Letters

• letter to the editor

  Legion breakfasts start June 14

  Mon, 06/01/2020 - 3:30pm

  Dear Editor: I am excited to announce that American Legion Post 36 will once again be serving breakfast from 7 to 9 a.m., Sunday, June 14, National Flag Day! The members of our breakfast team have reviewed all the requirements provided in the Governor’s Executive Order and are prepared to serve the public in a safe and compliant manner. Everyone entering the Hall will be asked to wear a face mask. If you don’t have one, we will be selling a packet which includes a face mask and two raffle...
• letter to the editor

  Let’s hear it for the masks

  Mon, 06/01/2020 - 3:30pm

  Dear Editor: It is wonderful to see so many of the businesses on the Boothbay peninsula mandating the wearing of masks in order to shop. Thank you! It is out of respect and concern for others that one always wears a mask. As the summer goes on I hope everyone will continue to wear masks and, of course, to remember to social distance. Enjoy the summer and be safe. Kathleen Marty Trevett
• letter to the editor

  Reparations now

  Mon, 06/01/2020 - 3:15pm

  Dear Editor: George Floyd’s death demands national confrontation of our historic, ingrained racism. Reparations are fundamental towards atonement. Not in cash. Not with privilege. But with equal, unfettered access: To health care. To higher public education. To the ballot. To our justice system. These are four critical tools of a modern, 21st century democratic society. Equal access would benefit not just ethnic and racial minorities but all Americans striving for the American dream. “...
• letter to the editor

  Thank you local heroes

  Mon, 06/01/2020 - 2:45pm

  Dear Editor: When a red squirrel electrocuted itself recently, falling to the ground from a utility pole with sparks, our field caught fire and the morning breeze sent smoke and flames toward our house. Within a couple minutes of our 9-1-1 call, members of Boothbay Fire Department were at the scene, directing the trucks to our yard with two-way radios. When they arrived, the flames were extinguished by jets from two high-pressure hoses. BFD personnel stayed on site for quite a while, making...
• letter to the editor

  Thanks for wearing masks

  Tue, 05/26/2020 - 7:45am

  Dear Editor: As one who falls into two high risk categories, I want to say thank you to those who have been willing to put others ahead of themselves by wearing face masks and maintaining a six-foot distance. In doing so you are acknowledging that we are all in this together and that you unselfishly are willing to be patient and put other’s health ahead of your own convenience and, in many cases, your economic well-being. Thank you. For me, this is not about politics. Sadly, for many it seems...
• letter to the editor

  Say it ain’t so, Susan

  Mon, 05/25/2020 - 4:45pm

  Dear Editor: She’s done it again — voted to enable Trump’s subversion of the executive branch. In the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing for John Ratcliffe, Susan Collins pitched him a softball question, then voted to send his name along for confirmation as Director of National Intelligence. T rump’ s water boy in the House and member of his impeachment defense team had to withdraw his name from consideration for this post a year ago, when even Republican senators complained about his...
• letter to the editor

  Why locked down Maine needs to go bankrupt now

  Mon, 05/25/2020 - 4:30pm

  Dear Editor: Not the people and their cherished businesses, mind you, but blue state governments themselves, including Maine. Separate the two, and you get it. Blue state budgets continue to be hopelessly illiquid pyramid schemes, despite a booming national economy with 3% unemployment before the lockdown, thanks to ever-expanding spending on free education, free healthcare, free welfare/Medicaid, free and exorbitant public sector salaries and pensions, and a host of other free stuff. What is...
• letter to the editor

  Fear and panic

  Mon, 05/25/2020 - 4:15pm

  Dear Editor: How is it that money creates greater fear and panic than the high death rate we count daily? Has everyone forgotten that deaths due to the pandemic virus also are deaths of workers who helped the wealthy gain more wealth? Has everyone ignored that if deaths are higher with every announcement, while money is lower and lower on the scale of our future as people of worth in a country whose 1787 preamble begins with “By the people and for the people?” How do we define people in the USA...
• letter to the editor

