The Verso Grinch
Christmas is nearly here, but in Bucksport it feels like it has already passed. Town officials are determined to elevate the holiday spirits by adding more Christmas lights and more decorations around town. The cheer, however, is nowhere to be found and for good reason. Verso Paper, a corporate tyrant, has decided after closing its doors that it will rob the hard-working employees of the Verso mill in Bucksport from a well-deserved severance package. Verso plans to dismantle the mill before its 85th birthday by selling it to a scrap metal company. This not only affects the workers but our whole community and neighboring communities.
Most of us have enjoyed Christmas movies, such as “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas” or “Scrooge,” but I never expected to watch my neighbors in Bucksport and the surrounding towns experience a similar event. I wish there was a Cindy Lou Who or a Tiny Tim to melt the icy heart of Verso and convince the company to at the very least send its employees a check to get them through to new employment and say thank you for years of service. I wish that Verso looks for a reputable company that can work to keep the doors open in the mill like their predecessors have done before them.
These are all wishes, hopes and miracles, and they do not fill empty mailboxes with severance checks. I hope Maine officials continue to fight this crooked corporation and to all that have been affected, our thoughts are with you all this holiday season.
Travis Hutchinson
Bucksport
Hickox’s missed opportunity
Kaci Hickox is among several Ebola fighters named “Person of the Year” by Time magazine. As a nursing student, I find her courage to assist in eradicating this deadly disease quite worthy of the honor. I, however, remain troubled by the circumstances surrounding her return to the U.S. and my home state of Maine.
Hickox missed an incredible opportunity to teach us about a deadly disease of which she has experienced first-hand. Ebola left many Americans feeling vulnerable. Hickox left many Mainers feeling exposed. She brought a great deal of media attention to our state and our people, many of whom expressed the same concerns that millions across the country would have if she had settled in their state. We were portrayed as ignorant, but we had questions. She appeared to have a great deal of knowledge, but it was masked by attitude.
I didn’t care to hear about how it was her right to ride a bicycle down a rural dirt road; I wanted to know how she managed to effectively protect herself and others against a deadly virus. If she had treated all of us as patients under her care, concerned citizens who were eager to become informed participants, allies in the fight against a deadly disease, she would have been met with less hostility and more hospitality. She could have encouraged more of our young people to aspire to be nurses.
Meghan MacDonald
Bangor
No honor in weakness
Regarding the recently released report on CIA torture, I am deeply disturbed that this act of treason has occurred. Surely our war dead may be turning in their graves as they see their country disregard all they fought for to ensure our country remains free and that fellow Americans and allies are kept safe by the use of enhanced interrogation techniques that keep us steps ahead of our enemies and protect lives.
We are a free country because we will fight. We fight to win no matter what means we must use. Winning is everything. We must not lose.
There are no high crimes here. The report is seriously flawed and rife with untruths. I believe it was released by the Democrats as a political ploy, a crash and burn and smash windows on their way out of power in Congress. They were handily defeated at the polls, and though the majority of Americans spoke loud and clear, Washington refuses to hear the message.
The people responsible for the use of enhanced interrogation techniques are heros. The criminals are those who would prevent us from victory over our enemies by exhibiting weakness and holier-than-thou attitudes. There is no honor and integrity in being a weak sister in the face of enemies who would sever your heads.
Howard Cutler
Dixmont