To the editor:

The Bristol County Concerned Citizens (BCCC) group sponsored several forums in October for state house and senate candidates, Bristol town council candidates and Bristol Warren school committee candidates. It is unfortunate the East Bay Media Group chose not to assign a reporter to cover these informative and sometimes lively exchanges between candidates and constituents.

Over the past couple of weeks there have been a number of letters to the editor bemoaning the absence of Republicans at one forum sponsored by the Sakonnet Times in Little Compton and other forums sponsored by the League of Women Voters (LOWV) on various dates and involving candidates for different offices.

Also, the chairman of the Little Compton Republican Town Committee was criticized for declining to condemn a political mailer that Democrats deemed to be hate mail. The mailer at issue was a replica of a ballot marked for all Republican or independent candidates favored by the originator of the mailer – The Little Compton Taxpayers Association. I guess this simply reflects the fact that what one person or party views as “hate mail” is another person’s or group’s political advocacy. Personally, I saw nothing hateful in the mailer other than political advocacy.

I find it interesting that so many writers are willing to condemn candidates of one particular party affiliation for not participating in forums they might have deemed partisan and therefore potential set-ups for gotcha environments or simply were conflicted by other commitments. Yet these chronic complainers have nothing to say about progressive hard-left-leaning candidates who chose not to participate in BCCC forums. As explained by one courageous Democrat candidate who did participate – Democrat leadership did not want to give the BCCC any legitimacy. And God knows Democrat party leadership would not want that?

East Bay Media failed to print BCCC’s news release inviting the public to a School Committee candidate Q&A forum and indicating that all questions to be asked by the moderator were provided in advance to each candidate. Had the East Bay Media attended each of the BCCC forums they might have noticed and commented on the fact that only four conservative oriented school committee candidates participated in the Q and A forum on Oct. 11; none of the progressive Democrat town council candidates showed up for the meet and greet forum on Oct. 12; and with the exception of Sen. Walter Felag and Rep. Jason Knight, other progressive candidates June Speakman, Sue Donovan, Linda Ujifusa and Pam Lauria declined to meet, greet and confront questions from their constituents.

Apparently, they believe it was more important not to risk legitimizing the BCCC than it was to attend and participate in what turned out to be a fair, balanced, amicable and lively town hall sort of meeting. Kudos to Felag and Knight.

The beauty for all residents who were unable to attend the three BCCC sponsored candidate forums at the Bristol VFW is that they were all live-streamed on the BCCC facebook page.

Pete Hewett
11 Wendy Drive