Letters

Published
August 22, 2014

Letter to the editor: Put old mills, abundant solar power to good use

I now spend half the year in Florida and the rest on Colcord Pond in the town of Porter, Maine. Porter and other small towns around it are all depressed economically, and so is the rest of the state of Maine, which spends millions educating its young people only to see them move elsewhere to work […]
Published
August 22, 2014

Letter to the editor: Leave the milkweed pods to feed monarch butterflies

I am sure the recipe for sauteed milkweed pods printed in the Aug. 10 paper is tasty, but since milkweed is the only food source for monarch butterfly caterpillars, I will not be trying it (“Sauteed milkweed pods: A recipe to delight the forager”). We have planted milkweed at the behest of Audubon because of […]
Published
August 22, 2014

Letter to the editor: May coverage of Robin Williams’ suicide help to end stigma of mental illness

When I heard the news of Robin Williams’ suicide, I felt very sad. I was ready for the media and society to blame him for his death. Instead, I hear themes such as he was a man who was killed by an illness. He gave so much to this world, so much happiness and humor, […]
Published
August 22, 2014

Letter to the editor: Bear baiting unfair, unsportsmanlike

Think about our own Maine woods. Here, it’s still legal to bait, hound, and trap our bears. We’re the only state to still allow all three. As The Lion King song describes, animals die so that others may live – a cycle of birth, death, and predation. This thinking about death makes it easier to […]
Published
August 22, 2014

Letter to the editor: Support Gov. Percival’s Baxter’s view that bear baiting is a ‘disgrace’

Here’s what Gov. Percival Baxter said in his farewell speech to the people of Maine on Jan. 7, 1925: “Bear baiting, live pigeon shooting and dog and cock fighting and similar exhibitions until comparatively recently were recognized as ‘gentlemanly sports.’ Today they have passed into well merited disgrace.” An early advocate for the humane treatment […]

Published
August 22, 2014

Letter to the editor: There’s nothing ‘natural’ about bear baiting

Growing up in Aroostook County shaped my unwavering work ethic, respect for community and family and passion for stewardship of the natural environment and creatures in it. Being from “The County” made me care about things in a way people “from away” don’t quite understand. I grew up with hunters – hard workers, respectful people, […]
Published
August 21, 2014

Letter to the editor: Planned Parenthood PAC an affront to agency supporter

A recent news article announced that a Planned Parenthood political action committee would be contributing a record $500,000 to Rep. Mike Michaud’s gubernatorial campaign and the campaigns of other pro-choice candidates (“Planned Parenthood PAC pledges over $500K in Maine campaign spending,” Aug. 14). I am very much a supporter of Planned Parenthood and reproductive rights, […]
Published
August 21, 2014

Letter to the editor: Think of the help that was received by our immigrant ancestors

As a mother, my heart goes out to the children and parents trying to cross the southern border of the U.S. to escape many problems in their homeland in Central America. I wonder what our ancestors would have done if the Indians had not helped them survive by showing them how to live in this […]
Published
August 21, 2014

Letter to the editor: Subsidize low wages instead of providing tax credits

John Ross makes a valid point in his Aug. 13 letter (“Consider supplementing low wages with assistance money”) in recommending that local, state and federal assistance should be used “to supplement the low wages paid for entry-level or lower-skilled jobs.” Toward this end, we should consider eliminating the federal Earned Income Tax Credit program and […]
Published
August 21, 2014

Letter to the editor: Sen. Jeffords served for the greatest number

As someone who was a professor at a college in Vermont at the time of James Jeffords’ service in the U.S. Senate, I cannot let it be forgotten how well the Vermont senator served the people of this entire nation by taking all due cognizance of something that has had a disastrous effect upon its […]

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Letters