After reading the front-page article in the April 26 Maine Sunday Telegram headlined “Can’t mask the tension,” I feel compelled to respond to the words and behavior of Mike Violette.
He is quoted as telling the article’s author, Staff Writer Ray Routhier, that he doesn’t think he needs to wear a mask “in places like Portland, or Augusta, Maine … if you’re healthy.”
Mr. Violette misses the point. Wearing a mask is not primarily to protect him, it is to protect others from him. Unless he has been living in a cave the last two months, he could be an asymptomatic carrier of the virus and spreading it to others.
He appears to be operating from his personal ideology (“I’m not a fan of heavy-handed government”) and belief in his health as opposed to concern for his fellow citizens. The real tragedy is that others will bear the brunt of his behavior and not him.
Jeanie Barnard
Yarmouth
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