EDITOR:

After reading the comments of Mr. Blasier the other day I was appalled. I can’t speak to his character because I don’t him. I do know his comments should not have been said and especially not in a public meeting. Like Mr. Blasier, I also grew up near Detroit when the 1967 protests took place. We could see the smoke of burning buildings from our home and were under a curfew. It was not a laughing matter then and is not today. To get into a discussion of politics in an apology is not appropriate. The position he holds has a responsibility to the entire community who probably don’t want to know his political views anyway. I taught my former students to fess up to what they did when wrong, apologize, and not try to talk, reason, or rationalize their way out of a mistake. They had to own it. The citizens of Escanaba are proud of their community. I was proud to teach there. It is a close knit and supportive city. They deserve better from their leaders, especially in these challenging times. This is my first rough draft and I don’t plan on changing it one bit. I’m not leaving it for someone else to fix because my words matter. Mr. Blasier should resign, and with his free time, learn how to apologize. Hopefully, he will never be in charge of a city.

Paula Alverson Shapy

Iron Mountain