To the Editor:

While I agree with Cecil GOP Precinct Chair Ted Carr’s statement in Cory Vaillancourt’s “Eastbound and down” article (The Smoky Mountain News, Nov. 14 edition, www.smokymountainnews.com/news/item/25944) that there is a distinct difference between voters who reside in a farming community and those who live in a town or city, I strongly disagree that farmers are the only ones who “think for themselves.” Also, if Fox News is the primary information source for many of them, that may preclude their independent thinking. 

I found Mr. Carr’s comparison of Waynesville (Democratic) voters to mindless rodents who “follow the leader off a cliff” to be unprofessional and highly offensive.    

As the official representative of his precinct, Mr. Carr should strive to promote civility between our two parties instead of making statements that only serve to polarize.

Furthermore, I encourage Mr. Carr to do a little more research on the lemming. According to what I read in a Nov. 26, 2014, Smithsonian Magazine article, the belief that lemmings throw themselves off cliffs is a popular myth that originated in “faked documentary footage” from the Disney Corporation. 

In closing, I commend Mr. Carr and his wife for all the hard work they did to get their Republican candidates elected on November 6. At the same time, I want to remind him that the Christian faith he so strongly professes to follow teaches winners to be humble and gracious in their victory. 

He needs to rethink his statements and issue an apology to the Democratic voters in Waynesville.

Myrna Campbell, Chair

Haywood County Democratic Party