To the editor:

As Pogo said in the immortal Walt Kelly cartoon describing the environmental ravages of our planet by humans in 1970: “We have met the enemy and they are us.”

While on a much lesser scale, I thought of that famous line when reading David Gleason’s letter to the editor (“In response to story about candidates’ forum,” The Portsmouth Times, Oct. 10). Mr. Gleason is not too familiar with the term irony. He states in his letter that he made a special effort to converse with the managing editor of East Bay Newspapers to warn him that, this being the political season, there would be some mudslinging going on. Isn’t suggesting that your opponents are going to be mudslinging, mudslinging? 

Mr. Gleason also complained that he felt a victim of partisan politics during his term on the council. He endorsed three other people running for council, none of them his Republican colleague currently on the council, and none of the Democrats. I suppose that means he’s a party of one. 

Finally, Mr Gleason mentions the moderator of the event responded negatively to me at a certain junction. I will explain: Mr. Gleason, in one of his statements, indicated he was a leader of the so-called “transparency group” that has positioned itself as a non-partisan group monitoring the Portsmouth elections. This is the first time he acknowledged his position as its leader and I wanted to be sure I heard him correctly. I asked him to clarify. I was not allowed to do so by the moderator. Mr. Gleason was leading a group he styled the “transparency party,” not acknowledging he was in fact its leader. Somewhat opaque. 

Briefly to Mr. Fitzmorris’s letter (“Shouting at citizens should be out of order,” The Portsmouth Times, Oct. 10): I do not recall yelling at people though certainly my voice was raised on certain occasions. During the first several meetings of the council in 2023, Mr. Fitzmorris would take the microphone and with a three-ring binder in front of him on the podium begin essentially lecturing the council and making allegations against town officials. I did not interrupt for a period of time looking to see if my colleagues on the council were going to do anything. They did not, so I did. 

I asked Mr. Fitzmorris if he had a question in all of his rambling. I’ve asked him if he was accusing members of town government of having acted improperly. He finally acknowledged he was making that accusation. I have no intention of sitting idly by while somebody makes misleading, fabricated, or ignorant allegations, especially against a group of people who are public servants and who are not supposed to respond to the General Public in a defensive manner. That obligation is on the council, and I responded. I would note Mr. Fitzmorris is one of 17,000 people in town and probably one of 11 or 12,000 adults. There is not enough time in the year to allow each of them to come up and pontificate, as he claims to be his right.

Charles Levesque

542 Park Ave.

Portsmouth

Mr. Levesque is a member of the Portsmouth Town Council.