It was irritating to read Ray Routhier’s July 5 article “Is New Brunswick’s ‘East of Ordinary’ the Way It Should Be?” and even more irritating to read some of the suggested slogan responses.

Why is there always this mentality of one-upmanship? Isn’t there already more friction than needed in the world? Why isn’t man happy unless he is stirring up a controversy or a fight?

A large section of Maine was once part of New Brunswick (then Nova Scotia), so our state and many of our people share a rich, though sometimes violent, history. If it weren’t for the pesky boundary that separates us – one my relatives once crossed as if they were walking across the street – one would never know one place from another.

Remember the days when you could cross the border to visit relatives without a passport and, yes, simply enjoy being there? In many ways, we are closer to New Brunswick then we are to other U.S. states.

I value the relationship Maine and New Brunswick shares, so let’s cut the always-superior attitude so we won’t be unwelcome there as we are in far too many countries. But if we must declare a slogan, perhaps it should be “West of Our Ancestors.”

Leslie Poole

Rockland


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