My compliments to M.D. Harmon for the restraint he displayed in his double-barrel assault on the Occupy Wall Street movement.

His Oct. 28 column fails to label the Occupy movement as “Hippies,” “Commies,” “Drum Beaters,” “Anarchists” or “Marxists.” I imagine he’s saving those for future screeds. Wouldn’t be prudent to blow all your cliches in one bundle, I suppose.

Additional Photos

Weeks into the Occupy Maine encampment in Portland's Lincoln Park, Mainers are divided about how the demonstrators are being portrayed and treated. Press Herald file

I don’t have room to correct all of Harmon’s distortions, so I’ll point out just a few whoppers.

First, when he cites “The Wall Street Journal” as his source for “research” on the Occupy Wall Street protesters, he’s really citing a piece by Douglas Schoen from the opinion page of the WSJ, not the news pages. The opinion page, of course, is Rupert Murdoch’s playground for conservatives willing to fight tooth and nail for the top 1 percent’s right to ride roughshod over the bottom 99 percent.

The data that Schoen cites, by the way, was so flawed that it was challenged on-the-air Oct. 19 by Megyn Kelly of Fox News. Schoen backpedaled and was forced to admit that, yes, he was misrepresenting the data he collected at Zuccotti Park.

I guess Mr. Harmon was too busy polishing his bust of Ronald Reagan that day to notice. Stenography is so much easier than actual fact-checking, isn’t it?

Second, every mainstream poll released so far (including CBS News, Rasmussen and Time magazine) shows that Americans’ support for the Occupy Wall Street movement exceeds support for the tea party, often dramatically.

Third, the massive Bush and Obama tax cuts have produced what, exactly? Utter and total stagnation and a gargantuan shift of wealth to the top 1 percent of Americans.

Heckuva job, billionaires. And heckuva smokescreen on their behalf, Mr. Harmon.

Bill Harnsberger

Portland

Regarding the protesters in Portland who are camping out in Lincoln Park: Portland has an ordinance banning camping and being in any city park after 10 p.m. Lincoln Park is starting to look pretty shabby.

Portland leans way left in its politics. I have to wonder if the city would let the tea party folks camp out overnight for an indefinite period.

Well, a precedent has been set. I have a large group event every summer. I’m glad that we’ll be able to camp out in Portland and that it’s free of charge. I think we’ll use Payson Park, though, as there is a better view.

Shawn Moran

Westbrook

The throwing of the chemical bomb into the Occupy Maine protest in Portland, as reported in the Oct. 24 Press Herald, was an act of terrorism, pure and simple. Please don’t spin it to make it anything other than that.

The “conservative” (there’s a misnomer) electorate and similarly leaning media-channel pundits would be rabid if it was a tea party or GOP gathering that was similarly assaulted.

I am hopeful that the Portland Police Departmant and federal law enforcement officials will do their job to identify and bring charges against those responsible.

If we as a country allow a peaceful assembly of people exercising their constitutional rights to assembly and freedom of speech to come under attack, then we are doomed as a democracy.

Andrew Slusarski

Portland

Sanford is right to take action on swinger parties

I would like to respond to Kelley Bouchard’s front page article in the Oct. 27 Press Herald in which she follows up on the swinger parties at the former Knights of Columbus hall in Sanford. I am not sure if Ms. Bouchard was trying to make a point by selecting professor Wendy Chapkis to be the delivery agent, or if she was merely seeking a viewpoint to publish.

Either way, professor Chapkis’ reaction, in which she was “mystified” by negative reactions to the whole situation, serves to mystify me.

If the people of Sanford/Springvale wanted to sanction this type of behavior/business, they would have allowed it in the town zoning or would work to have it changed.

Also, let’s not forget that this is an establishment that is regularly used for community functions, including voting. So forgive us, Ms. Chapkis, if we don’t feel like casting our ballots on the same table that you “liberated and empowered” yourself on.

“There’s a moral judgment being made here about where people can have sex,” she says.

You bet your tenure there is, and from what I’ve heard, Sanford/Springvale does not want this type of activity within our town lines, especially at an unlicensed location used by so many people.

And you know what? That’s OK. Really, it is.

It may be hard to bite off and chew in today’s culture, but we actually are allowed to find that behavior to be less than heart-warming and separate ourselves from it.

You do what you want, where somebody wants you to do it, and leave us sexually repressed, socially regressive homebodies to our own affairs.

It’s getting to be where if you’re not 100 percent in favor of absolutely everything, you’re labeled as “intolerant.”

C. J. Lamb

Springvale

Kelley Bouchard’s Oct. 26 article on the front page of the Press Herald about the sex club was very entertaining and well-written.

Why was the previous owner of the building, the Knights of Columbus, even mentioned? To write that the Knights of Columbus, a Roman Catholic service organization, owned the building several years ago and sold it. What a cheap shot at the Catholic Church.

The Knights of Columbus is a Catholic organization that helps the church and gives support to all in need, locally and worldwide. I feel very hurt and angry that the Roman Catholic Church was even mentioned in this sex article.

Edward Stawecki

Fourth Degree Knight

Knights of Columbus

Old Orchard Beach

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