Barbara Bachmeier's exclusion from the Republican primary will prevent the east side of town from having a real fighter who has her heart in the right place and the experience to back it up.

After watching the retired lieutenant colonel toe the line in a meeting with the mayor over creek placement and whether Muldoon will have a town square park or strip malls at the old greenhouse property, and seeing how organized and well spoken she is in all her dealing, it is a real pity that she will probably not get to run against Gabrielle LeDoux this time.

It would have been a great race with hot debates, with the big difference being the big oil tax rollback, which Bachmeier is not in favor of. Now folks concerned about the rollback will only have the Democrat Hal Gazaway as a choice.

Judging from what many of my Republican friends are saying about the tax rollback, I suspect we may see a lot of crossing over this election season. It seems Veco is back with a new mask.

Stu Grenier

Muldoon