Behold, the monster hath arisen to stalk the polls on Nov. 5. And, once again, the voters of Durham threw him into the fire. The vote? Yes, 467, and no, 828, for the high school renovation; and yes, 327, and no, 966, for the artificial turf sports field. Hmm. I thought they went to school to learn, and not muck about in Spandex chasing a ball over a cow pasture. Pownal did the correct thing (even if the town fathers were “convinced” that the new school is a good idea), yes, 218, and no, 395. The turf field? Yes, 109, and no, 505 (615 ballots cast).
Now turn to the total vote: Yes, 2,324; No, 2,252 – or 72 votes difference (sources, town websites). Even with a well-financed yes campaign, it just passed. I noted all the fancy, well-printed “yes” signs here and there. And I noted the “no” signs painted on plywood scraps, plank ends, and even one “yes” sign painted over to “no.” So with all that money spent, they would just buy the vote.
Sadly, I was proven a prophet. I wrote an earlier letter to the editor in which I stated, “They will get the school, and we will get stuck paying for two-thirds of the bills.” Even with “Boss Tweed” and “Gerrymander,” they could just pull off a win.
And the townsfolk (the peasant class, of course) wants out of RSU 5. And I agree. Is there some bright, shining, clever mind out there in voter-land that can devise a method to give RSU 5 the heave-ho and be done with this Frankenstein’s monster that is RSU 5? Some have said the Durham School is RSU property. I say, “Nationalize it.” We have the building on Durham soil. Some say, if Freeport leaves RSU 5, the bond won’t be used. Do not think it so. No politician, with that much money before his (or her) eyes, will pass on the chance to seize it on another pretext.
In sum and in final: The vote is not a majority of any of the three towns, most especially Durham and Pownal. What do we do to keep from being stuck paying for something we voted against? We were given the vote to choose our course, and we chose no. To invalidate the voice of the town is not democracy, it is tyranny.
Citizens arise. Who has an idea to stop the course of the Frankenstein monster that will not seem to die?
Charles Anthony
Durham
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