I have no connection to FairPoint, though I have followed the recent strike coverage with interest.

In at least two articles (“FairPoint strikers picket for second day,” Oct. 18; “Contracts shed light on FairPoint labor dispute,” Oct. 25), you report that striking workers “acknowledge” or “admit” they have the richest contract in the country, as if there is something wrong with that.

Isn’t a high-paying job with excellent benefits the embodiment of the American dream? The CEOs and board members of these companies don’t apologize for their own rich contracts, which directly result from the skill and reliability of their workers.

If FairPoint workers are doing better than most, then good for them! Their so-called admission should not be an apology, but rather a call for hope as other workers face an economic recovery in which the stock market surges ahead but good jobs lag behind.

The middle class is fast disappearing in this country, one “rich” contract at a time. The FairPoint contract should represent a standard to which other workers can aspire.

Monica Wood

Portland