Turkey politics
I would like to bring attention to the election for the House of Representatives in Ellsworth, Trenton and Otis. My choice is Brian Langley, a local businessman, Boy Scout troop leader and former culinary instructor at the Hancock County Technical School at Boggy Brook.
I had the good fortune of being introduced to Brian when help was being sought for the annual pre-Thanksgiving dinner for the elderly at the VFW Post. The number attending was growing each year and our facilities were not large enough to prepare all the food. Brian graciously volunteered his facility and his students to prepare the 350 pounds of turkey for the meal. The students took to the task with gusto and a fantastic output resulted.
Thanks to Brian, we at the VFW are able to continue our community service project which is still going strong with help provided by the school. Brian and his students are a credit to the community and with the effort and dedication he shows, I know he will do the same if he is elected our representative.
Bernie Ryan
Ellsworth
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Tricking voters
Tom Allen must be getting desperate. He’s resorting to trying to trick Maine voters into believing that Sen. Collins doesn’t care about waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayers dollars. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Ever since she was elected Sen. Collins has worked hard to ensure that money was being spent wisely. She has held hearings exposing fraud and waste. What has Tom Allen done in this area? That’s right, nothing.
Duane Wardwell
Stetson
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Banking customers
Regarding the BDN’s article (Sept. 6-7) concerning Bangor Savings Bank’s decision to discontinue auto financing: I purchased a used vehicle five years ago from a local dealer and received “on-the-spot” financing through Bangor Savings Bank.
Yellow Light Breen states that the bank has almost no success in turning these auto loan customers into true banking customers. For the life of me I cannot remember ever getting any kind of offer or letter from the bank, asking about my additional banking needs. Didn’t banks used to offer a new toaster if you opened a new account?
Perhaps Yellow Light Breen should to turn on the Green Light in the Marketing Department. Reporter Kevin Miller could have asked a few auto loan customers why they choose not to do their regular banking with Bangor Savings to better round out the story.
With cold winter weather coming, perhaps the bank could send out some coupons for an electric blanket for opening a new account.
They can put mine in with the late notice.
Tom Collins
Bangor
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‘Irresponsible’ choice
John McCain is trying to reinforce his well-honed image as a selfless patriot whose only goal is to serve his country. The theme is fraying around the edges, however, with the admission in a recent memoir that in 2000 he ran for the presidency purely out of personal ambition, and especially with his reckless choice of Sarah Palin as running mate — arguably the most irresponsible nomination in U.S. history. Does anyone really think that Gov. Palin is presidential material? Is a cynical political move really putting country first?
What Gov. Palin provides is raw meat for social conservatives and an echo chamber for the Republican drumbeat for military force as a universal answer. Here is a person, after all, who evidently takes great pride in likening herself to a pit bull. Just what we need to amplify Sen. McCain’s inclination to bomb Iran, President Bush’s call to go on the offense, and Sen. Lieberman’s dream of a United States that invokes fear around the world.
Haven’t we had enough of war and warmongering? If making war ever was an answer, surely it has become obsolete. The world is running out of oil, fresh water, and other key resources, and we will need more and more to cooperate with other nations, not lay plans to obliterate them.
Barack Obama and Joe Biden represent hope for the country and for a world that still sees America as a model. The McCain-Palin ticket promises more of the same. Who really puts country first?
Kent Price
Orland
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Thanks for the laugh
Today is the first day recently that I laughed my butt off. I went into town to get a paper and coffee. While I was in line, I started reading the story (BDN, Sept. 3) about the kidnapped gorilla. I haven’t laughed so hard and so long out loud for a long time.
Right away, people ahead of me in line asked if I was laughing about the kidnapped gorilla. I said yes, and kept on laughing.
I recently returned from Virginia. My father died June 5 and was just interred at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. I miss him very, very much and this story about the gorilla made me feel human again. Sept. 4 would have been my father’s 91st birthday.
Neal Sawick
Machias
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Admires Pam McLain
The greatest gift a woman can receive is having a child. The worst is to lose one.
When I lost my daughter at 42, I actually felt blood coming from my heart, but she at least had experienced love, working, making a lot of friends, happiness, joy, getting married.
Joyce McLain never can. Her life was cut short by a quick act of lust, selfishness and fright at what started out as fooling around.
Perhaps this person has married, and has daughters of his own. Does he look at them and think ‘My God what did I do?’ He must have talked to someone. Where are his parents? Wasn’t their some sign?
I remember when Joyce was killed. Names were circulated. Those doing the investigating were criticized. A cover-up?
I admire Pam McLain for keeping this open. A sad but wonderful mother who had the drive to keep working to find closure.
Bertha Walsh
Millinocket
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On John Pike Grady
Having enjoyed John Pike Grady’s friendship for 40 years, I would like to add a few words to the feature article and obituary which appeared about this remarkable Eastport resident in the Bangor Daily News on Sept. 5.
John was a staunch advocate for the history and culture of the state of Maine and especially for his beloved Washington County. At the state level, he testified at many legislative hearings on behalf of cultural issues and was active in the Maine League of Historical Societies and Museums and Maine Preservation. He spoke convincingly of the need for closer cooperation between historical groups in Maine and the Maritime Provinces and personally fostered those ties. Closer to home, John was a mainstay of the Sunrise Research Institute in Whitneyville as well as the Border Historical Society and the Tides Institute in Eastport.
On a personal level, John was a fascinating conversationalist whose lively mind looked creatively to the future while at the same time revered the past. One of my cherished memories of John was his account of his grandfather taking him as a 10-year-old in 1936 to meet President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was inspecting the model of the Passamaquoddy Tidal Power Project.
Earle G. Shettleworth, Jr.
Augusta