Of the myriad of letters to the editor that are written and printed in Maine, few stay with us longer than a minute or two. Susan Purcell's letter to the Brunswick Times Record is among that few. It has left an impression on us.
Her letter deals not only with specifics (Brunswick's bars and off-track gambling parlors), but also with abstracts (a town's values, its wholesomeness, history, friendliness, and culture).
Like most of what is best about Maine, her letter is practical, plainly worded, and loaded with common sense. As letters to the editor go, hers is poetry. It reads like one of Aesop's fables, complete with a moral at the end, in the form of a question.
She admonishes her civic leaders and public servants (the town council), and encourages them to be wiser in their decisions regarding businesses that peddle vice (alcohol, gambling). Appropriately, she does so publicly in the local paper, as the decisions these leaders make directly affect the public.
Your civics lesson of a letter has not gone unnoticed, Susan. Thank you for writing it.
Consider town's values
"...Gambling of any sort worsens, rather than improves, the community that welcomes it.
"Residents and visitors alike love Brunswick for its wholesome mix of natural beauty, active community, cultural events, friendliness and history. Wouldn't it be great if our Town Council considered every decision in light of how much the proposal would do to promote and strengthen these core attributes?"
