After listening to Councilor Polstein’s ranting about meetings that are being held at the building on outer Central Street, I have to ask: "What the hell is he up to now?"

This town has suffered some major losses in recent years. I guess we weren’t supposed to notice:

Loss of our Canoe festival to Medway

Loss of our Recreation dept. to East Millinocket

Loss of our right to vote on Annexation

Loss of the rights of 1400 voters who passed a referendum question last fall to limit Magic’s spending to $25,000.00, when the Bloc on our Council decided to give MAGIC $50,000.00, in spite of the wishes of those 1400 voters.

Loss of the rights of the petitioners who worked diligently to get enough signatures to put that question on the November ballot.

Loss of the rights of the citizens who have voted to elect Town Councilors to represent their interest in the town’s governing body. When the Bloc adjourns council meetings prematurely, those Councilors are silenced.

Loss of the rights of 560 registered voters to redress their town government when a valid petition is ignored and invalidated by the Bloc.

As much as the Bloc would like the world to believe that their socialistic need to control our small town into a Gateway Community Trinket Trap is what is best for us, the clear majority is not going to stand for it.

At the 7-14-05 council meeting, Councilor Polstein clearly stated his disdain for the meetings that are occasionally being held at the old Ford building, for the purpose of taking back OUR town.

It sounds to me like the Bloc now intends to remove our right to assemble. Well, why not? They have clearly taken our right to vote, to petition, and our right for representation away; the next step would logically be, our Constitutional right to assemble.

Well, I’m here to tell you that this new declaration will certainly cause some concern among area residents.

In our occasional meetings at the former Ford Dealership, our group works to achieve only one thing, freedom from the binds of the Northern Forest Alliance. The Alliance consists of more than twenty green groups. The Nature Conservancy, Wilderness Society, and the Sierra Club, are their heavy hitters. They are working diligently to transition Millinocket into a Gateway Community. Their stated goal is to create the largest contiguous uninhabited forested area in the Northern hemisphere. Their successes include, New York State, New Hampshire, Vermont, and now Northern Maine.

When you follow the 298 camps that were removed in New York State, the 1300 camp leases that were ended in Vermont, and the removal of 87% of the entire logging/paper industry from the West Coast, you will soon come to realize that no good will come from their moving into our town.

But still, they are here, and our Constitutional rights are rapidly disappearing.

Two years ago, we discovered a publication, put out by the Wilderness Society, entitled "How to build a Wilderness Campaign". Imagine my surprise, when we matched up the actions prescribed in this publication, with the actions of MAGIC and the Bloc on our Council.

Just last month we discovered a publication entitled, "Northern Forest Toolkit of Economic Sustainability", subtitled, "A How-to Manual of Strategies, Tools and Resources for Building Sustainable Economies, Communities and Landscapes".

This Manual describes in detail how to create and sustain the only business development they allow, read the "Table of Contents":

• Strategy # 1- Amenity-Based Development
• Strategy # 2- Value-Added Forest Products
• Strategy # 3- Nature-Based Recreation
• Strategy # 4- Cultural Heritage Tourism
• Building Block # 1- Land Conservation
• Building Block # 2- Sustainable Forestry

Nowhere, in this 60-page booklet, can you find any mention of any form of industry, or development of such. Just as you cannot see any sign of it in Millinocket. While they are telling us that they are working on industrial development, talk is cheap.

Do you see a Moscone Boiler Factory, Brims Ness device production, Portwine Cheese production or any form of "industry" being developed in Millinocket at all?

People who disregard the endless hollow positive press, and only believe what they see, come to our meetings.

We meet for the sole purpose of taking back OUR Town.

We have discussed going out to the public to grow our membership. Maybe it’s time to do just exactly that.

Here’s my E-Mail address.

Tell me, what do you want to do?

blackcat@midmaine.com

David P. Cyr
Millinocket, Maine