In the April 25 issue of the Press, George and Mary Randig assert that the Press’ attempt to “influence the town boards for another try at passing an override is obvious.” I’m interested in how they might support that assertion. I want the most neutral survey questions possible and if the Press has somehow skewed questions to get a particular result, I’d like to know how and I’m sure they would as well.
If the real issue is that a survey might help reveal the belief system of the town, I understand their objection; they might want to avoid such a result. But my reading of the survey itself was that it was mainly aimed at helping the town boards as they “back into an acceptable number” that might pass as an override in difficult circumstances.
Further, I believe that surveys on issues facing Harvard today (Devens, school funding, town center, affordable housing, and others) would help generate a civil conversation on the future of our town and help engage Harvard citizens in that conversation.
As to George and Mary’s assertion that it is “not your duty to canvass the town to support your agenda,” I disagree. I sympathize with Thomas Jefferson’s idea that “If it were left to me to decide whether we should have a government without a free press or a free press without a government, I would prefer the latter.”
Joe Hutchinson
Westcott Road
