In his Nov. 20 column about lockdowns, John Balentine continues his ranting against the measures Gov. Mills has taken to protect the health and safety of Maine’s citizens and visitors from the potential ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He proclaims that we don’t need a lockdown in Maine or presumably anywhere else in the country. This in the face of the virus surges that followed opening up businesses and easing personal restrictions in parts of the country (governed, by the way, by conservative Republican governors) after the virus spread seemed to be subsiding this past spring.

Yes, lockdowns suppress the economy and create severe financial hardships for businesses and people alike. But then, so too does the rapidly spreading virus that has infected over a quarter million U.S. residents and continues to expand in severity. Add the country’s increasing death toll and doing nothing (which seems to be the Trump administration’s approved course of action) does not inspire confidence in the populace.

Balentine’s solution to “trust the people to do the right thing and protect the vulnerable” is a pathetic response when the coronavirus hoax believers refuse to take even the simplest actions to protect themselves and others while protesting that such measures are violations of their constitutional rights.

Since nearly half of the voters in the recent election believe in and supported Trump, and since he is the primary source and super spreader of the unfounded hoax claims, how can any reasonable person believe Balentine’s solution is the only, let alone best, solution?

Warner W. Price
Harpswell