I believe we can have nice things, Dover. Do you? Letters
I believe we can have nice things, Dover. Do you?
July 9 – To the Editor:
In response to reports of vandalism and theft, people often say, “This is why we can’t have nice things.” As an optimist, I’ve always rejected that saying, but six weeks into a volunteer beautification project, I am wondering if it isn’t true. On May 17, flower boxes returned to the Central Avenue bridge in downtown Dover, after a hiatus in 2022. Intended to bring beauty and a lift to all who pass through, the project has, sadly, been plagued by chronic theft and vandalism.
Thanks to the generosity of individuals supporting this effort financially and with the priceless gift of their time, we’ve picked up the dirt and replaced the plants again, and again, and again. On Saturday, July 8, a dedicated Dover Doers volunteer, there on a daily check, discovered an entire flower box missing. To say it was disheartening is an understatement. By taking what was there for the enjoyment of all in our community, someone has robbed us of basic regard for each other, and given us all a hefty dose of guardedness. The person responsible took more than a lovingly nurtured, oft-photographed, admired flower box, they took trust. Decency is not a trait all possess and our community is diminished because of this.
We’ve heard bits and pieces: the woman who was taking the plants for use in her own yard, the 12- to 13-year-old boy who ripped the plants out as he ran past, the pissed-off 20-something-yea-old who took his anger out on a flower box.
And in between those bits and pieces, we hear the thanks, the appreciation, the admiration. We see people stopping to read the inspirational quotes written on plant stakes, taking photos, smiling as they walk by. We focus on those things as we deadhead, water, replace, reattach in all manner of weather.
I want to believe that we CAN have nice things. Do you, Dover?
Deb Clough
Barrington
Facts, not personal attacks, needed regarding councilors at farmers' market
July 13 − To the Editor:
I read the 300-plus-word letter to the editor from a former city councilor praising the Farmers’ Market and seeming to admonish the city for having a presence there. Between the lines, one could read that the former councilor was admonishing a current city councilor for his presence at the Farmers’ Market. Days later that current city councilor in his 500-plus-word letter to the editor also praised the Farmers’ Market and then defended his presence there.
To me, the first letter sounded somewhat like a “gotcha” and the second sounded like a campaign speech. Both seemed personal; neither provided clarity to what I think is an interesting proposition. Apparently, City Councilor Beth Moreau suggested that city departments and staff take turns “under the tent” so as to engage with the citizenry. That seemed like an interesting idea to pursue. Did they? Were city departments interested in participating? Would there be a rotating schedule of departments and councilors? Would it be legal? Permissible?
That might be an interesting and welcomed addition to the Farmers’ Market.
Bess Mosley
Portsmouth
Our partisan and ethically challenges U.S. Supreme Court
July 13 − To The Editor:
The civics class model of the Supreme Court as impartial adjudicator of the final word in relevant law was an ideal. While it may not be fully reachable, historically the court and its members have, for the most part, appeared to believe in and work toward that ideal.
The current court has taken a turn towards flamboyant partisanship and ethically questionable methods, flouting norms of respect for open and deliberative process, as well as evidence-based, reasoned and publicly explained decisions.
When a justice has to publicly proclaim, “This court is not comprised of a bunch of partisan hacks” as Amy Coney Barrett did, rather than let behavior speak for itself, you know we have a problem.
When Justice John Roberts repeatedly declares the court does not need a code of conduct, and that as judges of the final word in divining relevant law and justice they uniquely require independence from external oversight, you know we have a problem.
This may be the Supreme Court, but its members are human beings like the rest of us and all the judges in the country below them. They are not above a code of conduct or a code of ethics.
Congress needs to take responsibility for oversight of the Supreme Court.
Cynthia Muse
Rye
Grateful for history of Jeremiah O'Brien. Get to know Rev. Balch, too.
July 4 − To the Editor:
I want to give kudos to D. Allan Kerr for his article on Jeremiah O'Brien in the July 4 edition of Foster's. In the late 18th and early 19th century, O'Brien was indeed a household name, especially in New England. Somehow, John Paul Jones ended up - unintentionally, I'm sure - pushing his memory into obscurity. John Berry - the "Father of the American Navy" - is also obscure these days, even to Navy personnel. That's really too bad, as O'Brien was certainly "larger than life." Capturing a belligerent man-of-war on the water was indeed not only a great feat, but an incredible morale booster to the American forces at the time.
I was very glad to see that Jeremiah's sisters were mentioned by Mr. Kerr. Joanna O'Brien is how I became interested in the O'Brien family history.
After a terrible drought gave rise to huge wildfires that destroyed the good timber in the Saco River valley from Conway to the coast in the early 1760s, a group of business people from Scarborough moved to present-day Machias to harvest timber and establish a timber mill. These included Morris O'Brien and his family. That's why Jeremiah was in Machias when the Revolution started.
The settlers hired a young Congregational minister fresh out of Harvard named Benjamin Balch to oversee the spiritual needs of the community. Not only did the Rev. Balch meet all the O'Briens during his time serving in Machias, but he fell in love with Jeremiah's sister Joanna and married her. They would eventually have 12 children.
Rev. Balch would become the first chaplain of the American Navy in November of 1778 while serving as the pastor in Danvers, MA. Our country's first naval hero and its first navy chaplain were brothers-in-law. After the war, Balch became the pastor at the Congregational Church in Barrington and served for more than 30 years in that capacity until the day he died. I have portrayed Rev. Balch many times, as he was also "larger than life" like his brother-in-law. New Hampshire's most recent roadside historical marker in Barrington honors him and the emancipated slave woman, Aggie, that served the family until 1815.
Bruce Decker
Barrington
A new approach to campaign financing
July 13 − To the Editor:
There are relatively few topics on which today’s voters agree, we’re divided on so many issue. But one area my friends from practically every part of the political spectrum are agreed upon is this: we need a new approach to campaign financing. Too many elections, especially those on the state and national level, are being influenced by campaign contributions from special interest groups, from large dollar donors and from out-of-area interests. There is a large consensus on the need to reform our current means of campaign finance.
One recent development is a proposal to have campaign contributions come directly from voters themselves. The basic idea is to create a government fund that issues vouchers to registered voters. They can then assign these funds the candidates of their choice. It’s an effort to keep moneyed interests out of elections – and is to be the primary topic of discussion at the annual Peaches and Politics event in New Durham on Saturday, July 22. Dan MacMillan, a non-partisan, campaign finance reform advocate will be speaking on “Voter-Owned Elections Can Overcome Big Money and Bring Americans Together.”
I look forward to learning about how the concept of “Democracy Dollars” would be funded and allocated. And I hope others who feel this idea has merit to sign-up for the Peaches and Politics event, which costs just $10/person to attend. Tickets can be purchased at https://secure.actblue.com/donate/peaches-2023.
David Wessel
New Durham
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: I believe we can have nice things, Dover. Do you? Letter
