Two letters in the Jan. 20 Press Herald were critical of M.D. Harmon’s Jan. 13 commentary concerning Warren Roos’ leaving the Spurwink Rod and Gun Club over the National Rifle Association membership requirement.

First, Mr. Roos has every right to leave the club. That’s his business and no one else’s.

Second, Mr. Harmon has every right to his editorial position, as do Petros Panagokos and Stew Vreeland, who so objected to Mr. Harmon’s. All should be heard.

Third, the Spurwink Rod and Gun Club has the right to impose any requirements it chooses concerning membership by vote of the members. If a member does not like it, they can work to change the position or leave. Their choice. No one is being forced to stay.

My question is, why was Mr. Roos’ action considered news and even reported in the paper? It certainly was not newsworthy. Had Mr. Roos written to the editor and his position appeared in Voice of the People, fine. It seems that the reporter who wrote the piece may have had more than news on his mind.

How many of us have left an organization over a position it took that we did not agree with? I bet most of us. I left AARP over its position on “Obamacare,” but it did not show up as news in the paper, nor should it have.

As for Mr. Harmon’s columns, like them or not, at least they appear on the Commentary page, unlike Mr. Nemitz’s columns, which frequently appear on the front page of sections 1 or 2. Go figure.

Richard Prince is a resident of South Portland.

 

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