I am writing to support with enthusiasm Gov. Mills’ work toward making preschool available to all children in Maine. As a teacher of English and communication, I have had the opportunity to work with a broad spectrum of students from middle school through college.

Maine should go after Amazon to build their new headquarters here. Why? Because a massive, modern building would look so much better than a 145-mile transmission line that would supposedly create temporary jobs and destroy acres of forest.

We are fortunate to still have a local newspaper in the Piscataquis Observer. Cities and towns across the U.S. have lost 1,400 newspapers in the last 15 years, and the Observer, like all other Maine papers, has been subject to staff reductions, but at least we still have a source for coverage of board meetings, local events, sports events, etc.

In 2016 the town of Dover-Foxcroft voted to approve our updated comprehensive plan as a tool to guide us in positive economic development, focusing on quality of life and natural resources. With housing sales up and some new investments, the future looks brighter than it has in decades.

I did not vote for Eliot Cutler, but I am so happy that he has stood up to David Farmer and his propaganda and far-left liberal views.

So Matthew Gagnon doesn’t want to live in Massachusetts or New Hampshire, he just wants to be taxed like he was. We’ll ignore that Maine has many times the land area and a fraction of the other states’ population density. We’ll ignore that the state has had eight years of Republican tax cutting policies, which has not achieved their mystical economic results.

Lori Calderone’s March 13 letter about the national popular vote for president verses the Electoral College shows the common misconception about how the Electoral College works.

I was away for much of the month of February, so I just came across the piece by David Farmer in your Feb. 4 edition that used me as a strawman for his criticism of “rich dudes” who might run for president of the United States, governor of Maine or, implicitly, any other public office – unless they run under the banner of Mr. Farmer’s Democratic Party.

It is critical to our democracy that every citizen’s vote has value, and is felt by the voter to have value. Enacting a national popular vote will ensure that every vote has value; and is not lost due to the particular majority party of the voting district. No longer will Piscataquis Democrats or York Republicans have reason to say, “My vote doesn’t matter.”

Democrats are laying the whip to the foundations of our Republic. Those who represent us are either standing aside in mute obeisance or taking their beating in silence. What can be learned from the whimpers of the cowed, distant in the still?

Thank you to the BDN for the Feb. 21 editorial suggesting our increased climate change awareness might translate into increased action. It joins increased media coverage on climate concerns, much from the younger generation. Although the BDN identifies shortcomings of the Green New Deal, we must not dismiss its loud, clear statement from youth, amplified by student strikes across Europe and elsewhere.

There is an expectation in this Republic that the duly elected representative of the people will represent the people. Not so for the voters of Congressional District 2 (CD2) in the state of Maine. As the freshman representative from New York, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, has established herself as the standard bearer of the Democrat Party, Jared Golden, the freshman representative from Maine who campaigned on standing up to his party, is content to offer his silence as consent.

There is a simple way to sell the Green New Deal to at least 35 percent of the county. All they need is a mind-numbing chant.

Any member of the public wishing to follow official documents pertaining to the criminal trial against Roger J. Stone, Jr. brought by the U.S. Department of Justice -- or any case filed in federal courts -- may do so through the court’s electronic filing system. Observers simply create an account through something called the PACER Case Locator (pcl.uscourts.gov).

While the extent of this global emergency is daunting, there is a ray of hope in HR 763, The Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act. This nonpartisan solution is estimated to reduce America’s carbon pollution by at least 40 percent within 12 years, while returning a carbon dividend to all Americans monthly.

Unlike every other elected office, a presidential candidate can (and five times in our history has) win election without winning the majority of votes cast. Think about that. Except for the presidency, all federal, state, and local elected positions (whether selectmen and women, state legislators, governors,congressional and senatorial positions -- even dog catchers and coroners, where elected!) must win the most votes from all eligible voters to win.

Climate change is a polarizing issue everywhere, including Congress. So far it has been impossible to pass bipartisan legislation to address it. Citizens Climate Lobby, a national nonpartisan organization, is working on this. They helped bring about last month’s introduction of the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act by a bipartisan group in the U.S. House of Representatives.

But in view of my three years there and a different direction in my life, I will not seek re-election to the board. I would say someone with children in SAD 4 would be better suited as a board member.