Stop the politics, save the mills

To the Editor;

As the pending demise of the paper industry claims the mill in Madison, it’s about time election year politics are put on hold and our elected officials do something to address this crisis.

We allowed the paper manufacturing industry to go elsewhere. Just like the shift to wood chip processing of excess wood, biomass and a much cleaner forestry is just emerging on the large scale. The skills to sustain paper manufacturing are readily available in Maine.

Gov. Paul LePage needs to stop his political maneuvering and step up to the leadership role we elected him to fulfill. I’d like to suggest a blue ribbon panel of paper, transportation and other related industries to come up with solutions.

My bet is that LePage would be hard put to find men and women to serve on such a panel to address the needs of the paper industry unless he learns how to sit down at a conference table, shut his mouth and listen to real experts, who are taking their time to mitigate further erosion of the industry.

Wallace Sinclair 
Milo