  Voting for Maxmin in November

  Mon, 05/25/2020 - 4:00pm

  Dear Editor: I look forward to voting on Nov. 3 for Chloe Maxmin to represent me in State Senate District 13 because, like me, she is an avid environmentalist. I was also a member of environmental advocacy groups in college; and upon graduation came back, bringing home the lessons I learned and the experience I gained from working with peers who have new and different perspectives. I feel so lucky to have a candidate I’m this excited about. I met Chloe in January at a campaign potluck, and I...
• letter to the editor

  Killing Maine businesses

  Mon, 05/25/2020 - 3:15pm

  Dear Editor: Why is this governor stepping on her own air hose? By killing Maine businesses, she is destroying her funding source for all the phony egalitarian programs that have already bankrupted the state. Quarantine restrictions slated for this summer will have the effect of forcing her to resign. It may be time to sharpen the scythes and pitch forks, light the torches and prepare to march. Dave Gregg Southport
• letter to the editor

  Glad it’s not a shooting war

  Mon, 05/25/2020 - 3:00pm

  Dear Editor: Donald Trump considers himself a wartime president. Let us all be thankful that the war against COVID-19 is not a shooting war. If it were, we would be in worse shape than we are now. The commanders in the field would not have enough ammunition, just as our governors do not have enough testing supplies. Those testing supplies are the ammunition needed to fight the war against COVID-19. When the governors were told they had to secure their own testing supplies, the governor of...
• letter to the editor

  Thank you for birthday parade

  Mon, 05/25/2020 - 2:45pm

  Dear Editor: Thank you to all my friends who wished me a Happy 98th birthday. We live in such a wonderful town. Where else but in this wonderful town could this happen? I love all of you. There were many tears in my eyes and I had a wonderful night’s sleep. I’m so lucky to live here Thanks again! You’re the greatest. I wonder what the next one will be like? John Druce Boothbay Harbor
• letter to the editor

  Memorial Day 2020

  Mon, 05/18/2020 - 5:30pm

  Dear Editor: This year’s Memorial Day will be like no other, at least in my lifetime. The fact remains we need to support our veterans more than ever. To all my veteran friends, and those whom I have not met, be well, stay strong and thank you for your service. May God bless you all and God bless America. Munro Dodge East Boothbay
• letter to the editor

  We need each other now

  Mon, 05/18/2020 - 4:45pm

  Dear Editor: In speaking with a local business owner, they can’t open next year if they don’t have a good July and August. As the harbor reopens, there has been chatter about things returning to “normal.” In investing, I deal with probabilities daily, and question the probability of things returning to normal soon, and what this means for our local businesses. Currently, restaurants are restricted by social distancing requirements. People want to go out, but many are still cautious. For an idea...
• letter to the editor

  Numbers mean so much

  Mon, 05/18/2020 - 4:30pm

  Dear Editor: Last week an executive director of LincolnHealth stopped by the Thrift Store, just to say hello and to congratulate us on the reopening of the shop, with guidelines being observed.. The conversation about numbers and that there is so much bad, terrifying news out there took place. Television, printed material and every day conversions. News flash: he had these numbers to talk about. Note it was a week ago. Nevertheless, fantastic numbers regarding the following: St. Andrews Campus...
• letter to the editor

  Strike four

  Mon, 05/18/2020 - 4:15pm

  Dear Editor: The following 2017-18 vs. 2019-20 coronavirus comparison is easily calculated from “Pneumonia and Influenza Mortality Surveillance from the National Center for Health Statistics Mortality Surveillance System.” 2017-18: avg. total deaths during non-flu weeks- 55,866/wk; avg. total deaths during peak-flu weeks- 64,105/wk; total deaths the first week after burn-off- 59,779 2019-20: avg. total deaths during non-flu weeks- 56,592/wk; avg. total deaths during peak-flu weeks- 66,163/wk...
• letter to the editor

