I suppose I was not surprised to read Pete Hope’s letter of Sept 17 (“More choice not less,” Page 4) especially after I read that 77 percent of Oklahoma students do not know who the first President of the US was. There is a lot of misinformation and disinformation promulgated in this country. Mr. Hope’s statement of the facts sounds rather like the echo of what he’s heard on television rather than any other kind of discussion.

What an uplifting delight to read Doug Wright’s “Country Wedding.” (“View from over the Hill” LCN, 8/27/09, page 11B) Then when I looked at the history item above (“Damariscotta History”), there was a house on the right that my grandmother Marion Newell once owned. Across the road from her was Uncle Paul and Aunt Catherine Stevens.

I would like to say a big thank you to the CHIP volunteers who came to my old house for Community Cares Day on Sept. 12.

I’d like to address the accusatory tone of last week’s article on the Oyster Creek project. (Belvedere Rd. project delayed by rain and vandals,” Page 1)

The Damariscotta River Association bids farewell to our Director of Lands and Stewardship of six years, Steven Hufnagel.

Two weeks ago I wrote to First District Representative Chellie Pingree with my concerns over the excessive power concentration in the federal government. The answer I got back is not to be believed. My letter and her answer are enclosed. Draw your own conclusions.

I wanted to write my feelings about Bob Reny’s passing so much, but when I read all the wonderful words – so well put, in the tributes – from the governor on down – I thought, “Who am I to add to all that’s been said by those who knew him so well?”

If I dreamed a weekend, it couldn’t have been better – if I hired someone to paint it, it would be Norman Rockwell. Picture perfect weather, flawless execution by the Whitefield Bicentennial Committee chairs, and a little divine intervention.

When volunteers first put up all those American flags in the pouring rain I thought this is what being part of a community is all about and it was contagious – flags went up everywhere along the winding back roads.

Apparently a few years back, back in the days when Maine was truly part of the American frontier, a dispute raged among local homesteaders and people from away who claimed legal title to land Mainers had claimed with muscle, blood and sweat.

Predictably, the put-upon rose to defend their claims with humanity’s age-old standby… violence.

Last Thursday I attended a presentation on tax reform convened by the group Fed Up with Taxes. The event featured a presentation by Al DiMillo, an accountant and self-proclaimed Democrat. DiMillo is no fan of the recently passed proposal that effectively creates a flat income tax rate of 6.5 percent and broadens the sales tax to increase revenues from non-residents and stabilize revenues over time.

I’m responding to last week’s letter to the editor, “Get the Bypass Built,” written by Dick Chutter from Round Pond.

As a downtown business and resident of Wiscasset, I am in total agreement with his letter and concerns except the part about boycotting the local businesses. As far as I know, most of the local business owners here are and have been in favor of this long over due bypass. If we had it our way, the bypass would have been built yesterday.

I was really interested to note that there were three submissions of Letters to The Editor in the August 20, 2009 edition of `The Lincoln County News. I suspect, the recent heat wave coupled with long drive times due to traffic backups in Wiscasset heightened the level of frustration for many people trying to get somewhere that required passing through Wiscasset.

Hardly a week goes by without some sort of a car accident to report.

In particular, as of late, there seems to be a rash of accidents involving motorcycles in Lincoln County.

The children’s summer reading program at the Wiscasset Public Library came to an end on Aug. 6 with a pizza party held on the lawn outside the Children’s Room. Over 60 children and adults attended the party.