Beaufort Letters

  • Gay marriage debate sounds all too familiar
    I happened to be in North Carolina a few days before the vote on a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. While listening to WBT-AM, I heard host Keith Larson plea for tolerance, equal rights and freedom for all. Shortly afterward, he received an e-mail, which he read on the air, chiding him for being "either a homosexual himself or a homosexual lover."
  • Taxes going to enemy; use it to help heal vets
    Hearing on Fox News about billions of taxpayer dollars being sent to Islamic countries that include terrorists has totally broken my heart. It's sad to see what our president with his Islamic background is doing. The Islamic Brotherhood in Egypt intends to destroy the U.S., as do other Islamic terrorists.
  • Help US economy, needy people in world
    I have had it with President Barack Obama and his party's tax and spend policies. The GOP's slash and cut policies are only slightly better as they only attempt to hold down the deficit. Neither approach moves the country's economy forward.
  • Vegetarian, vegan not the same thing
    As a vegetarian for more than 20 years, I find it necessary to explain vegetarianism and veganism. To simplify, a vegetarian is someone who does not eat flesh from any creature, from cows to clams. The only word for someone who sometimes eats chicken or beef is a meat eater. A pescetarian only eats fish and seafood. Simple.
  • Courageous leadership needed to fix country
    November offers the easiest choice since 1980. Just think about filling up your car with gas at prices twice what they were in January 2009 and a president with no energy policy. Oh, I forgot, President Barack Obama did provide taxpayer money to political cronies at Solyndra, which went bankrupt. He buys into the green myth that a modern, prosperous economy can be powered by solar panels, wind and cooking oil, while at the same time stopping the Keystone Pipeline and cutting the number of drilling leases for oil and natural gas offshore and on public lands. Meanwhile, his Environmental Protection Agency is trying to kill the coal industry in America.
  • For our country's sake, elevate political debate
    The fall national election process is entering the "open sewer" stage for political media wags, who, because of a 24-hour news cycle, feel obligated to fill their time with endless commentary on mindless issues concerning candidates.
  • Let workers control their hard-earned money
    Monday's letter, "Future looks bleak for retiring boomers," concludes that privatizing money paid into Social Security should not be an option because "giving money to Wall Street is not the answer." This is an invalid and insulting conclusion.


For the latest legislative news from Columbia, visit S.C. Politics today:


Elected Representatives

South Carolina

Nikki Haley, Governor803.734.2100
Jim DeMint, Senator843.727.4525
Lindsey Graham, Senator803.933.0112
Tim Scott, Congressman843.852.2222
Alan Wilson, Attorney General803.734.3970
Joe Wilson, Congressman843.521.2530

Beaufort County

Ed Allen, Coroner843.255.5150
Sharon Burris, Auditor843.255.2500
Doug Henderson, Treasurer843.255.2600
Jerri Ann Roseneau, Clerk of Court843.255.5050
Frank Simon, Probate Judge843.255.5850
Duffie Stone, 14th Jud. Circ. Solicitor843.255.5880
P.J. Tanner, Sheriff843.255.3200

Weston J. Newton, Council Chairman843.706.6111
Paul Sommerville, Vice Chairman843.379.7114
Steven Baer, County Council843.689.3570
Rick Caporale, County Council843.689.9999
Gerald Dawson, County Council843.846.4830
Brian Flewelling, County Council843.379.9805
Herbert Glaze, County Council843.846.2845
William McBride, County Council843.838.2264
Stewart Rodman, County Council843.363.6470
Gerald Stewart, County Council843.705.4753
Laura Von Harten, County Council843.868.1062

City of Beaufort

Billy Keyserling, Mayor843.521.2600
Donnie Ann Beer, City Council843.379.6099
Mike McFee, City Council843.522.1528
George O'Kelley, Jr., City Council843.522.2043
Mike Sutton, City Council843.252.5687

Town of Bluffton

Lisa Sulka, Mayor843.540.1579
Oliver Brown, Town Council843.757.3690
Karen Lavery, Town Council843.384.1442
Ted Huffman, Town Council843.247.8337
Mike Raymond, Town Council843.540.9471

Town of Hilton Head

Drew Laughlin, Mayor843.689.5700
Ken Heitzke, Mayor Pro Tempore843.681.8182
Wm. Lee Edwards, Town Council843.686.9020
Willie Ferguson, Town Council843.686.2863
William D. Harkins, Town Council843.263.3261
Kim Likins, Town Council843.785.4909
George W. Williams, Jr., Town Council843.363.6601

Town of Port Royal

Samuel Murray, Mayor843.524.4890
Vernon DeLoach, Town Council843.524.4655
Mary Beth Grey-Heyward, Town Council843.524.4561
Thomas Klein, Town Council843.522.0068
Joe Lee, Town Council843.522.9867

 

Letters to the Editor

Letter guidelines

Letters to the editor are welcome. Letters must be 250 words or less and signed with your first and last names. Include your street address and daytime telephone number so we can verify the letter before publication. You are limited to one letter per 30 days. Letters may be edited for length, style, grammar, taste and libel. All letters submitted become the property of The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette and may be republished in any format. The Packet and the Gazette do not publish endorsement letters on the editorial page. Thank you letters are published in the Monday Lowcountry Life section.

How to reach us

Mail: P.O. Box 5727, Hilton Head Island, SC 29938
Fax: 843-706-3070
Hand-delivered: 10 Buck Island Road, Bluffton or 1556 Salem Road, Beaufort
E-mail: letters@islandpacket.com or letters@beaufortgazette.com.