Park after paper?
Lincoln, Old Town, Bucksport and Millinocket all have one thing in common. The paper industry is leaving, and it’s not coming back, no matter what kind of sunshine we want to dream about. Every “legal” form I’ve filled out lately has been a PDF paperless document. That says it all.
The Bangor Daily News reported Oct. 2 that Acadia National Park is straining under an excess of visitors, and all that money from away is looking for a place to go.
I’m not an expert on anything and don’t profess to be, but maybe the time has come to swallow some pride and get behind the national park and recreation area in the Millinocket region.
Call me crazy, but my relatives in Howland, Lincoln and Enfield would appreciate the extra business.
Sam Gath
Winslow
Gun advocates share responsibility
Gun owners are right: Guns are not responsible for the killings of thousands of innocent people, the killers are. But gun rights advocates bear a large part of the responsibility. Their enthusiasm for guns, indifference to the loss of life (like Jeb Bush said, “ Stuff happens”), lack of empathy for grieving families, resistance to gun regulations and gullibility to the National Rifle Association’s advertisements and the cajoleries of politicians are part of the problem..
We need to stop blaming the mentally ill; the vast majority of them, about 4 million in our country, are suffering and peaceful citizens. We need to stop blaming the angry, the loners and the depressed because most of them never hurt anyone.
Gun rights advocates should keep in mind that their enthusiasm for guns and indifference to the pain of others are shared and eagerly adopted by the killers.
For the rest of us who do not own guns, we are scared (or should be) for ourselves and our children.
Robert Gossart
Salisbury Cove
Public funds won’t fix elections
Question 1 on November’s ballot will ask Mainers whether to adopt changes to Maine’s campaign finance and election laws, including increased funds for publicly financed candidates.
I oppose the idea of taxpayer-funded elections because subsidizing an election will not help us get better candidates or improve the process. At a minimum, the candidate needs to be able to speak well, make an argument and be personable in order to earn votes and monetary support. Their success in politics and at the State House depends on this.
With public funding, the electoral process becomes more a matter of packaging and marketing. This means more calls, flyers and ads promoting the ideal image of a candidate who only has to show up and say the right thing. In future the only “voice” the voter will hear is what a marketer or campaign strategist promotes.
We need to address the reality of the problem that confronts us — a large amount of voter apathy, disinterest in the process and a growing lack of faith in the system. I believe this is because there is too much discussion based upon at-large issues. We get packaged solutions, scripted reports and organized demonstrations.
There is a lack of real debate, discussion and consensus for solutions for issues affecting us locally. What we need is something new and increasing or continuing the public funds will hurt, not help.
Sonja Sleeper
South Thomaston
Common-sense gun laws needed
We have seen profound tragedy after shootings in Charleston, South Carolina; Roseberg, Oregon; Newtown, Connecticut; Columbine, Colorado; Blacksburg, Virginia; and Aurora, Colorado, just to name a few.
I urge our leaders to do everything in their power to pass common-sense gun control laws including universal background checks and a ban of high-capacity, rapid-fire weapons and a ban of the sale and possession of large ammunition magazines. In addition, we need more resources for mental health care. It is sorely lacking in our communities in Maine.
I am an ordained minister and have served the United Church of Christ churches in Wilton, Winslow, Kennebunk and Phippsburg. I am part of the Maine Conference UCC, made up of 160 Maine churches, that supported an urgent call to prevent gun violence after the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown. Yet, Congress and our Maine leaders have done nothing.
I write to our leaders as a mother whose daughter was in first grade when the tragedy at Sandy Hook happened. I write as a mother who knows the grief of losing a son. If this trajectory continues, we will have a gun violence tragedy in Maine.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
I urge our leaders not to be silent. I urge them to be courageous and do something.
Rev. Allison C.G. Smith
Harpswell