It was great to see Bill Nemitz leap to Rep. Chellie Pingree’s defense in his Friday column (“McCarthyism laughable — until it isn’t”). That will certainly put the lie to any accusation that her husband, Donald Sussman, will have any influence with the paper.

Nemitz took umbrage at the comments of Rep. Allen West when he likened the Progressive Caucus of the Democratic Party to communists.

He was mortified that West, R-Fla., would make such a charge and dragged Joe McCarthy out of the grave to bolster the argument.

Well, as Jay Carney, presidential spin master, informed us regarding some of the president’s recent comments on the Supreme Court, “You didn’t understand what he was saying,” adding that the president is so intelligent that he was speaking in shorthand.

So, let’s give Allen West credit for being equally as smart as Obama. Therefore, his smartness and shorthand-speak are too much for Nemitz to truly understand.

If Nemitz were to go to the Encarta Dictionary: English (North America), he would find the following definitions:

“Progressive: Belonging to or associated with a political party that calls itself progressive or advocates social reform; advocating social, economic, or political reform.”

“Communist: A supporter of Communism or a member of an organization that supports or practices Communism; any system of government in which a single, usually totalitarian, party holds power, and the state controls the economy (emphasis mine).”

“Capitalist: A supporter of capitalism, or a participant in a capitalist economy; an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and distribution of goods, characterized by a free competitive market and motivation by profit.”

Now I ask, are the progressives closer to capitalists or communists in their thinking and policies?

You see, Nemitz just did not understand Rep. West’s shorthand.

Gerald Caruso is a resident of Falmouth.