One has to wonder about the level of sentiment those involved with this ‘wall of silence” would be experiencing were it their child who had been seriously injured. One could only surmise that their reactions would have been entirely the opposite. It is said, that “Character is formed through adversity” and clearly we’re faced with an unfortunate situation becoming increasingly more disturbing with each passing day; made so by the refusal of those to step up and do the right thing.

The lesson this incident is conveying to our children, our neighbors, and ourselves is an unsettling one – “take not responsibility for one’s actions, demonstrate not the example of personal accountability, but instead turn the other way, protect oneself at all costs, and think not about our duty to our fellow man”. This is a rather sad commentary about exactly who some among us – willingly or not – are demonstrating themselves to be.

I am sure most would agree, this is not the legacy we would choose to leave to our children. The many good people of the neighborhood deserve a better reputation than this and it is within the power of some within that area to make things right.

We have yet to begin payment for the Town Hall and Center School renovations, the much needed expansion to our WWTF, and the abysmal conditions of the Burgess School. These projects are priorities and with a declining tax base, receding home values, and increasing job losses, these will, in and of themselves, be a significant burden for residents.

We have residents who are struggling with the costs of energy, food, medical, and other essentials. How do we in good conscience as them to shoulder the burden for a non-essential expenditure.

One would have to think that nearly every resident would support burying the exposed overhead cables, but prudence would dictate that this is certainly not the time to ask residents to take on an additional non-essential tax burden.

In this economic climate, burying these cables is akin to having a facelift while one’s cupboards are void of food, the bill collector is banging on the door, and the oil furnace is empty.

The time to address non-essential cosmetic surgery, i.e. burying lines, is when all other essentials have been addressed and we have the extra money in the bank, so to speak, not when we we’re facing an economic crisis that some say is the worst since the Great Depression.