  Potential Darwin Award nominees

  Mon, 05/18/2020 - 4:00pm

  Dear Editor: There is an ancient proverb that states “In everything the prudent acts with knowledge, but a fool flaunts his folly.” It is in this flaunting that those who, amid this coronavirus pandemic ignore the advice of the experts, I would like to nominate for the Darwin Awards. According to their website, ”The Darwin Awards salute the improvement of the human genome by honoring those who accidentally remove themselves from it in a spectacular manner!” One might quibble that the potential...
• letter to the editor

  Voting for Maxmin

  Mon, 05/18/2020 - 3:15pm

  Dear Editor: I am thrilled to be able to vote for Chloe Maxmin on Nov. 3 (running for State Senate District 13), someone who is devoted to serving her constituents. I received a call from one of her volunteers to check up on me during this pandemic and to offer help, if needed. How timely and kind and neighborly and unexpected! How old-fashioned! But isn't that exactly what should happen? For a young person to be concerned about senior citizens' needs is especially admirable. But more...
• letter to the editor

  Mitchell column: Just what the doctor ordered

  Mon, 05/18/2020 - 3:00pm

  Dear Editor: When receiving my Boothbay Register, I turn first to see what photographs and stories Robert Mitchell has for us. His column in the April 9 edition was so very funny. I have saved it to share with friends. Thank you, Mitch! Just what the doctor ordered in these times of stress. Anne Pennoyer Newcomb Naples, Florida
• letter to the editor

  Scammed

  Mon, 05/18/2020 - 2:45pm

  Dear Editor: I just want to share with you that I fell for a Medicare scam the other day which seems to have been set up very professionally, low key and polite. The woman even gave me a name, badge number and a telephone number to call and verify that the call was legitimate. I actually gave them my Medicare number, which now I understand they could use to file fraudulent claims. I notified the police and Medicare. I hope this will prevent someone from doing what I unfortunately did. The phone...
• letter to the editor

  Three doors

  Mon, 05/18/2020 - 2:30pm

  Dear Editor: We’re being sold a false choice of only two doors out of this pandemic morass: (1) full stay-at-home and economic shut-down with thousands of lives saved and the economy in a coma; or (2) Full economic re-opening without any precautions or actions to protect the population, and even more hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths. There is a third door that is not being offered because considering and implementing it reveals the lack of testing, which is the greatest failure and...
• letter to the editor

  Volunteering with Chloe

  Mon, 05/11/2020 - 4:15pm

  Dear Editor: Since late March I have been privileged to volunteer with Chloe Maxmin, candidate for State Senate in District 13 (all of Lincoln County plus Washington and Windsor). When the coronavirus crisis hit, instead of politicking, Chloe thought it more important to call every senior in the district to make sure they’re OK and to offer whatever help they might need. We volunteers with Chloe have made some 11,000 calls and have talked with nearly 4,000 people. Thankfully, most folks are OK...
• letter to the editor

  It’s time for life to return

  Mon, 05/11/2020 - 4:00pm

  Dear Editor: We originally stayed home because it was new, unknown and scary. We collectively agreed to be diligent so our hospitals did not become overwhelmed. After being steadfast for 60 days, and based on these factual numbers I gathered, I am choosing to go about and live freely again. Yes, some citizens are still and will always be high-risk and they have to decide how to navigate their choices, likely for years. I urge individuals, businesses, event organizers and elected officials to...
• letter to the editor

  Conundrum

  Mon, 05/11/2020 - 3:45pm

  Dear Editor: Buying food is essential but working to earn money to pay for it is not. How is this supposed to work? Go figure. Edward J. Polewarczyk Wiscasset
• letter to the editor

  Heckuva job, Blondie!

