Letters to the Editor:

To the editor:
We believe the holiday shopping season begins officially with the Arts and Crafts Fair in Caribou. There are a very few things which everyone seems to really enjoy, and which we don’t really get to thank our participants for. Please join me in thanking our crafters, artisans and small business people who participate in our Annual Arts & Crafts Fair.     This past weekend the CCC&I again held its (36th!) A&C Fair. I have begun feeling as if it’s my craft fair, but it is only my ninth one, and we have many artists who’ve been in attendance twice the amount of time I’ve been lucky enough to attend. We even have two artists who’ve been in attendance every single year: Caribou native Bethany Anderson, and John Holub, who’s lived in Winthrop for perhaps the last 20 years.
Once a year, I feel as if we’re graced with not only all the best Aroostook artists, but also Mr. Holub, and the last several years his daughter Lisa Desjardins. I never get to see him otherwise, and am always excited to have him as one of our “crafters.” At the risk of not being able to tell you about everyone, I wanted to highlight a few — there are the Sullivans, owners of Katie’s on the Cove from Robbinston who travel several hours each year to join us, as well as John Tercyak, Andrea and Joe Ford of Edgecomb (they have their own Web site; Google them) who even make custom sinks for homes!
Katherine Doig joined us this year with handcrafted soaps from her own Aroostook County New Sweden goats (I puzzle if this makes them County goats or Swedish goats, but the smell is the same regardless, and you need to visit their shop if you missed her). Doris Cushman of Caribou has rocks, minerals and custom made jewelry as well (Gemsations!). The Retired Senior Volunteers of Aroostook join us every year, selling a variety of mittens, hats and scarves. This year we placed our order early and they’re donating 2,000 mittens for us to give to the children at the Light Parade in PI on December 5th!
Rebecca Kinney joined us again this year as well, with her adorable family from Mars Hill with her oils, chocolates and baby slings! Several crafters chose Caribou even, when it’s the alternating year when they have to chose between Orono’s big homecoming weekend and our show, which is always a thrill for us to hear.
Always a happy event, which people seem to really enjoy; I’ve come to save up my funds the few months before the show so I have “mad money’ to spend. The ladies in the office (I was surprised, but I don’t know why) told me, and our new high school girls, after last year’s show, that the Craft Fair is their favorite annual event … Huh! I believe in Shopping Therapy, so I tend to think of it in terms of a therapeutic weekend, but it’s all good.
Rita the mitten lady brought her wares again this year: she’s a new favorite, making them from recycled wool sweaters. They are super warm, really pretty, and all lined with angora, cashmere, and lambs wool (you really must treat yourself and someone else to a pair)! We had a few furniture folks who were new to the show and candle makers too.
The Ketches of Caribou, are a perennial favorite with their felted wool hats, purses and mittens. Will Tasker, our very own author, publisher and local historian and book maker joined us again. And whewhua, another of our favorites is The Sue Gerard, from Madawaska, who’s pottery is almost always the first to sell out! Mad, mad money. The Whittakers from Ashland were again in attendance, with their intricate hand scrolled wooden crafts. Wreathes by Natalie is always a hit, and we wait all year to see what new wreaths we need for our houses. Again, our own Mr. Gallant, and Richard Clark bring their pieces for sale, and we are so lucky they chose us! Peggy Powell and the Solid Rock Worship Center really do have the best peanut brittle; we’re thinking it’s the heavenly power of Powell’s brittle! Whewhua! Really, if you didn’t get any this past weekend, you missed a divine experience!
Rusty Rods, of Monticello, makes handcrafted items from antique farm equipment found throughout Aroostook County, all his items are quite unique (did you see his winning Grinch at the Holiday Light Parade last year? He tells me he’s working on something to top it for their 30th anniversary this year; we can’t wait!
We have everyone’s contact information certainly, and if you missed any of the goodies from the last weekend, or just need that “just right” gift for someone who’s been extra special this year, let us know and we’ll connect you with anyone of our really fabulous crafters. Thank you Caribou Rotary for manning the concession stand, and our Friday floor workers: Mr. Swanberg, Mr. Goughan, Mr. Staples, family, friends; we couldn’t do it without you! Happy hunting this holiday season!
Wendy Landes, MPA, is the executive director of the Caribou Chamber of Commerce & Industry. She can be reached in person at 24 Sweden Street, Suite 101; by telephone at 498-6156 or via e-mail at wlandes@cariboumaine.net.

