"Never argue with a man who buys his ink by the barrel."
Benjamin Franklin
(Also attributed to Mark Twain)
About Letters to the Editor.
Now I know I'm headed for trouble. I do or did enjoy reading them. It's interesting to find out how your neighbors in and around the city and county think and feel about situations.
When you read the section long enough you get to recognize some of the writers by name and by their writing personality. You get to know how they feel about certain subjects. And when you see the names, your responses are varied.
"Well, let's see what (name) is talking about now."
Or
"Who's stepping on (name's) toes now?"
Or
"Well. (Name) is angry with the school board again."
Or
"I see (name) is thanking (name) for (action)."
Then there are the letters from persons who have passed through this area and have been treated kindly by our citizens or public service personnel. Truly, reading the letters is interesting.
When the city, county and state government officials act in any manner, they hear more from their local citizens through the letters than they do at their meetings.
At best, the citizens get a chance to tell their feelings and their side of the story without a time limit (word limit, yes) or without being told they can't talk about an issue or mention a name or place. Even if the officials ignore them, the citizen writer at least has some concerns expressed -- good ones and not so good ones -- but they are expressed.
When local issues come up -- crimes, murders, sex crimes, good news, winning awards, race matters, school news, business openings and closings, losing friends and neighbors -- the letters come in. They are either for or against on a personal level and they tell why. Even groups and organizations will write to give their concerns, thoughts, and suggestions.
The Letters to the Editor section has been a sounding board for our community and others. Persons who formerly lived here and moved away write to tell us something. Persons from other areas who found our good neighborliness infectious and contagious and had the unstoppable urge to tell us.
Even when we have complaints about the paper itself, the editors still publish them all. (No, I'm not being paid or looking for a job).
Then when a letter appears, the range of people who call and say "Read your letter." And "I'm sending a copy of it to (name)" is overwhelming.
All of this to say that recently all of our letters seem to be coming from out of town and out of the state. All praising one candidate and writing unfavorably about another. Makes us wonder why are all of these letters coming from out of the state. Do they really know us here in Wilson and actually care about us? Why are they centering a campaign here? Why are we being bombarded on our Letters to the Editor page?
Each of us can give a reason or an answer. And, we would much rather read what our local people on street names or routes that we recognize have to say.
So I'm not "arguing with the man who buys his ink by the barrel." I'm saying just keep our community Letters to the Editor page our own. Put the opinions and overload of outsiders on another page or under another heading. After all, with us and our folks ,we know where they are coming from, where they are, and where they are going. We know -- we know.
CATHERINE TAYLOR IS A RETIRED TEACHER AND BOARD OF EDUCATION MEMBER.