  Mon, 05/11/2020 - 3:30pm

  Dear Editor: Rewind to September 2005. New Orleans and surrounding Gulf Coast communities are a shambles, with over 1,800 Americans dead and $125 billion in damage. On national TV, George W. Bush praises his Arabian-horse-breeding expert and FEMA director, Michael Brown, telling him, “Brownie, you’re doing a heckuva job!” Ten days later, Brownie resigns his government sinecure in disgrace. Fast forward to May 2020. The United States leads the world in confirmed COVID-19 cases (1,283,929) and...
• letter to the editor

  Gratitude from Meals on Wheels

  Mon, 05/11/2020 - 3:15pm

  Dear Editor: Boothbay Region Meals on Wheels would like to thank our community for their support throughout the year but especially during this time of need. To Amy Ronan and her crew at St. Andrews Village for continuing to provide the excellent meals, to our dedicated volunteer drivers for “soldiering on,” to our clients for doing such a great job of “social distancing,” and to Jeff Teel and his crew at Ports Pizzeria for coordinating a free meal every Sunday for our clients. This May third,...
• letter to the editor

  Using Plummer Road

  Mon, 05/11/2020 - 3:00pm

  Dear Editor: We want to thank the many local workers who have been using Southport’s Plummer Road and keeping a safe speed. We appreciate you! As everyone knows, the Plummer “expressway” on Southport has been challenging to many of us. With the delay of the bridge completion, the influx of people from away, those who cant read signage, and the better weather, we are now seeing many more cars and trucks than anyone anticipated. Imagine 150 cars and trucks each day on a narrow, 1 and 1/4 lane...
• letter to the editor

  Questions about governor’s plan

  Mon, 05/11/2020 - 2:45pm

  Dear Editor: I am seeking more clarification by Gov. Mills concerning the "reopening of Maine" for this summer. With Governor Mills’ proposed, excessively long phase in for those who are long time seasonal visitors to Maine and those who are not residents but have camps and summer homes, will we be allowed to go to Maine to prepare our camps and cottages for our summer stay before July 1? Most know that there is a lot of money spent preparing for summer that is pumped in to Maine even way...
• letter to the editor

  COVID-19 and irresponsibilty

  Mon, 05/11/2020 - 2:30pm

  Dear Editor: It was with great anger and dismay that I saw a photo of four of our citizens, including a past state representative, in Bethel to support Rick Savage's opening of his Sunday River Brewery restaurant to indoor dining amid a pandemic and against a closure order by the governor. I respect everyone's right to protest as I have in my lifetime been to Washington many times in protest. However, to attend a gathering of hoards of people without social distancing and without masks is...
• letter to the editor

  Reminder from Southport board

  Fri, 05/08/2020 - 3:15pm

  Dear Editor: In accordance with current State of Maine executive orders and ordinances, it felt prudent to remind all Southport residents (seasonal and year-round) that when returning to Maine from out of state, please stay safe at home and quarantine for a period of 14 days. To successfully meet state guidelines, we’ve had neighbors come prepared with their own supplies and groceries, or they have utilized our connected community and made prior arrangements for deliveries. Maine’s...
• letter to the editor

  No antibody tests yet at LincolnHealth

  Mon, 05/04/2020 - 4:45pm

  Dear Editor: We have been hearing many members of the public asking for an antibody test, only to be disappointed when learning that such a test is not available yet at LincolnHealth. According to Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention Director Nirav Shah, MD, there are now more than 150 antibody tests on the market, most of which have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Shah also cautioned about the usefulness of the data. “It’s generally not advisable to get...
• letter to the editor

  Telehealth: Deja vu!

  Mon, 05/04/2020 - 4:30pm

  Dear Editor: After reading Lisa Kristoff’s well-written article on the wonders of telehealth featuring Mary Rafter, FNP, I had a real deja vu flashback to 1997. I started reliving the utter frustration that I experienced then as a St. Andrews Hospital board member. This is when I introduced Telemed (now Telehealtth) to the board for a possible additional meaningful resource to better serve our rural community. Experiencing how well and how accepted Telemed was doing in Bangor, including my...
• letter to the editor

  Let’s reopen Maine’s economy

  Mon, 05/04/2020 - 4:15pm

  Dear Editor: On Saturday, May 2, my friend Shirley and I participated in the rally to reopen Maine. There were hundreds of people there. It was so nice to have great weather. It lifted our spirits. We had such a huge crowd of many different people. Lots of families with children, older people in wheelchairs, young people and, of course, workers without jobs. One of the speakers was a doctor from Bangor telling of not being able to cross state lines to help people with other needs because they...
• letter to the editor