Many people have foot and ankle pain and neglect to seek medical attention for it. Often times they comment on how difficult it is to find proper shoe wear, braces, or inserts for their shoes.
The foot and ankle are very dynamic structures that have to work extremely hard to hold you up, balance, and propel you. There are simple suggestions that can help make your foot and ankle feel better. Understanding your foot and ankle problem and seeking the proper health care provider to manage your case is very important.
County Physical Therapy will be offering a presentation on the topic of foot and ankle care on Thursday, October 22nd at 11 a.m. at their Presque Isle location in the North Street Healthcare Plaza. The public is invited to this free event to learn more about foot and ankle care and options that exist here in Aroostook County.
If you have any questions regarding this program or the upcoming presentation, please feel free to contact Jennifer Waddell, PT, CLT at County Physical Therapy. She can be reached at 769-2160 or by e-mail at jennifer.waddell@countypt.com.

To the Editor:
I recently spent a week at my camp on the Beaulieu Road in Connor Township on the Madawaska River. I purchased my first 11 acres in 1984 while stationed at Loring Air Force Base. I purchased a second 11 acres in 2001 for a total of 22. I lived year-round for several years on my farm after I got out of the service so I know what it is like to make it through a northern Maine winter.
Many people ask me why I come all the way from South Carolina to spend time in Caribou. Two reasons: This is the most beautiful place I have ever seen and the people of Caribou are the nicest people I have ever met. I would like to say “thank you” to all the people of Caribou for being so nice to me and would like to mention just a few of the folks who made my visit so nice.
My attorney Christopher Leger, Nancy at the Greenhouse Restaurant, Shelley, manager of U-Save Auto Rental, Melodee and the staff at the County Federal Credit Union, Carla at Fredricks Southside, Paul Bernier, Aroostook County Public Works Director, my neighbors Roddy and Kyle Theriault, and Barbara and Natalie at the Aroostook Republican.
Thank you all for making my visit so special and I look forward to seeing you again soon.

Do you feel undertaxed, and do you feel that a centralized bureaucracy in Augusta would help to increase school efficiency?
Consider these questions. Have you any memory of any candidate for office ever saying that Mainers are undertaxed and should pay more? Any memory of a candidate promising to go to Augusta and raise taxes? I’m guessing you have not. Yet taxes continue to go up, running ahead of inflation and population growth in almost every year.
This is not to say that our legislators hate taxpayers and want to hurt them. At least I hope not. Except maybe a few. You will understand this phenomenon better if you get yourself a copy of “The Peoples Guide to the Legislature (any year). There you will find statements by every representative and senator in Augusta about what they hope to achieve in office.
And everything, almost without exception, will cost money. This is true of the current membership, even though it was already evident before the recession that Maine is fiscally overstretched with a huge burden of unfunded mandates. And while we are on the subject, check to see how many of these legislators have anything to say about how we are to fund those mandates.
When these statements speak of improving government they almost invariably propose ways to spend more money. It seems as if nearly all of our legislators imagine Maine’s government has attained a superhuman level of flawless efficiency. There are no programs which should be terminated as ineffective. No inefficiencies which they can detect and propose to correct.
When they do propose to “save” money, the results are disastrous. Think of jail consolidation, or the even more disastrous school consolidation. Baldacci’s administrators claimed in June of 2007 that school consolidation would save $221 million over three years. This year they claimed it would save $1.6 million – but now they have abandoned even thta pitiful number, because in reality it will cost more than it will save.
So why aren’t some people concerned with overspending voting YES on 3 to throw out the bogus Consolidation law? The money savings isn’t there. And we want to give Augusta MORE power?? And why aren’t school employees concerned with local control voting YES on 4? TABOR II does not affect school budgets. Maine’s voters already have a vote on ALL school budgets, not just the rising budgets TABOR targets. By logic alone, every school employee in Maine should be voting for TABOR, which is less restrictive than current law. Schools aren’t going to get any more money out of state government. The voters have already voted twice to force the state to fund 55 percent, but that money has already been given to the welfare department, so people arriving here from away can get lifetime welfare benefits starting the day they step off the bus.
Why aren’t these facts known? There are about 160 organizations which have rallied against TABOR II and about 83 percent of them get between 40 and 99 percent of their funding from the government, from the taxpayers. The anti-TABORistas are outspending TABOR supporters by well over FIVE to one. How can the truth compete with that?
The political reality is that every program and policy puts money in the hands of some part of the populations. It does not matter if the program fails in its original intent, it is a success for prople who profit from it. When you spend money to fund a scheme you create a constituency which will defend it regardless of your original intent. Politicians like to smile and be smiled upon. They get no smiles from cutting.
Spending is fun. Cutting is not fun. We all know this, and any of us elected to office would experience the same feelings.
It’s this simple. There are no lobbyists working for the ordinary taxpayer. Legislators are influenced more by organized special interests than by unorganized taxpayers. TABOR II puts power directly in the hands of the taxpayer. They are free to sanction tax increases if they wish. Will they make mistakes? Maybe so. Will they foul things up as badly as our Masters in Augusta? Not a chance.
Professor John Frary of Farmington, is a former U.S. Congress candidate and retired history professor, a Board Member of Maine Taypayers United and an associate editor of the International Military Encyclopedia, and can be reached at: jfrary8070@aol.com

