I’m a Vietnam-era veteran who served in the U.S. Navy in the Gulf of Tonkin and returned home to Maine in 1972 after my service. Yesterday, I went to my town hall and changed my party affiliation from “unenrolled” to the Democratic Party. I wanted to make sure I could vote in the Democratic primary […]
Letters to the Editor
Letters to the editor of the Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel.
Everyone deserves to be protected from sexual violence | Letter
This April, we commemorate the 25th Sexual Assault Awareness Month Campaign. In recent years, we collectively bore witness to testimony from Chanel Miller, Tarana Burke, Christine Blasey Ford, Gisèle Pelicot and millions of individual #MeToos. Public disclosures invite us to deepen our empathy, capacity for care and commitment to prevention. Unfortunately, too many are refusing this opportunity to listen and change. My heart […]
Wabanaki column was wrongly focused on the past | Letter
Steve Collins’ April 6 column worries about a 1690 raid at Laurel Hill, while calling for more “tribal sovereignty” for Maine’s Wabanaki tribes (“To overcome the sins of the past, Maine needs to support Wabanaki rights”). Fair enough to talk about the violence, but cherry-picking facts doesn’t tell the full story. Pre-colonial North America wasn’t […]
Cut down on birdseed, cut down on ticks | Letter
Tempting as it is to serve a spring banquet, let the birds do their job.
Stop making generalizations about Maine’s Somalis | Letter
Ivan Boesky, Bernie Madoff and Lou Pearlman are convicted fraudsters who stole millions from innocent investors and clients. Does this mean all Jewish men are thieves and hucksters? Al Capone, Lucky Luciano and John Gotti were mob bosses. Does this mean all Italians are mafiosi? Liam O’Flaherty, Brendan Behan and Shane McGowan were alcoholics. Does […]
On guns, voting and the SAVE Act | Letter
I read with interest “Absurdities of the SAVE America Act are offered in bad faith,” March 25, which enumerated the dissimilarities between the license to vote and car or gun ownership. The piece correctly pointed out the potential dangers of cars and guns and the skill required for proper use, if not ownership, thereof. I […]
Graham Platner will bring the Democrats back to the working class | Letter
I’m a volunteer for the Graham Platner campaign for U.S. Senate because I believe that Graham has what it takes to bring the Democratic Party back to its working-class roots. He wants to take down the billionaire economy and replace it with one that works for the majority of Americans. Graham is out there listening […]
Open questions on war with Iran | Letter
There are a lot of things I don’t know. I don’t know why Donald Trump is unbothered by the fact that Russia provides Iran with satellite intelligence that allows Iran to target U.S. assets in the Middle East, like the recent destruction of a plane on the ground at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi […]
Susan Collins has not earned the right to continue representing Maine | Letter
President Trump’s Easter obscenity-laced rant and threat to “bomb the hell” out of Iran’s civilian power grid, since we are not at a declared war with Iran, most certainly gestures at a terrorist act and a crime against humanity. This tantrum, coming from any adult, would be unacceptable. For it to come from the mouth […]
I’m homeless, not hopeless | Letter
My partner Adam and I have, throughout our nearly two years together, faced incredible adversity. We’re homeless. Situations where some people may have, given up or succumbed to depression and become destitute. However, through our love for each other and our companionship, a healthy level of individual self-respect, our spirituality and the occasional kindness of others, we […]