Question 3 needed

As a person of faith committed to good public policy, I urge my neighbors to support Question 3 to expand criminal background checks for all gun sales in Maine, with exceptions for family. Although we have a tradition of safe and responsible gun ownership, we also have a problem with domestic violence, suicide and gun trafficking.

Background checks are one of the most effective ways to deal with these problems that affect our families and communities, which is why Question 3 has been endorsed by the Maine Chiefs of Police Association, the Maine Medical Association and the Maine Council of Churches.

It is time for public safety and public health policy to be determined by law enforcement and medical professionals, not by gun manufacturers and their apologists. Guns do not have rights — people do. And we all have the right to safety in our own homes and in our neighborhoods.

Passing Question 3 upholds the rights of law-abiding citizens to own guns and for convicted criminals, domestic abusers and the criminally insane to be prohibited from acquiring them. Responsible gun owners, who have successfully passed background checks when they purchase them from a store, know this and support Question 3.

I ask you to do the same and require background checks for internet, classified and parking lot sales in Maine.

Leslie Manning

Bath

Carpenter for Senate

Mike Carpenter is running for Senate District 2, and we encourage you to join us and cast your vote for him. We have long respected and admired Carpenter, perhaps the most qualified candidate running for Senate anywhere in the state of Maine.

Beginning in the 1970s, Carpenter represented Aroostook County by serving two years in the House, then 10 years in the Senate. In the 1990s, the Maine Legislature elected him to the office of Maine attorney general for five years.

Aroostook County will certainly benefit from Carpenter’s vast experience and his lifetime of helping people. Beyond that strong background is a quality of decentness and compassion rarely found in politics today. He has always had a dedication and willingness to work with anyone for the greater good of Maine.

Decades ago, a letter of gratitude was sent to and printed in a local newspaper from an older out-of-state couple who had broken down one Friday evening — during the winter — northbound on I-95 in Aroostook County. They could not remember the name of the man who pulled over to help. They said the man had called the state trooper barracks in Houlton and waited with them until help arrived. What they did remember was that he mentioned he was Maine’s attorney general and he was headed home to Houlton after working all week in Augusta.

The state of Maine needs a senator like Carpenter in Augusta. Vote for him on Nov. 8.

Jim and Megan Gerrisen

Bridgewater

Drug dealers among us

A couple of recent short crime reports in the BDN showed four drug dealers who looked white. Someone should let Gov. Le Page know that these clever pushers, the blacks and Hispanics from out of state, seem to be using skin-lightening creams to avoid detection. This makes them deceptively appear like ordinary, burly, white Maine males. Ladies and girls, watch out.

David P. Frasz

Dover Foxcroft

Trump is worrisome

The discovery that the basis for Trump’s apparent zero tax payments in the last 18 years is a $916 million business loss answers some questions. However, now that Trump says he’s proud of not paying, why hasn’t he released the returns? There is something to hide. Possibilities include profits from dealings of questionable legality — perhaps with Russia.

Given Trump’s readiness to commit the country to military action, should he explain his avoidance of 1A draft status in 1968, at the peak of the Vietnam war?

Of all the misstatements by Mike Pence in the recent vice presidential debate, the events of the last 15 years define the morass in the Middle East as a consequence of the policies (“weapons of mass destruction”?) of George W. Bush and his secretaries of state. The Bush consortium is mainly responsible, not only for the enormous human tragedy in the Middle East, but for the deaths there of more than 6,000 American men and women, and the maiming of more than 25,000 for life.

Would you hire someone to lead your business if this person had no experience? With Trump, the ultimate worry is that his lack of knowledge and inability to listen and learn could lead to misunderstanding and the ultimate fear, a nuclear precipice.

William A. Cramer

Oquossoc

Support for Thibodeau

I know Sen. Mike Thibodeau. He is a friend of mine. I am a registered Democrat and have voted for Republicans Susan Collins, Bill Cohen and Thibodeau. All of these individuals have excellent leadership skills and demonstrate love for the people of Maine and their well-being.

I met Thibodeau approximately seven years ago, when I first started managing the Waldo County Garden Project. He was very interested in how the project was funded and who the beneficiaries of the produce were. In the last seven years, he would stop by the garden often to check on the production and expansion. He is also interested in how widely the produce was distributed in Waldo County. He has seen the expansion increase from 7,000 pounds of produce the first year to 75,000 this year.

Thibodeau has always exhibited a great love for Waldo County and its citizens. His excellent leadership in the Senate has been very beneficial to Waldo County and its citizens. He has done a tremendous amount of work to keep the jail budget under control. He has also demonstrated how his exceptionally long arms have reached out to the other side and formed many partnerships with all interested parties.

With some “not so well chosen” words by our governor, it makes it difficult for some Republican candidates in the upcoming election. However, Thibodeau is an extremely dedicated public servant who has served the Waldo County and its citizens well. He is a great benefit to the county’s citizens in his present position, and I’d like to see him continue.

I hope you will join me in supporting and casting a vote for Thibodeau in November.

William Shorey

Searsport