Why should all Mainers care about voting Yes on Question 3 to repeal the school consolidation law? Because we have a long and proud history of caring about each other, whether we live in Kittery, Fort Kent, Jackman, Eastport or anywhere in between. As they say: “United we stand, divided we fall.”
We all understand that our schools are the fabric, which brings us together as a community regardless of size. A significant number of communities feel threatened by this law. Hopefully, we shall all come to their rescue to repeal the school consolidation law.
The following is a summary of the most important reasons why we must repeal the school consolidation law.
• The law does not treat everyone the same. There are 65 districts representing 55 percent of the state’s enrollment, that were not forced to consolidate because of size, location or other special dispensations granted by the Department of Education. Yet more than 125 districts were ordered to face consolidation. Those districts that rejected consolidation are now facing $5 million in penalties.
• Repealing the law will not cost any money, but keeping it on the books will.
• A review of all available information reveals that there is not net cost savings to consolidation. In fact, many people believe that when collective bargaining agreements are finalized, consolidation will cost more money that it saves.
• Five Town CSD in the Camden area, for example, estimates its salary costs would go up by $420,000 if they forced to consolidate. In the Brewer area, the estimate is closer to $2 million. Why is the state trying to force districts to do the wrong thing for their taxpayers?
• Loss of local control is just starting to hit home for those 26 new regions that were formed under the mandate, yet there is no way to get out of a consolidated district once you’re in. In SAD 38 (Etna & Dixmont) that loss of control has meant the loss of school choice for high school students. In other communities, it has meant tax shifts that are forcing up property taxes by as much as 25 to 30 percent.
• People throughout Maine should recognize and honor the votes of over 125 districts that rejected consolidation. Large school systems will not meet the needs of eastern and northern Maine.
Augusta never asked superintendents and school boards to find ways to reduce spending on our schools through cooperation. Instead, they enacted this mandatory law with the hope that it would save money. This law will not produce any savings and despite what the opponents of repeal say, Voting Yes on Question 3 will not cost any money. It will save money in the long run.
School districts will continue to work with the governor and legislature to accomplish the goal “of living within our means”. However, it is unnecessary to destroy school governance in the process.
It is very important for all Maine voters to stand shoulder to shoulder with residents of Maine communities that are going to be penalized for voting their conscience and repeal this unacceptable law. Think for a minute how aggrieved you would feel if you lived in one of these communities. Please vote “yes” on Question 3 to repeal the school consolidation law. Then we can all return to the most important job of educating our children.
Skip Greenlaw is chair of the Maine Coalition to Save Schools which collected 61,193 signatures to place the repeal of the school consolidation law on the ballot. Visit their Web site — www.repealconsolidation.com.

