Ruth Larson: Gunstock staff should be proud of their season, despite politics

To The Daily Sun,

Whenever we think the Belknap County Delegation can’t get any worse, the bottom goes lower. The latest move, ousting Gunstock Area Commissioner Rusty McLear is but one example. The position was advertised by Chair Michael Sylvia as a five-year term, and he subsequently confirmed that upon inquiry. Sylvia’s recent reversal, entirely for political reasons, shows an eagerness to play hardball without any concern for either common decency or the will of the people.

The GAC continued the dirty work of the FreeStater & Co group (Sylvia, Norm Silber, Ray Howard, Paul Terry et al) at a chaotic GAC meeting Wednesday night, with the new majority voting to oust McLear. They even refused to extend the simple courtesy of allowing him to serve for a final month until the next commissioner is selected on April 12. The GAC then proceeded to elect Peter Ness (who would have been ousted last year except for his political protectors in the delegation) as chair, and the embattled David Strang (known for his secession from the State of New Hampshire) as vice chair. We all then watched, and watched, and watched as Ness demonstrated an astonishing combination of arrogance and incompetence running the meeting, badgering Gunstock management for hours, and repeatedly excluding Commissioner Gary Kiedaisch from consideration. We were also treated to Strang touting the letter of the law (although clearly not the spirit) when rejecting the offered compromise regarding MCLear. The same man who absolved himself of any loyalty to the state of NH and no longer considers himself a citizen nevertheless took an oath to uphold the state constitution. Those actions he considers no problem, but a legal technicality reigns supreme.

Meanwhile, seated in the front row were two of our secessionist representatives (Sylvia and Terry), with a third (Howard) behind them. In his defense, Sylvia at least is no hypocrite and doesn’t pretend to love the United States. While Terry and Howard piously stood and placed their hands over where their hearts should be and recited the Pledge of Allegiance, Sylvia stood still with his hands down, his lips not moving.

How much more damage these extremist delegation members can do before they are voted out remains to be seen. And whether Gunstock will survive in recognizable form is also an open question. It feels unfair to ask and even beg the senior management team at Gunstock to stick it out with the hope of better times to come, but they should know that their hard work and dedication have paid off. They have paid off with the fantastic financial results over the last two years. The false claims of mismanagement are belied by Gunstock turning over $250,000 to the county out of profits last year, with $350,000 expected this year. Most important of all, the work of the Gunstock team, including senior management and all staff, has paid off with the deep appreciation and fierce loyalty felt towards them by the public.

For now, however, fasten your seat belts, because it’s a very rocky road ahead.

Ruth Larson

Alton