Edgar Allen Beem is in possession of all the foresight that our governor lacks. What is encouraging is that many young people also understand that we have to “do more with less” and work on sharing and sustainability, that maybe people are not just greedy by nature and we’re all in this together. My generation, the aptly named “Xers,” just sort of nodded and went along for the ride. Young people today, from the Occupiers to the local community farmers, are saying “This system is crazy. This isn’t working.” And they are right. I put my hopes in them, not in out-of-touch political “leadership” that keeps marching us along the same tired path of “trickle down” and the cold hard, bottom line, when instead we need to see the challenge before us and have the courage to change and find a different way, before it’s too late.

Jennifer Hodsdon
Brunswick