To the editor:
My wife and I have lived in Caribou for eight years now and we find it a beautiful area in which to live.  We especially enjoyed the recent Sesquicentennial celebrations, and want to thank all those who worked so diligently to make these activities all possible.  The parade and fireworks were second to none.
The decision we made nine years ago to move to Caribou has more than met our expectations for our family and the many new and great friends we have made here.

To the editor:
I would like to address the men of northern Aroostook County about a grave issue that affects all of us: the disappearance of old-fashioned men’s barbershops.
Since time immemorial a man could walk into a barbershop, without an appointment. The man could find the shop by looking for a red, white and blue pole outside. The interior walls would be covered with pictures of dogs playing poker. The air would have the aroma of cigar smoke. A Frank Sinatra song would be playing on the radio.
While there, the man could exchange scuttlebutt with the barber and other customers. Some talkative customers would even be permanent fixtures, like the furniture. The haircut might cost a whole $8.
Sadly that world is almost gone. Barbers are being replaced by new-fangled “hair stylists” and “wave machines.” That’s OK for women customers – but for male customers?
I don’t think the average County male wants to make an appointment with a unisex hair stylist, get a shampoo and a cut that makes him look like a French poodle, and then pay dozens of dollars for the privilege.
First, I want to address the issue of appointments. I can understand why a man has to make an appointment with a mechanic to get the transmission rebuilt on his pickup. But why does a man have to make an appointment to have someone put a glorified lobster bib on him and cut around the edges? That’s like making an appointment at McDonald’s to get a Big Mac.
Second, men do not want to be shampooed. They took a shower this morning. They also do not want to look like French poodles.
Third, most men do not want to spend dozens of dollars at a unisex hair salon. Most men want to spend their money on more important things, like to buy beer.
Don’t let the noble institution of old-fashioned men’s barbershops die in the County.
I want to encourage young County men to open up old-fashioned men’s barbershops. It’s time for County males to be men and not mice. Fight for your rights. Open up more old-fashioned men’s barbershops!

To the Editor;
In the past eight years, state government has increased spending by 46 percent, and statewide local property taxes increased by 58 percent, all the while, private sector jobs decreased by 13,000 and the government jobs increased by 3,400. This tax and spend mentality cannot be sustained.  Hardworking Mainers must rise up and say “We have had enough.”  This cannot and will not be sustained.
How do I know TABOR will work? Because at the same time spending was skyrocketing 58 percent across most of Maine, property taxes only went up 9 percent in Waterville. Cash reserves increased 500 percent. Our bond rating improved dramatically. Enormous capital improvements were made, and no services were cut. I was the mayor for six of those eight years — and in my time in office, taxes went down 13 percent. I know spending can be controlled.
The opposition does not represent the hardworking people of Maine.  They are special interest groups such as the Maine Municipal Association who get their revenue stream off the backs of Maine taxpayers.  They outspend the proponents by a margin of 5-1 (and some of that money is your tax dollars. Yes – your tax dollars!) , and their efforts are organized to protect their lifestyle. They truly have no passion for the prosperous future of our state.
For these reasons, I ask that hardworking Maine people support Tabor II, despite decreasing in numbers and being readied for the endangered species list unless we can win this battle.
Vote  “Yes” on Question 4.

To the Editor:
Caribou citizens saw and heard a great 150th celebration all brought about by a small number of volunteering citizens. A few citizens who took part in the celebration had to be paid for their work. They did not receive the joy of volunteering.
I wish to thank those that enjoyed the acting of the more than 40 volunteering actors. I thank them all, and most especially director Lynne Josselyn.

