STAND AND BE COUNTED

As a citizen of this town for 72 years, I have never witnessed such bad behavior, by some of our residents in my whole life. While I am not going to discuss the politics of Tiverton, I have to say that while the newspaper articles or television discussions have been interesting, they have been very disturbing to me at the same time.

There are some who have spoken or written comments over the past months or made insinuations about some of our citizens at one time or another by calling them thugs, liars, people who misrepresent the facts, cronies, slimy, sleazy, and lastly thieves! As a citizen of this town I beg to differ, and I am insulted as you all should be! Enough is enough ! We are not children but good and thoughtful adults who want what is best for Tiverton, nothing more, nothing less. Do we make it our responsibility to intimidate people at the meeting, absolutely not! There are some who like to hear themselves talk and go on too long but that's why we have a moderator who makes sure the meeting runs smoothly, and kept under control.

Two years ago, to make it easier for everyone, instead of an evening meeting during the week we changed it to a Saturday morning, because some thought it would bring in more people, and it seemed to, but now we are informed that Saturday is not a good day, because it keeps families from attending games or family functions'. My family and I came home early from a college graduation to make sure we made the meeting so we could vote. It's only1day out of 365 for maybe 4 hours,. I personally do not find it to be an inconvenience, but no matter what concessions we've made, it's not good enough, only because some factions want the meetings gone.

We are a diverse group from many different walks of life and educational backgrounds who are now living their lives here as did their parents and grandparents before them. As we all know the Financial Town Meeting is a Democratic process, a privilege, and it's our responsibility, to attend the meeting to hear the budget and taxes presentations, listen to all sides, then vote for what we believe is right for our families and our town. What is wrong with that ?

Some people believe the FTR is a good thing, and maybe for some it is, but not for me. I believe if we give up the Financial Town Meeting this piece of Democracy we now have will be gone forever. Your voices will be silent, and decisions will be made for you. I can't believe this is what some of you want, but in the long run it's your decision. Just don't be talked into something that you may regret in the years to come. You know the old saying, “ If it looks to good to be true, it probably is,” just give it a lot of thought please!

Don't give up on something that gives us, a right to be heard, a right to disagree, and a right to vote. Stand up, be proud ,and be counted.

Patricia A Curran
Tiverton, RI