OPINION/LETTERS: Why I'm not running for elected office

Why I'm not running for Newport City Council

I declared two weeks ago – admittedly a last-minute decision – out of concern with the number of candidates declaring whose names were not associated with government experience. I feared that the two open At-Large seats had a high chance of being filled by candidates without the skills, temperament and experience to handle the job effectively.

Between then and now, I’ve been able to speak with most of the At-Large candidates and am convinced Newport has several strong options this election cycle. In particular, I’ve been impressed with the education and extensive background of some of the At-Large candidates, and enjoyed the opportunity to work alongside one of them recently on the Charter Review Commission.

Newport election 2022: Primary no longer needed for Newport City Council at-large race after 3 hopefuls withdraw

I continue to care deeply about the recent accomplishments in our city government, and I remain engaged in Newport issues, notably with the Charter Review Commission’s recommendations, and the Transportation Master Plan. I will continue to support efforts to promote responsible, equitable, and sustainable development in Newport.

Newport has an opportunity to elect a council filled with energy and significant experience, new ideas and a desire to work together for the benefit of all Newporters. I applaud these candidates for stepping up. I look forward to an exciting election season as we get to know the candidates even better. I urge you all to pay close attention as this election offers a vision for a new direction for Newport.

Susan Taylor, Newport

Not running again - and again - is also a public service

Many have asked why I am not running for a third term on the Middletown Town Council. Especially since serving as a councilor is such an honor and it has been the best and most fulfilling experience you could imagine. I would highly recommend every citizen who cares about Middletown run for town council. Consider it a two-year course learning firsthand how decisions are made for the town, with no prerequisites or experience required - I certainly didn't have any!

Anyone who wishes to help Middletown be the best place to live, should run and take a turn on town council. The more people that serve, the more knowledge and experience is added to the community, and the stronger the community becomes. Accordingly, to serve the voters to the best of my ability and help make Middletown stronger, I feel it is my duty not to run again in order to ensure someone else has a turn.

Terri Flynn, Middletown

Union Public Library appreciates support

On behalf of the Union Public Library Association, I would like to thank the greater Tiverton community for their support of our annual book sale, yard sale and bake sale fundraiser held on July 16. It was a great success! Thank you to everyone who came out to shop for bargains, those who donated items for the sale, the volunteers who put in countless hours sorting and transporting books and yard sale items and those that helped with set up, event tasks and clean up.

All of the proceeds from the event will go towards maintaining Union Public Library's building and grounds. We are especially grateful for everyone's support, since the pandemic has limited our fundraising and event options. Union Public Library, located at 3832 Main Road in Tiverton, is the second oldest library in Newport County and has been uniting readers since 1820. It is through the generosity of our supporters, that we have been able to keep the structure in good repair and accessible to library patrons for generations. The library is open on Tuesdays from 10 a.m to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. We encourage you to stop by and visit this local treasure. We welcome new members and new volunteers to help out with various tasks to maintain the building and grounds, and to assist the librarian during the regular hours of operation. Those who are interested may visit the library or call 401-625-6799 for more information.

Barbie Lewis, volunteer coordinator Union Public Library Association

What about the Russian collusion hoax

As unsettling as the revelations from the Jan. 6 hearings have been, what's even more unsettling is that not a single Democrat stepped forward to denounce, rebuke, rebuff, or otherwise fight back against the Russian collusion hoax, the biggest Big Lie of them all, and the most insidious and dangerous effort to undermine democracy and overturn the results of a duly held election ever attempted in the history of Beltway politics.

The collusion hoax was a grotesque assault on American democracy, a cancerous canard that was allowed to metastasize nationwide thanks to Hillary Clinton, the DNC, fellow congressional Democrats, and the complicity of the anti-Trump liberal media. Mrs. Clinton lost the election fair and square, and knew that she did. Yet she helped launch the Russian collusion tale to deliberately sabotage an incoming President with relentless media assaults and a special counsel investigation, not to mention vigorously helping to paint Mr. Trump as "illegitimate" and a Kremlin "asset" treasonously working against American interests. On multiple occasions, Mrs. Clinton publicly declared, without evidence, that Mr. Trump was an "illegitimate" president, and that the election was "stolen." Rep. Adam Schiff, the powerful chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, famously told the American people that he had "more than circumstantial evidence of collusion." Mr. Schiff, of course, had NO such evidence, because there never was collusion. That means that Schiff, a man who should have known better, deliberately lied to the American people for the sole purpose of maintaining the perpetration of the collusion lie. And Schiff wasn't the only top Democrat to routinely parrot the ludicrous lie. There was an insanity and malevolence to it all.

The American people were forced to countenance this rubbish for years, rubbish that only served to coarsen the political dialogue, needlessly polarize people, and cause Americans to question the integrity of our electoral system. The country spent years obsessing over the Trump conspiracy that didn't exist - rather than the Clinton conspiracy that did. Just think about that for a moment.

Any person who, as a matter of personal principle, is incensed over the events surrounding Jan. 6 must necessarily be equally outraged, if not more so, by the events and wrongdoing surrounding the Russian collusion hoax. If you're angry about the former but not the latter, you are not uniform in the application of your principles. You are revealing your political partisanship, and that you're comfortable placing partisanship ahead of principles. In witnessing such selective moral outrage and hypocritical behavior, I am reminded of an apt quote from famed clergyman John M. Burgess, who many years ago said, "Many people are liberal in principle, reluctant in practice." Indeed.

Michael J. DiStefano, Jamestown

To save democracy we need to lighten up

Not so long ago, being teased (bullying was always wrong) was just part of growing up.  And being needled was just part of being a public figure. Teasing and needling once comprised a lot of American humor. [Now, Mrs. Kelly, you’ve known the boy for many years; would he have stolen the money? Well, how much was it, Dear?]  Ah, humor.  Maybe we all need to be needled a bit these days. Not slandered; not dismissed; not vilified. Just needled. Assigning to ourselves or to our “group” superior values, logic, or purpose is downright silly. To profess no trust in the private and government institutions we invented and need for a happy and just society is laughable. Knowing our own human failings and demanding perfection from others is, well, just too much.

College sports are different. Those who pray for Notre Dame football are real fans, but they don’t really believe that God kicks field goals. The red-outfitted Nebraska football fans who travel to away games in droves are mainly tailgaters who love cold, sunny Saturdays.  "Hope to see ya next year." Good humor over those grilled wieners for sure.

Hillary says “deplorables” and she is not needled, but has her reputation cemented as a hater. Really? McConnel fiddles with the Garland SCOTUS nomination and he becomes a permanent Darth Vader. Really? (Hmmm.) Obama’s ACA is attacked as a plan to remove our personal freedoms. Really? When we are so breathless about perceptions that ‘prove’ our discontent and cast others as enemies, we have no breath for needling about hypocrisy, laughing at lunacy, poking fun at human foibles, or for being rueful about our own mistakes.

Even with our manifold blessings and advantages, many Americans have decided that we live in a dark period with little hope. Sakes alive!  Our way forward is as easy as pie.  We need to lighten up, improve our health and education systems, and work on the big stuff — strengthening democracy and reversing climate change. We need national cohesion to do the former and national resolve to do the latter. Each of these great enterprises will require diligence, patience, and humor. The humor part is key, because nutty ideas will emerge and errors will intrude to remind us that flailings aren’t failures and bumpy roads aren’t roadblocks. Today a lot of humor seems to come from abroad from folks amused by our fear and division as the work of a nation of ornery, humorless jerks. Yikes! Let’s turn the page.

Will Newman, Tiverton

This article originally appeared on Newport Daily News: LETTERS: Why I'm not running for Newport City Council