Later in the poem, he says:

. . . If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, . . .

It would behoove us to keep these principles in mind as we consider the various issues that come before the board of commissioners.

Lynn Sprague, director of Agricultural Economic Development in Polk County, has done a tremendous job for this county. Look at the number of new farmers selling their products at the various farmers- markets.

Feel the momentum and sense of community when you talk to the people growing the food that you eat. Many of us have attended classes at the ag center to learn more about forestry, gardening, planting, growing and various other topics of interest.

When I heard that he was leaving for another job, I was shocked and saddened. I wish Lynn well in his new position and I hope that Polk County replaces him with another spark-plug type leader.

I have talked with each of the accused commissioners, and I have heard the facts. I have talked with them individually, and separately – not in a group. Their statements “ring true” and are based on the actual facts. These Republican commissioners did not “run Lynn out of town!”

Unfortunately, when I read a letter sent by a disgruntled Renee McDermott, a former commissioner, concerning Lynn Sprague, I was disappointed to see the vitriol aimed at the Republican commissioners. I would say that she “just doesn’t get it.”

I appears that, without any facts, she can make statements that she knows to be untrue. She shows that she is out of touch with the will of the majority of Polk County constituents. She makes these statements, obviously, for political reasons – that is unfortunate.

Don’t believe everything you read in the letters to the editor in newspapers or emails you receive. Seek out the facts. Attend the commissioner meetings.

Do your own homework. Base your beliefs on facts, not on the emotions surrounding the issues.

– Ed Breedlove, Tryon