I was interested to see the article about keeping cool during hot weather (“Upper Valley scrambles to keep its cool,” July 29) and especially the photograph of children playing in the Mascoma River.
I am a student at Lebanon High School. This summer, I completed a water quality research project with the New Hampshire Academy of Science. For my project, I sampled and tested the water at the Mascoma River and at Great Brook over a period of two weeks to see if the water was safe for recreational use. I am happy to report that the water at both of these popular swimming locations was clean and safe every time I tested it. These swimming holes also had consistent cool temperatures compared with the air temperature, making them the perfect place to go when it is hot out.
I’m glad that Lebanon is able to provide beautiful natural spots to safely cool off during this very hot summer.
SADIE MIELCARZ
Lebanon
I am thrilled to support Havah Armstrong Walther in her bid for the Windsor 4-1 district House seat. Several weeks ago she hosted a Zoom meeting for our neighborhood and I was impressed with her listening skills and her strong community background. I asked her to share her resume, and I am impressed with her vast community service.
As an educator, Armstrong Walther has worked with students at the Hartford Tech Center, the Community College of Vermont and The Family Place. She and her husband have been small-business owners of a property management company through which they have worked with renters, property owners, Southeastern Vermont Community Action, Listen Community Services and The Haven, and today she sits on two workgroups for affordable housing.
Through the Vermont Communication Support Project, Special Needs Support Center and Upper Valley Advocacy, she also works to support people with disabilities and their families as they navigate Vermont’s school and agency systems. Last year, she was appointed to the Vermont Developmental Disabilities Council. As you can tell by this impressive resume, she is a truly caring neighbor. I believe she has a very strong background to represent our district.
Some of her goals include protecting small farms, which is especially important to me as we operate the last dairy farm here in Hartford. She supports sustainable and responsible growth, and investing in Vermont’s schools. During our Zoom meeting, we talked about engaging young people while also attracting new workers. To do so we must have widespread, reliable broadband internet services, which have been proven inadequate in many areas during this pandemic as so many try to attend virtual school and work from home. By improving internet access, we could entice young people to Vermont, which would expand our tax base and bolster our economy. She also has been working toward equal pay for women.
Because of her background and goals, I wholeheartedly support Havah Armstrong Walther as Windsor 4-1 district representative.
LINDA SIMON MILLER
White River Junction
The voters of Windsor once again have the opportunity to elect in November a state representative who is a citizen of Windsor. By voting for Paul Belaski in the Aug. 11 Democratic primary, we can improve Windsor’s representation in Montpelier by returning him to the Legislature. I believe that the Windsor-1 district (Windsor, Hartland and West Windsor) needs a Windsor resident as one of its representatives. Paul Belaski has dedicated much of his life to public service as former zoning administrator, state legislator and most recently as a Selectboard member (what I consider to be the toughest public service job).
He is thoughtful, intelligent and, most important, a good listener. I have been told by the chair of the committee he served on previously in the House that he was a most valuable member of that committee for his progressive thinking, intellect and knowledge.
We need progressive thinkers who will work toward furthering our Democratic values in the Vermont House. Please join me in casting a vote for Paul Belaski.
DONNA SWEANEY
Windsor
The current flight of people to Vermont from big cities presents challenges to us all. It is essential that we select government representatives who will guide our state in accordance with the values that made Vermont the wonderful place it is. Havah Armstrong Walther has demonstrated for years the energy, clarity of thought and focus we need in Montpelier.
Her experience in local nonprofit efforts to improve schools and attract a vibrant new labor pool while improving the lot of those on the outskirts of society make her an ideal candidate. Her goals are clear: Protect small businesses and farms, invest in robust school systems as integral to public education, and support responsible and sustainable growth.
Serving as the Hartford town representative decades ago, I learned that the prime qualities a member of the Vermont House needs are a willingness to listen to many viewpoints, the energy to work with peers longer hours than one can imagine, and the skill to communicate without confusion the matters that can be addressed by legislation. Havah Armstrong Walther sports these skills, and should be elected to the Vermont House to represent the Windsor 4-1 district.
