Investigating a Tragedy

When Benjamin Sutherland, an eighteen-year-old high school graduate, fell thirty feet from the rigging of the sailing vessel Alabama on a calm day in July two thousand six and later died from his injuries, the Coast Guard launched an investigation into what had happened and what, if anything, could have prevented the tragedy.

In a careful and thorough report, the service now has concluded that no violations of Coast Guard rules occurred.

By now most of my friends and neighbors know that I’m on the county charter commission. They frequently ask: “Well, what’s going on?” And I try to explain. Since many of you may be asking the same question, here is one answer. I need to stress that I am speaking for myself and not the full commission, although I am confident that at least some of my views are shared by my colleagues.

The commission came into existence after the November 2006 election. We had three fundamental questions to answer:

Bring Your Own

Editors, Vineyard Gazette:

If you would like a drink with your meal in a Vineyard Haven restaurant, you can do that now.

Why risk the possibility of losing control of the way our quiet, safe town develops by voting to serve beer and wine.

Once Tisbury is not dry, it is not dry forever.

After you vote on April 15 to keep Tisbury dry, you can take your beer or wine with you and go to dinner in many of our local restaurants.

Shirley Kennedy

Vineyard Haven

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County Charter: Good Lessons From Past

Sadly, the public has shown little interest so far in the work of the Dukes County Charter Study Commission. Part of the reason may be the commission itself, which has spent a good deal of time in the past year tangled in its own process, although perhaps not hopelessly so.

The study group still has the chance to deliver what voters wanted in the first place when they elected the commission fifteen months ago: a thoughtful, cogent report on the state of county government and any recommendations for change.

Private Use of Public Space

The use of prominent public places in Oak Bluffs for private profit is legitimate cause for concern.

The most serious example is the shanghaiing of Ocean Park, the oceanfront jewel among town parks, for a privately backed performance of the Boston Pops.

Island Songlines

Picturesque snow quieted the Island a week ago, a reminder of how long, dark and lonely the wintertime can be here. Some say it’s a reason young people leave the Vineyard.

Then came Saturday with another musical potluck at the Chilmark Community Center. Not for the first time this winter, a few young men with a talent for music organized the night, showing they also have a talent for conjuring community warmth.