To the Editor:

Bill Shavender’s response to my letter a few weeks ago is typical of the “just say no” without any suggestions crowd. They can’t debate the facts of my letter, which is not pro tax, so they resort to attacking the messenger!

I thank Mr. Shavender for his military service to our country. He did indeed earn the right to speak out, and at the same time, he defended my right to speak out also, and I will continue to do so as long as I have something that I believe needs to be said.

For the record, I was born in Goldsboro, which I believe is just as much a part of eastern North Carolina as Mr. Shavender’s Beaufort County. No one there or anywhere else I’ve lived has ever wanted to pay more taxes.

Wherever I have lived, I became involved in my community as I did in Beaufort County nine years ago. My wife and I volunteered for the very first Music in the Streets committee and spent many Friday nights putting up tents and moving sand bags to hold them down. In the following years, I served on almost all the Beaufort County Republican Party executive committees, and was county chairman the last two years. I spend many long and hot days at the Republican booth at different festivals to promote Republican ideals and help elect Republican candidates. I have attended almost all of the county commissioners meeting for the last three years, and attended all of the budget workshops this year, voicing my opinion to all the commissioners for less government spending. I have also had several letters in the last few years asking for lower taxes and less government spending. As a citizen activist, I have earned my right to speak out and I challenge Mr. Shavender to match my involvement. If he did, he would discover that things are not as clear cut as his group has told him they are. The commissioners have done a good job of keeping our taxes low, lower than almost all other counties in the area, with no increases in our tax rate for many years. The state mandated revaluation came at a bad time and many, including me, have seen an increase in the amount of property taxes we pay.

But even then, our county commissioners controlled what they could and lowered our tax rate from 60 to 50 cents.

Everyone has the right and obligation to get involved and speak out. Mr. Shavender might perhaps be better served by letting the commissions know of any ideas he has to cut the budget enough to offset the $2.6 million school bond payment passed by the citizens of Beaufort County to lessen or prevent a tax increase! Standing on the sideline and merely stating “no new taxes” over and over doesn’t help anyone solve the problem.

LARRY BRITT
Chocowinity