RUSTY SACHS
White River Junction
I met Kirk White when I joined the Bethel Revitalization Initiative back in 2016. The initiative is a group of Bethel residents who give of their time and effort to improve the quality of life for the town. White is one of the group’s founders, and I was impressed with his passion and creativity in building programs that would engage townspeople and encourage interaction among neighbors. He was also one of the originators of Bethel University, and continues to serve as a guiding force for that program as well as teaching multiple classes each year.
White grew up here in Bethel and his commitment to the well-being of our area is clear. He is a justice of the peace, serves on the Board of Civil Authority and is a past president of the Bethel Business Association. We would be lucky to have someone with Kirk White’s drive, vision and dedication to our region representing us in state government.
ADAM SAPPERN
Bethel
Do you ever wonder why your property taxes are so high? Do you wonder why the richest towns in New Hampshire have the lowest tax rates? Claremont’s tax rate is $42.62 per $1,000 of home value. New London’s tax rate is $15.67.
You say you can’t afford to buy a house? Do you wonder why it is difficult to find an affordable rental? Landlords in poor towns have to pay those same property taxes. Opposing a sales tax and income tax does not make New Hampshire more affordable. That is a myth. Having no income tax simply downshifts the cost of government to the towns and that means to each of us individually, whether a homeowner or a renter.
Do not be taken in by politicians telling you they are helping “the people of New Hampshire” by promising to veto an income tax which, in fact, is progressive and based on the individual’s ability to pay.
Do not be taken in by politicians telling you that a sales tax is “fair” because if you don’t buy anything, you don’t pay it. But we all buy things, and the sales tax on any item is the same whether you are making minimum wage or $250,000 a year.
A politician who tells you that lowering taxes will bring business to the state is not telling you the truth. Businesses are looking for well-educated employees. Businesses in this state are desperate for knowledgeable, trained vocational professionals and would hire every one that they could find.
We need to spend more money on public education that is available to all of our citizens, and that should come from our wealthier citizens based on their incomes. That is a fair proposal and one we should all support.
GAIL WILD
Newport
The letter to the Forum from Diana Watson about being required to wear a mask was a beautiful tirade (“Mask orders destroying our republic,” July 28). It said being ordered to wear masks was “absurd in medical terms because the weave of any mask is no bar to a microscopic virus,” that it was a result of “political lobbying,” and talked about “a deepening psychological toll from being treated as terrifying vectors of disease.”
The next letter in the Forum, from Terry Grigsby, explained that, having high-risk lymphoma, masks are a medical necessity for her and others around her, especially now.
It is hard to understand the outrage some feel regarding such a simple act as wearing a mask to help keep themselves and others safe during these unprecedented times. It is so easy to wear a mask, and so important. Save the drama for other times.
NANCY PARKER
Lebanon
I read in the Forum, and throughout the Valley News, stories of the misinformed who clearly have no clue what’s going on.
First of all, the nation’s brightest pediatricians and infectious disease experts, including Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Scott Atlas of Stanford University, and five more who were interviewed on NBC News — Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, Dr. Jennifer Lighter, Dr. Shilpa A. Patel, Dr. Buddy Creech, Dr. William Raszka of the University of Vermont — were all asked about sending children back to school this fall. All said it’s best for the children, for both learning and their social development. Several had children in that age group and will gladly send them back to school with the proper precautions. COVID-19 doesn’t harm their age group as it does older age groups. This is the science the president is following.
The president has been accused of sending “federal troops” into U.S. cities, and several writers to the Forum have called them “storm troopers.” The president hasn’t sent one U.S. soldier into any U.S. city, only law enforcement officers to protect federal buildings and statues.
U.S. cities are burning, and all of their Democratic mayors just step away, tell the police to stand down, and let them get vandalized, looted and burned to the ground. In Portland, Ore., “professional protesters” have set up a campground and live there, beginning their violent protests after 11 p.m. and ending at 5 a.m. Who could possibly believe those who begin their protests after 11 at night, and who have created a tent city to live in, are not violent, professional protesters?
President Donald Trump sent federal law enforcement into Portland. They aren’t the problem, and if local officials don’t deal with it, he will, and he has the power to do so. Attorney General William Barr will see that all violent protestors will be charged with federal offenses, as they should. Thankfully, we have a president of law and order.
JOHN NELSON
Wilder