According to the article in the newspaper on March 23, an example of the soon-to-be-issued license displays a large moose as visible and perhaps a better photo than the actual bearer of the license.
It isn’t a mystery as to how this came about. Matt Dunlap, our former secretary of state, designed it. We live in a time when security is imperative. That is all well and good, but we need to be considerate of the people whose loved ones have died or been seriously injured when their vehicles collided with moose.
We should stop glamorizing these beasts just to promote tourism; it hurts too many decent people. It also seems to put little value on people, but a whole lot of value on the moose.
If I could ask Dunlap one question it would be: If his daughter or son was killed in a collision with a moose would he have still designed the new license with a moose?
This is a sensitive topic for me, and I’m sure other families in Maine that have lost someone close to them. An average of two to three deaths occur annually, although there are about 700 accidents a year involving moose.
My daughter Mallary Dulac died June 13, 2002, after her vehicle collided with a moose, and now someone wants me to put a picture of a moose beside my picture.
I have a suggestion for change: Use a map of Maine with a red dot signifying each collision. The state map would be covered with red dots, though, probably not good for tourism.
Meanwhile, I wish Dunlap good luck with his new position with the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine.
Ernest Dulac
Augusta
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