The Suffield Observer (https://thesuffieldobserver.com/category/opinion/editorial/page/6/)
This editorial is a direct result of me having said YES when I was asked to be editor of the month. This was one of the first YESs I had given in over a year. COVID cleared my evenings, my weekends and lessened many commitments.
I’m sure everyone in town has noticed the new (though not yet functional) traffic lights and their accompanying pole in our major intersection, where Mountain Road meets Main Street; they’re hard to miss. Uglier additions to our town center are hard to imagine.
As I’m sure many of our readers have noticed, Rick Stromoski’s cartoon has been missing from the paper for the past couple of months. Rick has decided to end his time with the Observer, and the town will be the poorer for it.
It’s been brought to my attention that some residents complain that The Suffield Observer is too liberal, that the paper doesn’t publish viewpoints other than those with a liberal slant. The editorial cartoons are too liberal and there is no voice for other viewpoints.
I remember as a kid reading JFK’s Profiles in Courage, a collection of stories about eight United States senators who showed courage in the face of great personal detriment by doing the right thing. Virtually all of them paid the price by losing their seats in Congress but maintained throughout their lives that, in John Quincy Adams’ words, “Private interest must not be put in opposition to the public good.”
2020 has certainly been a stressful year in all our lives, and the last few months particularly so. Dealing with the COVID-19 crisis, along with a hotly conducted and somewhat uncivilized presidential election, has added to the strain.
Here in this time of Covid-19, with all its limitations and boundaries, there are some relationships that have come to be more important than ever. If you are a pet owner, you know what I mean.
Well another election season is upon us. But this editorial is not going to encourage you to vote.
In February 2020, most Suffield students had found themselves continuing to endure a busy and demanding schedule, on track to finish the school year strong; however, Covid-19 suddenly put the year on pause, instilling boredom, fear and loneliness in many.