To the editor:
One of the concerns of Citizens for Responsible City Management (CFRCM) is the number of city-acquired properties on the books at the present time. Every piece of property that is city owned, is one less property that is on the books collecting taxes to run our city.
At a recent city council meeting, Manager Buck stated that there were 38 properties on the list, and 14 of them have been resolved, leaving approximately 24 properties for disposition. Whether there are 24 or 124 properties; that is too many.
CFRCM’s question is why these properties don’t go out to bid as soon as they legally belong to the city? Why let this become a snowball rolling down a hill becoming larger and larger until it is so big, no one can handle it? Another item of concern is the fact that the council seems to want to set a minimum bid sometimes significantly higher than what is actually owed to clear the debt on the property. Why not just set the minimum at what is owed? I would think that would bring in a larger pool of bidders, and if the property sells for a higher amount, all the better. The city should not be competing with the local realtors.
A good example of the problems faced by the city owning so many properties took place at a recent council workshop where the councilors were going to review a plan of action for tax acquired properties. The code enforcement officer told of a situation where a lady called him one day and asked him to come to her home, which she was apparently renting, because she felt she was living in unsafe conditions. The code enforcement officer did, indeed, find that her living conditions were unsafe, and told her he would find out who the owner of the property was, and get in touch with that person to let him know he had to correct the situation at this property. Little did he know at the time that the owner was none other than the city of Caribou! So, not only does the city not collect taxes on this property, now they are responsible for correcting the unsafe living conditions, not to mention the added burden these situations put on the code enforcement officer.
Also at a recent council meeting, a former resident of Caribou now living elsewhere had one remaining piece of property that he had apparently tried to sell with no success. Therefore, he asked to “donate” it to the city. The council accepted this donation. Why? If the owner couldn’t sell it, why does the council think the city can sell it? And it is one more piece of property not collecting taxes. Every piece of property not collecting taxes in Caribou means more money coming out of our pockets. Urge your councilors and city manager to adopt a procedure that will dispose of these properties quickly, getting them back on to the tax books and out of our pocketbooks!
Election day is right around the corner. Please vote. And check out CaribouWatch.com often. CFRCM’s next meeting will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 28th at 6:30 pm at the Van Buren Road Lodge. All are welcome.

To the editor:
“Blessed is the man who delights in the law of the Lord.” The law of the Lord will abide forever, and if not obeyed, have eternal consequences.
The laws of men will fade, and pass away, like the “flower of the field”.
Same sex unions are a desecration of the covenant of marriage, against the order of “natural law,” inscribed in every heart by God.
“False compassion” can become a green light to accept whatever makes everyone happy.
Same-sex marriage will cast a dark shadow upon the bright tomorrow of our children, who we hope will be holy and without blemish, robed in white garments at the “wedding feast of the Lamb of God”.

To the editor:
It is with great pleasure to take a moment to thank the local establishments and all the patriotic people who contributed to the refurbishing of the Caribou Honor Roll. We had blue and red coffee cans from Ouellette’s Variety through Hannaford’s Shop N Save to Millers on the other side of town and the patriotic folks in this community shined through. I remember when Loring AFB was still here, the base commander was rotating and he briefed his replacement. He said to be prepared to participate in activities in this town as they will call on you, as they are very patriotic. And from your participation in this program — he was correct. Your patriotism is second to none.
I would like to list and thank all the local businesses who contributed items and monetary donations individually but I would probably slight someone and that would not be intentional and I would be apologizing for a long time. But we are all very grateful.
If you have the chance to stop by, in fact you should take a moment to stop by, and reflect on the Honor Roll itself, especially at night, and possibly search for a loved one or friend you may have known, as I am sure it would inspire you and instill a spirit of patriotism in yourself just knowing you are part of this community who are very grateful and patriotic citizens.
We replaced the lighting and painted the woodwork. The grass has been treated and some shrubs have been removed. We plan on removing the trees that have grown too large and replace them with a smaller more manageable version. A barrier will be installed around the grass area to prevent unwanted parking and snow plowing which destroys the grass and creates more clean-up work in the spring. So we are hopeful this area will remain an attractive part of the Caribou history.
Shortly we will be adding the servicemen and women who participated in the Desert Storm Operation. Requirements for this operation are being developed and should be completed by next spring when we will list those individuals’ names.
Until then, we are extremely thankful to all who contributed to this project, as the volunteers from the American Legion Post 15 and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9389 enjoyed this project very much.