Promises made, promises kept,” the mailer reads. According to Mr. Bloomberg, his promises to improve education, lower crime, and open doors to affordable housing opportunities have been kept.

The campaign brochure notes Bloomberg achievements that seem impressive but prompt further questions. For instance, it claims,”62,000 new jobs have been created.” What kind of jobs, I wonder. Are they private-sector jobs? In which case, how can the mayor claim credit for them? If they are city jobs, then his administration hasn’t cut spending but increased it. Another claim in the brochure is that he has delivered a $400 tax rebate to homeowners. I did get one $400 check, but I’ve been paying an extra $250 every month since his outrageous increase in property taxes took effect, and so far, the mayor hasn’t suggested a rollback of that punitive hike. As for improvement in the city’s economy, many leading economists have credited the president’s tax cuts for spurring the market revival.

But it doesn’t make any difference what the brochure says. Who’ll read it?

After my column on Republicans against Bloomberg appeared, I received two interesting calls on my office voicemail. Both callers neglected to leave their names, so I couldn’t call them back.

One call was from a man, who spoke until the tape ran out, criticizing Mr. Bloomberg with statements that I found thought-provoking. Much, he said, is made about Mr. Bloomberg’s philanthropy when in actuality he’s divvying up the most valuable parcels of city land to make billions for his friends. The caller charged that the mayor appeals to the interests of sports-loving constituents but really couldn’t care less about sports. Thus, Mr. Bloomberg has managed to grant Atlantic Yards to his friend Bruce Ratner, who is poised to make billions building expensive condominiums on the land surrounding the proposed Nets arena. Mr. Bloomberg tried to grab valuable land on the West Side for the Jets’ stadium and is eyeing Willets Point in Queens for a new Mets stadium. Olympics, football, baseball, my eye! It’s all about making billions. Meanwhile, developers who are not cozy with the mayor – the actor Danny Aiello and the principals of Stapleton Studios – had their Staten Island project quashed by the city’s Economic Development Corporation in spite of tremendous community support for it.

The other call was from a woman who said she was a pro-lifer and wanted to know why I denounced Mr. Bloomberg for favoring abortion rights when I had supported Mayor Giuliani and Governor Pataki, who also are pro-choice.

Yes, I did support those two men. In 1993, my husband voted on principle for George Marlin, a true conservative and a great man, while I was a pragmatist who knew that Mr. Giuliani had a better chance to beat Mayor Dinkins. But while Mr. Giuliani is pro-choice, his successor’s actions can be described only as pro-abortion. Mr. Bloomberg is beholden to advocates such as Planned Parenthood and NARAL. His administration gave $32 million through that same Economic Development Corporation to improve the headquarters of Planned Parenthood. Barely months into office, he ordered mandatory abortion training at the city’s public hospitals. So it’s no wonder that NARAL – what is now called NARAL Pro-Choice America was established as the National Abortion Rights Action League – endorsed Mr. Bloomberg’s re-election and he said he proudly accepted its support.

I know that the mayor’s Republican challenger, Thomas Ognibene, can’t afford $1.6 million in campaign mail. He also can’t afford to fight Mr. Bloomberg’s efforts to keep him out of the GOP primary. Thanks to the Conservative Party leader, Michael Long, he’ll be on that party’s line, and this time around, I’ll have the opportunity to vote on principle.