  Mills is killing the Maine economy

  Mon, 05/04/2020 - 4:00pm

  Dear Editor: It looks like Governor Janet Mills did not get the memo from the White House briefing that stated the fact that the coronavirus can be killed within seconds with ultra violet light. The recommendation was made that people get out outside and enjoy life knowing the virus would be harder to transmit. With that being said, there is no reason for restaurants in the county that have open air dining to be closed. There is no reason for churches to be closed if they can arrange open air...
• letter to the editor

  Help a child attend Camp Knickerbocker

  Mon, 05/04/2020 - 3:45pm

  Dear Editor: Henry David Thoreau wrote “I came to the woods because I wished to live deliberately.” Amid these uncertain times, the value of a summer camp experience must be recognized and fiercely protected. Camp Knickerbocker has always been, and will remain, at the forefront of the Boothbay region’s dedication to youth development. The freedom to experience the beauty of this community’s natural environment is vital to growing life-long learners and leaders. Every year, we ask for the...
• letter to the editor

  Support lobstermen and vote for Collins

  Mon, 05/04/2020 - 3:30pm

  Dear Editor: A Maine lobster boat is well equipped to pull out of a thick fog, but if Sarah Gideon is ever elected, the entire fishing industry may never recover. Susan Collins has already established the emergency funding measures that Gideon can only bark about from the sidelines. Gideon has presented herself as pure poison poised to be injected into our work and way of life. Along with her environmentalist allies and pernicious right whale regulations, she is promised to drive lobstermen...
• letter to the editor

  Taking a closer look

  Mon, 05/04/2020 - 3:15pm

  Dear Editor: Failed nations fall into ruinous debt by spending more than their economies allow. As America’s unfunded federal liabilities continue to surge with the Covid-19 bailouts, our politicians seem oblivious to the inherent peril, mainly because their most reliable lender has for years been content with American promises to pay at some future date. Ominously though, China has managed over decades to gain significant control over American public infrastructure and essential...
• letter to the editor

  Would like to pay my respects

  Mon, 05/04/2020 - 3:00pm

  Dear Editor: Last fall I stayed at the Five Gables Inn, formerly known at the Forest House, in East Boothbay. I have stayed there numerous times over the years and prior to Norman Linker’s death (the former proprietor) in the 1980s, I had developed a nice friendship with Norman. Every time I have visited the Boothbay region, I have wanted to pay my respects graveside to Norman. The Boothbay Harbor Memorial Library assisted me on this most recent visit through ancestry.com in determining the...
• letter to the editor

  National Nurses Week

  Mon, 05/04/2020 - 2:45pm

  De ar Editor: With all that has transpired this year across the world, it seems both ironic and fitting that the World Health Organization designated 2020 the Year of the Nurse and Midwife. Originally, this decision was based on the 200th anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern-day nursing. Nurses Week 2020 is May 6-12 and while it is important to celebrate the skills and accomplishments of our nurses, it is a year where we must share this recognition with so...
• letter to the editor

  Project Graduation thanks and a planned celebration

  Sat, 05/02/2020 - 10:00am

  Dear Editor: The Project Graduation Committee for this year’s senior class, the Boothbay Region High School class of 2020, want to thank our wonderful friends and neighbors for their generous support of our kids. Over the last few months, many of you contributed to our annual Project Graduation program, traditionally a time for our seniors to take a fun trip and spend one last time together as a class. Well, as you all know, this year’s class is not having the senior year they expected. The...
• letter to the editor

  Sara Gideon fighting for lobstermen

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 5:30pm

  Dear Editor: The upcoming lobster season is engulfed in fog. Will there be markets for our catch in Asia, Europe, and even the U.S.? Will the tourists come and lobster processors buy our lobsters? Sara Gideon is calling on the federal government to include lobstermen and our industry to be specifically included in the Small Business Relief Funding coming out of Congress. Maine lobstermen never look for a hand-out from the government but they may need a hand-up to get to the 2021 lobster season...
• letter to the editor

