At the T.W. Kelly (Dirigo) Middle School in Dixfield, the 8th-grade graduation speaker, Lt. Col. Karl Knight, near the end of his speech on his experiences in the war in Iraq, said, “If you find yourself in a desolate and forsaken place, like Carthage, Maine…”, then he paused for his joke to sink in.

Meanwhile, as a person whose hometown is Carthage, waiting to see the graduation of Carthage students, I was shocked and offended that this man made such a derogatory remark at a graduation.

The impression is that Carthage, or any small town for that matter, is a desolate and forsaken place. Why did Knight choose those words? The word “desolate,” according to the dictionary, means deserted, barren and lifeless. The word “forsaken” refers to something abandoned and shunned.

Everyone has the right to freedom of speech in America. They also have the right to live where they choose. For generations, my family has lived and prospered in the small town of Carthage.

Carthage is known for the great opportunities in logging, hunting, fishing, farming and its most important resource, its families. The community gives its time, energy, spirit and money to help those in need. Many town organizations work hard to better the community. Does that sound like a desolate and forsaken place?

It is not where people live, but how they act and what they do with their lives that counts.

I expect a public apology to the people of Carthage from Lt. Col. Knight.

Erin Dailey, Gardiner

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