Former Verizon lobbyist Ajit Pai, currently masquerading as Trump apparatchik and Federal Communications Commission chairman whose installation was primarily meant to dismantle net neutrality, dropped the ball when an emergency required his timely response to a possible cyberattack and perceived ballistic missile strike upon the U.S. citizens of Hawaii last weekend.

His response, and that of his boss in the White House: Hawaiians were at fault and they – the executive branch – did everything correctly. Note to reader – repeat “everything correctly” in the preferred vernacular of the game show host at the top of our government in the immediate aftermath of Hawaiians’ being alerted of an imminent missile strike on their state, perhaps in response to the aforementioned man’s adolescent Twitter posturing and saber rattling toward North Korea.

Was this the attack in response to that which Donald Trump has been threatening North Korea with for months? Ajit Pai is the lackey who is head of the branch of the federal government that is supposed to protect us against such crises when they arise, even when not having been precipitated by a madman. Pathetic!

I’ve often wondered how another incompetent in such a position of power and responsibility here in Maine might respond to a situation of such gravity, if that person similarly had neither adequately prepared for nor had the intelligence or will to do so.

Without naming the governor, I know damn well that his and his administration’s cowardly response would be the same: Blame the Democrats and avoid acknowledging that those in the administration are not up to doing the job that they were elected or appointed to do.

Jon St. Laurent

Portland

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