  Thanks for the masks

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 5:15pm

  Dear Editor: On behalf of the staff at the Boothbay Region Health Center, we would like to thank all of the community members that have tirelessly been sewing masks for us to distribute free of charge to the community. Becky and I have disinfected, laundered, and individually bagged approximately 500 donated masks for distribution. Although, we have not been able to get everyone’s names as they are doing drive-by drop offs, some people we have noticed donating masks are Leslie Muir-Volpe,...
• letter to the editor

  Hope businesses get funding

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 5:00pm

  Dear Editor: There is a lot of hype about the federal Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loans. It appears to be a good program although it is just a loan at this point but at only 1% interest. It was supposed 1/2 % but the SBA changed the rules. These loans are supposed to be forgivable if used to cover eight weeks of payroll during the state mandated shutdown. This determination of forgiveness will be evaluated by the SBA in six months. That is a little concerning; they may change the rules but...
• letter to the editor

  Freedom and responsibility

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 4:45pm

  Dear Editor: Lately there have been calls to “liberate” ourselves from social distancing and the other protective measures imposed by the need to survive the covid-19 pandemic. Indeed we have a choice in this matter. We could decide for ourselves to forgo face masks, excessive hand-washing or social distancing. In doing so we must ask, is this really true freedom or is it an exercise in irresponsibility? That is, is it possible to choose freely and not be responsible for the consequences?...
• letter to the editor

  Mills ... nonessential

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 4:30pm

  Dear Editor: Since it is a stone cold hard fact that it is the private sector that almost completely funds the government, it is now high time the business entity here in Maine proclaim Janet Mills as … nonessential. Dave Gregg Southport
• letter to the editor

  Political rabble-rousing?

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 4:15pm

  Dear Editor: I'm getting pretty tired of all these people complaining about the Stay-at-Home orders. How selfish are you? I understand that you may be currently unemployed and your worried about your livelihood. Sadly, most of the letters to the editor come from older people who have Medicare and Social Security to help them out. I don't recall seeing any letters from those on the frontline putting their lives at risk. I wonder if this is just political rabble-rousing. Instead of being mad...
• letter to the editor

  A new way of life

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 4:15pm

  Dear Editor At this time of peril, we are facing the Coronavirus pandemic which is unlike anything we know. Never before have we faced such a dilemma – giving up our integrated culture of community life and social functioning, for one of physical separation and isolation. Covid-19 is a insidious disease that we do not control – no consistent testing, treatment nor cure ; no vaccine and thus no benefit of mass vaccination. One immediately impactful thing that we have learned is that the power to...
• letter to the editor

  Patronize locally

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 3:45pm

  Dear Editor: These are unprecedented times we are muddling through. Businesses are closed or limited, schools are out and in some areas done for the year. People are losing their jobs at an alarming rate. People are getting restless and protests are getting louder. When restrictions are relaxed, it is possible that Covid-19 could resurface because people are moving more. Then you have the so-called “second surge,” which could potentially appear in late fall. This all translates to disruptions...
• letter to the editor

  Home and Garden Tour canceled

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 3:30pm

  Dear Editor: After a great deal of discussion, the Boothbay Region Garden Club’s Home and Garden Tour has been canceled for 2020. This decision was not made easily, but with sadness, regret, and much consternation. The well-being and safety of our volunteers, homeowners and guests takes precedence over personal feelings and loss of income. Our tour consists of 500 guests, over 100 volunteers and five of the most gracious homeowners. We are considering safety for all of them and our peninsula by...
• letter to the editor

  Trump: Liar in chief

  Mon, 04/27/2020 - 3:15pm

  Dear Editor: During the 2016 presidential campaign, other Republican contenders spoke of Donald Trump as a pathological liar, tax cheat, carnival barker, con artist, snake oil salesman and a crook. Most of them said he was not qualified to be president and they were right. He has cheated many people out of their hard-earned money and has filed for bankruptcy six times. In the last three years, according to a Washington Post fact checker, he has made over 17,000 false claims, stretches of truth...

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